Fed up with ridiculous token sentiments

[iamadalek2]

Rant alert! AIBU to be fed up with the nonsense going on around me. First it was "Be Kind" on profiles, replaced by mad dashes to Tesco to grab every bog roll in sight (leaving the vulnerable without) to the 8pm clapping including tears, trombones and other ridiculous themes that actually do not help the nhs, to bending on one knee tonight in our homes. Again,nice sentiment but what will it actually achieve? Absolutely Nothing except flood social media with "proof" that we are nice people. Pics of people clapping for nhs and now lots of bending on knees. Surely there are more constructive ways of dealing with serious issues than this?

Actually I don’t think she is being unkind or insulting anyone. It’s evident that many of the people on this thread are ignorant of the blended knee protest and Kaeperrnick’s ban from the NFL. That’s not being rude it’s just stating a fact.

*bended not blended. That would be much worse

@sixthtimelucky I know about the history of the gesture, where it's come from and why it's important. My point was to articulate discomfort about it being used as an empty gesture by people who don't understand it, but are jumping on a bandwagon because it's a fashionable cause, rather than a genuine desire to express solidarity. I've formed that view on the basis of feedback from black women in my wider network, who have said that they would rather than white allies donate financially.

the clapping started in countries in REAL lockdown. It was a thank you, a way to cheer themselves up, to be in touch with their neighbours. It made sense.

We just copied them, we simply happened to have less restrictions. Some people were there for social media virtue signalling, others meant it. You could have been clapping AND doing other things on the side.

Bending the knee will make no difference for many. It will bring others to think, join movements or charities and try to make a difference at their own level.

You know what is worst that people joining the band wagon but trying to do something, even a tiny step? The ones doing nothing and laughing.

@CrazyTimesAreOccurring Taking a knee during the national anthem here in the US is actually a very political statement that precedes what happened to George Floyd. It’s a statement of protest that people get absolutely incensed abut because some white Americans care more about the flag/anthem than their fellow countrymen. Which I find abhorrent, but then I’m a transplant and didn’t grow up with it. My DH agrees with taking a knee, but FIL gets furious about it.

I agree. I don’t clap, or kneel or put a black square on my Instagram.

I am disgusted and angry about what happened to George Floyd. I appreciate the NHS but I don’t feel the need to shout about it.

What gets me annoyed most is the people doing this to be all virtuous. Just be kind without having to tell people you are being kind, appreciate the NHS without shouting about it and just don’t be racist - you don’t have to shout about it.

@MagentaRocks so what are you doing other than not joining in with some stuff?

The black screen thing is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard of. Do these people not realise the irony of announcing to the world that they’re going silent on social media? 🤦‍♀️ Be quiet by all means (thank God) but just do it quietly and reflect. Don’t do it for all the praise it’ll bring as it shows you don’t truly care and just want likes.

I agree and what I don't like is the fact that people join in and post whatever it is just because they've seen everyone else doing it and they think it makes them look bad not to. It's a very important issue but I can't help but wonder how many of the people posting black squares will think any more about it in a week or a month's time.

wonder how many of the people posting black squares will think any more about it in a week or a month's time.

well, as sad as it may be, the case of George Floyd is far from unique. It's not a bad thing that people wake up eventually, but many people didn't give a thought to all the ones before him. It just wasn't fashionable.

So pretty sure this will go away and they'll find another "cause".
Thankfully others won't, even if they are a small minority.

[quote TeaSoakedDisasterMagnet]@MagentaRocks so what are you doing other than not joining in with some stuff?[/quote]
Why do I need to explain what I might do? I have actually donated but I don’t go round telling people.

I read a lot about various issues including racism and follow certain people. I challenge people who have racist views and have gone through a disciplinary for one of my staff for making derogatory comments about a particular race.

Not clapping, kneeling, putting a black square on my Instagram does not mean I don’t care. I do small things that I hope will make a difference and I don’t need to tell the world I am not racist or that I appreciate the NHS. As an emergency services worker myself, who is still at work with reduced staff I can fully appreciate how hard it is for the NHS at the moment and in normal times as well.

This shows how fake public displays can be

junkee.com/influencers-black-lives-matter-content/256157

What concerns me is that nowadays the majority of people aren't racist at all - you, your friends, probably your families and they're all shocked and appalled by what's recently happened, but the people who are deeply racist, the ones who are a danger, are not going to change their minds because people are saying en masse that it's not ok.

I once dated a guy who turned on me because it came up in the getting to know each other conversation that I'd had a black boyfriend in the past. I won't repeat exactly what he said but it was along the lines of couldn't bear to be with me because of it. Then there was a pub in an area I lived in which was frequented by skin heads who liked to beat up gay or coloured people. The Indian boyfriend I had at the time was terrified of walking past it when they were there drinking. My concern is that nothing anyone says or any raising of awareness is going to change people like this who are dangerous and liable to abuse or even kill people and they need to be stopped before they commit such crimes.

What concerns me is that nowadays the majority of people aren't racist at all - you, your friends, probably your families and they're all shocked and appalled by what's recently happened, but the people who are deeply racist, the ones who are a danger, are not going to change their minds because people are saying en masse that it's not ok.

One thing that I have learned is that racism does not just consist of overt in-your-face violent discrimination. It's also entrenched micro-agressions that many people would never dream of 'counting' as being racist. And when you challenge them on this they often become very uncomfortable and defensive because they don't consider themselves to be racist.

A few years ago I worked near a city centre. At lunchtime it was quite common for a group of us to go out for lunch or for a quick trip round the shops. One of my colleagues in this group was black. One day her and I went into a department store to have a browse. She went to one side of the floor and I went to the other. We were both in formal business suits. Guess which one of us got tailed all the way round by a security guard - who wasn't even trying to be discreet? I was shocked at how matter of fact she was about it - not angry or embarrassed, just resigned to it. She thought it was funny that I was so naive. That was a wake-up call for me.

I have another friend who is married to a Mexican-American woman. They live in a very white area of the US. At social gatherings with the children, she always introduces herself as 'X and Y's Mom' because if she doesn't, then they assume that she's the nanny - simply because she's brown and her children do not look mixed race.

Look at the way two CNN journalists were treated - the black journalist was arrested live on air! The white journalist was allowed to carry on filming.

I am no fan of the trans-activist Munroe Bergdorf, but IMO her original statement about racism was bang-on. As a white woman it makes me uncomfortable because my default position is that I am not racist. I don't discriminate against people because of the colour of their skin. But it goes deeper than that. Being an ally also means recognising your position of privilege. And supporting the conversation without centring it on your experiences and everything that you are personally doing - which is why I am not a fan of the take the knee selfies that white people are posting from their own homes. As PP have explained - to do so as an ally and part of a wider street protest, or in solidarity with POC on your sports team at a public event - that's different because it is a powerful political statement. But a white woman in Stoke-On-Trent doing it in her living room and sticking it on FB just feels like attention seeking for all the wrong reasons.