Jonah: Why did he shoot him?
Me: The bad man didn’t like him because he had black skin, and he didn’t like that he was trying to make things better for people with black skin.
And then, without missing a beat, my 7-year-old said to me, “But that won’t happen to us, right? Because we’re white.”
I stared at him, all pale skin and green eyes, and I prayed, “Lord please help him never fail to understand this. Don’t let him forget.”
And then I said, “That’s right, honey. Because you have white skin, no one is ever going to shoot you for having black skin. But because you have white skin, you need to speak out and say ‘Hey stop doing that!’ if anyone ever calls one of your friend Kenny or your cousin Jayce a bad name or treats THEM badly because THEY have black skin. Because some people might do that, and I want you to tell them “STOP!”
Jonah: I would never do that! I would never call someone a bad name or shoot them because they had dark skin!
***
There was more to our conversation, but even as we talked, all I could think was “My 7-year-old gets white privilege. My 7-year-old gets white privilege.” In his very innocent and basic way, he understood it, as a matter of fact, his very REACTION to the news of Martin Luther King Jr’s murder was a verbal confirmation that he understood, that such a murder would not befall HIM simply because he is WHITE.
***
Oh, if all white adults could be so sensitive. Whenever I post an article, meme, or video about racial justice on our Facebook page, I get white people commenting things like this, which was on an MLK “I have a dream quote” I posted yesterday:
“I have this dream for my four children who are white. It’s very sad that just because you are white you are considered racist.
Talk about judging someone on their skin color. It gets old real quick.”
I am sure your black fellow Americans would agree that being judged because of their skin color “gets old real quick.” White friends, we don’t know what it’s like to be black, or anything other than white. And comments like the above are NOT helpful. It’s not your fault if you were born white and it certainly does not mean you are a racist. But it DOES mean that no one is going to insult, demean, assault, or deter your progress because of the color of your skin.
What IS helpful is simply recognizing, admitting, and validating that.
What IS helpful is saying that it’s not okay. Admitting it doesn’t make you AT FAULT.
But denying it, well, it just might.
My 7-year-old with no filter had no trouble blurting it out…may we all be more child-like in our reactions on this issue.
Let’s honor Martin Luther King Jr’s dreams today by explaining them to OUR kids today, and explaining the God who wants equality for us ALL, the sin that caused this plan to go awry, and the SAVIOR that can set it back to rights again.
