Summary

The article discusses the internal conflict within the black community regarding the denial of racism's existence and the excuses made by some black individuals for racist behaviors, as well as the impact of generational trauma from slavery.

Abstract

The article delves into the issue of racism denialism among some black individuals, highlighted by a history teacher's assertion that discrimination is due to "culturism" rather than racism. It cites examples of black YouTubers who minimize racist incidents, such as the Amhuad Arbery case, and argue against reparations, suggesting that such attitudes perpetuate the struggle against racism. The author acknowledges the existence of a victim mindset among some in the black community but emphasizes the historical context of generational trauma stemming from slavery, which continues to affect black people today. The piece concludes with the author's refusal to unify with those who deny the reality of racism and the importance of acknowledging the past to move forward.

Opinions

The author disagrees with the term "culturism" as a euphemism for racism, viewing it as a way to minimize the impact of racial discrimination.
There is a critique of black individuals who downplay racist incidents or attribute them to cultural stereotypes rather than systemic racism.
The author expresses frustration with the idea that black people today have a victim mindset, arguing that this perspective fails to consider the long-term effects of historical trauma.
The article suggests that acknowledging the existence of racism is a crucial step in combating it, and that ignoring or making excuses for racism only hinders progress.
The author is proud of the resilience and legacy of black ancestors but is disheartened by some contemporary black individuals' reluctance to confront racism.
The piece emphasizes the importance of unity in the fight against racism but also the necessity of recognizing and distancing oneself from those within the community who perpetuate harmful narratives.

Why Are Some Black People Still Making Excuses For Racism?

“There are some black people I don’t want to unify with.” — Angela Davis

“Let’s not confuse racism with culturism.”

One of my history teachers said that aloud when we discussed racism in class. I said in front of everyone that most white people are racist because we talked about a black person that got followed in the store.

What the hell is culturism?

In her world, it’s a term that means people are discriminated against because of “cultural” stereotypes — not race. I know you’re scratching your head right now. So am I.

For example, if a black person walks into a store with saggy jeans and a hoody, they’re more likely to get followed around than a black person with a suit. At least, that’s her argument.

I also watched two black YouTubers today make the same argument as my old teacher. They feel as if most acts of racism aren’t racism — they’re culturism.

I Get Discouraged Sometimes

“There are some black people I don’t want to unify with.”

— Angela Davis

These black YouTubers seem like awesome people. They’re a couple and they’re always smiling and doing fun things in their videos, but I can’t ignore the writing on the wall. They are ignorant about racism.

I know the word, “ignorant” is a buzzword nowadays, but those people are seriously ignorant.

They called the Amhuad Arbery case a “good samaritan mission gone wrong” and they even speculated on whether that whole situation was about race
They made arguments against black people receiving reparations
They don’t think it’s racist if a black person gets followed in the store

I’m a fish swimming in a sea of goo at this point.

This article isn’t to put black people down. Most black people don’t think this way, but I feel bad for some of us that do.

It’s impossible to eradicate racism when people still struggle to acknowledge that it exists.

Black People Today Aren’t Victim-Minded, But Our Ancestors Were Victimized

Most of the black conservatives make the argument that most black people today have a victim mindset. We always say bad shit happens to us because of racism and we don’t hold ourselves accountable.

I understand that.

Sometimes we do have a victim mindset, but can you blame us though? Look at what our ancestors have been through. Trauma like that doesn’t go away on a whim. It sticks with you forever.

Why do you think most black people are afraid of water or hate dogs? Generational trauma.

Heck, I’m the first one to say that I’m tired of slavery movies. People beat us over the head with a slavery stick all of the time. We need more representations of black people that aren’t in roles that focus on their race.

But we can’t just erase slavery from our minds.

Why do we make slavery out to be such a scar on our legacy nowadays? It’s not our fault we were enslaved. Look what we’ve accomplished now.

Slavery was fucked up, but it made us resilient human beings that can survive anything (not to dehumanize black people, but we were strong enough to survive slavery).

It’s justified why we can have a victim-mentality, but trauma like that sticks with you for a long time. No matter how much we want to erase slavery from our history books, it happened, and I’m proud of the legacy our ancestors have left us.

Final Thought

There are just some black people I don’t want to unify with.

Some black people will make excuses for obvious acts of racism all day. They’ll even go as far as to say that we shouldn’t talk about racism anymore and that’ll eradicate it.

Umm…just because you stop talking about your project you have due in a couple of days doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist anymore.

Eradication starts with acknowledgment before anything else.

Again, I’ll never shame other black people, but some of us won’t get with the program — and I can’t unify with them.

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