Anti-Racism at Mineral Ceramics; A Letter from Our Owner, Becky Bourdeau

What will we do when the protests end? (posted June 9, 2020)

Like a lot of well-intentioned White folks, I’ve been going about my life thinking I’m a pretty good person. I take joy in the diversity of my current home of Los Angeles, I have BIPOC and LGBTQ friends and family, I’m an egalitarian and I try to show up with humility and respect for all people. But I wasn’t taking that extra step—from not racist to anti-racist—from awareness of my privilege to utilizing my privilege.

I’ve always intended Mineral Ceramics to be an enterprise of integrity and in light of the reckoning so many of us are facing right now, I too felt it apropos to take a moment to reexamine what it is I and Mineral stand for.

In addition to being champions for small business and community, for slow living, for the craft movement, for environmental stewardship, we will be adding anti-racism to our list of core values. It begins with my education both personally* and as a business owner**.

A lot of us are making big gestures like pledging portions of sales to charitable or activist organizations, I’ve made donations myself. But I am reminding myself that real change is a marathon, not a sprint and frankly, I don’t know yet all the ways this commitment may manifest as I and Mineral embark on this work. I'll certainly share more as I figure it out.

We must do this. We cannot abide a future that looks like the past.

In solidarity,

Becky

 

*White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo is where I chose to start. If you’d like an anti-racism reading list, Google it. They are everywhere right now. Look for lists from BIPOC and buy your books from Black-owned book sellers if possible.

**I’m starting with a training session called Whiteness at Work by anti-racism activist and educator, Desiree Adaway. You can learn more at http://adawaygroup.com