when i worked at starbu*ks there were two separate racist events at stores near me that caused national outrage and protests in my city. because of this, we had to do an unconscious bias training. one thing we were told is that everyone has prejudices and biases, no matter what!

the example they used was whenever a group of kids came in we would whine about how we were about to have to make 100 fraps. this is not actively harmful to an oppressed group, but it's an easy illustration of everyone having unconscious biases. these are biases that we have to

actively work toward unlearning, no matter what group they target. mostly the training focused on racism, though. multiple people complained to me about how they shouldn't have to sit through this training because they're "not racist". not only does this ignore the very real

possibility that they had unconscious biases toward poc that they may not realize they have, but most of the people who said this to me had also said racist things around me. to me, this makes me think that they genuinely don't realize that they had said racist things, despite

their racism being so apparent to me. because they really thought they were not racist, they became closed off to training that could have helped them grow. this is why when i see people on ac twt saying that they are "not racist", "not problematic", "have morals", etc, it

really rubs me the wrong way. if you're not racist, prove it by actively working to identify the unconscious biases that you most likely have whether or not you want to admit it. saying you're "not racist" not only proves nothing, but it also has the potential to close yourself

off from growth. we shouldn't be trying to prove to the world that we aren't racist, we should be spending that time continuing to read and learn and listen to poc. there is ALWAYS growing and learning to do. additionally, all white people benefit from a racist system. to say

you're not racist, in my opinion, ignores that. lastly, I think most of the people on here who are saying they're "not racist" have good intentions. this is not a call out post or a subtweet. I just respectfully disagree with it.