Allyship: It is a practice of unlearning and relearning as well as a lifelong process of building relationships based on trust, consistency, and accountability within marginalized individuals and groups. Source: PeernetBC http://www.peernetbc.com/what-is-allyship
Positionality: Positionality is the place from which you view the world. The concept grew out of reflexive anthropology and sociology in the 1980s, and is a way of describing one’s social position in order to understand:
Solidarity: Unity or agreement of feeling or action, especially among individuals with a common interest; mutual support within a group. It typically refers to shared political interests, but not always.
Being an ally is hard work. Many of those who want to be allies are scared of making missteps that get them labeled as “-ist” or “-ic” (racist, sexist, transphobic, homophobic, etc). As an ally, you too are affected by a system of oppression. This means that as an ally, there is much to unlearn and learn—mistakes are expected.
As an ally, you’ll need to be willing to own your mistakes and be proactive in your education.
If you decide to become an ally, but refuse to acknowledge that your words and actions are laced with oppression, you’re setting up yourself to fail. You will be complicit in the oppression of those you purport to help. You are not truly an ally. Know that if you choose not to heed this, you wield far more power than someone who is outwardly “-ist” or “-ic” because you are, essentially, a wolf in sheep’s clothing.
Just as society will not change overnight, neither will you. Here are some do’s and don’ts that are incredibly important as you learn and grow and step into the role of an ally.
Otherwise stated terms are adapted from:
Source: Maggie Theram: Everyday Feminism http://everydayfeminism.com/2017/02/allyship-is-proactive/
This guide attempts to provide general information and a starting point to learn about anti-oppression, inclusion, and privilege, as well as provide knowledge and resources to key social justice issues. The NYIT community is welcome to suggest resources, guides, or any other information relevant to this guide by emailing email@example.com. Also contact me if you notice any dead links.