Racism
Boogie
Heaven Host
I nearly put this in Hell as I'm so upset and angry. But I feel in need of advice and support.
A person in a charity I support, go to meetings, fundraise for etc shared a terrible, probably illegal - racist post. They've done it several times before but none as bad as this.
I taught asylum seekers' children for years and their vile words are talking about those dear, special souls. People who were ripped from everything they knew, learned a new language and fitted in with their new classmates quickly and with admirable, quiet grace.
I was brought up in 1960s South Africa and know racism up front and personal, including my Dad being in trouble with the police many times for breaking their racist laws.
So this isn't 'political' for me, it's highly personal.
I have 'unfriended' the person on Facebook but I can't unsee the things they shared. I'm not sure what to do next. It's an excellent charity which does brilliant work, local and international.
I saw it this morning but I'm still shaking with anger.
Slightly edited at @Boogie 's request
A person in a charity I support, go to meetings, fundraise for etc shared a terrible, probably illegal - racist post. They've done it several times before but none as bad as this.
I taught asylum seekers' children for years and their vile words are talking about those dear, special souls. People who were ripped from everything they knew, learned a new language and fitted in with their new classmates quickly and with admirable, quiet grace.
I was brought up in 1960s South Africa and know racism up front and personal, including my Dad being in trouble with the police many times for breaking their racist laws.
So this isn't 'political' for me, it's highly personal.
I have 'unfriended' the person on Facebook but I can't unsee the things they shared. I'm not sure what to do next. It's an excellent charity which does brilliant work, local and international.
I saw it this morning but I'm still shaking with anger.
Slightly edited at @Boogie 's request
Comments
They know my position on race as I've talked about missing my multi-racial town up North. It's the only thing I miss here in rural (exceedingly white) Somerset.
I think @Sarasa is right, and you should let the charity know.
I have more difficulty with a friend (former colleague) who is around 15 years older than me. We meet up for a walk about once a month. Since having a stroke a few years ago her views have become rather more “unfiltered” and have been shaped by her experience of her son’s very messy divorce from a woman of another nationality. I have a very diverse caseload and also go to a fairly diverse church, and regularly find her comments offensive, but she has had a difficult time recently and few close friends, and I don’t want to abandon her. I tend to say “I’m sorry but I really don’t think that’s true - we’ll have to agree to differ” (or something similar) and start talking about a completely different topic.
But others are anti-immigrant, anti support for the poor, unemployed, anti-woke, anti-first Australians. She on-posts "Jacinta Speaks For Me" posts.
I haven't blocked her, but I am ignoring notifications of her posts.
Not as disturbing as your situation, but nevertheless uncomfortable.
I have the summer to think about this. The next meeting I can attend is mid September.
Today I'm reporting them to the charity.
Our core values are front and centre of all we do "Service, fellowship, diversity, integrity, and leadership."
How can they be a member when their beliefs are so at odds with this?
It's confusing, isn't it?
My problem is, I know the cost of doing this, having seem my parents fight it daily in South Africa. (We were a white, privileged - 'tho poor - family)
One poem in particular was about George Floyd. It brings tears to my eyes. But I'm heartened that there are poets in white, privileged rural Somerset who write and read such amazing, challenging work.
This is what I said in the email -
Dear .....… ,
I am a member of ........... and I have a complaint against our chair ....... ........
S/he has made several racist remarks during meetings whilst s/he was an ordinary member - and I have ignored them.
Now that s/he's chair I find that can't ignore them. S/he is bringing the charity into disrepute.
The final straw came with a Facebook post s/he shared. It's terrible and probably illegal.
I was brought up in 1960s South Africa and know racism up front and personal, including my Dad being in trouble with the police for breaking the racist laws. I discovered that you can't fight racism without much personal cost. So I would be grateful if my complaint is kept entirely anonymous.
I taught asylum seekers' children for years and _____’s vile words are talking about those dear, special souls. People who were ripped from everything they knew, learned a new language and fitted in with their new classmates quickly and with admirable, quiet grace.
I am going to resign my local membership of the local ....... and become a Direct Member, continuing to work for all our incredible causes, and remembering our core values: service, fellowship, diversity, integrity, and leadership.
I have attached a screenshot of the post.
Kind Regards
........ .........
@Lamb Chopped I'm not afraid to speak to them directly, not at all. But I am concerned about the fallout for family and community. So I'm going through official channels and hoping they enact their (very robust) anti racism policy.
(ETA to remove name poster had missed when anonymising, DT)
My brother lives in rural Shropshire, which was once a bastion of UKippery, and I had much the same feelings when returning to Kent...
P.S. As others have said, well done @Boogie.
(Removal from office and the charity imo)
You all helped me.
What is it with rural England and racism?
(Hosts, possibly you'd now like to move this thread as it becomes more purgatorial?)
Amen! Prayers ascending!
This week I'm spending a day with a delightful person who is both a COE clergy person and a Sikh. I have church colleagues who just cannot see this is possible. They would exclude LGBT folk as well. In other ways they are loving and kind. I'm not sure what to say to them except to emphasise the fruits of the Spirit.
We stopped for lunch at an idyllic country pub in a Norfolk village. Mt friends had left their 10 year old daughter with relatives and as it was the first time they’d been away without her, they wanted to check that all was OK back in London, they waited outside to phone home while I went into the pub to get the drinks in. )Yes, I know that’s out of character).
The landlady of the pub was charming, friendly and very chatty. The moment my friends walked in, her attitude change completely and she became very frosty. She took our food orders without saying a word.
After we’d finished, she came to take our plates. G, being a polite sort of bloke, smiled and said “thankyou, that was delicious”. The way the landlady glared at him you’d have thought he’d just pulled a knife on her.
It had been a very long time since I’d seen anyone react like that to a black person (when I was a child, there were a few elderly people who would behave like that), but then again, these were probably the first black people who had ever been seen in the village
The former. I can give a link to his thoughtful book about his faith journey if you would like. The Sikh community appear very accepting of him.
I’m glad they’re accepting, and I’m sure it’s very the result of a very thoughtful journey. That said, skepticism about how it’s possible doesn’t seem like an unreasonable response. To the contrary, it seems very reasonable to at least wonder and question.
It doesn’t seem like an inherently incompatible belief system.
Of course, I’m no expert, and my understanding may make that clear.
Our older daughter, aged less than 2, I think, first saw a black man in a shop in Dunfermline - not a very multi-racial place fifty years ago. She stared at him with big eyes. He looked back, smiled and laughed. Then we all laughed. It was a lovely moment and I think we all felt the same way - we had connected.
Thus the visit. It may be something J, S my Sikh friend, and I pray about.