Hello Folks,
I hope this email finds you all well. It's been a while since I've sent a newsletter, and I wanted to just send a short note to stay in touch and say hello. It's unbelievable to watch what has happened in the world over the past three months. First the pandemic struck, forcing people to change their lives in ways that we probably didn't think possible in January:
a global shut down from flying? No more driving? Work from home? No going outside, seeing friends or family? Somehow the world got behind it, and undertook an austerity that previously would have seemed unimaginable. It hasn't been a kind experience for many (40 million lost jobs in America alone, and over a million deaths globally, we all know the numbers) but it made an impact that we will see unfold over the months and years to come.
And then George Floyd was murdered in Minneapolis. Eight minutes and forty-six seconds of the now former police office Derek Chauvin's knee on his neck, while three other police officers looked on. It was more than his life could take, and more than the world could take. In cities large and small in America, and around the globe, people exploded out from the lock-down's to scream and
cry for justice for black lives. I don't think that white people have felt so strongly for black and brown lives ever before, and I know that I am being educated in ways that are greatly impacting me. Lili has been instrumental in guiding me towards resources that are making me realize the importance of engaging in deep and personal anti-racist work, and that work starts with examining myself.
Dr. Gail Parker, who has recently come out with a book on race, trauma, and yoga, gave me my a some homework during a conversation we had on IG Live. She said, "You need to ask yourself, what does it feel like to be white? What is the experience of being a white person?" I had never thought of that question. I had thought about the injustices and discrimination I have seen towards black
people, towards my friends like the Urban Yogis, but I hadn't thought about what it felt like to walk around the world in white skin. A black person knows what it's like to be black, but white people tend to take whiteness for granted, and in contemplating her question, I realized that by feeling and examining that reality of mine, I could be ready to support black racial justice in a more honest and vulnerable way. Until you know yourself, you can't help others, even if the knowing
yourself is simply knowing the color of your skin.
How can I participate in conversations about race that are constructive and healing? How can I not be a part of a problem that I do not realize I am a part of? Gail suggested a powerful thought: why did white people not identify with the police officer who killed George Floyd? Black people all over the world felt George Floyd's death as though it happened to them because
of group consciousness. Black people identify with George Floyd and every black death, but white people can compartmentalize and say, "that's not me, that officer is not my people." But that officer is my people. And if I compartmentalize that person away from me, it's one of the ways that these horrible actions can continue, and that's not how we create a community of care. Seeing Derek Chauvin as other is the perfect excuse for me to stay quiet. But if I see him
as part of my body, then I can say, "No. That is not right. You cannot do that." So I can march as white person not only to support black lives, but to challenge the white individualism that contributes to violence.
In Yoga, we want one settled body, one settled nervous system, to connect with another. We are in control of our bodies, but not the bodies of others. We all know that self-knowledge is the name of the game in yoga, but sometimes we try to skip the hard problems and go straight to unity consciousness. However, the world is made up of an immense diversity of experience, of beings. The
purpose of yoga is two-fold: experience and liberation. Experience comes first, and part of that experience is to appreciate, love, be in awe of the diversity of expressions that the world offers, including the diversity of skin color. White-washing means to make everything the same. To pretend to see beyond. But it is that very pretending to see beyond that negates someone else's existence. So, see color. Acknowledge the color of people's skin. That's why black people say "black is
beautiful," because to see that black is beautiful is to affirm the existence of black lives. To say "I don't see color" is to deny that existence. That's one reason why black lives matter.
Love,
Eddie