YBPGuide: What’s With This Whole ‘Black’ Thing
sc
· 1 year ago
well stated. i will have to remember some of those points when this issue comes up in conversation.
afropixie
· 1 year ago
I think the most important thing to mention and remember in this discussion is your first point. ABSOLUTELY if something is labeled white its racist. As it is, everything is white by default anyway. We are making the statement that this meeting of ideals will not follow the norm of our American society...or what has become intrinsic in our society - the normal history, the normal meeting of people - that you would find otherwise.
Other than that... I think your other points resonate nicely. good post thanks for sharing
Bronze Trinity
· 1 year ago
That was excellent!!!! I totally agree and the post-racial arguments drive me nuts!
Malcolm Turner
· 1 year ago
Great post. There's also a very practical reason for labeling something Black, African, African American, Latino, Asian, etc. Like a previous comment said, white is the default. Therefore, if you don't include one of these labels in the name, most people will assume the organization is predominately white. Labels are a marketing tool to attract the intended audience. For example, I'm not a Christian so I don't care about denominations, but when I go to a new city and want to find a church I find something that says AME or Missionary Baptist because it's an easy way to identify Black churches. So rather than just trying to find an organization by trial and error, it saves time if people use labels.
Another possible reason why people don't label stuff as "white" is because it's not descriptive enough. There really is no white culture. It's much more helpful to break it down further using terms like European, American (with no hyphenated word in front of it), Anglo-Saxon, Irish, Scandinavian, Aryan, etc.
I for one wish that white people would label stuff white if they want to so we can stop guessing. If you're not racist then your actions will speak for themselves. If you are racist, let us know, so we can make the proper adjustments to our strategy for dealing with you. This cowardly, covert racism is just so difficult to fight.
The Urban Scientist
· 1 year ago
Here! Here! I agree. Earlier this year, I posted about Black History Month on Scienceblog.com. I can't tell you how many trolls gave me a hard time about the "Black" thing. It is wrong? Why am I hung up on it? Get over the Black thing, there is no color. I later posted about Women's History Month and Latino Heritage Month. Crickets. No objections at all. These selective attacks against Black-identity and not against any other group have always bothered me. In college some students objected against Black Student Organization, because there is no White student organization, but had no problem with the Asian/Chinese/International/Ethitopian/etc student organization.
Your comments about the so-called post-racial desire is dead on. Thanks!
Kit (Keep It Trill)
· 12 months ago
Enjoyed this post. You nailed it with "The pride that grew within the Black community stemmed from survival within the weeds of hate."
This pride manifests is many different ways and is often misunderstood within our own group, accounting for in-fighting, and by non-blacks, some who unfortunately feel threatened, and others who don't see us as being the same as them.
Thanks to this Election year and the Internet, at least many of us are talking about. Progress comes in baby steps.
Otherwise, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Come visit my blog and read my writings too in the future and leave a comment if like a particular essay like I have here. I think you'll enjoy them.
Kimberly
· 12 months ago
And now that Kwanzaa is here how much more of this woe is white people crap will we hear....
as
· 11 months ago
"What they fail to realize is that opposite of racism is tolerance, not ignorance."
that's pretty profound...
Denise Barreto
· 9 months ago
Wow. I love this article. It says what I've attempted many times. It so completes my thoughts on this topic. Thanks for posting. I am linking this to my blog tonight!
All Comments
Other than that... I think your other points resonate nicely. good post thanks for sharing
Another possible reason why people don't label stuff as "white" is because it's not descriptive enough. There really is no white culture. It's much more helpful to break it down further using terms like European, American (with no hyphenated word in front of it), Anglo-Saxon, Irish, Scandinavian, Aryan, etc.
I for one wish that white people would label stuff white if they want to so we can stop guessing. If you're not racist then your actions will speak for themselves. If you are racist, let us know, so we can make the proper adjustments to our strategy for dealing with you. This cowardly, covert racism is just so difficult to fight.
Your comments about the so-called post-racial desire is dead on. Thanks!
This pride manifests is many different ways and is often misunderstood within our own group, accounting for in-fighting, and by non-blacks, some who unfortunately feel threatened, and others who don't see us as being the same as them.
Thanks to this Election year and the Internet, at least many of us are talking about. Progress comes in baby steps.
Otherwise, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Come visit my blog and read my writings too in the future and leave a comment if like a particular essay like I have here. I think you'll enjoy them.
that's pretty profound...