Auntie Unfiltered: Self-Care in the Age of Coronavirus and Racism

The roof! The roof! The roof is on fire! We don’t need no water; let that mother fucker burn!

Nieces and nephews, the world is quite literally on fire.

As if being under quarantine due to the coronavirus wasn’t enough, we as black people have the added strain and pressure of several high-profile killings of unarmed black people. Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and George Floyd were all killed within the last few months, and their deaths have had a devastating toll on the black community.

They have re-emphasized how prevalent white supremacy and racism still are in American culture. They have reminded us that when it comes to black people being killed, justice is slower than molasses with a bureaucratic red tape that is just as thick to cut through.

We have watched a man take his last dying gasps on video for the second time in six years as a police officer did his part to steal his breath.

We have been reminded that police lie, and they will lie to protect themselves as well as their well-insulated friends when the need arises.

And through all of this, we are expected to continue to function like regular people—as if the evidence of our dehumanization at the hands of white supremacy is not all around us.

We can’t go birding, walk in and out of our apartment buildings, sleep peacefully in our homes, play video games with our nephews, play with toy guns in a park or walk home from the convenience store with an Arizona Iced Tea and some Skittles without a white person inserting themselves into our existence

We can’t mourn without being told how we are supposed to feel about what is happening. We can’t speak out, lest we be called “thugs.”

We can’t take up arms because that assures death.

So what do we do? How do we take care of ourselves mentally and emotionally with all of this going on?

In this week’s Auntie Unfiltered, I offer some suggestions.

As always, I want to hear from you. If you have any questions, comments or concerns, if you need advice, or if you have a suggestion for a topic you would like me to discuss, please email me at AuntieSubmissions@theroot.com.