In the past few weeks I have kept quiet. I have not really made any statement about how I feel and that is for a reason. I’m not going to apologize for not speaking up sooner or shouting on social media about what I’m doing to help this movement. I chose to be behind the scenes and to do my research and my donating silently. Before I give you my opinion and how I feel about everything that is going on right now, I wanted to say this one thing first. Trying to shame people into posting on social media about racism and telling people if you don’t post you are racist and you are with the opposing side is not only wrong but just ignorant. This is gaslighting y’all.  If someone doesn’t post that DOES NOT mean they don’t care and it doesn’t make them a bad person. This all is affecting people in a different way and it has touched people deeply. We all naturally deal with this in different ways. AND THAT IS OKAY. Some people took to social media right away and started reposting and showing everyone what they are doing, some people needed time to really feel what’s going on and to check themselves silently before they made any action. Some took action right away but didn’t post about it. ALL OF THESE ARE OKAY. We don’t need everyone to post about what they are doing but we do need everyone to do something. Public social media posts are not the only way people process how they are feeling. People that post less does not make them racist. So please do not assume anything from people’s silence and don’t pressure them to make a statement and react like you. Real change doesn’t happen when we’re only focusing on guilting others into posting. Real change doesn’t happen over a post. Change happens by action whether it is silently or shouted from the rooftops. We need to spread love and share what we are doing in our own way on our own time. Offline or online. 

My Statement:

After I saw this movement come to light and watching that video touched me in a different way than most. My instinct was to stay silent and not speak up. I took the past week entirely off IG to think, learn, and do research of what I can do. I’ve spent hours and hours each day diving into books, lectures, and articles that address racism and also how to approach this conversation and what to say and the actions we can take. I want to do better and I want long term change and not to just be a trend right now. I’ll be the first to tell you that I don’t know everything and I often mess up and I stumble over my words, but that just makes me an imperfect human like all of us. That DOESN’T mean that I am not trying and I am not working at being better. I do know that racism is still here around the world and around those who are close to me, and it is wrong and it needs to change. I can continue to watch, listen, speak, grow, and humble myself in this process. I don’t want to just post a graphic or make one post and continue on with my life. I want to make a long term change and engage in the hard conversations. My heart is heavy; what is happening in the world is evil and it’s injustice. BLACK LIVES MATTER. No ifs ands or buts. Let’s all take action in our own way and do what’s right! I’m doing the damn thing.. Are you!!??

What I Plan to Do:

• I want to do more than talk so I pledge to take makeup and hair classes from good black friends of mine to better understand black hair and how to style it along with working with darker skin color. I do not turn anyone away if they want services and I can do anyone’s makeup when they sit in my chair. I want to support my community and support my local black artists by learning from them anyway. I also want to educate other white people that it is UNACCEPTABLE for makeup artists to not have a FULLY stocked kit. That means foundation shades that will match every person. Too many times I have seen makeup artists panic and ask me for some of my foundation because they did not have darker shades. I will educate and be educated.
• I plan to read 15 books written by black people.
• I am following more black people to have a more diverse social media feed.
• I am currently planning a very diverse styled shoot with not only the models being black but the vendors being black as well so everyone gets more exposure and support for this cause.

To All My Black Friends, Family, and Strangers

My heart wants unity, equality, and reconciliation. I am ALWAYS in your corner and I won’t stop fighting for you and with you for justice and peace. I will not pretend to believe what you are going through, what you are feeling, but I want to listen and I want to learn. I am with you and I am for you. As one. Together.

xoxo,
Katlyn

If you would like all the resources that I have gathered together for all of us to act on click here.