Talking about racism violates community standards???

I had the brilliant idea I would offer racism awareness/antiracism workshops for white womyn especially, here in my daughter’s neighborhood, as it looks like I’ll be stuck here for a few more weeks. And as I witness gentrification escalating in her neighborhood over the past two decades.

Plus she has a huge deck and a backyard where 5 or 6 of us could meet staying 6 feet away and still be able to communicate.

            So I went on nextdoor, the neighborhood internet site, and posted an announcement for gathering together today.

            And then I checked out what the neighbors were talking/posting about. And of course, given my commitment to challenging bigotry wherever it rears its ugly head, I had to respond. I wish I would have copied my exact responses here because now I have to depend on my faulty memory to recount how I just lost my nextdoor status and got knocked off the good neighbor list.

            The first thing I responded to was a u.s.ofa. as “melting pot” comment someone made. I stated clearly that the u.s. is/was only a ‘melting pot’ for white Europeans and Russians who ‘gave up’ their language, culture, customs to ‘fit in’.

            The writer then responded that she knew we weren’t yet a melting pot but meant she was looking forward to that day.

            I had to respond that it is great she understood we hadn't and didn’t have a melting pot but I am concerned as I believe we are still falsely teaching the melting pot as an aspect of the u.s. society both historically and presently to our children and around the world. Then I went on to say something like I’m not so sure having the melting pot for our future is such a great goal: maybe a better goal is the dismantling (maybe I said smashing) of racism, sexism, all the isms that promote a society where domination and subjugation for the sake of acquiring material wealth reigns while creating instead a society that honors and protects humans and holds sacred all life on the planet.

            I’m not sure if that is what got me kicked off – I’m still waiting to hear from the administrators. I don’t even want to imagine it.

            I couldn’t help but post one more response to yet another discussion. This one started with someone complaining about the "Black" in Black Lives Matter, saying 'they' should instead use African-amerikkkan (my spelling…) Lives Matter. The discussion deteriorated into yet again white people showing their colors, thinking they get to dictate to Black people every fuckin thing.

            I didn’t say that but I did say: “Dearest white people: white people no longer get to decide what to call Black people nor to tell Black people what to call themselves. The only thing we get to do is to listen, accept, and if we’re really trying to end racism, support the best we can.”

            Hmmmm – I’ve violated community standards. REALLY?

            I can only hope that posting my phone number in my workshop info was against community standards.

            Just in case, I’m posting this to facebook – we’ll see if they have the same community standards…

Making it more palatable for white people....NOT

There was a discussion on my daughter's next door list where white people were attempting to rename Black Lives Matter to something more palatable for white people. Of course, I had to jump into the conversation.

Shortly after posting the below paragraph, I found my account shut down do to violating 'community standards'.

Here is what I wrote: 

Dearest white people: white people no longer get to decide what we are going to call Black people nor what Black people are going to call themselves. We only get to listen, accept - and if we're really against racism, support. I would love to discuss this and other topics centering around racism/antiracism with especially white women although open to all.