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grow.

"Do the best you can until you know better.
Then, when you know better, do better"
- Maya Angelou

The Journey to Being a Better White Ally

Allyship is not accomplished in a single action or instagram post. And understanding whiteness and white privilege does not happen overnight. The following resources are designed to first help you identify where in the development of white racial development and move towards becoming increasingly anti-racist.

Where are you on your journey to anti-racism?

Helms, Tatum, and Michael defined six stages of white identity development.¹ These stages can be non-linear, but they move towards a deeper understanding of what it means to be white, and what white people can do to move towards becoming anti-racist.

Select whichever stage you most closely identify with currently.

Remember, the goal is to progress towards anti-racism, and we all begin our journey in different places.² Read through the following descriptions, and be honest with yourself as you select the level that feels most true to where you are currently.

STAGE	WHAT YOU MAY SAY, THINK, OR FEEL IN THIS STAGE OF RACIAL IDENTITY DEVELOPMENT
Contact	The world is fair and everyone has equal opportunities. Does not see color Views racism as individual acts of meanness Unaware of whiteness Belief that you aren’t racist if you don’t purposely or consciously act in racist ways.
Disintegration	Increased awareness of racisim and white privilege lead to feelings of shame, guilt, denial, anger. Conscious but conflicted acknowledgement of whiteness Feelings of white guilt
Reintegration	Feels like there are no right answers - to be white is to be wrong Selectively focusing on stereotype confirming information "I feel bad for being white"
Pseudo-Independence	Thinks, rather than feels, about racial issues Recognizes personal responsibility for dismantling racism “How can I be white and anti-racist?” Belief that privilege is not based on merit, but on bias & racism. Rely on BIPOC to address racism. Might affirm or seek to comfort the BIPOC who is addressing racism.
Immersion	Begins to work against systems of oppression, rather than seeing racism as individual actions. Is able to embrace their own white identity & what their whiteness means, while working alongside BIPOC Works actively to be anti-racist.
Autonomy	Embodied anti-racism: being willing to step in the way of racism when possible, engage in protests Has done the work to recognize their own identity so that they can effectively be anti-racist. Recognizes that growth is continual and they might need to revisit previous stages.

1. Stages of White Racial/Ethnic Identity Development by Janet Helms summarized by Beverly Daniel Tatum and Ali Michael. Published by Teaching While White

2. Scaffolded Anti-Racism Resources