We Need To Do Better.
Explicit acknowledgement matters.
Your emails, letters, voices, and support are powerful. And they all matter.
I’m a recent college graduate and just started my career. Over the past week I raised concerns to my company’s leadership about how the injustice in Palestine and Israel was being addressed. I can’t confidentially say that I wasn’t afraid of facing repercussions. However I’m grateful to be a part of a company that stands on its core values and took those concerns seriously. And for all of the leaders behind the scenes who were constantly in meetings with company leadership to ensure that the pain of all communities was heard and represented equally. Over the last few days, I virtually met colleagues from around the United States who showed their support in taking action and weren’t afraid to use their voices to educate people and speak out against wrong. This is something that isn’t always easy in a corporate environment.
The rise of Islamophobia and anti-Semitism has costed people their lives, including Wadea, a 6-year-old Palestinian-American in Chicago, and has left communities shaken. It is important to speak up for your coworkers right now more than ever and show them your support.
I’m a Muslim-American who was born and raised on the East Coast. Unfortunately I’ve been in positions of facing Islamophobic comments at a young age when I didn’t know how to speak up. I’ve had an elementary school principal ask me to recite the pledge of allegiance to him and be surprised when I “could say it without an accent.” I’ve had a high school principal ask me if I had a b*mb in my backpack and then hug me and say “you know I’m just kidding, right.” What about either of those statements was entertaining or something to joke about? Those adults knew exactly what they were doing. I’m glad growing up in a small town eventually taught me how to defend myself and my beliefs, and never be afraid to speak up against hate. Condescending comments like these fueled my confidence to put on a Hijab and be able to proudly identify as a Muslim-American.
Like many people who are looking for the words to express how they feel, the loss of innocent lives has been weighing heavy on my heart. I hope we can stop dehumanizing the friends and families of our colleagues who are suffering genocide and having their worlds ripped apart and lives taken from them. I hope we can stop history from repeating itself. I hope we can all use our voices from a place of privilege and power to stand up for what is right and give a voice to those who are silenced and suffering.
We need to do better.
