What People Who Are White Can Do

In the days after the killing of George Floyd, as I scrolled through my Facebook feed after having watched the video of the man who is black being killed by a man who is a police officer who is not black, I read a question posed by a friend who is an activist and who is an academic and who is white. Her question was, “What are some suggestions for pandemic-friendly action steps to do something meaningful to address racial disparities across the spectrum of American life?” One answer is that all the time we can intentionally refer to all people as people first.

For some moral guidance, let’s start here. The Bible teaches “if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently.” (Galatians 6:1) The Qu’ran teaches that individuals who see an evil action should act to stop it, but if the circumstances are such to make interference impossible that the persons should speak out against the act, and further, that if the persons are unable to speak out against the act to hate it in their hearts. I do not know who was on the scene of George Floyd’s death, but there were individuals recording the killing, which works to speak out against it. They were also speaking directly to the officers. I don’t know why no one reached out to stop the police with their hands, although I’m fairly sure the risks of being shot, pepper-sprayed, and/or arrested were considered. I would like to have believed I would have approached the police officers if I had been there, knowing my whiteness could possibly preserve me. I definitely would have spoken out against the…