Celebrating Diversity // Black Lives Matter
It's time to come together
There's a lot going on in the world right now, from pandemics, to protests. It can get a little overwhelming so it's easy to leave the hard stuff to everyone else, I mean one person can't make THAT much of a difference right? Wrong.
I have three children, a successful business, I have a life of privilege, I have a voice. Therefore I can facilitate change.
So what am I going to do?!!!! Where do I start?
Read, Listen, Learn
I stumbled across Avery Francis' Insta account, which outlines some things Non-Black people can start doing immediately.
Speak Up
Ask Questions
Listen with Intent
Read all the Books and then Ask the Questions
Acknowledge Your White Privilege
Be an Ally
Watch the Shows
Do your own Research
Alternatively, if you are looking for somewhere to start Huck Magazine have an amazing list of resources.
Get Comfortable Being Uncomfortable
Unravelling hundreds of years of oppression will take time, so be prepared to squirm.
I consider myself Australian, but I know so little about the culture of the country that I was born into.
Did you know for example that the Aboriginal community make up only three percent of the overall population but 28 per cent of the Australian prison population, and 50 per cent of the youth detention population.
It also dawned on me as I was starting to research and learn, that I had never witnessed an Aboriginal wedding (and I've seen SOOOO many weddings), nor had I seen an Indigenous wedding featured on a blog or in a magazine.
So I have challenged myself to find out more about Indigenous Weddings. From the little that I have read already, it's a fascinating cultural tradition.
It's a small step. But it's a step!
Change begins at home, so we're making a start...
At de lumière we are truly blessed to be able to capture people across all cultures and religions, so this week we are going to celebrate diversity. I will share some of our gorgeous multicultural weddings, knowledge that I have learnt about indigenous marriage, and stories from my own personal experience.
The images in this post are from a trip that I took to Vanuatu where we made a conscious choice to NOT stay in a western based resort, but rather support a local business. We found a small motel right on the water who looked after us so wonderfully. The jarring part for us was that the motel was literally next door to what we would call slums.
For the locals though, it was their home and they were incredibly proud to entertain us and show us their home. We hired some locals to show us around the island, and they took their job very seriously!! We saw places that only the locals knew about, chatted with people in the villages, and spent time learning about their culture.
So next time you take a holiday, consider skipping the fancy resort and book local. Take the time to get to know the culture you are visiting.
Want to see more like this?
African and Fijian cultures collide for Robynne and Isireli’s wedding
