I don’t often talk publicly or post about diversity or allyship. If I do, it’s to repost something on twitter or insta. I don’t usually speak up, for a few reasons. One, I often don’t see it as my place, and the world doesn’t need more white voices telling people what to do. Two, I feel like I’m still learning so much that I feel odd about putting my own ideas out there. And finally, this is serious stuff, and putting something on my own youtube channel adds a level of ‘self-promotion’ that I feel uncomfortable about.

In the end, I decided to go for it with the idea that I can be honest and open about the fact that I’m learning, keep the self promotion to a minimum, and try to bring my own perspective. I’m not planning to talk about the experience of racism, because I will never know what that is. I have never been discriminated against because of my skin color, and likely I never will be. However, what I do know about is the lived experience of diversity.

Wokeism and Speaking out

The thing is, I often find that many “woke” people are quick to point out the tiniest flaws in the world around them, while their actual lived experience is not particularly diverse or inclusive. I’m not going to point fingers and say that we all need perfectly diverse environments at all times. Neither do I want to say that being woke is not good. What I mean is that everyone of privilege has a lot to learn and understanding diversity on a practical, present, and actual level is a whole other conversation.

That’s the conversation I want to have with these vlogs, and that’s why I decided to make them. I hope you will find them thought-provoking, and please feel free to engage in the discussion respectfully.