Black History Month is a yearly celebration of achievements made by Black Americans, as well as recognizing and understanding how prominent their role is in the history and building of the United States. While listening to our Black peers and working to amplify their voices is important every day of the year, it is especially important to discuss this during Black History Month.
Many of us have probably seen some infographics being shared by friends and family on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. While this can be helpful in spreading awareness, it does not do much in the way of changing perspectives of being a strong ally. Yet, the solution is unclear to many. How can I be a strong ally to my Black friends during Black History Month? The answer is simple: help amplify Black voices.
Resharing another one of those pretty infographics to your Instagram story isn’t enough. What’s more important is sharing authentic stories and perspectives from our Black peers and Black friends. To be a true ally, we must actively work to amplify our Black friends’ voices. Here are 5 ways to do so.
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Educate ourselves. Our Black friends and peers are not our personal search engines. When there is an issue that we do not understand, we must do research on our own. If you are interested in hearing their opinion after you’ve educated yourself, you can have a productive conversation about certain issues if they’re open to it.
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Listen to their experiences. The best people to speak on Black issues are Black people. We must listen to our Black friends when they call out certain racist and discriminatory practices and behaviors. Support them by making them feel validated in their experiences with racism and discrimination instead of playing Devil’s advocate to their feelings.
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Do not speak over them. In order to amplify Black voices, we must not speak over them. We cannot silence our Black friends with our own opinions. We must listen to what they have to say and take their experiences and opinions seriously. The only people with authentic opinions and experiences with Black issues are Black people.
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Do not try to be a white savior. Our Black friends do not need to be saved. Many people try to help amplify their Black friends’ voices and are well-intentioned, but ultimately fall into a white savior mindset where they believe they can “save” Black people and gain praise and fulfillment from doing so. We should not expect praise for helping amplify Black voices. Making our world more equal is not grounds for praise, and being an ally costs nothing.
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Share their work/accomplishments. If any of your Black friends own and operate businesses, sell products, or create media such as art, music, writing, etc. it is important to share their creative spaces and work to help amplify their voices. Many great Black-owned businesses and Black artists and creatives continue to go unnoticed despite their great talents, so by sharing their work and purchasing from them, we can help be better allies.
Right now, it is absolutely imperative to uplift our Black friends’ voices. Even once February is over and Black History Month ends, we must continue to help amplify our Black friends’ voices and not speak over them. While Black History Month may end when February is over, the time to help amplify Black voices never will.