'We have always meant something. We have always succeeded... and now is the time!' - John Boyega (03/06/2020)
Recently I've been thinking back to how I felt on New Year's Eve. Even now I can recall the excitement of being moments away from transitioning into the new year. A new decade. When 2019 had been reduced to nothing but a few depleting seconds, I remember watching them whittle away on the clock: 10 - 9 - 8. I could feel a great change approaching! 7 - 6 - 5 - 4... I had a smile on my face, "this is my year," I told myself. 3 - 2 - 1...
And that's when the cheering began! Rockets shot up with a bang and illuminated the darkness with an array of colour. It's a scene I experience every year but somehow the moment still amazes me. However, when I think back to that final countdown now, I can't help but compare its likeness to the ominous ticking of a detonator...
The truth is, as those fireworks exploded overhead and the smoke from their flash-bang existence hung like a mist in the air, a chain reaction had already begun. January took the lead and in its wake would be the passing of admired heroes, extreme bushfires, rumours of war, Covid-19, and more.
The phrase, 'it's a small world', took on a completely new and poignant meaning for me on March 23rd. Suddenly my world had a roof and walls, and the universe became only as expansive as any distance I was able to jog. It took us all some adjusting to get settled into this skewed reality.
The surreal nature of it all only furthered when the clapping started. For five minutes (if we could manage it), we'd clap for the key workers. One might think that these workers had been concealed in the shadows this whole time but only now chose to reveal themselves to us. However, I can't deny that the gesture was heartwarming, I only hoped that this unified spirit would remain. Little did I know that my hope would manifest under cruel conditions.
You know how you felt when you saw the video of George Floyd. You know how emotions took over you like a paralysis, restricting your limbs and even your thoughts whilst you watched a repulsive injustice. No other narrative can be weaved into this story - the evidence is damning - at the beginning of the video he is alive and by the end he is dead. I watched the seconds on the video tick down to 00:00 knowing another explosion had just taken place.
I could use this time to talk about the immediate aftermath of his death. I could talk about people who post to their feeds to alleviate the weight of guilt and not because they care. I could talk about those same people who then criticise others for not posting (as if the solution to this problem is a black box you'll delete in a day or two). I could talk about the organisations and institutions that posted '#BlackLivesMatter' and 'we stand with you' on their socials but have been ignoring the issue of diversity since their establishment was founded. Perhaps I could talk about the Covid-19 statistics - specifically, the fact that one study on how BAME communities are at higher risk was delayed from being published in fear of adding fuel to an already growing fire. Maybe I should talk about how racism isn't 'new', a 'novelty' or 'unprecedented', so although it's swarming our digital timelines at the moment, for some of us it has existed as a daily occurrence in our own physical timelines.
To be very honest with you, I could talk about a lot, but Boyega was right when he stood before us and said 'now is the time'. I like to imagine that when he spoke those words he began another countdown...
This is a countdown towards a time where the diversity checklist is abandoned. People from different backgrounds shouldn't be hired to fill a quota - we should be hired because of our proficiency. To hone in on the creative industry - we are heading towards a time where all employees are paid what they actually deserve. We will soon be comforted by the fact that it's okay if our parents aren't already in the industry - because we will be given an equal chance to get our foot into the door. We will be able to pitch all and any ideas and won't only be summoned when the matter concerns coming off politically correct. It won't happen overnight but the time for real serious change is now!