Week 9 - Madison Yn

Madison Yn

ASA002 A02

Week 9

Although politics wasn’t a frequent conversation my friends and I discussed, sometimes it was inevitable to mention it when social media and every news outlet would plaster the hashtag “#blacklivesmatter” on every post, tweet, article, etc. One of my friends would always mock the BLM movement by saying he believed “all lives mattered”. Being a japanese-american I thought he would at least recognize the significance of a movement that fought to empower a historically disenfranchised, disparaged community and dismantle the systematic injustices they experience. He argued that he wasn’t undermining the value of black lives, but he believed that everyone’s life had value and that the movement shouldn’t be exclusive to one community. At times I found his argument to be convincing and it engendered me to question the importance and the purpose of the BLM movement. Reading Santos Ramos’ “Building a Culture of Solidarity: Racial Discourse, Black Lives Matter, and Indigenous Social Justice”, helped address any confusions I might have deliberated over and enforced the importance of solidarity among people of color in a fashion that doesn’t eclipse the original founders and their struggles. The mechanics of cultural rhetoric were particularly informing in regards to BLM as organizers and allies struggle to differentiate the broad injustice of racism and the specific impact of structural racism on the black community. While people advocate for other minorities such as #Latinolivesmatter or #Asianamericanlivesmatter, it (possibly unintentionally) can overshadow those who spearheaded BLM and undermine the the specific institutional racism BLM battles. It’s also important that in solidarity, groups do not claim likeliness to BLM as it defeats the purpose of advocating for the rights of the black community. Solidarity is crucial in engendering positive change, but some efforts, while well-meaning, can be interpreted as co-opting the movement. Solidarity should be mindful and respectful of the movements people and can be portrayed in empathy and recognition. It can also be demonstrated in interrogating anti-blackness and investigating problems in one’s own community which can be greatly effective.

Question: Where do Asian Americans align on the “Black” and “White” societal spectrum? When and how is it appropriate for other marginalized communities to vocalize their struggles and injustices without subtracting traction from BLM?  

References:

Black Lives Matter. (2015, November 25). Retrieved November 19, 2017, from https://shadowproof.com/2015/11/25/over-1000-people-killed-by-police-since-the-beginning-of-2015/

Ramos, S. F. (2016, April 20). Building a Culture of Solidarity: Racial Discourse, Black Lives Matter, and Indigenous Social Justice. Retrieved November 17, 2017, fromhttp://enculturation.net/building-a-culture-of-solidarity