Columbia University professor and Roosevelt Institute’s Dorian Warren, Rinku Sen from ColorLines.com, co-President of GlobalGrind.com Michael Skolnik, and Dave Zirin, sports editor for The Nation, join Melissa Harris-Perry for a discussion on how to be a good ally.
“The rights that you take for granted are not valid unless you fight for the same rights for others.” -Michael Skolnik
- Don’t demand that those you are supporting produce proof of the inequality they are working to resist.
- Do recognize that the shield of your privilege may blind you to the experience of others of injustice.
- Don’t offer up your relationship with a member of the marginalized group as evidence of your understanding.
- Do be open to learning and expanding your consciousness by listening more and talking less.
- Don’t see yourself as the Kevin Costner in Dances with Wolves. Or Tom Cruise in The Last Samari. You are not the savior riding to the rescue on a white horse. Do notice that you are joining a group of people who are already working to save themselves.
- Do realize the only requirement you need to enter ally-ship is a commitment to justice and human equality.