Wouldn’t it Be Nice if White People Allowed Themselves to Be Race Conscious?
Not in an ignorant Klan way, but in a real and useful way
I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m weary of White people pretending not to see color. I’m fed up with the ones who love to go on about there only being one race (the human race) and about the content of one’s character being all that matters to them. Yes, we know these things should be true, but our reality hits different, but they keep playing like we’re the only ones who see this. These people are quick to call other people racists and trolls in all-out attempts not to address the race in the room.
Wouldn’t it be nice if White people stepped out of the make believe they try to make themselves believe and actually began to address race head on?
You’re Not Fooling Anyone
Maybe someone should tell them that we know their colorblindness is a big ol’ lie. We know they see color simply by the ways in which they react when we’re near. It’s apparent in how they do things like change their speech patterns around us, look all nervous when Whiteness is outnumbered or how they attempt to over-identify with Blackness when we show up (suddenly everybody has a Black best friend, a Black in-law, grew up in a Black neighborhood, went to a Black school, etc.). But what if they just stopped with the lies and admitted to not being colorblind, after all?
How useful might they be if they could just be real?
Starting With the Woman/Man In the Mirror
Might they then be able to examine Whiteness? Examine why such a stark divide is drawn between them and everybody else? Might they begin to question why they’ve been trained to not discuss race, especially around non-Whites? Might they begin to wonder why a racial construct was created? And who it served then and now? And might they grow curious as to why the construct continues if those original reasons for its creation existed so long ago in history?
You’re Holding Us All Back
If White people did these things, imagine the progress we all could make in breaking the construct down, tumbling the racial hierarchy and redesigning a society where cultures are respected and celebrated? Imagine the unity we could experience and the greatness we could produce if no one was held back or propelled forward based on racial biases? Imagine if there were no biases left at all?
What’s Holding You Back?
Being race conscious does not translate into being racist and so I’m not sure what holds White people back from being honest about all of the color they see. I’m not sure what causes them such extreme discomfort in admitting that we have a serious race problem and that it was all built around Whiteness. I’m not sure they realize how avoiding topics of race while pretending not to see any of it actually serves those who want to keep people divided. I’m not sure they realize they are but pawns being used in a strategy designed to keep us from ever unifying against those who profit from our separation.
Attention White Folks
If you are a White person reading this, please know that we know you know. Understand, too, that avoiding race doesn’t make you non-racist. See, many dedicated racists also never speak a word on the subject, yet they vote, hire, promote, imprison and make meaningful anti-Black decisions everyday. On the other hand, those who are race conscious tend to be far more self-aware and able to confront racism in the real ways needed to actually bring about change.
It’s true. Becoming more race conscious may actually allow you to grow and evolve into a better human being.
At this point, it’s clear that the only reason NOT to become race conscious is because one would like to keep the racial stratification operating as it was designed.
So, what are you going to do about that?
