"Why Some of Us Will Not, Cannot, and Do Not Post about Baltimore"

"the ubiquity and constant nature of social media means that it is quite frankly exhausting. It is draining and demoralizing to scroll through reams and reams of the hurt done to our communities by white people, as well as to see the reactions of other white people to this state-sanctioned violence. But many Black people feel that they have a duty to keep posting and to keep engaging and to keep pushing past the deep pit of sickening hopelessness that opens up any time we are reminded that in the eyes of so many, a broken CVS window is worth more sadness and outrage than the broken spine of a young, Black man. 

Some Black folks, however, keep quiet on social media, even when situations reach their peak. This is not a sign of apathy or disinterest. It is not because we just don’t care. It is not complicit silence.

It is because we are close to our breaking point. The mental toll of posting about state-sanctioned violence against people of color is monumental. It doesn’t seem to matter how many people peacefully protest online or scream and shout their throats raw in the streets crying for justice, the status quo just keeps rolling. 

Audre Lorde told us, “Your silence will not protect you.” But neither, it seems, do our voices...

Pain isn’t meant to be a performative emotion. Just because we are not broadcasting it to the world doesn’t mean it’s not there."

http://www.forharriet.com/2015/04/why-some-of-us-will-not-cannot-and-do.html#axzz3Yqpx3gRR

This is beautiful, and such a comment on our social media world. On how we haven't yet synced this new ability to pour our voices out to the world with our own emotional needs.