In his sermon, talking to white people about racism, something that he had previously sworn off doing, John Metta explains the nuances of present day racism. “Racism is the fact that “White” means “normal” and that anything else is different. . . . Once you let yourself see it, it’s there all the time. . . . The system was made for White people, so White people don’t have to think about living in it.” He goes on to say, “Living every single day with institutionalized racism and then having to argue its very existence, is tiring, and saddening, and angering. Yet if we express any emotion while talking about it, we’re tone policed, told we’re being angry. . . . The entire discussion of race in America centers around the protection of White feelings. . . . Racism is so deeply embedded in this country not because of the racist right-wing radicals who practice it openly, it exists because of the silence and hurt feelings of liberal America.”
I, Racist
by lindaoppenheim | Feb 25, 2016 | Opinion, Speech | 5 comments
5 Comments
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Wow how this is for real. If you go back and look at the constitution from a white racial frame it’s all there. This country was built on racist ideology.
Peace~
Indeed, surprisingly the foundation continues to breathe today the same mindset and conditioning to oppress and disenfranchise… When the foundation if unstable and skewed everything else is distorted…
But racism is even more subtle than that. It’s more nuanced. Racism is the fact that “White” means “normal” and that anything else is different. Racism is our acceptance of an all white
Yes, you are correct all white people Do Not accept “racism” as their norm. Yet, there is no way that the average black person would know that unless told and demonstrated. It is very easy for all white people to ease into the world of whiteness by saying or doing nothing. The laws protect you and you are not asked to prove your worth or denied access merely because you are white. The call to action is for white people to SPEAK with your families and friends about racist attitudes and behaviors that you witness and say or do nothing about. I realize that confronting any negative behavior creates discomfort. As we in America witness this political divide we are seeing that the world pretty much remains the same with indifferences to racial issues. We are polite at work and cordial at church and events, but beneath the surface is a fire that never seems to go out as long as we live in separate worlds (whites the suburbs and blacks inner city). Racism is real and retaines a strong hold today. The one way for sure we know this is when an issue arises surrounding race – OJ Simpson, Rodney King and the host of other events that rise to the surface how people really feel about race relations…
What a powerful summary of white privilege and white oblivion. Deserves wider distribution.