Race does matter but let's not let color blind us

There is a reality check going viral on TikTok where people play the "put a finger down" game and share their wild, real-life experiences to shock others.

Questions are as followed: 

– Put a finger down if you have been called a racial slur.

– Put a finger down if you've been followed in a store unnecessarily.

– Put a finger down if someone has crossed the street in order to avoid passing you.

– Put a finger down if you've had someone clench their purse in an elevator with you.

– Put a finger down if you've had someone step off of an elevator to keep from riding with you.

– Put a finger down if you've been accused of not being able to afford something expensive.

– Put a finger down if you've had fear in your heart when being stopped by the police.

– Put a finger down if you've never been given a pass on a citation you deserved.

– Put a finger down if you have been stopped or detained by police for no valid reason.

– Put a finger down if you have been bullied solely because of your race.

– Put a finger down if you've been denied service solely because of the color of your skin.

– Put a finger down if you've ever had to teach your children how not to get killed by the police.

Those are very vital questions revealing the struggles black people face every day. The point of this reality check is to visualize "conceptual" racism. I think it is a very strong tool to pass on the message. However, I also fear that some may misinterpret this as only about racism. 

 
Those questions are also valid for other minorities discriminated based on their sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, physical appearance, or their religion just to name a few. What if you have a criminal record? What if you are a drug/alcohol addict? You would probably put your fingers down as well.

Racism exists and so as our privileges, but we shall not take this moment as an opportunity to create another wall among us. Rather, know that there are privileges and power structures built among us and we are all responsible to reconstruct the system to empower those who were ignored and had no voice. Empowerment is all about power-sharing and not power oppression. If we oppress other groups based on the privilege they have, we will just invite another form of racism.