“So You Call Yourself an Ally: 10 Things All ‘Allies’ Need to Know “by Jamie Utt
There are many isms we are fighting on the way to equality for all people. Whether is be racism, sexism, ageism, heterosexism, ableism, classism, or any other system of oppression, if we are not from the marginalized group, we are not going to have all the answers or do everything right. As Unitarian Universalists we want to “answer the call of love” and help change the world, but sometimes we have to start with ourselves. This article by Sam Dylan Finch has better ways to deal with being called out by marginalized people, because being defensive does not get us anywhere.
Namaste,
Cricket
In November of 2013, Jamie Utt wrote an article for Everyday Feminism called “So You Call Yourself an Ally: 10 Things All ‘Allies’ Need to Know” as an affirmative response to Mia Mckenzie’s September 2013 article on BGD called “No More ‘Allies'”. Both articles are reviews of the word ally and what it means in out culture today.
Here is the definition according to dictionary.com:
Being an ally is more than being a friend. Being an ally means standing up. Being an ally means a lot of things to a lot of people.
In this article from the UUA, presenter Tim Wise talks about how to be an ally and the road map to racial equality.
This article from Everyday Feminism, Jamie Utt describes things that an ally can do along with the idea that being an ally isn’t a self-proclaimed identity.
#standingonthesideoflove #blacklivesmatter
~Namaste
Cricket