YES!! SAY IT LOUDER FOR THE PEOPLE IN THE BACK!! @la-saffron
As soon as I found out about the horrible things Jackson posted, I immediately flocked to tumblr thinking, surely other people are just as outraged as me? Surely the community of tumblr wouldn’t stand for this?
I expected to see countless posts chanting something along the lines of ‘JACKSON IS CANCELED’ or ‘The BLM movement has no place for racism, bigotry, sexism, AND antisemitism’. I expected comics and MLK quotes the like (AND YES, THAT IS A HYPERLINK TO WHAT I WAS EXPECTING TO SEE).
BUT NOPE. NOTHING. NADA.
SILENCE.
A deafening, all-telling silence.
I scrolled incessantly for 4 minutes through the BLM tag, which was at the time, trending at number one, before I finally stumbled upon the above post. Four minutes people. That’s a lot of scrolling.
It’s past 2 am here in NYC where I live and but I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep tonight. My fingers are shaking as I type this, broken-hearted tears pooling in my eyes, and I’ve never been so conflicted before in my life. It’s hard to say what hurts more and I know I try to refrain from getting political on my tumblr blog, but I know I will only regret this come morning if I don’t say my piece while the pain is still raw.
(@leelagranger I hope you forgive me for adding so much to your original post but I’d like to emphasize that I agree whole-heartedly with everything you said. I want to keep the momentum going by just building on the foundation you created.)
Firstly, I am OUTRAGED at how long it took me to found out what was going on. IT’S BEEN DAYS, DAYS, and I only found out about what transpired with DeSean Jackson now.
I have to highlight that I was not taking a break from social media these past few days. I was online all week, on Google, Tumblr, Facebook, Snapchat, etc. (save for instagram which I do not have for personal reasons). Something like this should have inspired social outrage, should have been the first story in my daily news feeds (yes, PLURAL), and it should have been trending on tumblr.
There was nothing. Nothing. I had absolutely no idea until a friend who I haven’t heard from in a while decided to TEXT ME AT 1 AM in the morning, ‘hey, uh are you aware about what’s been going on?’
No, I was not. My parents were not. My brother with social media accounts of his own was not. And if she hadn’t decided to send that text, who knows if we would have ever found out?
That realization alone is terrifying and that is why I’m outraged. Antisemitism is constantly being overlooked and brushed aside by everyone, not just the media. It’s not a ‘public concern’ headline, but rather a ‘that’s how things are, what a shame’ occasional local news story. And I’m sick of it.
Please do not misinterpret me.
This is not to take away any attention from the BLM movement. We’re at a pinnacle point in history where the society is being rocked to its core and people from all over the world are coming together to take a stand and demand for equality and social reform. As a female POC in the US, I have supported the movement since day one and have been trying to educate myself on police brutality and the untold history of systemic racism. As a Jew, I felt heard and understood for the first time in years because the injustices that the black community faced (and continue to face) mirror a lot of what me and my fellow Jews have faced throughout the course of history. A naive part of me even began to think we may actually do it this time. That this could be the momentum and determination needed to end not only racism, but all forms of discrimination on the basis of gender, sexual orientation, race, color, and religion for good.
Now more than ever I realize that is not the case.
Jews have been fierce supporters of the Civil Rights Movement from the very beginning. We have stood by your side because we understood the hate and injustices that you faced, because we know what it’s like to be discriminated against for absolutely no reason and what it’s like to suffer at the hands of ignorance and white supremacy.
We advocated and will continue to advocate for black lives because one form of bigotry does not invalidate another. Sexism does not triumph racism, racism does not triumph antisemitism, and vice versa. There is no hierarchy to social injustices experienced by marginalized groups and minorities.
We stood with you then and we stand with you now, but the question is, do you stand with us?
The silence in the media and news is like a brick to the face. It answers that question with a firm resounding no, you don’t, because if you truly did, then where are you now when we need you?
But even though I’m furious and heartbroken, unsure how I’ll sleep at all this weekend knowing that no matter how much I stand with and for others, I will always stand alone—I haven’t forsaken all hope yet.
! THIS IS A CALL FOR ACTION TO MY FELLOW BLM SUPPORTERS !
Please, educate yourselves on the historical roots of antisemitism and why it’s so important to call it out: x x x. On why it’s not the Neo-nazi’s and Fascist white supremacists that scare us, but rather stuff like this: x x x. There’s plenty other resources out there, don’t be limited by just the few links that I’ve listed, (just be prepared cause a lot of it ain’t pretty).
Don’t leave Jews and antisemitism out of the narrative!
The Black Lives Matter movement is all about fighting against hate and discrimination for all, therefore its our fight just as much as yours. Since this is not a fight that either of us can win alone, we’re asking you to fight for us while we fight for you.
At the very least, I ask that you reblog this post, and I ask this of both Jews and non-Jews alike. Spread the word, get this trending. Many of you harbor a greater presence on social media than me, so you can screenshot this and repost on other platforms all you like, I don’t care, I just want this to reach more people than the few hundred that follow me here. Some of my fellow Jews are beginning to speak up on Instagram as well, so I ask you to take a moment to listen and if you can, amplify their voices as well. It’s imperative that you do.
While there’s plenty more to say on this matter, I’m just going to leave this proverb here before I go:
Blowing out someone else’s candle will not make yours burn brighter, but bringing two candles together will.
~Signed, a scared and exhausted but nonetheless still hopeful Jew
