I woke up today and legitimately thought it was Saturday. It’s been one of those weeks that was long, tiring, and heavy on our hearts. Because of what was going on in the world, I paused scheduled posts on the blog and didn’t post anything superficial on my Instagram. No one cared about what I was wearing, how I washed my face and what I was thinking this week truthfully. Like many others, I stopped to listen, read and educate myself. I attended a protest in Philadelphia on Saturday and it’s hard to describe but I was so moved by the amount of families with young children, friends walking together, different groups of people talking to one another and walking side by side. I’ve been to other protests but this one was different. This one was taking a stand that enough was enough. The media will focus on the “violent protesters” and the damage on the city that followed all week. I’ll admit that the smashing of windows, helicopters and loud sirens kept me up at night and made me uncomfortable but that feeling of being uncomfortable reminded me how uncomfortable racism is in this country. We should feel uncomfortable as we look back at what led to today and look at the systematic racism that exists. I spent years in inner city schools and talked to students about the challenges they faced. I’ve known for years that this country created legal ways to discriminate and a culture that allowed an us versus them way of life. This movement is here to stay and I hope more positive change will continue.

On Friday mornings I like to sit down at my dining room table with a cup of warm coffee and check my emails before I get to work on writing my Friday Favorites post. During the week I jot things down in my planner that I’m loving so I don’t forget. This week felt different. There are a lot of posts out there about resources, restaurants to go to and ways to take action. Instead of adding to the noise, I wanted to focus on resources, things I loved and how I am moved by this week personally.

I watched the movie 13th Amendment when it first came out on Netflix and think it did a great job of explaining how discrimination became legal. I’ve been watching Mrs. America on Hulu and it looks at the tension during the women’s movement when it came to race and lesbians while trying to get the Equal Rights Amendment passed. Film allows us to learn and absorb information so I will continue to watch movies that expose our faults as a country and as humankind.

The New York Times
Twitter
Resources shared on Instagram
What my peers are saying
What people who may not look like me are saying
Local community journalism

The Calm App is free for one year if you have an American Express credit card.

Philadelphia coming together this week.

Voices being heard, voices joining together to become louder.

Not tolerating statements that lack action from politicians, companies, peers.

Listening to Pod Save America and The Daily podcasts.