From My Heart

I haven’t shared a new blog post in a week. Last week, I chose to mute my own content in order to really listen and take in the voices of the Black community, especially in the book world. 

I am not going to outline my feelings, because I think we can all agree that while we were aware of systemic racism in the United States, we didn’t know how deeply rooted it was in ourselves. I am frustrated and angry that systemic racism is so inherent in us (white people) that even though I have been aware of injustices, particularly in the publishing industry, I still had to learn about most of it last week, rather than experience it. A quote has been floating around about how it’s a privilege to learn about racism rather than experience it. While I’ve been on a journey to consciously choose to read books by more non-white authors, I haven’t done nearly a good enough job. 

While the argument can be made that it’s natural to gravitate toward our own likeness, I think there is something more deeply rooted that society hasn’t tried to break because we, as white people, we’re benefitting from it.

When I think about some of the best books I’ve read, it’s always because they taught me something. i truly felt like I walked in another person’s shoes. Back in February of 2019, I read On the Come Up by Angie Thomas and couldn’t find the words to express what I felt reading that book in what I felt was the “appropriate way.” So I didn’t say anything. I took a pretty picture, gave it five stars, and didn’t even try to write out my thoughts.

In actuality, On the Come Up was one of the first books I read about a Black person that wasn’t a trauma story. It felt real and raw, a true account of what it’s like to be a Black teenage girl growing up in a Black neighborhood. Remember, it was 2019 when i read it. A year ago. I shared my thoughts privately, excited to talk about this with others who read it. But I didn’t share those thoughts publicly on my platform.

I was scared. And while it’s embarrassing to admit that, it will help to explain how I’m going to actively change this space to allow imperfection, mistakes, and honesty. I can’t talk about books without those things moving forward. Specificty is important. I knew better and I know better.

On Read & Wright you can expect to see me expanding my choices in my reading material, what companies I am supporting, and reaching to be more specific in my reviews. I never wanted to touch on race, feeling that it wasn’t my place as a white woman to comment. I know now that stance has contributed to the erasure of beautiful stories and cultures in the content I consume;. It’s a systemic problem, but it can only be solved from within us as individuals. 

While I am returning to producing my own content, it didn’t feel right to once again avoid making a statement on where I stand. Black lives, stories, authors, books, matter. I’m deeply sorry if I ever hurt you or made you and your stories feel unwelcome. I hope that everyone feels welcome here on Read & Wright. It is my creative lifeline, something I am so happy to have and I’m so happy to have you here.