Need a Solution, Try a Baby Step Instead
Walking in a Black Lives Matter march with my two boys and my niece in July 2020, as the country was in complete upheaval over George Floyd’s death.
Today, I have been reflecting on the one year anniversary of George Floyd’s death. The overwhelming feeling I have had is how impactful this tragedy was on our world. I was reading through a New York Times article this morning about the timeline of events since his death. The effect of his death is just immense. So widespread and impactful, it brought me to tears just reading it, just knowing how one thing can make such a difference. Honestly, it feels hopeful in some strange way, like you just never know what will change the course of our lives, even when things feel really hard or overwhelming.
According to the article, in the weeks following his death there were more than two dozen states who requested National Guard troops to help during protests- TWO DOZEN! That’s a lot of protests! And that doesn’t include all the peaceful protests that didn’t need troops. There were 160 symbols of the Confederacy renamed or taken down- 160! How were there still that many? There were protests around the world supporting Black Lives Matter and anti-racism- AROUND THE WORLD! White privilege became a well-known and commonly used term. Books on anti-racism skyrocketed to the top of the NYT Best Sellers list. Many many companies came out in support of anti-racist movements and begun acknowledging and addressing the systemic problems we face.
I know for me, my family and friends talked extensively about this tragedy, the protests, the Amy Cooper incident, and the other black deaths in the weeks that followed. It sparked a lot of debate and heated conversation about police brutality, defunding the police, systemic racism, and what is white privilege. I read books and watched films that I had never been interested in before. For the first time ever, I recognized Juneteenth and questioned the celebration of July 4th. It felt like a wake-up call to my very white, privileged, and insulated Vermont life.
I recall a lot of the conversation leading to finding solutions- what can be done- and that always made me angry, but I wasn’t sure why. Looking back, I think it was because that didn’t feel possible at that moment. It wasn’t about the solution yet, it was about processing what was happening. Plus, it is daunting to think of all the changes that need to occur to truly bring about human rights for everyone in this country and this world.
That said, this event was a leap in the right direction. This was a major wake-up call for so many of us! But leaps like this are few and far between. The rest of the time, there are steps, baby steps, even backward steps. If you seek to find a solution to systematic racism, or any problem really, you will find yourself lost in the chaos. I often make this mistake myself because finding solutions is so alluring- it sounds so cut and dry, so reasonable- when you have a problem, you want to change. I know many may disagree with me on this point, but hear me out.
When you seek to find a solution, you are really asking for a map to show you the way. But what I have found every time I go about life this way, is swirling thoughts, indecision, and frustration. Why can’t I figure this out?! Working harder and buckling down doesn’t help. Seeking to map it out, know the plan in advance and then execute it, doesn’t work. There are too many variables along the way. So, when you have a problem you want to address or change, how do you begin?
What has worked best for me is to simply make one step. There is no master plan or end goal, it’s simply one small step in the right direction. And then, you take another… and then another, and another. No matter how big or small, a problem is there for your growth and learning, which means you cannot know the exact solution until you go through it. As my mother-in-law would say, “It may be painful and incredibly difficult, but you are just going to have to ‘walk it out’.”
This event changed me. I will never forget watching that video. I am grateful for having experienced it and having my eyes open to the realities of our country. Most importantly though, on the one-year anniversary of George Floyd’s death, I feel grateful to be reminded that one thing, one event, one experience, can change the world. And in between the big things, there are a lot of baby steps. All of it, the big leaps and the small steps, are a part of the journey.
With love and gratitude,
Lindsay
Published: May 25, 2021
