Takeaways From Seeing Angela Davis Speak In Person

A reflection

It’s an understatement to say that I adore Angela Davis. Not just the things that she has done, and continues to do, but who she is as a person. She is a reflection of values and ethics that I not only align with, but understand how valuable they can be to society as a whole.

I had the privilege of seeing her speak in person recently. I won’t speak on everything she said, but I would love to share key takeaways that resonated with me from the talk.

Community & Individualism

It was quite the feeling to notice similarities between Angela Davis and myself and friends. Friends and I have talked extensively about capitalism being based on this sense of individualism just as she did in her speech. She mentioned how her parents had her write book reports as a child, something my parents did for my siblings and I.

While noticing these similarities this sense of connection and community began to form. I felt the sentiment of all of the 222’s that I’ve been seeing lately. I was in the right place at the right time. I also felt a contrast between her message and my feelings. I connected to her message on an individual level. Her message however, spoke about the necessity of communities and being able to see past our own sense of individualism. There is a need for a balance of the two. When we unite as a community, that’s when we are powerful enough to address and progress beyond the ignorance that has plagued our society for far too long.

There was a quote from the interviewer, Alfonzo King, that in such a complex universe, us humans still can’t get over our differences in skin color. Such a tiny and insignificant thing. We truly have more in common than we have in difference. I think it’s beautiful to respect our individual differences while recognizing our many commonalities.

Giving oppositions more power than what they have

There was a callout that the many societal problems that we face are decisions made by a few but ultimately impacts the many in very negative ways. The fact that during the pandemic, many millionaires and billionaires doubled their revenue streams while folks with less financial resources faced so much loss is disheartening. Loss of loved ones, loss of opportunities, and a loss of community, just to name a few.

Angela highlighted how commendable it was that during the pandemic, 26 million people (of all races, the most white protestors thus far) risked their personal health amidst a pandemic to protest and show support for the Black Lives Matter movement. The folks who care about fixing these systemic issues within our society actually make up the majority. This directly resonates with a quote from Steve Kerr on the recent elementary school shooting in Texas. He spoke on how 90% of Americans (regardless of political views) want background checks for those purchasing guns (in all states) but how there are 50 senators who won’t even raise the issue to vote on. Steve expressed his belief of this being an attempt by those senators to hold onto their power.

We give the “opposition” more power than what they actually have. Angela spoke on how often we do this and how we need to stop doing it. We are the majority. We have more power than we give ourselves credit for. When we choose unity over separation, that’s when we see our power on full display. Angela spoke on how tangible that energy is at events like those BLM protest. To unite, we need to carry that energy into our day to day lives as well.

Everything has changed while nothing has really changed

Hearing Angela talk about something so paradoxical was very interesting to me. She expressed holding both view points at the same time because both are true. She referred to George Floyd’s tragic death as a lynching. I had never heard anyone refer to it as that, but that is exactly what happened. I remembered learning about how many blacks were hung in the south as a kid and how unsettling that realization was to me. How common place that activity was. Seeing white people posing by dead corpses, smiling, filled my being with lots of anger.

We’ve made a lot of progress in many areas but Angela spoke on how endless these issues are. We’ve made progress in many areas but highlighting one issue requires us to notice the interconnectedness of all issues in our society. Capitalism and racism are as intertwined as the grass is to the sun.

These two seemingly contradictory beliefs also showcase how history repeats itself. Given a completely different set of environmental and situational inputs, we’ve shown how quickly we choose fear over love. The fear of the unknown can force an individual to cling as tightly as they can to that which is known. All fears are illusions. Regardless of the inputs, the same outputs are happening over and over again. We have a choice. To evolve, or go extinct. Every animal on this planet has faced the very same choice. Some didn’t have a choice because of our own acts of self preservation.

All in all, I feel very blessed to have had the opportunity to be in her presence. Her insight, her passion, her level of awareness was beyond inspiring. I realized that regardless of how things turn out, Angela is a signal of hope. I’m not attached to either outcome, things becoming better or worse, but I’m grateful to have witness such hope in such a beautiful person. Thank you Angela for being who you are and for all that you have done for all beings on this planet.