Say Something to Incite Social Change

This past Monday was Martin Luther King Jr. Day.  Many of us had the day off of work and school and enjoyed some time to ourselves in honor of a man who helped to change history.  Dr. King's words have been repeated countless times since his assassination -- immortalized on the internet, spray-painted along bridges, quoted in other speeches, etc. 

"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about the things that matter."

~Martin Luther King Jr.

I have learned over the course of the years that the certain privileges I hold allow me many benefits in our society; and for a long time, this brought me shame.  It made me feel undeserving of what I may have had, knowing that because of an aspect of their identity, others were not afforded many of the opportunities as me. To better understand privilege and oppression and everyone’s unique experience and identity, I’ve engaged in workshops, classes, conversations, and self-reflection. I’ve looked for ways to be an ally, to help establish some sort of equilibrium in our culture.

But then I came to a realization: You can use your privilege to incite positive change.  

Most of us belong to one or more privileged groups. And we can use that privilege to make social inequities seen, heard, noticed, and challenged. We can use our privilege to fight for social equality. It is a lot less risky to Say Something when you see or hear someone being racist, classist, sexist, homophobic, etc., if you are a member of the same privileged group as the person perpetrating the oppression. It is far less dangerous, especially to your physical safety.
 

This is a photo of my real life computer, on my real-life desk at work.  Just a little reminder that I have placed in my eye-line every day.  I encourage you to feel inspired by the words of MLK Jr. and allow yourself to Say Something -- to help someone else, to work to end oppression and violence, and to incite social change.

Laura Penney is the Community Engagement Coordinator at Safe Passage and the project director of the Say Something Prevention Initiative.