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Four concrete things that everyone can do to dismantle racism

Four concrete things that everyone can do to dismantle racism
Photo by Clay Banks
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America, we have work to do.

Whether you've been fighting against racism for years or you are just waking up to the fact that there's a battle going on, it's time for us to iron out a few key pieces of information. There are a lot of unfamiliar words and phrases being thrown around, but please don't turn to Black people to explain this stuff to you. This is literally why the internet exists.


To help remove some of the guesswork, we interviewed Dr. Katrice A. Albert, a national thought leader and expert on racial diversity and inclusion, to get her thoughts on what we can do today, right now, immediately to help us all move forward together.

After doing this work for 25 years, winning multiple awards and honors and accomplishing more professionally than most people achieve in their lifetime, at the end of the day, Dr. Albert is still a Black woman in America. And her answers to our questions combine her expertise with the perspective of her own personal experience.

Dr. Katrice A. Albert

Let's begin with the basics.

What is the difference between equity and equality?

Equality means everyone has the same access to whatever it is that you're offering. Dr. Albert uses an analogy involving a dozen candied apples. "Equality means that everyone would receive the same number of candied apples, but equity is the idea of giving people what they need. So, if I'm a diabetic I don't need a candied apple. I need something else...like a cheese stick." Systemic change requires both equality and equity, "providing people with what they need for access and success," said Dr. Albert.

Photo by James Eades

So, what exactly is systemic racism?

To put it bluntly, our country was set up to benefit white men, who have historically held positions of power and influence. Look at the wealth. Look at incarceration. Take a step back and observe our systems. Run an internet search on this topic and spend some time reading about it.

To illustrate the picture, Dr. Albert recounted a story about a Black woman who shared how she, over the course of her 20-year career in a sports organization, trained six people for a job that she was passed over for, who moved on to become her bosses. "This woman trained up six white men, and she was never able to be seen as a critical part or the smartest person in the room to do this job," said Dr. Albert. Something is wrong with this picture, don't you think?

Well...then who is responsible?

"Equity and diversity are everyone's responsibility. Every single one of us is responsible for getting us to be our very best selves as Americans," said Dr. Albert. "The onus is not on Black people to teach white people how to be."

So, what can be done about this? How can just one person make a difference? Dr. Albert breaks her answer down into four basic steps:

Manage yourself. Commit to self-awareness. Commit to educating yourself and be willing to reduce your defenses. Your ego will take a hit; accept that you're going to find out that you're wrong about things you've professed as truth. You have to be okay with sitting with some discomfort.

Manage your immediate sphere of influence. This means your household, family, spouse, friends, and children. Think about how to convey the message of "we all have to be in this together in order to dismantle racism." Encourage those around you to vote and to raise anti-racist children.

Wield your power. If you have decision-making power at your job, church, or civic organization, you have to use that power to create room for people of color. Aren't sure where to start with that? Ask yourself a few questions. Who runs things? Look around the room. Does everyone look like you? Think about what you can do to make sure that the policies and climate is such that marginalized people feel like they can win.

Exercise compassion. "People of color are exhausted, but we don't have a choice but to be compassionate for wherever our friends are right now. It's a part of their everyday work to help us get to our highest potential," said Dr. Albert. "If educating yourself is as far as you can go, great — do that. Because it will touch everyone you come in contact with." She went on to point out the importance of demonstrating compassion and grace when dealing with ourselves and others. "I have to demonstrate that I'm always going to come from a place where I'm going to assume positive intent from everyone," she said.

How can one person do all of that without some serious self-care? Dr. Albert tells Upworthy that the two things that keep her anchored are "radical self-care and radical joy,"— two things that have become increasingly more challenging during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Photo by Logan Nolin on Unsplash

"I decided to send myself flowers weekly every Monday. From me, to me," she said. "The inscription is the same every time, it's a quote from [renowned civil rights leader] Ella Baker: 'Give light and the people will find a way'."

This weekly message reminds her to press on, without fear — knowing she is called to a higher purpose. If that's not inspiring, we don't know what is.

Turn your everyday actions into acts of good every day at P&G Good Everyday.

Pets

The most inspiring pet stories of 2024

Leading pet brand Nulo knows every cat and dog has the power to be incredible.

Incredible pets deserve incredible food.

2024 was a year filled with heartwarming stories that reminded us of the incredible bond between humans and their furry companions. From acts of bravery to heartwarming gestures, these pets made a huge impact on the lives of their owners… and the lives of many, many more.

It’s stories like these that continue to inspire leading pet nutrition brand Nulo, which is committed to helping pets live their best lives with functional, delicious and nutritious food. Through their innovative and intentional formulas, Nulo fuels incredible cats and dogs just like the ones below each and every day.

Enjoy some stories below of 2024’s goodest boys and girls — courageous dogs, trauma-informed kitties and much, much more —that really show the unwavering love and loyalty animals bring into our lives. Their inspiring actions fuel incredible.

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When a 71-year-old man went unconscious and collapsed during a steep hike, his golden retriever and a black labrador instinctively broke up into a rescue team — the smart and resourceful labrador going off to look for help, and the loyal goldie staying by its owner's side. Sometimes it’s smart to have two of “man’s best friends.”

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Marley, a seven-year-old, black and white feline known for his "incredible gift of empathy” won Cat Protection's National Cat of the Year 2024 for the way he comforts women who have been enslaved, exploited and trafficked and staying at the Caritas Bakhita Safe House in London. He’s known to often leave a reassuring paw on guests’ legs to “let them know they’re not alone,” a gesture often called “the first kindness they’ve experienced in years.”

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In early 2024, Kobe, a four-year-old husky with an extraordinary sense of smell, began digging obsessively in the yard. At first the pooch’s owner, Chanell Bell, thought this was just typical behavior, but soon discovered that Kobe had indeed detected a dangerously large cloud of natural gas that would have not only been seriously life-threatening to her, but the entire neighborhood. It’s like they say, “the nose knows.”

Eight-year-old golden retriever Roger, may have failed his drug-sniffing training in Taiwan, but it turns out he has a knack for rescue operations during natural disasters. After a 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck, Roger dug through the rubble of a collapsed building to locate the body of one of the 13 people killed in the quake, offering closure to a grieving family. This earned him the nickname of “the pride of Taiwan” on social media.

Dogs don’t only save humans — sometimes they rescue other animals as well.

When folks scrolling through the X account called “Animals Dying” saw a video of a creature swimming through murky water with a deer fawn in its jaws, they probably assumed it was an alligator enjoying its latest meal. But to everyone’s surprise and delight, it was actually a Labrador Retriever making sure the sweet little fawn didn’t drown.

Once a stray, 12-year-old Cilla found her home at Outwoods Primary School in Warwickshire, England, where she calms anxious students, inspires a community of cat lovers on X, and has even used her social media celebrity to help raise £5,000 to restock the school library — a place she loves to lounge in.

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In July, Bloodhound puppy and K-9 unit member Remi used his powerful nose to help an autistic and non-verbal boy who had gotten lost find his way back home. Deputy B. Belk, Remi’s partner, used a piece of sterile gauze to collect the scent from the boy’s forearms and the back of his neck and had Remi “reverse” track backwards for about half a mile to locate the child’s home in a nearby neighborhood.

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When a beautiful pooch named Gita saw her 84-year-old owner fall and hurt his leg, she ran down to the main road, and refused to move until someone stopped to help. Eventually she was seen by a man named Deputy Wright, who tried to get Gita into his patrol car, but the dog wouldn’t budge. When Gita did finally bolt off, Wright followed her down to where the man had been stranded, and was able to help him. Without her protection, who knows if the man would have been found in time? “The loyalty and heroism of our furry friends never cease to amaze us,” Wright would end up writing on Facebook.

If there’s an incredible furry friend in your own life, nothing says “thank you” quite like a nourishing meal. Check out Nulo for a variety of recipes sure to be loved by your beloved pet.

Pop Culture

'Wicked' author reveals how one line in 'The Wizard of Oz' inspired Elphaba and Glinda's story

Gregory Maguire says he "fell down to the ground" laughing when the idea hit him.

Public domain

Gregory Maguire was inspired by a line in the original 1939 film "The Wizard of Oz."

Have you ever watched a movie or read a book or listened to a piece of music and wondered, "How did they come up with that idea?" The creative process is so enigmatic even artists themselves don't always know where their ideas come from, so It's a treat when we get to hear the genesis of a brilliant idea straight from the horse's mouth. If you've watched "Wicked" and wondered where the idea for the friendship between Elphaba (the Wicked Witch) and Glinda (the Good Witch) came from, the author of the book has shared the precise moment it came to him.

The hit movie "Wicked" is based on the 20-year-old hit stage musical, which is based on the novel "Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West" written by Gregory Maguire. While the musical is a simplified version of the 1995 book, the basic storyline—the origins of the two witches from "The Wizard of Oz"—lies at the heart of both. In an interview with BBC, Maguire explained how Elphaba and Glinda's friendship popped into his head.

Maguire was visiting Beatrix Potter's farm in Cumbria, England, and thinking about "The Wizard of Oz," which he had loved as a child and thought could be an interesting basis for a story about evil.

"I thought 'alright, what do we know about 'The Wizard of Oz' from our memories,'" he said. "We have the house falling on the witch. What do we know about that witch? All we know about that witch is that she has feet. So I began to think about Glinda and the Wicked Witch of the West…

"There is one scene in the 1939 film where Billie Burke comes down looking all pink and fluffy, and Margaret Hamilton is all crawed and crabbed and she says something like, 'I might have known you'd be behind this, Glinda!' This was my memory, and I thought, now why is she using Glinda's first name? They have known each other. Maybe they've known each other for a long time. Maybe they went to college together. And I fell down onto the ground in the Lake District laughing at the thought that they had gone to college together."

In "Wicked," Glinda and the Wicked Witch, Elphaba, meet as students at Shiz University, a school of wizardry. They get placed as roommates, loathe each other at first, but eventually become best friends. The story grows a lot more complicated from there (and the novel goes darker than the stage play), but it's the character development of the two witches and their relationship with one another that force us to examine our ideas about good and evil.


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Maguire also shared with the Denver Center for Performing Arts what had inspired him to use the "Wizard of Oz" characters in the first place.

"I was living in London in the early 1990’s during the start of the Gulf War. I was interested to see how my own blood temperature chilled at reading a headline in the usually cautious British newspaper, the Times of London: 'Sadaam Hussein: The New Hitler?' I caught myself ready to have a fully formed political opinion about the Gulf War and the necessity of action against Sadaam Hussein on the basis of how that headline made me feel. The use of the word Hitler – what a word! What it evokes! When a few months later several young schoolboys kidnapped and killed a toddler, the British press paid much attention to the nature of the crime. I became interested in the nature of evil, and whether one really could be born bad. I considered briefly writing a novel about Hitler but discarded the notion due to my general discomfort with the reality of those times. But when I realized that nobody had ever written about the second most evil character in our collective American subconscious, the Wicked Witch of the West, I thought I had experienced a small moment of inspiration. Everybody in America knows who the Wicked Witch of the West is, but nobody really knows anything about her. There is more to her than meets the eye."

Authors and artists—and their ideas—help hold a mirror up to humanity for us to see and reflect on who we are, and "Wicked" is one of those stories that makes us take a hard look at what we're seeing in that mirror. Thanks, Gregory Maguire, for launching us on a collective journey that not only entertains but has the potential to change how we see one another.

450% increase in brain cancer risk for Depo shot birth control users

Long term birth control is something than many people look into when they know they're either done having children or have no plans to have children for several years. There are different forms of long term birth control that people can get. The choices range from one month long protection in the form of a patch or cervical ring to things that last anywhere from three to ten years with options like the arm implant or one of the many IUD choices.

In the middle of all of those options are the Depo-Provera birth control injection. This form of birth control is injected via syringe at your gynecologist's office, local health department or Planned Parenthood and protects you from pregnancy for three months. Every birth control user has their own reasoning for the type of birth control they use and the "depo shot" is fairly popular. It could be due to not having to remember a pill every day while also having a fairly short end date should someone choose to have a baby.

Recently the popular birth control has been under scrutiny after it was revealed that lawsuits had been filed due to a link between the birth control and a 450% increase in a specific type of brain cancer. This seemingly scary development has caused some of its users to panic with fear they could be exposing themselves to getting brain cancer. For some people, Depo-Provera is the only type of birth control they have found that works well with their personal chemical make up which has some people feeling like they're now out of options.

red and white plastic hand tool Photo by Reproductive Health Supplies Coalition on Unsplash

It was this panic that led people to Dr. Jennifer Lincoln's inbox. Lincoln is a board certified OBGYN who shares her medical knowledge on social media for people to reference and get accurate answers to medical questions related to those with female anatomy. Lincoln noticed an influx of people asking about the significant increased risk in developing brain tumors for those using the depo shot as their birth control option.

In a recent video posted to social media, the doctor shows a short clip of a video with text overlay reading, "when my birth control is going through a MASSIVE LAWSUIT for giving women brain tumors and I've been on it for 4 years and I'm still on it and I JUST FOUND OUT. I can't do the pill because it's too much, I can't do the IUD because it looks too painful."

medication pills blister pack Photo by Reproductive Health Supplies Coalition on Unsplash

Dr. Lincoln starts by sharing that she's an OBGYN and has gotten a lot of messages about the lawsuit before going into exactly what's happening and what people should and shouldn't be concerned about.

"So there's this study in the British Medical Journal that says using Depo-Provera leads to a 450% increase in a type of brain tumor called meningiomas, and when you Google 'depo and brain tumors' this is what you see. It's almost all completely sponsored posts by lawyers so it seems like it's really bad right," she asks.


It's at this point in the video where the OBGYN breaks down the numbers hoping to ease the minds of concerned people that come across her video. These types of studies can be difficult to read and when it comes to lawsuits, everything sounds scary. There's currently a generation that grew up hearing commercial about the mesothelioma class action lawsuit and can still recite it even though they were not the target audience. Big lawsuits grab the attention of just about everyone, so Lincoln's video just may calm the fears of those currently taking depo or those who have previously taken it.

"This is the one thing you need to know, people who are not on Depo-Provera have a 0.01% chance of being diagnosed with a meningioma. If you are on Depo-Provera, it is a 0.05% chance. That is a 450% increase but when you actually look at the actual numbers it's not that scary and this is why getting your information in context and actually understanding it is really important but lawyers are not going to explain it that way."

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In the end, your risk of getting this particular type of brain tumor goes from 1 in 10,000 to 5 in 10,000 women according to Dr. Lincoln. While that slight increase may give some people pause, for others it may calm their worries about the terrifying sounding increase. Of course any chance of a product causing cancer is too high but with proper education people are at least be able to make a more informed decision before choosing or not choosing this option for their birth control needs.

Her delight at finding a snack she liked has people in stitches.

In the age of Amazon and other online retailers, delivery drivers have become an integral part of our lives. But most of us rarely interact with the people who drop packages at our door via UPS or FedEx or USPS, and if we do, it's usually only for a few seconds. We might manage a friendly "Good afternoon!" or quick "Thanks a bunch!" as they hustle to and from their vehicle, always rushing to fulfil their quota as efficiently as possible.

Delivery folks work hard. They're on their feet much of the day, traipsing up hundreds of front walks a week, through all kinds of inclement weather. Yes, it's their job and they're paid to do it, but it's always nice to have your work seen and appreciated, which is one reason a video of UPS driver discovering a sweet treat on a customer's front porch is going viral.

Another reason is that it's just hilariously adorable.

A doorbell camera caught a UPS driver wearing a holiday bauble headband walking up to the door and dropping off a package as she talks to herself. After she takes a photo of the delivery, she sees that the customer had left a little tray of drinks and snacks, and her "Oooh, do I see honey bunny?" is a sign of the hilarity to come.

Watch her reaction and the way she joyfully make her way back to the truck.

Unsurprisingly, people are in love with the driver and her giddy goofiness.

"I literally laughed out loud at her crazy walk back to the truck. I need more people like her in my life."

"I have a friend like that, he just makes my day every time we see each other. 😂"

"That is way adorable! Simple act that makes the day of a random person <3."

"I don’t know anything else about her but she’s my new fave human."

"OMG she reminds me of our mail carrier so much. We leave her cookies at Christmas and she always does a little happy dance that day."

Delivery drivers and former delivery drivers shared that these kinds of gestures really do mean a lot.

"As a former delivery driver, i want you to know that if you leave snacks and drinks out for us, we love you to the moon and back. 💜"

"Driving for Amazon paid my rent for 10 months. Not exaggerating when I say that it was a dark time in my life. Snacks made me smile. every. single. time."

"I mean... I literally took something from every house that had stuff out. I worked 10-12hrs+ during the holidays... I needed every calorie I could get walking 20-30miles a day."

"Even when I didn't take them I appreciate them. it's like seeing a sign that says we love delivery drivers."

"I'll tell you what, the people who leave food got me through my holidays as a postal carrier. Nothing slaps harder than an ice cold redbull and bag of pretzels and ice cold bottle of water that was left in a cooler. I had a lady who asked me what I liked and then had sperate bags labeled "Mail carrier USPS" and "UPS GUY" and "FED EX GUY" with our preferred snacks. She asked me what my favorite ice cream was and she knew my mile long loop and knew when I parked, I'd be done in 15mins, so, she'd be waiting at the truck every day all summer with an ice cream and a napkin.

There are some people who just f---ing make the day feel worth it, if you are one of these people, you are what makes delivering mail worth it. We do notice the nice things you do for us, THANK YOU."

"I do this during the summer. I'm in Texas so it's routinely over 100°F. I'm always trying to make sure there are cold drinks for our postal workers and delivery people."

"I do it during Australian Christmas. 40c/100f plus on a December day. Coke water and Gatorade always gone by lunch."

It's a good reminder that it doesn't take a lot to show appreciation and make someone's day. These kinds of positive interactions, even when asynchronous and not directly face-to-face, are an important part of building the kind of world we all want to live in.

Fatherhood

Dad turns his daughter's class president win into a scene straight out of the White House

A fake secret service agent and “Hail to the Chief” made this moment one for the books.

The White House

A hero in a dark suit watches over what matters most.

You might expect a father to feel pride when his daughter wins the election for school president. There might be hugs and smiles. Or, like one father did, you might go in an entirely different direction. When Lydia D. posted a video of her husband’s heartwarming and over-the-top celebration of their daughter’s class president victory on Instagram, it quickly won the internet's heart.

The clip shows her husband going all out to mark the occasion, donning a black suit and sunglasses and pretending to be her Secret Service detail as she gets out of school for the day. With a fake radio hidden in his cuff and "Hail to the Chief" blasting from the car, he transformed an ordinary school pickup into a moment to remember.

In the caption, Lydia D., who originally shared the video, summed it up perfectly:

"If there’s one thing we’re going to do as a family it’s hype each other up!"

— @lydiascrafting

A dad's love and humor steal the show

The video begins with Lydia's husband standing outside their daughter’s school entrance, stone-faced and pretending to communicate into a hidden earpiece. As their daughter approached, he gestured toward the car, where the presidential anthem was blaring from the speakers. The playful scene captured his love for his daughter and his knack for making a milestone unforgettable.

A moment cherished by all

In the video, one of her friends is seen clapping enthusiastically, adding another layer of sweetness to the moment. User @starleishamichelle highlighted this detail, writing: "The way her friend clapped for her too 🤩😭💛."

Of course, her dad’s sense of humor didn’t go unnoticed. Many viewers laughed along, with @ashleigh.harris31 saying: "This is hilarious 😂 and the music blasting too 😂😂." Another user, @magicallymaya, added: "Ok I LOVE this!! Congrats, madame president!"

"The best!!!! Ahhhhhh coolest dad and memories FOREVER to be remembered!! 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽."

— @theliteracydive

A call for more moments like this

This story is more than just a laugh—it’s a celebration of family, love, and the joy of lifting each other up. It’s no wonder the internet is buzzing about it. In a world where milestones often pass by in the blink of an eye, Lydia’s husband reminds us all to make memories worth cherishing.

Democracy

Trevor Noah shared the one question U.S. journalists should be asking themselves every day

"Ask yourself that question every day, because you have one of the most important roles in the world."

Trevor Noah has gotten high praise for his closing remarks at the White House Correspondents' Dinner.

Back in 2022, for the first time in six years, the annual White House Correspondents' Dinner (WHCD) was held with the president of the United States in attendance on April 30 in Washington, D.C. The WHCD has been a tradition in Washington for more than a century and for the past several decades it has taken the form of a comedic roast of both the government and the press. 2022's dinner was hosted by comedian and former host of "The Daily Show" Trevor Noah, who's known for his smart, witty commentary on social and political issues.

The "let's invite a comedian to publicly and viciously make fun of us for a couple of hours" idea may be a bit odd, but these events have proven quite popular over the years, with many viral moments (including President Obama's infamous GIF-worthy mic drop) coming from them. The dinner opened with Noah joking about it being a superspreader event, earning some uncomfortable laughter, then the individual roasts commenced. Noah didn't hold back slamming people across the political and media spectrum—all in good fun, of course—including President Biden himself.


But it was Noah's closing remarks that earned the most attention. In his signature style, Noah managed to bring a serious and thoughtful element to a night of ribbing and laughter when he admonished the press to recognize both their freedom and their responsibility.

“If you ever begin to doubt your responsibilities, if you ever begin to doubt how meaningful it is, look no further than what’s happening in Ukraine," Noah said. "Look at what’s happening there. Journalists are risking and even losing their lives to show the world what is happening. You realize how amazing that is?

“In America, you have the right to seek the truth and speak the truth, even if it makes people in power uncomfortable. Even if it makes your viewers or readers uncomfortable. You understand how amazing that is?" he reiterated.

Noah pointed out that he had just stood there and made fun of the president of the United States and he was going to be fine. Then he contrasted that with the reality Russian journalists are living under Putin.

“Ask yourself this question," he said to the members of the media. "If Russian journalists who are losing their livelihoods … and their freedom for daring to report on what their own government is doing—If they had the freedom to write any words, to show any stories, or to ask any questions—if they had, basically, what you have—would they be using it in the same way that you do?

"Ask yourself that question every day," he said, "because you have one of the most important roles in the world."

Watch:

People had high praise for Noah's entire evening of hosting, but especially for his closing remarks. Russia's war on Ukraine has put a spotlight on many things we tend to take for granted, including the freedom of the press.

Journalists do play a vital role in society and it's one they must take seriously. To be fair, most journalists do feel the weight of their responsibility, but the corporatization of news media and a 24/7 news cycle has created a competitive landscape in which coverage is sometimes determined by what will drive traffic or viewers rather than on what's truly newsworthy or important. The demonization of news outlets by some has also created a hostile media environment, and news organizations have to resist the urge to kowtow to the loudest voices or inadvertently amplify the wrong things. Journalists often have to fight for the truth on multiple fronts, sometimes inside their own newsrooms.

Thank you, Trevor Noah, for reminding reporters that the fight is worth it and for using this opportunity to remind the press of its primary purpose with such a simple yet profound question.

This article originally appeared two years ago.