Allyship 101
Sep 30, 2023Allyship 101
By guest blogger Annissa La Touche
As a young black female student, who has navigated her way through various spaces in which I have been a minority, and thus vulnerable, I am familiar with how much allyship matters. It is integral to helping empower someone who has the right words but can’t communicate them to the person or people who need to hear them most. It’s why marginalised people are often more comfortable venting about ways they are infringed or mistreated when they are in the company of people from their own communities, but wouldn’t want to say the same to their non-marginalised counterparts out of fear of upsetting them or damaging important relationships.
When people are subjected to ill-treatment of any kind, it always means a lot when people stick up for you and have your back. It makes you feel like you are not going through it alone and having someone there that will advocate for you when you are at your most vulnerable is important for us all. In fact, even nation states make agreements to do this for each other. In the geopolitical realm, allies can be the difference between justice being served and wrongdoing going unchecked. They hold the position of having the power or resources to make a difference when the victim of wrongdoing has had their own power compromised or their own resources taken away. The same can be said for various relations in everyday and work life as well.
Even more so, as a student, I value the allyship of those senior to me, who can use their positions of authority to enact meaningful change in ways I would not be able to. As much as it is amazing to see the safe spaces and activist groups that students create, it would go so much further to also see educational senior staff advocate to the fullest for their marginalised students’ wellbeing and safety.
Allyship is an important place to start when we talk about compassionate cultures. It requires a sympathy that admits: I may not be able to put myself in your position, but I will do everything I can to make your pain lesser. It’s raw compassion. I am incredibly grateful to have friends who have shown up without prompt. Those who fight to stop the arrows shooting towards me before they even get to sting.
The beauty of acts of allyship is that they are unifying and often mutually beneficial in that it creates a better, fairer, environment for everybody. Though, it is important to remember that marginalised minorities do not owe their allies anything in return for their decision to help towards a person or group outside of their own identity in the fight for fairness. This is where new words enter our vocabulary: the co-signer or the co-conspirator.
What sets apart being an ally and a co-conspirator is going the extra mile. It means that you not only support marginalised people but also get your hands dirty with them. It looks like acting as a ‘Trojan Horse’ when you’re in spaces which particular marginalised groups are absent, because you will have to talk on behalf of them if there are none there to talk for themselves (or if you can tell that they are disempowered or too scared to talk due to power dynamics or fear of being penalised). It also looks like doing tasks behind the scenes, rather than trying to be the face; or amplifying the existing voices or marginalised people rather than speaking over them with your own voice.
Co-signing works in the sense that if the marginalised person is compromised, which will occur in a non-compassionate environment, the co-signer is there to offer their resources to fill the gap.
Unfortunately, there are still barriers to being allies that those in privileged positions because of skin colour in particular, must deconstruct in order to be allies. The biggest: internalised white supremacy. Jen Willsea compiled a list of ways that her own, as well as others’, might be revealed. The list included entitlement, silence, intellectualisation, paternalism, right to comfort, assuming that your worldview, standards and norms are a universal experience, cognitive dissonance, colour blindness and tokenism.
The important thing to understand is that anyone can be an ally at any time. You don’t have to wait for the opportunity to present itself or to have a big ‘activist’ moment. You can do it every day in so many different ways that are valuable to moving towards creating compassionate, anti-racist and discrimination free environments.
Strawberry Words is here to support your antiracist education journey. Take a look at our online course offerings by clicking on this link: https://www.strawberrywordscourses.co.uk/courses.If you have questions regarding your organisation's needs, please email us at [email protected].
Talking about racism can seem difficult and uncomfortable. This CPD accredited course provides a foundational education on racism to help to increase racial literacy which includes building confidence to speak about and deal with issues concerning race. It provides a language through which meaningful conversation can take place (particularly in the workplace).
Stay connected with news and updates!
Join our mailing list to receive the latest news and updates from our team.
Don't worry, your information will not be shared.
We hate SPAM. We will never sell your information, for any reason.