My only question on this Stanley was if I read this correctly (dubious), if the spectrum is Neo-Nazis - Trump - People with no issue with POC (but still are racist), is your friend Erica in the last group? I say her and not me because I caught myself at implicit bias literally this morning, but it sounded like she was a pretty advanced human. Not asking that anyone shed tears for us, but it seems daunting if the best we can individually achieve is being not problematic but still racist. Again, apologies if I misinterpreted that or missed the point completely.
Hi Travis, first off thanks for reading. Secondly, that's a great question. The quick answer is, I'm honestly not sure. The longer answer is, I don't think I give a full enough spectrum of white supremacy, the options I list above exist, but are not the full picture.
However, I think that we have all grown up in a system that prioritizes one group over another, whether it be because of race, gender, sexual orientation, or finances. This is the norm, most of us don't have the tools to create a new framework, because we can't even imagine a world outside of this. What we can do is try to be vigilant and mindful at how our prejudices might show up, and try our best to course correct. If we focus on empathy, humanity, and love, I think we can be ok.
Lastly, the thing I don't think I explained enough in this essay, and would like to do in another one, is that white supremacy does serious damage to white people. It is in the best interest of all of us to heal from this centuries old disease. Not sure if this was helpful or more confusing, hopefully it was helpful. Thanks again for reading, I really appreciate the time and effort you put aside to do that, and then ask a really good question!
Thanks for responding! Those are great points. I see it like your title, "Let's not be trash." Speaking on the damage of white supremacy, it reminds me of something I've seen that focused on corporate environments and how racism or bias in hiring costs companies competitive advantage by limiting the total pool of candidates their HR considers by decreasing diversity of thought (which has empirically measurable disadvantages in decision making) and ultimately results in less $$. Pretty mercenary way to convince people not to be shitheads, but I feel like, for some, the bottom line is the only thing that has any impact on their thinking.
Here's the thing. I'm a white male and I don't want to go through life feeling ashamed. I've got plenty of shame as it is, for all sorts of reasons. Am I racist? Oh, probably. I think most people, regardless of the various groups they identify with or belong to, prejudge others in harmful ways. That's something we can all look at within ourselves and work on. But if you say all white people are racist, oh man, that doesn't leave me anywhere to go. How can I feel good about myself if I'm a racist -- and being a racist is such a terrible thing? It's dehumanizing. I think it actually inflames racial tensions. Is it really necessary to bring down white people in order to uplift black ones? Can't we all be uplifted?
Hey, thanks for this response. I have been thinking about this question a lot since I published this post, so your comment really struck a nerve. I think the point of the essay was to highlight the. first part of what you said, and for that reason I think we're mostly on the same page.
Where we get lost at is the title. I do believe that "All White People Are Racist" just like I believe that all people are prejudice or can be prejudice. What I feel stronger than both of these things is that, if we are to move through the disease of white supremacy, all people, Black, White, etc must be aligned and see their liberation through each other. In hindsight, I think I lose some people with the headline, so thank you for your honesty, know that I agree and am committed to doing better. I hope you keep reading and engaging!
This is very insightful. As the family genealogist to a family that has been here since the early 1600s, I know exactly how many slaves and domestic servants my family had "employed" and it's a public record for anyone who wants to look at old U.S. Census records. For those white people who say "but I didn't own any slaves" I would say that you haven't looked hard enough. It would be a great Ph.D. project to pull the census records of slaveowners and then use Ancestry.com to track those families forward to today. That group of people owe a direct debt to slaves. My guess (using the data that ~35% of us are related to the passengers on the Mayflower) is it would be ~50% of all white people living today. The rest of the white people owe less. But we all owe something, and this will haunt us until someone confronts the rest of us with the data.
Thats a really smart observation. Thanks for sharing!
My only question on this Stanley was if I read this correctly (dubious), if the spectrum is Neo-Nazis - Trump - People with no issue with POC (but still are racist), is your friend Erica in the last group? I say her and not me because I caught myself at implicit bias literally this morning, but it sounded like she was a pretty advanced human. Not asking that anyone shed tears for us, but it seems daunting if the best we can individually achieve is being not problematic but still racist. Again, apologies if I misinterpreted that or missed the point completely.
Hi Travis, first off thanks for reading. Secondly, that's a great question. The quick answer is, I'm honestly not sure. The longer answer is, I don't think I give a full enough spectrum of white supremacy, the options I list above exist, but are not the full picture.
However, I think that we have all grown up in a system that prioritizes one group over another, whether it be because of race, gender, sexual orientation, or finances. This is the norm, most of us don't have the tools to create a new framework, because we can't even imagine a world outside of this. What we can do is try to be vigilant and mindful at how our prejudices might show up, and try our best to course correct. If we focus on empathy, humanity, and love, I think we can be ok.
Lastly, the thing I don't think I explained enough in this essay, and would like to do in another one, is that white supremacy does serious damage to white people. It is in the best interest of all of us to heal from this centuries old disease. Not sure if this was helpful or more confusing, hopefully it was helpful. Thanks again for reading, I really appreciate the time and effort you put aside to do that, and then ask a really good question!
Thanks for responding! Those are great points. I see it like your title, "Let's not be trash." Speaking on the damage of white supremacy, it reminds me of something I've seen that focused on corporate environments and how racism or bias in hiring costs companies competitive advantage by limiting the total pool of candidates their HR considers by decreasing diversity of thought (which has empirically measurable disadvantages in decision making) and ultimately results in less $$. Pretty mercenary way to convince people not to be shitheads, but I feel like, for some, the bottom line is the only thing that has any impact on their thinking.
Here's the thing. I'm a white male and I don't want to go through life feeling ashamed. I've got plenty of shame as it is, for all sorts of reasons. Am I racist? Oh, probably. I think most people, regardless of the various groups they identify with or belong to, prejudge others in harmful ways. That's something we can all look at within ourselves and work on. But if you say all white people are racist, oh man, that doesn't leave me anywhere to go. How can I feel good about myself if I'm a racist -- and being a racist is such a terrible thing? It's dehumanizing. I think it actually inflames racial tensions. Is it really necessary to bring down white people in order to uplift black ones? Can't we all be uplifted?
Hey, thanks for this response. I have been thinking about this question a lot since I published this post, so your comment really struck a nerve. I think the point of the essay was to highlight the. first part of what you said, and for that reason I think we're mostly on the same page.
Where we get lost at is the title. I do believe that "All White People Are Racist" just like I believe that all people are prejudice or can be prejudice. What I feel stronger than both of these things is that, if we are to move through the disease of white supremacy, all people, Black, White, etc must be aligned and see their liberation through each other. In hindsight, I think I lose some people with the headline, so thank you for your honesty, know that I agree and am committed to doing better. I hope you keep reading and engaging!
This is very insightful. As the family genealogist to a family that has been here since the early 1600s, I know exactly how many slaves and domestic servants my family had "employed" and it's a public record for anyone who wants to look at old U.S. Census records. For those white people who say "but I didn't own any slaves" I would say that you haven't looked hard enough. It would be a great Ph.D. project to pull the census records of slaveowners and then use Ancestry.com to track those families forward to today. That group of people owe a direct debt to slaves. My guess (using the data that ~35% of us are related to the passengers on the Mayflower) is it would be ~50% of all white people living today. The rest of the white people owe less. But we all owe something, and this will haunt us until someone confronts the rest of us with the data.