The Language of Racism
Racism: a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race. — Merriam-Webster Dictionary
The use of the word racist has come to mean so many things as to lose any clear meaning. I mostly hear the word used by white people, unless it’s during a political rally protesting civil inequities. White people throw the word around as a way of claiming a moral high ground or to disparage some ideas. If it’s racist, it must be wrong. I do not mean to imply America has no problem with race or that racism does not exist. But I do challenge the current rhetoric. It wasn’t too long ago that statement like “All men are pigs” was seen as a hasty generalization. All anything is anything was easily discredited. Yet today, a common theme is that all white people are racists, a statement with which I disagree. Am I anti-feminist because I am male or homophobic because I’m straight? All white people are racist has come to mean that black people are treated unequally and you wish it weren’t so. To disagree means you do not desire a world of justice and equity. Sweeping generalizations casts a wide net.
I agree we are formed by the circumstances of our birth, by our race, our gender, our parent’s income, our religion, and the school we attended to name a few. But we are not stuck with the attitudes of our youth. At some point, we can become something different. Most people do. My attitudes differ from those of my parents and are not consistent among my siblings. Attitudes change as people mature and experience life. I give some credit to the idea of white privilege, but I think it needs to be carefully considered before accepting it as absolute truth. There is the counter position, black disadvantage, a slippery slope easy to recognize as problematic. Black lives matter has a dark side too. We need to establish that black lives matter because black lives don’t matter. All of these ideas are inherently racist.
In a serious discussion of race, often the discussion changes to class, which I think is closer to the actual problem facing America. The juxtaposition of race and poverty might make the distinction mote. But if we take education as a differentiator to social equity, and conclude that it is the poor quality of education in minority neighbors that impedes social advancement, we replace black disadvantage with poor disadvantage. We see it is not race but zip code that is the differentiator. The white child in a poor school is also disadvantaged. The problem is not race, whites need to educate blacks, but rather society needs to ensure equal education in every zip code.
Both black and white citizens alike are misled by the rhetoric of our discussions on racism. We perpetuate the belief that black citizens are not equal members of our society. Things have changed in the past sixty years. People of color are found in all occupations, business owners, bankers, lawyers, politicians. I am not saying we have an equitable society, or that we’ve reached the Promised Land, far from it. I am saying that black people can succeed in America today, children of color can see role models as examples to achieving their dreams.
The injustice in American society against people of color is a large multi-faceted problem that will not be solved with one silver bullet. Injustice needs to be confronted when and where it occurs, like charging Derek Chauvin for George Floyd’s death. Maybe investigate and change the Minneapolis police department, make a meaningful enforceable change there. Defund the police will not stop police brutality. Additional resources might produce better results. Add police who come from family dynamics and mental health disciplines. Everyone need not carry a gun. Additional administrators to review police reports and incidents of violence. Discussions reviewing those incidents to see how things went badly and what could have been done differently, body and vehicle cameras, more transparency. Changes like these that address specific problems cost more money, not less.
But it is more than that. Institutional racism needs to be beaten with individual courage. Each of us needs to stand up to bigotry when we see it. Often, that will come with a cost. Confronting zip code disadvantage is an example. Taking money from affluent school systems to raise educational standards in minority schools addresses the issue of substandard education, but is an unpopular idea that carries a big political cost. But change is possible. One community could adopt one school. Stand up to injustice and take the action you can take.
Regrettably, there are many places in our society where injustice exists, usually at the expense of people of color. The task is to take them one at a time. I agree that it has been too long and we want change now. Perhaps this is a pivotal moment, enough people see injustice and desire change. But for sustained change to happen, we need to address specific problems and then monitor and adjust those changes to achieve the desired result. This is not a once and done task.
The United States of America was founded on high ideals. It is a challenge for future generations. Our history is full of greatness and missteps. Accept the challenge of our forefathers and move our society to one of equality and justice, to the Promised Land of Martin Luther King’s dream. Stand against injustice.
