Read on Twitter
Jumping into this current twitter battle because as a Black Armenian I hope I can provide some valuable context. Yes, Armenians absolutely have White privilege and yes @theashleyray 's initial tweet was harmful and reductive. Both are true. Let me explain. (1/6)
White Armenians don't experience systemic racism in the US (*See redlining, school to prison pipeline, police brutality, pregnancy mortality, unequal pay etc.) Black ppl experience SYSTEMIC issues. To erase this truth, erases the experience of Black Armenians like myself.(2/6)
That being said, @theashleyray generalizing an entire group's identity based on a problematic celebrity who uses Armenia for photo ops and speaks up only when pressured, is also reductive and problematic. (3/6)
@theashleyray thank you for taking the time to share resources after so much outcry, but please acknowledge your initial tweet lacked the nuance and care this discussion requires & was harmful during this time of genocidal threats/spike in hate crimes directed at Armenians. (4/6)
My fellow Armenians, this erasure of our pain and intergenerational trauma is unacceptable and we have every right to be hurt. That being said, we must also acknowledge the privileges that White Armenians benefit from. (5/6)
@theashleyray et all if you’d like to learn more I suggest you watch our @zoravik forum on Black Lives Matter for Armenians so that you ALL have a better framework for this discussion. (6/6) https://armenianweekly.com/2020/07/22/allyship-as-action-activist-panel-reveals-how-armenians-can-support-black-lives-matter/
