This important piece is written by Katherine, who runs the blog thereluctantspoonie.com. When she is not blogging about chronic illness, she work in the sustainable development sector. We’ve also added a section ourselves about the amazing Black creatives in the spoonie community.
This article is a brief introduction to the global issue of white privilege and racism with some specific examples from our industry. Please educate yourself in your own time and at your own pace with the recommended reading suggested in this article as well as your own online research.
It’s no secret that most chronic illness bloggers are white women and privileged is probably not a word that you would use to describe yourself if you live with a chronic illness or disability.
The term white privilege has been prominent on social media over the past few weeks. If you have a chronic illness or disability, you probably tried to dispute the fact that you have white privilege by saying ‘I don’t have white privilege, I’m disabled/ have a chronic illness.’ Your life may be harder than others for several reasons, however, the colour of your skin is not one of the things that make it harder.
White Privilege (noun) is the unearned, mostly unacknowledged social advantage white people have over other racial groups simply because they are white (dictonary.com https://www.dictionary.com/e/pop-culture/white-privilege/)
Racism (noun) 1) a belief or doctrine that inherent differences among the various human racial groups determine cultural or individual achievement, usually involving the idea that one’s own race is superior and has the right to dominate others or that a particular racial group is inferior to the others.
2) a policy, system of government, etc., based upon or fostering such a doctrine; discrimination.
3) hatred or intolerance of another race or other races (dictonary.com https://www.dictionary.com/browse/racism?s=t)
Institutionalised/ Systemic Racism (noun) Refers to how ideas of white superiority are captured in everyday thinking at a systems level: taking in the big picture of how society operates, rather than looking at one-on-one interactions. These systems can include laws and regulations, but also unquestioned social systems. Systemic racism can stem from education, hiring practices or access. https://theconversation.com/explainer-what-is-systemic-racism-and-institutional-racism-131152
There is widespread systemic racism within our healthcare systems; from the people who work in them to the people who use them. From a healthcare perspective.
Black British people are more likely to have poorer health than white British people and have a worse healthcare experience overall than white British people. 1 Black women are five times more likely to die during childbirth than white women.2 Black people have a lower life expectancy than white people. 3
As a white person navigating the healthcare system in the UK, you are at an advantage because of your skin colour.
Within the chronic illness community, there is also systemic racism. For example, it’s easier to grow a following on social media as a white blogger/ influencer as the algorithm will suggest our account whenever someone follows a similar white account.
As there are fewer Black bloggers in our community, their accounts will not be suggested as often which makes it more difficult for them to grow their following. As brand deals are often based on the number of followers this means that Black chronic illness bloggers as less likely to be selected for campaigns.
ACTION POINT #1 Check your privilege
This action point requires you to look inwardly on your relationship with your own race. This may be upsetting or uncomfortable for you. When speaking about race issues, do you immediately put yourself at the centre? Were you one of the people who responded to ‘Black Lives Matter’ with ‘All Lives Matter’?
If so, you need to consider your own white privilege and how you personally benefit from being white in your everyday life. Addressing your own white privilege is a learning process and requires you to unlearn a lot of things. This will take you a long time and it’s not something that you can learn in the space of a week. There are many resources available to you online as well as discussion groups.
Recommended reading
Understanding White Privilege by Francis E. Kendall https://www.cpt.org/files/Undoing%20Racism%20-%20Understanding%20White%20Privilege%20-%20Kendall.pdf
Why You Need to Stop Saying ‘All Lives Matter’ by Rachel Elizabeth Cargle https://www.harpersbazaar.com/culture/politics/a27075028/black-lives-matter-explained/
White Fragility by The Conscious Kid https://www.theconsciouskid.org/white-fragility
Is your Instagram feed all white?
When you scroll through Instagram, are all the posts that you see by white creators? The more you interact with white creators, the more they will show up in your feed and Instagram will suggest more white creators for you to follow.
Critically analyse your account. Are you following mainly white creators and are your own followers mainly white? If this is the case, then you should make the effort to find Black creators in your niche as they are less likely to be included in your daily suggestions.
When you follow them, make sure that you interact with their posts and drop them a DM. This tells the algorithm that you are ‘friends’ and their posts will show up more often in your feed. This will let the algorithm know that you are not just exclusively interested in white creators. Avoid tokenism, don’t follow people because they are Black and you are aiming to diversify your feed. Follow people who create content that you are interested in and enjoy.
ACTION POINT #2 Critically evaluate your Instagram account
How many Black-owned accounts are your currently following? Find 5 Black bloggers/ influencers in your niche, follow them and interact with their content. DM them for a collab such as an IG live or a paid Instagram takeover of your account, especially if you have a large following. Every week, take some time to discover Black bloggers/ influencers in your niche and engage with their posts. Share their content in your stories and encourage your followers to do the same.
How to be More Like Marylin: Use your white privilege to support Black artists
Now you know that you have white privilege, what are you going to do about it? Acknowledging your white privilege is the first step to tacking systemic racism in your industry. You can use it to amplify Black voices and support Black creators. Our endometriosis sister, Marylin Monroe did just that to support the career of her friend, the jazz musician Ella Fitzgerald.
Marylin had always been a fan of Ella and when she found that Ella wasn’t able to get booked to play at a top nightclub because she was Black, Marylin stepped in to help her. Marylin told the club owner that if he booked Ella to play, then she would sit in the front row every night and bring along her celebrity friends. Ella’s gigs were booked out and she even got her contact extended due to Marylin’s support.
Read more about Marylin’s and Ella’s friendship here https://www.biography.com/news/marilyn-monroe-ella-fitzgerald-friendship
ACTION POINT #3 How to support Black bloggers and influencers in your niche
If you have a chronic illness blog, YouTube channel or social media account, use your platform to showcase the work of your Black peers (#sharethemic). Create space on your social accounts to promote the work of a Black chronic illness blogger each month. Invite a Black chronic illness blogger to write a paid guest post for your blog.
Tips for those who work with brands
- When a brand reaches out to work with you, check their social media before accepting any work. Is their Instagram full of white faces? If so, you may want to give them a miss.
- Ensure that all large campaigns that you work on include Black influencers. If they don’t, email the brand to ask why. Depending on their response, you may wish to cut ties with that brand.
- Small brands may find it difficult to find Black bloggers and influencers to work with, especially if the campaign requires a chronic illness blogger with a specific illness. If you know a Black blogger in your niche, recommend them for the campaign.
- Reach out to Black-owned businesses and offer to promote them on your blog or social media for free.
- Image below from @kirstyleanneuk on Instagram
There are so many Black and POC spoonies who are sharing their chronic illness stories on Instagram. Here at Chronic Illness Bloggers, we wanted to share a few of these brilliant people who continue to raise awareness of chronic illnesses;
- Charleigh Victory (@Charrvictory) – Raising awareness of Grave’s and MS
- Renee (@Rayraydoesitt) – Raising awareness for mental health and endometriosis
- Sofia Dieujuste (@sofiancyofficial) – Raising awareness of Lupus
- Shawn (@Crohnsandstuff) – raising awareness of Crohn’s disease
- Gaylyn Henderson (@Gutlessandglamorous) – raising awareness of stoma’s
- Jameisha Prescod (@Youlookokaytome) – a digital space for chronic illness people
- Melodie Narain-Blackwell (@melodienblackwell) – health advocate & crohn’s warrior
- Chelsea (@iamchelseahenrietta) – raising awareness of Hidradenitis Suppurativa
Conclusion and take-home points
This article is just a brief introduction to white privilege and racism within the chronic illness community. Continue to learn about white privilege and listen to Black voices. Support Black chronic illness bloggers in your niche. Don’t ask them to educate you about racism or share their experiences of racism with you.
Share on social media how you are learning about racism and encourage your followers to do the same. Continue to hold yourself accountable and educate yourself in your own time. Remember that it is a privilege to educate yourself about racism, rather than to experience it.
Further Reading
White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo
Me and White Supremacy by Layla F Saad
So You Want To Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo
Educational Instagram Accounts
@theconsciouskid https://www.instagram.com/theconsciouskid/
@rachel.cargle https://www.instagram.com/rachel.cargle/
@privtoprog https://www.instagram.com/privtoprog/
References:
Thank you for sharing this insight on your platform. This is a great starting point for conversations. As one of the few black bloggers within CIB I feel proud and reassured that I am apart of a network that supports inclusion and isn’t afraid to speak out or take a stand.