Oppression is a barrier to alignment for everyone

Somewhere along my journey, I found myself hitting the same wall, unable to get past it. I was rewriting thoughts that were untrue and not mine, but they kept coming back. I tried to not fight them, but the weight they exuded over me never lessened. At least not until I was able to see them for what they really are, oppression. The specific systems of oppression I have found (so far) to be responsible for my misaligned beliefs are the usual suspects, the unholy trinity themselves, white supremacy, the patriarchy, and capitalism. Different yet the same, each supporting the next and strengthening the hold oppression has on us all. May they all rot in hell, amen. There are MANY conversations to be had regarding oppression and its impact, our hand in upholding these systems, and the importance of dismantling such structures. For this blog post I am focusing on internalized oppression because for me, starting with myself was crucial if any real progress were to be made internally or externally.

First, you must accept that systems of oppression do exist in the world. This alone can be very hard for some of us, especially those of us living with privileges from these systems. These privileges prevent us from experiencing the oppression outright, which can make it very hard to not only see the systems, but also the detriment they have on the people they are designed to benefit. Make no mistake, systems of oppression are bad for everyone. Once you can see oppression externally, you must recognize that these external systems can and DO affect you internally, and then you’ll be ready to find the oppression hidden inside your mind and start the removal process.

Maybe an example of what I mean will be helpful, here’s an oppressive thought I’ve had that comes in many forms, “I don’t deserve love because my body isn’t perfect.” Gross. For me, just telling myself that’s not true, my deserving love is inherent and not tied to my physical appearance, was not enough to result in an actual change to my perception of my body. I had to turn detective and think, what benefits from me doing this to myself? I know this thought doesn’t benefit me, but without being able to trace it to the source responsible, doubt tended to get the better of me. But if I can find “whodunnit”, I will KNOW it’s not me and it will be easier to remove. Let’s start with the usual suspects.

One characteristic of white supremacy is perfectionism which focuses on problems rather than solutions, gives attention towards criticism as if there is some ideal to be achieved, and treats anything short of perfection as worthless. Hey, this feels familiar. Me subscribing to perfection existing benefits white supremacy and not me! If I believe perfection exists and has worth, I am upholding a rule of oppression. This is not my rule, it doesn’t benefit me, it hurts everyone, f*ck this rule. I will spend my time and energy focusing on the fact that the mere existence of my body, of any body, merits worth. Look at us, all alive and stuff. A patriarchal society is one where men dominate women and make all decisions including what features are considered attractive for women. If I’m spending my time evaluating my looks based on the male gaze, I’m keeping the patriarchy in business as well just by maintaining the status quo. F*ck that. Finally, capitalism. Good news! Capitalism doesn’t care who you are or what you look like! It just wants your money and will stop at nothing to get it, including selling you a solution to a problem that doesn’t exist. F*ck no. These systems of oppression work together seamlessly to convince us of untruths and keep us distracted trying to obtain something that is both impossible AND meaningless. A rat on a wheel spending all its energy to get nowhere, but tired.

These thoughts can also make us feel weak. WE ARE ANYTHING BUT WEAK. These oppressive systems were present in your grandmother’s society and therefore in her mind while she was pregnant with your mother who already had the egg that would become you in her tiny developing body. This oppression was implanted in you long before anyone even knew you would exist. And our environments can quite literally affect the way our genes work (hello epigenetics), so this is insidious. It’s disgusting. And being able to recognize something for what it is rather than just labeling it as “not mine” is powerful. It allows you to rip it out by the root. Happy gardening!

1.    Identify untrue thought.

2.    Solve the case: what benefits from me believing this?

3.    Take away the power of the thought by acknowledging what it is at its root!

4.    Rewrite the thought to be true.

5.    Repeat as needed.