Writing About Racial Injustice Is My Form of Protesting

Protesting comes in many shapes and forms and I’ve realized mine comes through writing.

Photo by Andrew Neel on Unsplash

Words can be like X-rays if you use them properly — they’ll go through anything. You read and you’re pierced.

— Aldous Huxley, Brave New World

Yesterday, I was hanging out with a group of friends when the topic of my writing came up in conversation. My friends were telling me about how my pieces on race really helped them to see outside of themselves. All of this took me by surprise because there are moments when I think that my pieces don’t do enough for what I’m advocating for. I speak about racial injustice and often make calls to action, but am I practicing what I preach?

Earlier that day, I saw two people on the sidewalk with Breonna Taylor signs up. Even months after the Black Lives Matter protest had ended, here there were two people advocating for justice and wanting people to be reminded that the system that allowed for Breonna Taylor to be killed inside her home was still in place. It made me wonder if I should be doing the same. Should I be out on the streets continuing to protest or was my writing on topics of racial injustice…