This comment was by Nicole in reference to the post – White Women’s Tears and the Men Who Love Them
This article was extremely powerful and challenging – thank you! I also have a question – is it not possible for a white woman/person to cry with empathy? Of all the explanations you gave and assumptions you made about why a white woman cries about racial issues, empathy didn’t appear. Do you think it’s possible for empathy to be a reason or would you suggest that it’s not?
I ask because I have spent my life trying to be more intentional about taking the time to really validate what the person in front of me is feeling – to affirm that their experiences and emotions are REAL and IMPORTANT (whoever that ‘person in front of me’ is). And when we validate others’ stories, I believe that empathy can and does arise within ourselves; that when we truly listen and ask questions in order to deeply understand the person in front of is, the answers can evoke not sympathy (pity) but empathy (understanding and sharing the feelings of the other).
Is it possible we might empathize? Is that a valid response? What might that actually look and feel like?
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