the framework

History is written by the victors…

The history of any civilization relies on the memory of those in power at the time to tell accurate accounts. What we realize is that nearly all of our tales of collective identity, triumph, culture, religion, and other forms of belonging and tradition come from enlightened member(s) of our group: one who is steeped in privilege or rank and designated the record-keeper for all present. The only problem with that is history is written by the victors and those who critique the merit of the story are usually branded the “sore loser” or “bad guy.” Or the threat. America is no different from other countries in this respect. Many of our global neighbors have origin stories that are photoshopped. You know, a little edit over here, some airbrushing over there. Like these other nations, America has a story of origin that frames our perspective of who we are as a collective and as sums of its parts. Start By Talking, LLC. seeks to unravel that story and bring in more narratives from folks whose experiences are also representative of this country.

I invite you to come along the journey of editing this origin story of America and ultimately our movement against violence.

Fact One:

Whiteness is a strategy built from an incomplete thought.

Whiteness is a helluva drug, y’all. What many haven’t learned is that it is also a conscious strategy. A historical backdrop of the history of “Whiteness” in this country finds us with much more than unpacking a race of people. To understand and dismantle Whiteness is the understand the Throuple of Whiteness: Whiteness as a construct, Whiteness as a racial marker, and White Supremacy. These three components are the cornerstones of the hustle of how white supremacy always wins.

White Supremacy tells us what to think about ourselves and others who don’t look like us. It tells us whose humanity deserves to be fully recognized and whose does not.

Fact two:

Anti-Blackness is a vehicle that validates dehumanizing black folks.

Anti-Blackness is an international compact that secures the ideology of a large laboring force working for small few. Anti-Oppressive Advocacy, as a framework, prioritzes how that ideology, those messages, found their way into our homes, our learning institutions, churches, offices, laws and policies.

Anti-Blackness is all of our default and it’s how we all make decisions about where to live, where to work, who to befriend, what music to listen to, etc. Our work lies in unraveling these messages, separating ourselves from the Throuple, and dismantling whiteness as a construct for the betterment of all.

A framework that demands that professionals interrogate, not only their own relationship with anti-Blackness and White Supremacy but how the messages of these social defaults found their way into the field’s protocol, policy, and culture. Originally intended to support the anti-violence field critique and separate their work from the constructs of whiteness and white comfort, Anti-Oppressive Advocacy has now been adapted across numerous industries including Global Technology, Higher Education, Weight Loss, Health Care, local government, etc.