Saying what I have to say about Ahmaud Arbery’s lynching

I’ve been talking to leaders about the need to speak up as part of activism for black antiracism (not for antiblack racism). And while speaking is what I do, I don’t do a lot–OK, any–video messaging. I’m more of an in-person with folks speaker. But I do a lot of writing, too. So I gave this whole video thing a try:

Making an imperfect video is scary. I’m pretty sure someone—maybe you— will hear me say something that I didn’t mean that way, or maybe I did mean it but didn’t think it through fully. I will own that I did not, in fact, think this all through thoroughly. I weighed saying it, trusting in practice, and being prepared to repair. I hope I don’t cause more harm. And I really appreciate your feedback if you’re up for a dialogue.

Full transparency: I’m going to resist my impulse to clarify, correct, add more to or “do over” the video (which was shot with phone in what I thought was a steady hand). One video is never going to solve antiblack racism. Even all the videos in the world. The point is the ongoing practice in which we continue to “learn, unlearn and relearn” (AEA) how to show up whenever and however we can, including where we don’t typically (which for me, is social media, for instance).

That’s the real Alison in the black t-shirt with the PPT when I’m in a workshop, and this is also real Alison, both of me always doing my pre-work and still leaving things out, thinking things in the moment, making more sense to myself than I do others, trying and really hoping that some of the dialogue is helpful—not just to think about, but to do about.