Racist or uninformed?

[nadine_mn]

I am a middle-aged woman of Mexican-Scandinavian ancestry and I have benefited from white privilege my whole life. The first time I heard about white privilege and took a look around me, I was shocked at how much I took for granted. Just when I think I get it, something opens my eyes even more. Before Ferguson and Mike Brown's murder (because that is what it was), I knew there was police brutality against black people, I knew racial profiling was going on, and I knew black people had every reason to fear the police. But this past year - holy crap - knowing it existed vs how prevalent, how violent, and how ignored police brutality is... that just blew my mind. I have spent the past year shocked and outraged at every latest news report. And realized, this is not "new", this has been an every day experience for decades and only now is it getting the attention it deserves (well deserves more, and actual action).

I do not consider myself racist by any means. So when I heard about what happened in Seattle and the whole "white liberals are racist", I got pretty huffy and upset. This is not the first time I have heard this - there has been a lot of talk recently about how white liberals are oblivious to issues affecting people of color.

So I did find some solace yesterday in many posts on DU decrying BLM and felt vindicated in some way- "see...not all white liberals are racist..this just wasn't the place for BLM to take the stage".

But then I kept reading other posts and read that other DUers do feel it was the place, do feel that their voices aren't being heard either here on DU or in the candidates' campaigns.

Some disconnect is happening between not thinking one is racist vs being perceived as racist. As I said, I do not consider myself racist. I do admit to never being able to fully understand what it is to be an African American in this country. I am trying to educate myself more as best I can and to do whatever I can to show I do believe Black Lives Matter. And I know I am not the only one here who feels this way.

But am I still coming across as racist? I admit to being uninformed on a whole bunch of stuff. What can I do so that ALL DUers, esp African Americans, feel safe posting here and feel like their voices are being heard?

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

1. There's some semantics that play into this.

There are those who consider all white people in the US 'racist' because they simply exist within the bounds of racist institutional systems. Note that this does not mean that all white people are automatically racial bigots who run around in klan costumes and spout the 'n word'. Rather you are born into a racist system, educated in a racist system, exist within the bounds of a racist system, are treated by that system according to your race, and are, by default, acting in ways that propagate that racist system at any time you're not deliberately working to tear down the racist aspects of the status quo. Simply by not constantly working against the system, you help perpetuate the system. In that sense, almost every white person out there would indeed be considered racist.

[nadine_mn]

2. Ok I understand that persepective

But I hope others understand that if you call me a racist.. I am not going to hear anything else you have to say (at least not right then). My first reaction is going to be to get defensive, to feel hurt and probably feel some anger/frustration.

That doesn't mean I won't ever hear what you have to say, or that I am discounting what you say. Because I hear "bigot". The word 'racist' is the type of word that no one - not even hard-core Klan members- actively embraces.

But starting out with that word shuts down immediate conversation. Ok at least for me, but seeing it from this point of view, I hope to get less defensive.

Thank you for explaining it further.

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

3. No problem.

I think we just lack any real attempts to actually teach about racism in American schools, at least before college, and then only if you take specific classes. Which, it can be suggested, is another part of WHY our systems are racist. We sweep most of our past under the rug, without examining it critically, which makes us incapable of addressing the ongoing flaws in our present.

[Igel]

4. That's part of it.

But often in a given post you can watch the definition change.

From "whites are racist if they don't defy the system sufficiently" to "whites are racist and that's why you're doing X." Now it's systemic and not personal actions or attitudes; now it's justification for construing personal actions and attitudes one way and not another. There are other alternatives for definitions, as well. Where the definition drifts to depends on the DUer and seems mostly to depend on the DUer's rhetorical needs at the time. All the definitions are always available.

The thing about "not defying the system sufficiently" is that most professionals who use the term mean speaking out when a hiring decision is being made, or when a choice is available, or pushing for more aggressive outreach. It's not an ascetic viewpoint or stance, nor one that demands great self-aggrievement. Some I've exchanged posts with almost seem to think it should extend to turning down a job or going to a lesser school, not using opportunities and resources that you have to help yourself, or refusing a promotion not because it would necessarily help a black, but because then you're denying yourself participation in the system. The mere benefiting is an act of racism, with sackcloth and ashes not being sufficient penance in the eyes of those who are responsible for cosmic judgment of such things. It's silly, it's rooted in some sort of underlying problem or perhaps Schadenfreude or merely some sort of initiation requirement to prove solidarity, but it's there anyway. Nothing can be said at the time because to be called "racist" now is like being called "communist" in the 1950s, "queer" in the 1960s, or "passing" in the 1880s. Given the prevalence of confirmation bias and hypervigilance, disproving such claims is nearly impossible.