(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Allyship; Misunderstood [1] ['A Pagan In Arizona', 'Sabrina Haake', 'Kelli Anne Busey'] Date: 2026-07-05 I read a few or a lot of comments about how certain types of Entries only serve to “push away allies”, as you will see this is not my first time reading or hearing those types of comments. One thing some people fail to understand about allies, is that it’s not about who you stand next to, it’s about the cause one claims to believe in. Nothing I or another person can say or do, should be able to sway someone away from a cause THEY BELIEVE IN. In allyship there’s a cause or an enemy in common, that’s the common denominator. You don’t have to like an ally or agree with them because that’s not what you are there for. You are there because you believe IN something. YOU singular. An ally cannot make you drop your beliefs. Saying things like ” that’s how you lose/push away allies” is a scare tactic, it is meant to shut the other person up. Stop that or i won’t help you anymore! Be nice to me or I’ll walk away! What? You gonna turn your back when you see a woman being harassed? Raped? and you think that’s a flex? (i’m sticking to sexism here since that’s what provoked my reaction, but it applies to all them causes folks claim to support). The profound misunderstanding of A LOT of folks who say they are allies, is that they think it’s about supporting the people involved, while this KIND of allyship is about standing up for a cause you claim to believe in or a principle you profess to have. Therefor when one spouts things like “that’s why you lose allies” we in fact did not lose anything, some folks just stopped pretending they believed in a cause or had a specific principle. If MOST men stood up against sexism, there would be no rape culture to speak of. They would cut the locker room talk short, they would escort men harassing women out of bars, they would denounce men dropping drugs in glasses, they would not have sex with drunken women, they would check each other for inappropriate comments, they would stop the cat calling understanding that while they or others might mean no wrong it made women uncomfortable and scared because of the culture we live in… See being an ally in this case? it’s not about protecting women, it’s about changing men’s behaviors and mindsets. It’s removing the need to invent nail polish and straws that detect the presence of drugs in one’s drink. The need to walk around in groups. It’s not about protecting women, it’s about making the world a safe place to move about, removing the dangers in their path. It’s about checking / outing / your brothers, fathers, cousins, friends, bosses, when they step over the line. You take refuge in the phrase “I protect women” because it lets you avoid dealing with the real problem, the men that you know. You’d rather walk a woman to her car than block the path of the man you see going out after her. The irony is when it comes to the women in your life, mothers, sisters, daughters you’ll tell the men in your life “you touch her and you’re dead”. I had prepared this set of poems to publish on their own, and they are mostly about allyship to Black folks. But I had to add the intro in light of recent events. 1. ALLY… When you label yourself as an ally It doesn’t matter which marginalized group you support Being an ally, is going to involve some discomfort Being an ally is not a passing fad It requires going against the trend It requires standing up to friends Being an ally means having the courage To speak and defend us in our absence Rather than speaking up in our presence A true ally does not need to understand everything They know however to back our play And always stand besides us in the fray Being an ally means putting aside your preconceptions Listening to our words and our issues And putting aside your own point of views It is not up to an ally to define our needs Nor to tell us the path to follow Nor which way to go Being an ally is not an easy task You will be uncomfortable You might even be miserable If you don’t feel you have it in you Just stand aside, don’t stand by And don’t call yourself an ally We need fighters Not cheerleaders Fighters. July 7th, 2023 Muriel Vieux ©All Rights Reserved #TheAmericanHaitianPoet Muriel Vieux 2. I KNOW WHY… ALLY. I know why You didn’t answer the phone You wanted a break You didn’t want to talk about that I know why You didn’t come over yesterday You wanted the day off Wanted to go out and have fun I know why You sometimes mute my feed You’re tired of hearing about it You want to gaze at kittens and puppies I know why You pretend to be sick So you won’t have to hear me So I can stay quiet I know why You say you got work to do Because it’s too much for you To be there every day I know why, Ally It’s because you think, this is not my fight It’s because you think, “my” problems can wait It’s because you think, girl give it a rest I know why, Ally, Don’t worry about it, I wasn’t counting you in Don’t worry about it, it’s not you I’ll be burying Don’t worry about it… I’ve always known You weren’t really an Ally. January 17th, 2021 Muriel Vieux ©All Rights Reserved #TheAmericanHaitianPoet Muriel Vieux 3. GUESS WHAT? When you sit back When we’re under attack When you’re boss or friend Calls one of us a fiend Guess what? You’re not an ally! When you withdraw Saying it’s a strain We complain too much Over each insult Guess what? You’re not an ally! When you pull away Saying you’re tired Gonna take a break You need to recharge Guess what? You’re not an ally! When you’re offended We called out your friends Make it personal Guarding your own back Guess what? You’re not an ally! You’re not an ally You’re not on our side You’re a do gooder Padding your resumé Prepping your own brand Muriel Vieux December 4th, 2022 ©All Rights Reserved wanna Muriel Vieux 4. WANNA BE AN ALLY? Wanna be an ally? Stand beside me and fight Don’t stand in front of me and shout Don’t stand behind me and whine I don’t need you to explain my plight I need you to explain your stance I don’t need you to browbeat racists I need you to educate your peers Wanna be an ally? Stand with me as long as it takes Don’t sit down when you get tired Don’t fall behind when you’re frustrated I don’t need a part time ally I need people who’ll stay by my side I don’t need an occasional ally I need people who’ll stay the course Wanna be an ally? Stand next me and really listen Don’t think you know what I’m feeling Don’t think you understand my life I don’t need you to save the day I need you to back my play I don’t need you to fight for me I need you to fight with me Wanna be an ally? Don’t stand in front of me and shout Muriel Vieux January 9th, 2022 © All rights Reserved Muriel Vieux 5. ARE YOU INVESTED? Are you truly invested? Consider yourself an ally? Or did you just sashay in here Thinking we will be your guides and teachers? Or thinking you had the solution Something we hadn’t thought of before. Before you consider yourself an ally Consider this… Have you done your own research? Read the books of Black authors Followed commentators on Black media Listened to prominent Black voices Cause this isn’t no pet project To be done on dateless nights Searching for something to do Cause you’re bored and feeling blue Have you done the homework? Found out where the cracks are at Rooted out inside yourself All those inbred biases This isn’t no home hobby To do on some rainy days Or some self-pity guilt trip To assuage your own conscience Do you have a thought-out plan? Figured out how you can help Besides chanting now and then On the occasional protest march This isn’t no extracurricular activity To pad your own resumé Some ego aggrandizing scheme To tap yourself on the back ©Muriel Vieux August 4th, 2022 ©All Rights Reserved paypal.me/murielvieux (rent is due soon) [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2026/7/5/800065033/community/poetry-allyship/ Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/