Opinion: Indignation Is Not Enough, You Have To Be Anti-Racist

It is urgent an education, institutions, and anti-racist action allow a social transformation. Change begins with individual behavior.

As African-American academic, politician, and activist Angela Davis point out: "In a racist society, it is not enough to be non-racist. We must be anti-racist."

Reading the story published by Semana about an Afro-descendant teacher and her two children, victims of racism in the municipality of Morcote in Boyacá, Colombia, causes chills. “They attacked us for belonging to the black and Afro-descendant population. Because of the pigmentation of our skin, we were attacked in all ways, to the point that my children were sexually abused,” denounced Kerlin Murillo.

I would like to think that it is a case that outrages the majority of the population, although the event itself within an educational institution already shows that racism is alive. Thus, it is not enough to be outraged by this type of racist act, which happens every day, many far from the media, from social networks, or with consequences that are not so visible, but also profound. It is necessary to commit to the anti-racist cause and, to that extent, work for social transformation.

Racism has multiple dimensions: individual, cultural, and institutional, and is completely embedded in today's societies. Precisely, assuming that racism is something of the past and that it is a minority, is a sample of the little knowledge that, in general, we have about the dimension of this problem. It is enough to see the comments on social networks, popular sayings, or the speeches of some far-right politicians to understand that it is not a hidden problem.

The concept of race is a human invention, which in American countries constitutes a legacy of the conquest. This was created to establish systems of domination and oppression based on physical characteristics. In this way, hierarchies of superiority were established, with its most macabre expression in the slavery of black people. However, the color of the skin and the so-called "race" have nothing to do with the abilities of the people and, much less, with their dignity and possession of rights.

However, processes such as those that occurred in Colombia in what has been called the "Regeneration" period did profound damage. It was a political project which it was promoted to point out the black and indigenous as undesirable, bad, ugly, or any negative attribute. This type of posture was replicated across the continent and took root in social imaginaries and public institutions. To exemplify this, a recent UNICEF report states that "African-American and Latino families are almost twice as likely to lack full plumbing than white families" in the United States. In this sense, racialized people are exposed to multiple forms of violence and countless reports and figures prove it.

We recommend you read: Migrant minors: discrimination, illness, and denial of their rights

The organization Dismantling Racism points out that several pathways allow racism, and its oppression, to flourish. Although it is a complex process, and this column would not be enough to explain it, among them is keeping quiet. On the one hand, that the oppressed should be silent, not talk about their history and "adapt to what is there." Meanwhile, "the dominant group must lie to themselves and others about their role in oppression, positioning themselves as blameless, passive (I didn't cause it), individual and not part of a larger system while ignoring conditioning and internal racist tapes (I'm not a racist, I'm a good white person)".

And this point is precisely what I intend to highlight. As African-American academic, politician, and activist Angela Davis point out: "In a racist society, it is not enough to be non-racist. We must be anti-racist." And this implies understanding that ordinary people also have a responsibility in the propagation of racism and the possibility of being agents of change. At this point, we need to recognize that in societies as unequal as Latin America, we enjoy privileges or experience vulnerabilities just because we were born in a place, with economic capacity or skin color.

Reject hate speech and propose alternative narratives; associate with or support organizations that work against racism and discrimination; require the institutions in which we work or study to have protocols against discrimination and racism; educate ourselves on anti-racism and learn about what people of color have to tell us; vote for committed people, and putting pressure on or demanding justice from public institutions are steps that we can all take.

It is also necessary to accept and recognize that, even without a conscious intention, we can be racist, because there are social imaginaries so widespread that it is necessary to point them out and reflect on them to eradicate them. And although reforms are necessary at the institutional level, the work begins at home. Although it seems to many of us that it is evident that each person has the same value and dignity due to the fact of being born, reality tells us that there are still differences in the value that is given to each life. That is why it is necessary to educate children to respect diversity and have critical thinking that allows them to identify hate speech.

I am 26 years old and it is hard for me to think that when my parents were born the Jim Crow system of racial segregation operated in the United States and was replicated, in a similar way, in various parts of the world. Just as today there is a social consensus on the unacceptability of Nazism or slavery, there must be no discrimination against people based on their color, religion, sexual orientation, or origin. That is why it is necessary that we not remain silent: that we take advantage of every opportunity we have to dismantle the racist speeches and acts around us.

Just this week, the first session of the Permanent Forum on People of African Descent, organized by the United Nations in Switzerland, has been taking place. In it, leaders and activists from around the world are talking about key issues for historical reparation and the fight against inequalities. It is a fundamental space for the development of effective policies against racism.