Helping and Being Supportive of Others Without Acting Like a Savior

Conscious matters for our own evolution and for a revolution that liberates. No one likes being treated as if they are completely handicapped and always helpless, even when they find themselves in dire need. Among activist circles, nothing makes me cringe more than coming across white people whose sense of superiority leads them to treat other adults like children. In fact, I get irritated by white savior types for many reasons. One is because, were it not for systemic racism that oppresses blacks and other people of color, most people would not have a need to seek major help except in emergency situations. The other reason is because I recognize white people would be hypocrites to even suggest they have it all together as individuals or collectively. To be beneficiaries of unearned privileges and collude in any way with patriarchal white supremacy, are reasons enough that some people cannot claim to be beyond reproach. No one is perfect, so there’s that, too.

On the other hand, we’ve all inherited this system and none of us are responsible for the problems our ancestors created, whether within family dynamics that get passed across generations, or due to larger societal issues that existed before we were born. This does not mean we can escape having to deal with the fallout. When we know about things involving the dehumanization…