Yesterday I walked with others in
response to the surge in the voice of white supremacists. I carried
a sign of the Ghost Busters stamp-out style: No White Privilege. As
I walked I thought deeply about White Privilege and began to realize
that maybe there is something positive happening underneath the tiki
torches. As the margins of white supremacy feel threatened with
their diminishing White Privilege we could mark this time as success.
Our efforts in civil rights, Our efforts to call out racism, Our
efforts to educate children about diversity - maybe our efforts are
taking hold to the point where suddenly, these under-educated folks
feel threatened and are lashing out. It is horrible to witness, but
clearly, opposition to the Nazi voice is strong, educated and ready
to move against such mindlessness. Families and institutions are
the foundation of White Privilege and racism. The education system
can lead children away from their parents' misguided thinking.
Institutions (police, health, social services, markets, governments)
need to be sure workers do not possess assumptions of White Privilege
and have not been brought up racist. Education is the key.
I believe that the actions in
Charlottesville indicate that inroads have been made. If we had not
been making progress, these buffoons would not have had to rise in
so-called protest. We still have a long way to go. These
supremacists need to blame their parents, and grandparents, and the
institutions that reared them on the path toward their misguided
notions. Instead, they blame folks with other colours of skin. They
are far off track. Accept that White Privilege is merely a construct
created by white skinned humans, to facilitate oppression and all it
has done is foster racism. It is only an idea, but one that is
socially ingrained so deeply that folks with white skin scarcely
notice the benefits they live with. Others, well, they live with the
downside every day.
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