Dismantling the System (Episode 4)

This week’s episode is dedicated to the memory of one of our sheroes, the late Ruth Bader Ginsberg, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States who passed away on September 18, 2020. We govern our lives and activism by one of RBG’s many profound quotes: “Real change, enduring change, happens one step at a time.” We extend our sincerest condolences to RBG’s family, friends, and supporters.

In episode four, Shaunna and Lisa discuss the differences between dismantling and demolishing systemic “isms”. Sometimes it’s hard to know if you should demolish a broken system or dismantle it brick by brick. Different situations call for different approaches. Shaunna and Lisa discuss what it means to dismantle instead of demolish, what systemic racism really means and how you can use questioning as a form of micro-allyship.

Important points:
– What is systemic racism? Beliefs baked into a system favoring and elevating one group (white people) over another (BIPOC).
– Systemic racism exists if you have to change the system to eliminate racist policies (e.g. a law that supports a company’s ability to destroy sacred indigenous caves)
– How easy it is to rationalize away systemic problems. For example, accepting something because “it’s always been that way” is really just systemic bias.
– What is micro-allyship? The small things you do to call out oppression, rather than calling out people. Asking probing questions, inviting someone to notice their own bias, and calling someone in starts the process of dismantling “isms”.
– How can we continue to interrupt oppressive behavior and what do those interruptions look like over time?
– Listen to the end to get action items to take into your life this week!