When it comes to reviewing events from the past, people tend to say, “Why bother looking at the past? What happened in the past has no relevance today. Leave the past in the past and let’s focus on today and the future.”

Honestly, this sounds really good, however if we only look at today without carefully understanding how yesterday’s tentacles may still be intertwined with our present, we may miss vital information that can affect the present and future.

When the domestic terrorist attack occurred on the capital, which has now been coined White Privilege Wednesday in many spaces, all I could do was look in horror as the capital building was engulfed in white privilege that dripped so apparently through the bold acts of defiance and active claiming of public spaces as if in their own backyard. The symbolism of confederate flags, nooses and other hate memorabilia took me to a space that felt unclear. I began to feel a mix of emotions that included curiosity, confusion and then trickles of fear began to creep up my spine…