Saw this movie this weekend, and was struck by some of the lessons of the film that are related to the work of fighting racism.

Among them:

1) Those of us who are living out our unearned privilege are quite often oblivious to it. This isn’t just because we’re unaware. It’s quite clear that often we are offered evidence of a world biased unfairly in our favor that we simply choose to misinterpret.

2) If we are going to make a difference, if we are really going to “get it”, we have to strip ourselves of that privilege and walk alongside those who do not share our privilege.

3) What you’ve been taught could very well be untrue. Pay attention to the reality. Question everything.

4) When we take action that attempts to marginalize someone–anyone–as “other” or “less than”, we must not be surprised when we ourselves are harmed by our actions. (This is what we speak of in anti-racism work as “Racism³”–racism doesn’t only hurt people of color; ultimately, it destroys us all.)

But don’t take my word for it . . . see it for yourself . . . super-sad, but beautifully done.