hi guys! i haven't been drawing lately (i burned myself out working on my comic and now i won't meet the contest deadline aaand it's kind of paused all of my artistic endeavors until now, besides the fact that i'm working a lot now) but i just wanted to share this! the protests that are going on and the reawakening of a lot of america to the fact that racism is still (and always has been) far too prevalent is a super important topic to discuss. to my white friends, i hope you are all educating yourselves and doing all you can to support! it can be hard to find ways to tangibly support these movements when you are young, but the more that you learn now and improve in your ability to recognize and fight racism and anti-black actions/words/systems, the better you will be able to fight it in the future. i highly recommend this video on white fragility, as it will really reframe the way you think about yourself and racism: https://youtu.be/45ey4jgoxeU it is a long one but there are also some shorter ones that communicate the same message (you could also do 2x speed like i do haha). to my black and poc friends, i cannot imagine what you go through. i hope you are able to catch a break from thinking about all of this from time to time. your lives matter and you are worthy of respect and love. please let me know if there is any way i can support you personally. lastly, i encourage all of us in the artistic community to draw more poc!! if you limit yourself to only white characters/portraits, you not only miss out on portraying the beauty in other colors and features, but you also perpetrate the idea that white is normal/default. it may be difficult to learn how to draw different colors and features but there are many tutorials and it is so worth it! i know i have not always been the best at this but i will try to draw more diversely moving forward. i love you all and i hope you are doing well in the wild ride that is 2020. <3 i would love to see this discussion continued so please comment your thoughts, questions, and additions to the conversation! as a white person i am doing my best to be sensitive & informed but please please please let me know if i ever misstep or hurt you in any way. i acknowledge that i am not perfect and that i do have subconscious biases and prejudices. i value your voice and you have a right to call me out if i make you uncomfortable. ♥
