Breaking the Silence
To all my clients, friends, family, and supporters, I want to be transparent with my silence over the past year in regard to a few topics.
To begin, a year ago I began pursuing a master’s degree in order to gain more opportunity within my career as a teacher. Most of you know that during the day I am a teacher and by night I was working to build my business at Bridge To Style. Frankly, this was challenging as most days when I got home, I was exhausted having to grade work, ensure I was ready for the next day or week, and help to take care of my family. I did the best I could. So, when I added graduate school into the mix it was near impossible to keep Bridge To Style going as I would have liked. So, I announced last year my availability would scale back in order to be there for the ones I love and those who need me most; my family and students. Consequently, I finished up my graduate work at the end of April, which will start up again in July, and the school year ended for me the last week of May. I had full hopes of getting things back and running at Bridge To Style as best I could during this global pandemic with virtual closet cleanses and what to wear tutorials. I am starting things back up again and will continue to work with clients.
However, on top of this pandemic came the death of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery. My complete disdain came with a certain segment of the American population and it just doesn’t seem right to now start promoting business while all of this hatred, injustice, and lack of respect and human decency is occurring before making a statement about it all.
Sadly, what is going on in our country is not new. There have been one too many Black men and women who have been unarmed and killed due to the color of their skin. These ruthless murders have been going on for 400 years and it has evolved and worked its way into a society where still, People of Color, specifically Black people, are continuously brought down, frowned upon and oppressed by our institutions, implicit biases, and societal “norms”, and it HAS to change. We know this has been going on for years and yet certain people seemed to be okay with it occurring. I’m saddened it had to get this point. I’m disappointed in myself for not speaking out prior to these recent incidents occurring, but I am hopeful that through these incidents people’s eyes will be opened and exposed to what is REALLY going on in America.
Could you imagine going through your day feeling like this is what people are viewing you as? I couldn’t and I don’t want to, which is why I am going to continue to speak out and use my voice. If this makes you uncomfortable then you need to look inward and determine your biases and come up with questions to ask someone and research so you can change your perspective. This isn’t something that you can do tomorrow, this is something that you need to do NOW. It was already too late yesterday, so start researching and educating yourself on the injustice and if you don’t know something ask. We have to create the dialogue and put ourselves in uncomfortable positions because that is what the Black community feels on a DAILY basis.
I am going to continue to educate myself on this matter and continue to work to gain as much perspective as I can because I will never understand but I will stand with my boyfriend and all other Black lives, because they matter just as much as any other life.
This is one of many ways we can change the systematic injustice and racial inequality that is occurring, long term. EDUCATE YOURSELF about businesses who are in support of ending racism and if you find a store or restaurant you love, and they haven’t expressed any view or perspective on the matter then act and ask. It’s that simple.
As founder of Bridge To Style I want to assure you inclusivity, equality, and diversity are valued in the community we are building as we continue to grow. It has always been our vision to create a world where women feel confident and inspired to live a fulfilling life. At Bridge To Style we believe in order to live a fulfilling life you have to want to grow and learn from those around you and those unfamiliar to you. We always ask all supporters to be their authentic self as we accept you for who you are and will support you through your life’s journey. We are all here to Build Our Bridge To Better Style but we are also here to Build a Bridge to Better our World. We stand with the Black community and are committed to participating in change that needs to happen.
While we are a small business still growing, we feel it is necessary to donate to funds that focus on raising awareness, fighting social injustice and racial inequality. Make your donations with us:
Black Lives Matter
NAACP Empowerment Fund
At Bridge To Style we have used books as a way to promote inclusivity and to establish discussions that lead to growth and personal change.
Below I have gathered a list of books (Non-fiction and Novels) you can read to learn more about Race, Injustice, and Black Culture:
Behold the Dreamers
Imbolo Mbu
Homegoing
Yaa Gyasi
White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism
Robin Diangelo, PhD.
This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color
Cherríe Moraga
Their Eyes Were Watching God
Zora Neale Hurston
The Warmth of Other Suns
Isabel Wilkerson
Americanah
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
The Next American Revolution: Sustainable Activism for the Twenty-First Century
Grace Lee Boggs
The New Jim Crow: Mass incarcerations in the Age of Colorblindness
Michelle Alexander
The Fire Next Time
James Baldwin
The Bluest Eye
Toni Morrison
So You Want to Talk About Race
Ijeoma Oluo
Sister Outsider
Audre Lorde
Just Mercy
Bryan Stevenson
I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness
Austin Channing Brown
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
Maya Angelou
Heavy: An American Memoir
Kiese Laymon
Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower
Dr. Brittney Cooper
The Hate U Give
Angie Thomas
Such a Fun Age
Kiley Reid
Piecing Me Together
Renée Watson