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Why Are White People So Touchy About Being Called Racist?

I’ve often pondered the question, why are white people so touchy about being called out for racism?

I know some of you will say that racism is much more than the hurtful prejudice of a marginal few. Agreed. Racism is also inherited structural and political inequity by race resulting in persistent poverty, health disparities, and deficits of opportunity in communities of color. And as with all kinds of oppression, racism is ultimately kept in place by violence and the threat of violence (think in terms of lynchings, cross-burnings, KKK raids, etc. throughout our history). Simple prejudice seems pretty minor by … Read more “Why Are White People So Touchy About Being Called Racist?”

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What We’re Fighting About When We Fight About Racism

A few days ago the Q-Center, Portland, Oregon’s aspiring LGBTQ community hub, hosted a discussion about racism. The event was organized in response to a mostly-online fight that erupted over a local gay bar’s Facebook ad for a performance by white drag performer, Chuck Knipp.

Knipp’s bread and butter is the character, Shirley Q. Liquor, whom he describes as “an inarticulate black welfare mother with 19 children.” I’ll spare you video. The act is performed in black face and plays to damaging and hurtful stereotypes for laughs.

Hundreds weighed in on whether Shirley Q. Liquor is an example of racism, … Read more “What We’re Fighting About When We Fight About Racism”

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The Good White People: A Quick Tip on Countering Interpersonal Racism

A while back I posted Four Tips on Talking About Racism. Those tips were –

avoid moral superiority, after all, this is about what is strategic for the “we,” not just what feels good to “me;” find common ground; don’t guilt people into changing their minds – change leveraged through guilt is rarely very durable; and don’t be a smarty-pants.

That last one is probably the toughest. I mean, who doesn’t want to make racist people feel ignorant, right? The problem is, making folks feel foolish just makes you look like a snob.

Now that the review is over, … Read more “The Good White People: A Quick Tip on Countering Interpersonal Racism”