Can White People Stop Asking Me to Google Things for Them?

Take responsibility for your own education

I‘ve gotten a lot of questions since I started writing.

Because I write about social justice concepts, tending more towards race and Black identity, I get a lot of questions from white people specifically. The two types of questions frequently dropped on my articles are: 1) those that are answered in the very article itself (because reading comprehension, amiright?); and 2) those that can be answered — more quickly and comprehensively — by typing the question into Google rather than my comments section.

Yet despite the fact that Google’s search engine continues to cost $0.00, many white people, upon reading some of my stories, will think of a question that is not in any way specific to me or my writing…and just throw it at me.

“Why can’t I say [offensive thing] to Black people?”

“What books should I read to learn more about this?”

“Is it ever okay to do [insert racist thing here]?”

Take responsibility for your own education. I guarantee almost any question you have about race has already been answered by a Black person on the internet and is only a few clicks away. Every major news outlet and content farm has been churning out “woke” pieces and “decolonizing” reading lists since last summer. Your answers are out there.

You shouldn’t assume that any Black person you come across is willing to play teacher or research assistant.

Many of you are coming from good places — I know that. I do not need comments about your good intentions. The point here is not whatever your intentions are. The point is that I don’t feel like doing that for you.

You shouldn’t assume that any Black person you come across is willing to play teacher or research assistant whenever you want. And no, writing about race does not mean I have de facto volunteered myself for that task indefinitely.

“But I just want to be a good person and unlearn all of my racist habits! Why won’t you help me?”

Great. Love to see it. I’m busy though.

Go unlearn your racist habits with your library card or elsewhere on the internet. This very platform is a testament to how readily available ideas and information are if you take the time to look. Thousands of Black people have already written up how they feel about almost everything concerning race relations, not to mention all of the scholars and historians that have made Black history and race data widely available. Don’t take the lazy route and just turn to the Black person that happens to be in front of you in the moment. If you really cared, you’d look it up yourself.

You are both asking me to do additional labor on your behalf, *and* being dismissive of the Black writer who has already answered your question elsewhere.

I promise you I am not developing new and Earth-shattering theories in my writing. (At least, not yet.) The terms I use can be found elsewhere in much more depth, and I’ll often link to sources more comprehensive than anything I feel like typing on the odd Tuesday. It is very sincerely my hope that any white people reading my work do become inspired to learn more about the concepts I bring up through their own research.

But when you ask me these basic questions — and let me be clear, these are baaasic questions that I’m getting — you are both asking me to do additional labor on your behalf, and being dismissive of the work of whatever Black writer has already answered your question elsewhere.

To put it simply: I said what I said, and I am not taking questions at this time.

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