I’m not an overachieving blogger. In other areas, yes. In blogging, no.  I post sporadically at best. I post when the mood, or a good topic, hits me. Or not. Sometimes a good topic hits me but never makes it from my brain to my fingers to the keyboard. I write what I want to write about and rarely think too much about outcomes and feedback. Which is not to say that I don’t appreciate feedback. I’d be lying if I said a slight smile doesn’t cross my face when my posts are shared or I receive notification of a new follower. I just don’t usually consider my posts having any major impact. Hence, #NotAThoughtLeader. I’m just me doing me saying what I want to say about topics of interest to me. If you like it, I love it. However, I recently realized that sometimes you’re having an impact and don’t even know it. Picture this…

Last week I received the following unexpected message from one of my HR peers in Canada:

“Hey! Thinking about you at the start of Black History Month, and how things like your blog and contributions mean so much as a needed voice from a perspective of gender and colour. I admire you and your strength, and what you give to others!”

You could have knocked me over with a feather! Seriously. Never would I ever have imagined that anyone held any thing I said in such esteem. I mean I know I’m smart and witty but this is pretty much the best compliment I could have ever received, blogger wise.  It got me thinking. It also happened to be the first day of the #BlackBlogsMatter challenge, 2018 version. Serendipity, no?

A few weeks prior, the creator of the Black Blogs Matter challenge, @thebuzzonhr, had reached out to me to give me the heads-up on this year’s “bigger and better” challenge and the proposed topics. It was some heavy stuff. I (half) joked at the time that I had to figure out a way to participate and retain my employment status. I have some very, shall we say, strong thoughts on certain race-related topics. This is too important for me not to participate though. It’s not just about me. It’s also about amplifying the voices of other Black bloggers – voices that are all too often overshadowed or dismissed on topics that affect us the most. Or that include us to any degree. Too often we are spoken for but not listened to. Or not even considered. Far too often I’ve seen lists of the “top” or “most influential” bloggers in a particular space or industry and there isn’t a Black person to be found among them. This must end. We’re out here and we deserve to be heard.

So, I’ve been following the hashtag on Twitter, but for various reasons, hadn’t posted anything yet. Then I get this tweet:

“Just putting pressure on @tmrasberry for her contribution to #BlackBlogsMatter. I always enjoyed reading her blogs and they’re very informative and educational. I just find these challenges as great eye openers and inspirational.”

Far be it for me to not give the people what they want. So here goes something!

I can’t promise I’ll post for every week of the challenge, but I will definitely be participating and sharing. I encourage you to do the same. Should you be apprehensive due to your status as a non-Black person, @k8bischHRlaw has provided us with an excellent example of support/allyship done right: Some Of Us Hear You. 

• Follow the hashtag on Twitter.
• Share tweets and blog posts using the hashtag.
• Write a blog post (see this post for topics.)
• Continue to follow, read, share &  support the participants even after the challenge is over.
• Tell your friends.
• Never forget.

BLACK BLOGS STILL MATTER!