[Adventure] in Admitting I'm Racist

[Adventure 38]

I'm racist. 

It's impossible to have grown up in this society and culture and not have a single racist thought, feeling, opinion, or reaction. 

Don't get me wrong - I'm not a racist - I don't have intentional bias against anyone. But I am racist. Racial bias is ingrained in us by society from the moment we are born. Schools whitewash history, teaching very little true indigenous history and black history. Churches tend to portray Jesus as a white man instead of a man of Middle Eastern descent. They tend to gloss over the fact that Jesus was a refugee for part of his life.  Racism runs rampant in laws, policies, hiring practices, and the treatment of people of color. 

I don't believe that anyone is somehow lesser due to their skin color. I believe God creates all human beings equally; that we all deserve the same rights, treatment, pay, education, and opportunities. I believe in building a fair and equitable society. I strive every day to learn more about the histories and lived experiences of people of color; to recognize that the current system was built on the oppression of people of color and how I benefit from that system; and to recognize and reverse the biases I discover that I do hold. 

Just because I believe in equality and equity, I strive to speak up and stand up for the oppressed, and don't have any conscious bias against people of color doesn't mean some of my thoughts, feelings, or immediate reactions aren't racist. I still have work to do. I bet you do, too.