Black Lives Matter.

Dear Community,

I want to be clear—and to humbly acknowledge and be accountable to an important reality of my life and the work you see on this website. I am white, and I continue to benefit from white privilege as I move through my life and work.

My commitment to anti-racism work—specifically, defending and protecting Black life—has been and will remain a high priority in my life for the rest of my life. This is of critical importance to me.

To say, without hesitation, that Black Lives Matter is non-negotiable. I stand in solidarity with The Movement for Black Lives; and I am deeply committed to uplifting those Black lives who are especially marginalized.

Black disabled lives matter. Black trans lives matter. Black incarcerated people matter. Black children matter. Black elders matter. Black life is undeniably, irreplacably precious.

Below, I have shared my commitments to the Movement for Black Lives. This list is not exhaustive, and is not meant to limit the ways in which I show up in the future. It is not intended to garner praise, but to hold me accountable and to inspire you (if you are white) to stretch your imagination in how we can collectively work toward Black liberation.

May we all be free,
Christy

Commitments in my Anti-Racism Praxis

• I have established monthly donations to The Loveland Foundation and to National Bail Out.

  About Loveland Foundation:

  “Loveland Foundation is committed to showing up for communities of color in unique and powerful ways, with a particular focus on Black women and girls. Our resources and initiatives are collaborative and they prioritize opportunity, access, validation, and healing. We are becoming the ones we’ve been waiting for.”

  About National Bail Out:

  “The National Bail Out collective is a Black-led and Black-centered collective of abolitionist organizers, lawyers and activists building a community-based movement to support our folks and end systems of pretrial detention and ultimately mass incarceration. We are people who have been impacted by cages — either by being in them ourselves or witnessing our families and loved ones be encaged. We are queer, trans, young, elder, and immigrant.”

• I commit to amplifying Black voices and Black wisdom on my channels: in my newsletter, on my Instagram page, and beyond. If you are a Black person in the self-care space, and would like to be featured or highlighted, please email me: christy@christytending.com. For guests of my podcast, I commit to including a majority (with a goal of two-thirds) BIPOC guests on my show. I pay guests in order to honor their time and energy. (Note: I very rarely accept unsolicited podcast pitches. My show is booked with guests through November 2020.)
• I commit to at least 2-4 hours of personal education and anti-racism work each week. I commit to financially compensating the Black educators from whom I am learning. Currently, I am learning from Leesa Renee Hall; Rachel Cargle; Aja Barber; and Sonya Renee Taylor.
• I commit to calling in/out the white people in my life and the institutions to which I belong. And to providing resources; being a sounding board; and/or answering questions that white folks have (as appropriate) in order to reduce the emotional/resource/time burden that is often disproportionately given to Black people (particularly to Black women and femmes). I commit to having these conversations in my family, my community, and with my students where appropriate, while acknowledging that I am not an anti-racism teacher.
• I commit to showing up, in person, to street protests in support of the Movement for Black Lives—and I commit to organizing other white folks to join me in being a co-conspirator for the liberation of Black people. In these contexts, I commit to following Black leadership and assuming greater risk when asked. I commit to up-skilling other white people as a direct action trainer (when possible and appropriate) so that they are better equipped to take risks in defense of Black life.
• I commit to being accountable and to repairing any harm I cause. I am accountable for following through on the work I have assigned myself here, as well as for the impact of my words and actions (intentional or otherwise). If I make a mistake, I will listen to the people I have harmed, and commit to making amends in the manner that feels appropriate to them. I commit to cleaning up my messes without self-pity, and with gratitude for the time and energy it took to help me to grow.
• I commit to treating this work with respect and diligence for the long haul. I commit to being teachable; to remaining patient with myself and others; to de-centering myself in the process; to embracing discomfort; and to leveraging my skills and privilege for our collective liberation. I recognize and embrace this as essential lifelong work, so long as I benefit from white privilege. I acknowledge what I do is necessary, and that it will never be enough.

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Note: This is a living document that will be updated as my learnings and commitments evolve, as they must. I welcome any feedback on any of this. Especially if you are Black, please do not hesitate to reach out to me via email: christy@christytending.com.