Thread by @abbysyarns

Have folks read this? I found it a really well-written piece that gets to the heart of why "racism" doesn't mean what many people think it does.

I feel like @SheWritesToLive does an incredible job answering questions people are *about* to ask, first.

medium.com/@shewritestoli…

I shared this article elseweb yesterday, and one person asked me how I could share it when I am obviously a white person -- am I saying I'm racist?

The answer is, basically, yes -- whether I want to be or not, because I benefit from all the structural aspects. [2/5]

The very first moment that this struck me was when I was a little kid, and I lived through a measles outbreak that killed a lot of my indigenous friends who had never had the chance to be vaccinated -- a thing that was just *assumed* for me as a white US-born person. [3/]5

Like, there's probably no greater privilege than simply "not dying," and having that be because of where you were born, who your parents are, what you look like. [4/]5

Then there's the time a friend asked me how I convince my friends of color I'm not racist.

I told her I've never even considered trying to do that.

You don't get to decide to not be racist if you're white. You can only decide to work to dismantle the system -- or not. [5/5]