Take these broken wings and learn to fly

Hi everyone! What a year it has been!
First the horror of being amongst the Australian bushfires at the start of 2020, then the unexpected corona virus sweeping across the world and now the Black Lives Matter movement is taking place. What a time in history we are part of! I hope everything changes for the better.

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I have refrained from posting on Instagram for a while, out of respect for the Black Lives Matter movement. To tell you the truth, I am absolutely horrified that there is so much police violence and brutality towards black people. Learning of the murder of George Floyd and other people across the world by police has left many people feeling a range of emotions: anger, fear, hurt. I am left feeling incredibly sad by this, I can't watch the news without tearing up. I guess I have been ignorant in not realising that such ferocious racism has been happening around the world including against Australia's first people - the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community. It makes me worry for my own students who are from various cultures that they may grow up to face such racism and violence. I am hopeful that governments across the world create and enforce laws that protect black people.

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This matter was brought home to me when I was watching Elvis' That's The Way It Is concert film yesterday. As he sang 'In the Ghetto', I thought of other songs like The Beatles' 'Blackbird' and the Rolling Stones' 'Sweet Black Angel' and how the issue of racism was sung about over 50 years ago and yet it still prevails. 




 I'm certain that this issue will remain in our thoughts as we learn more and more through research and the news. I am hopeful that with the amount of protests, donations and growing awareness around racism, things can only get better.

What are your thoughts about what is happening in the world at the moment?

Comments

  1. Vix09 June, 2020

    Hello, Jess. I'm surprised that you weren't aware of the horrific racism in our first world countries.

    The Eighties in the UK were particularly bad. Coming from a multi-cultural area I had black and Asian friends and saw at first hand how they were treated differently to my white friends. We'd go to nightclubs, I'd get in and they'd be refused entrance at the door, they'd be told that jobs were already taken when they turned up for an interview and subjected to stop and searches in the street by the police. If I was out on a date with a non-white boyfriend we'd often be refused a drink in a bar or I'd be spat at for being a "traitor".

    Although not to the extent of the USA, there's been several high profile cases of black men dying in police custody here in the UK. In 2010 the country was subjected to several weeks of rioting following a police shooting. In football many of our black players are racially abused when they play in tournaments at both home and abroad. At one point last year the national team refused to continue playing a game in Eastern Europe until a group of pro-Nazi sympathisers were ejected from the stadium, such was the extent of the abuse. I swear things are getting worse since Brexit as many of the poeple who voted for the hateful thing did so because they wanted immigration to cease.

    Educate yourself as much as you can, ask black friends how you can help, sign petitions, go on marches and rallies (if & when social distancing allows) and stand up to people who share hateful racist views in person or online.

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    Replies
    1. Jess 09 June, 2020

      Thanks for sharing your thoughts and experiences, Vix.
      This is a important time in history where people are educating themselves and becoming much more aware of racism and how it is leading to people dying. Surely governments have to make changes, I cannot fathom any reason not to. X

      Delete
  2. Polyester Princess09 June, 2020

    It is unbearably sad that racism is still ongoing after all this time. What's more, I strongly feel that things have been getting worse instead of better. I've always stood up to racist tendencies, and have been on many a march against racism back in the 1980s. Nowadays, I prefer to show my support in other ways, although I admit to feeling a bit powerless and confused as to how I can actually be of any help. I think that you as a teacher are in a powerful and important position, as educating tomorrow's adults is the first step to eradicate racism and create a society based on equality. xxx

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    1. Jess 09 June, 2020

      Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Ann.

      I'm sure many people are feeling lost right now as to how to help and are making choices such as donating, protesting, educating themselves or/and having conversations with friends/family. X

      Delete

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