Fear of a Black Planet
How I've Worked to Become an Anti-Racist
When you hear philosophy, what do you think? Old Greek men arguing about the meaning of life? All we are is dust in the wind after all.
Dime store philosophers? Obnoxious guys who think they are being edgy talking about Nietzsche’s infamous quote or parroting Richard Dawkins? I personally tend to go to the Philosopher King’s dance rock side project.
I tried to take a philosophy class in college and found that it wasn’t for me. As much as I loved learning about existentialism, hedonism, nihilism and so many more, I wasn’t cut out to be an academic philosopher.
That doesn’t mean I don’t still find it fascinating and love to read about philosophy. Pop philosophy like the Good Place can get shot right into my veins. Ishmael by Daniel Quinn is probably the most impactful book I’ve ever read. Two modern cultural philosophic touchstones really helped me engage with who I want to be. What my approach to life would be.
I’ve talked a bit about intersectional feminism. I’ve mentioned being anti-racist. Today, I want to dig into how those two schools of thought have helped me in my journey to being a better person. Primarily, how to be an anti-racist.
All Lives Can’t Matter
Any political ideology that confronts power will eventually be undermined by people who have a vested interest in power. People who benefit from exploitation spend a lot of money to keep benefiting from that exploitation. It truly is a tale as a old as recorded time. For a simple example, recall the narrative around Occupy Wall Street.
Racism as a tool of oppression and exploitation is no different. Even before the Black Lives Matter movement exploded into public consciousness, anti-racism was under attack. Billboards in the south started popping up in southern states in 2013 as a part of the “white genocide” response.
While Critical Race Theory was under siege recently, pretty much anything that confronts white privilege is bound to face equal propaganda at some point. The conservative think tanks just need time to figure out their angle. Typically, it is some variation of the classic LBJ quote (no, not Lebron flubbing global politics), "If you can convince the lowest white man he's better than the best colored man, he won't notice you're picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and he'll empty his pockets for you."
Racist is a loaded word. Heavily charged reactions follow when it gets bandied about. Most people would say that they “aren’t racist.” Stereotypes exist for a reason, right? We need to understand the tools that are weaponized to keep us from accepting our truth. There is a reason people in power don’t want you to challenge your own racism.
Racism is another crayon in the classist collection. When you see their full Crayola spectrum, it can get overwhelming. Intersectional feminism is a school of thought that really helps you to break down the 200 color box into much more manageable 8 piece sets. I owe an article or ten on that subject, but for today, I just wanted to share some ways I found that helped me on my path to being more anti-racist.
Stop Being “Not Racist”
Here’s my far from all inclusive list of steps you can take to start being an anti-racist:
Follow, but don’t engage, with people of color on social media. Really, this is great for ANY minority you don’t engage with in your personal life on a regular basis. It’s important for you to recognize their space and listen and learn.
Challenge vocabulary. This is great internally and externally. Do you call things ghetto? What about saying that was a gyp? You probably use words with regularity that have racist roots. Thug. When you dig into the etymology of words and phrases in American history, you’ll find a wealth of racist history.
Lower your defense. If someone tells you something was racist, hear them out instead of defending your position. You might not realize WHY or HOW what you said was racist. Then you get to swing back around and challenge that usage in your life.
Acknowledge and own your privilege. Denying that you benefit from a system doesn’t change anything for you, it just invalidates people who don’t get that benefit. If you admit to yourself and publicly that you benefit, it doesn’t mean you endorse it. It can feel dirty at first, because it feels like you’re doing something wrong when you don’t have any control over the systemic aspects.
Create space for minority voices. Talk less, listen more. Don’t rush to provide corrections or use your voice in “support” to talk over people. This takes time and requires you to work against a lifetime of generational conditioning. When you see other white people dominating the conversation, use your voice to challenge that.
Apologize. You’re not going to get everything right every time. So what? Just apologize, acknowledge you crossed a boundary and don’t do it again. It shouldn’t be a production. An apology should be about the aggrieved, not the aggravator.
Read diversely and travel as much as possible. The more exposure you get to other culture, the better you’ll understand.
Accept that not everyone HAS to like you. One hard lesson in being anti-racist is accepting that entire races have been traumatized by white people and it creates a wealth of animosity. It is also okay for people to not like you. Do you like every person in your life? Why should you expect that other people must like you as well?
Educate. Help other people understand how and why their actions may be harmful. Accept that they won’t like it and that you’re going to get their ire. So what? If you’re against something but never stand against it, are you really against it? The adage actions speak louder than words is true in all instances. What you do matters. If you say “I’m not a racist” but you don’t challenge other people’s racism, all you’re showing is that you endorse those beliefs.
Reflect. The most important facet for growth is reflection. We must sit with our actions and their consequences. How could we have behaved differently? Reflection and introspection should be tools for change, not for demonization. Most actions can be corrected with time and attention. If you beat yourself up and down over causing harm but don’t change the action, you’re only creating a cycle of self-abuse.
Never Give Up, Never Surrender
I think, personally, the most important part in my journey to Anti-Racism is endurance. It’s easy to feel defeated. To feel like a failure or that nothing will ever change. And yet, that’s just with confronting our own internalized racism. That’s not even touching on what it is like for the people who are SUBJECTED to this.
While there’s always room to grow and develop, it’s important to never stop. Yes, the world can be bleak and overwhelming. Still, we must continue. Propaganda is only effective if it goes unchallenged. Be a voice for change. You may have some tough conversations. People may be mad at you for bringing light to things they don’t want to admit about the world and their place in it.
You’re probably mad about that too. At yourself, at the people responsible, at the gods themselves. Anger is a valuable emotion when you don’t allow it to consume you. We should be mad about these things and use that anger to fuel our change. Remember too, while you’re on this journey, that you started from a place of ignorance too.
Being anti-racist has cost me relationships. I can’t deny that. It has damaged friendships and harmed family relations. I had almost 2000 Facebook friends before I posted Black Lives Matter. Now I’m down to around 1200. I’ve had people tell me conversations about race “aren’t for them.” I’ve also seen friends blossom and grow. Deepened relationships and come to peace with myself.
Bill and Ted had it right, “Be excellent to each other and party on dudes.”
Great reflections as always.