Meet Anti-Racism Activist Dr. Kim McLear

Hello friends,

One of the people I’ve been following on LinkedIn is Dr. Kim McLear who has been passionate about anti-racism since her childhood, and hasn’t stopped since! Please meet Dr. Kim…

Dr. Kim, what made you become an anti-racism activist?

When I was a child and saw a documentary on the KKK. Racism however, is not always highly visible as cross-burnings, but it is rather insidious as it permeates virtually all systems and infrastructures, including within ourselves. Many people assume my activism began when I spoke out against the U.S. military in 2014. The seeds of my activism were planted many years before in my youth when I understood how insidious racism is around the world.

What anti-racist cause are you most passionate about, and why?

I am most passionate about ending racism before it extinguishes dreams in children of all ages.

What form does your activism take?

I am a Black, queer woman with a PhD in Systems Engineering. My activism is in the forms of U.S. and international campaigns, digital activism, courses, public speaking, protests, legislation, policy, state/federal testimony, and politics. I am a former State of the Union guest of Honor who testified on Capitol Hill about the egregious abuses in the U.S. Coast Guard, exposing three of the largest coverups on racism, rape, and retaliation in recent military history. I have engaged and strategized with several organizations around the United States and the world on ending workplace abuses, and ending any structures that silence and oppress people.

What response have you had to your activism?

Anti-racism and anti-oppression work is not easy. The responses have been overwhelming positive from a diverse range of people within and beyond the government and even the U.S.A. I was featured on the cover issue of Glamour magazine for my efforts advocating for the CROWN act and the first to change these racist policies within the U.S. military. I also spearheaded changes to remove the Confederate Flag from federal work spaces in the Coast Guard, the only military branch that is a part of the Department of Homeland Security, not Defense. Furthermore, several bipartisan laws have been passed as a result of my advocacy work, which is extremely rare given the hyperpolarized American culture and politics.

In terms of anti-racism content, which are your top three articles or social media posts?

1. December 2023 CNN Post: I spoke on CNN’s Anderson Cooper 360 about the pervasive culture of coverup in the U.S. Coast Guard. It was several years in the making to expose racism, rape, and retaliation in the Coast Guard on a national prime time platform. Activism takes time, persistence and a willingness to go deep into the issues at systemic levels.

2. September 2020 Glamour Cover Story. CROWN Act: I am very proud of my advocacy work to cherish our natural hair and the agency we must have to make own decisions about our own bodies. It’s not just about hair and this type of agency impacts more than Black people. We all have a crown that we deserve to wear at home, in school, in communities, and the workplace. This specific advocacy on hair agency took more than 7 years before the Glamour cover issue.

3. Ahmet Öğüt's “Monuments of the Disclosed.” Augmented Reality: There are lots of ways to shift paradigms and narratives. I’ve had the pleasure of strategizing with a wide variety of creative artists and storytellers to make change at a human emotional level, while centering truth, justice, and joy. This particular project was in collaboration with the National Whistleblower Center, Artwrld, and artist Ahmet Öğüt.

Share one anti-racism article written by someone else that really made an impact on you.

A God Who Wails and Dances. (Interview with Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor, award winning Kenyan author)

I enjoyed this interview on plurality, geopolitics, courage, and language. It’s important to expand our readings and exposure to anti-racism work around the world and well as within our local environments. To understand human supremacy and anti-racism is to understand that theses paradigms are interconnected around the world.

In relation to racism, what is your vision for the future?

My vision for the future is to guard, affirm, and cherish those in the margins, those who have been marginalized, othered, disenfranchised, dismissed, discarded silenced, and oppressed. When we can truly achieve this, we will be growing futures where everyone can flourish. A future where racism is alive and well is a future where we aren’t.

Whew! Well said, Dr. Kim. Folx, please connect with Dr. Kim on LinkedIn to learn more about her work.

Thanks for reading,

Sharon

I am an anti-racism educator and activist, the author of “I’m Tired of Racism”, and co-host of The Introvert Sisters podcast.

© Sharon Hurley Hall, 2024. All Rights Reserved.