Between the World and All of Us: The Intellectual Cage of Racism

“White America is arrayed …to protect its exclusive power to control and dominate…The power of domination and exclusion is central to the belief of being ‘white,’ and without it ‘white people’ would cease to exist for want of reasons (Ta-Nehisi Coates in Between the World and Me). I found myself wondering what he meant- until I realized that being white and having the power to control or define the meaning of events seem to be synonymous in this culture. What does whiteness control? Typically, whiteness determines the “correct” interpretation of any event. Whether George Zimmerman had the “right” to shoot Treyvon Martin. Whether a child who is disruptive in school belongs in the counselor’s office, special education or prison. What kinds of hairstyles make a person look responsible and respectable in a job interview. It is reasonable to assert that the ‘white’ belief system about these kinds of circumstances shapes the means by which these issues are addressed.

“We take our shape within that cage of reality bequeathed to us at birth,” observed James Baldwin, half a century ago. The white reality cage and the Black reality cage lead to very different views of the world. Coates adds, “The people who believe themselves to be white are obsessed with the politics of personal exoneration.” Very few white people consider themselves racists because we believe that racism involves intentionally hurting Black people. It is quite possible to hurt a Black person unintentionally simply by believing a typical ‘white’ interpretation of an event, such as not questioning why police force is so much more evident when disruptions occur in Black neighborhoods than on a nature preserve where white people with guns occupy a building in Oregon. Hurt occurs when a Black youth with dreadlocks is assumed to be dangerous, but a white youth who sexually assaults another person is just being misunderstood. It is painful to face the fact that even if we have not personally inflicted any pain, we are still in a position to benefit from the system of ‘whiteness’ that shapes our thinking. It seems imperative that we explore the Baldwin and Coates observations carefully. Even if a particular white person has not helped to create the system that presumes that “white is right,” responsible white people can assume the responsibility for naming the system, the cage of our world view, and dismantling the damage it creates for people of color. People of African descent are the main targets of this kind of assault, but members of all other non-dominant ethnic groups also get more than their share.

“White fragility” is another way of describing Coates’ politics of personal exoneration. What would ‘white’ people lose if we systematically explored the matrix of economic and policy practices that shape life in the United States and understood how the entire system is geared to advantage white people and disadvantage Black people? This phenomenon includes redlining mortgages, closing voting sites in Black neighborhoods, underfunding inner city schools and incarcerating Black men at a rate that far exceeds that of whites. White people who read this blog have probably not participated in the creation of our political/economic matrix, but we benefit from it. We typically have less trouble borrowing money and tend to receive lower interest rates. We are not followed around in department stores on the presumption that we intend to steal. We are not stopped by police officers, as Sandra Bland was, for changing lanes without signaling. And we are not generally stopped for driving around white neighborhoods and asked if we live there. Black people are used to being treated this way and teach their children how to avoid endangering themselves in these kinds of situations. White people barely realize that these problems exist.

Racism does not actually describe individual behavior. White people who offend, ignore, assault or deny access to Black people in particular situations may be ignorant. They may be bullies, unaware of the impact of their behavior or simply rude. We are all products of Baldwin’s cage of reality, including its belief systems, unexamined prejudices and tendencies to treat each other as objects (The Man, Those People, Rappers, Honkies) rather than human subjects. Racism is a system that people who think of themselves as white benefit from. People who are labeled Black are always at the short end of the stick in this system. If you are a white reader, I suggest that you think about these issues and read Between the World and Me– or find one of the numerous interviews with Ta-Nehisi Coates on YouTube. You will get an education that you never received in school. Let me know what you think. I’d love to print some responses.####

More About White Fragility

MORE ABOUT WHITE FRAGILITY

(With apologies to everybody I am about to offend)

 

Fear is a question according to Abraham Maslow. What are we afraid of? What are the sources of our fear? Michelle Obama recently told a group of young women who were about to graduate from high school that she understood the “slings and arrows” that they faced daily, the slights, the disrespectful remarks, the assumptions of school counselors that they were not bright enough to achieve their own goals, the assumptions of store employees that they were shoplifters. She knew about these microaggressions because she too had been a target, even after she graduated from Princeton University and Harvard Law School. People of African descent have to be strong to achieve their goals because they typically have to overcome more obstacles that people of European descent. Developing thick skin and at least a veneer of self-confidence is not an option. It is a necessity. Rising above fear is a daily challenge for many people of African descent.

So what are white people afraid of when it comes to talking about race? Actually it’s a much broader question. Most humans are generally afraid of people who have more privilege than they do and live according to different values or norms. What happens the first time a new love meets their partner’s family? Fear- will they like me? What if I say something or do something they don’t approve of? What if I am somebody they don’t approve of? What will my family think when they meet my new love? Everybody knows what that kind of fear feels like. Most white people experience this fear in personal and specific situations. For many Black people this kind of hyperawareness (Maybe fear is too strong a word.) is a daily reality. White people can easily have preconceived opinions about Black people that include reasons not to approve, trust or like them simply because of a perception of “race”. These reasons are firmly embedded in consciousness because of stereotypes and images conveyed in the media, and they can easily interfere with honest interaction. In fact, white people may not feel the need to get to know Black people they meet. Instead of attempting to engage , white people can easily relegate Black people to the status of “non-persons” who are objects to be managed or diminished to avoid feeling any discomfort. This is one manifestation of privilege- the opportunity to dismiss or ignore anything or anyone who makes one uncomfortable.

How does anybody handle this kind of “what do they think of me” fear? We stay in the background and watch how the dominant group behaves. We listen to what they talk about, what they get upset about and what they hope for. We speak cautiously until we understand what is considered “normal” behavior by members of the other group. When we begin to understand we also begin to relax. If we make a mistake we apologize.

What can white people do to overcome their fear, to become less fragile when talking about race? Start paying attention to personal reactions when interacting with a person of African descent. We actually have the same kind of reaction when we interact with people from any group whose culture is unfamiliar- but in this conversation, we’re talking about “race” so let’s focus on conversations between white people and people of African descent. Become more conscious of the conversation as it unfolds. Is it different than a typical conversation between two white people? As a white person, are you afraid of what the other person thinks of you or of making a conversational mistake? How will you know if you’ve said something offensive? How do you ever know when you have offended anybody? You watch their body language. Finally, and this is the most difficult thing to do, ask yourself how you probably look to the other person, not just physically, but how your behavior might affect that person. This is really a process of mental gymnastics called “empathy,” actively trying to see the world from the other person’s point of view.

It will take the United States a long time to dismantle the structures of racism, the inequalities built into our economic, political, educational and social systems. But the process of dismantling personal fragility can begin immediately. All we have to do is engage with each other as if race were simply an idea that gets in the way of respect, empathy, kindness and humanity. Anybody can do that, if you can rise above fear of talking about race and begin to make human connections.###