When I was a new immigrant to this country, I was the only girl of Korean descent in the elementary school that I attended in #Bakersfield, California.There was a bully named Andrea who used to slap my face regularly.I told my family about this and Marilyn, from our sponsoring American family, started coaching me with my limited English skills and told me the next time it happened, I should look at Andrea in the face and say "Stop it!" And so I did.But it didn't work.
So the next thing I knew, Marilyn accompanied me to school & asked me "Where's Andrea?" I pointed her out & witnessed Marilyn going over to talk to Andrea & telling her in no uncertain terms that she was to stop slapping me.
It worked. Andrea heard Marilyn loud and clear. Even though I was different, I mattered.
If someone had said to Marilyn "But what about Andrea? Doesn't she matter too?" Marilyn probably would have said "Of course she matters. But I'm here not because someone is slapping Andrea. I'm here because Jenny is being slapped. And I'm not going to not do or say anything about that." I think that when a nation has a long-standing track record of killing unarmed Black people, it is not illogical for someone witnessing that to speak up. And when the witness stands to speak, they may say something like "Stop it!" Or a collective community of witnesses may say it another way, like #BlackLivesMatter
To me, those three words don't mean that other lives don't matter. Because of course Jenny matters & Andrea matters too. This great nation protects the right for Marilyn to speak up and get involved & it protects a collective group of like-minded & concerned witnesses to stand together ... to state the case and shine light on matters of importance.
(I am re-posting today, this story of mine which I originally posted on July 12, 2016. #IStandWithKaepernick )
Recent Comments