(7) BLUFs: Whiter Shades of Pale

SKIP TO:

#1 BLUF: Don’t ever underestimate your own ignorance. Everyone has blind spots.

#2 BLUF: We are all monuments now in body to the future we choose to accept.

#3 BLUF: Not my white. Crazy is crazy. Lock ’em up FELONY!

#4 BLUF: White people who aren’t antiracist are effectively racist in America.

#5 BLUF: Advancing accountability on the privileged is important!

#6 BLUF: White privilege and white spoiled ain’t the same thing, but stop, vigilantes!!!

#7 BLUF: Not my white, not fit for duty, not fit to teach anyone, Ma’am!

If you’re looking for shades of gray you’re not gonna find them here. This is about shades of white, some of which should make any decent person go pale in shame of their fellow humans.

I hope you, reader, will take time to look at how all these BLUFs are the same, but also how they are different. All different glimpses into something that every American today is either facing or ignoring: Racism, and issues around it in our society… and how they should deal with it.

Racism perpetuates itself. In America it’s like our coronavirus since birth, but one that kills many of us over a long period of time while also killing many quickly in violent outbreaks every day too.

It’s most insidious when asymptomatic… it spreads innocuously little by little each day infecting across more and more of our encounters. It is recklessly spread around causing pain and destruction throughout our people with wanton disregard too, by people who don’t even know it quite often.

Even when we see the violent deaths it causes we mostly put our heads down, hope to not be affected, and pray for the good men and women out there valiantly working against it who we hope will save us from that problem.

It is a sickness that will not go without proper tending. Bandaids gotta get ripped off, surgery will have to be invasive, and the immuno healing therapy of it is gonna be painful too.

There’s reckoning and reconciliation that has to take place to bridge the gaps between black and white so real equalization can manifest in our society for the long term good of our nation and the freedom of ALL people.

Don’t be a bystander. Bystanders are killing America. Racism is a weapon inflicted in many ways, and “not racist” permissive white ignorance and unaffected silence perpetuates the violence like food for cancer alongside intentional haters and systemic injustice.

Racism isn’t exclusive to any one political party. Racist feelings and behaviors aren’t exclusive to any one race. The terroristic and systemic racism in America, though, that is destroying this country is, and has always been, blindingly, white. That’s just a fact.

Too many white people are ignorant to the magnitude of the problem, or are simply in denial. However, the fight to set things right isn’t about black vs. white, or any race vs. race. It is about morals and values.

And the courage to stand up for what is right.

It’s about antiracism vs. racism… rather antiracists vs. racists. Like it or not, you ARE one or the other whether by action or inaction in your behaviors… every day.

If you haven’t picked a side you’re definitely not an antiracist. Wake up.

#1 BLUF: Don’t ever underestimate your own ignorance. Everyone has blind spots.

I can identify with the author above. I plan on checking out more from the Good Men Project too. (Check em out!)

I grew up in an interracial family, in a very diverse community, and had a stark rude awakening as an adult after joining the Army. That is, I had come to believe an assumption that the majority of white people’s understanding and points of view on race and black people were similar to mine. I knew my background was unique, but didn’t know my knowledge was.

However, that’s not really the case. At this point in my life I’ve encountered people of every race that had obviously little to no real meaningful set of experiences with really any race but their own. Many more white people than what I had previously fathomed.

Most people’s experiences in America exist largely in homogenous circles regionally by race, politics, religion, wealth, sexuality… or the culture THEY know in the combination of those things as they experience. MOST people are living in some bubble or another.

As much as we’re the melting pot we are highly segregated in thinking and what we might experience in our walks of life. More than we as a public all seem to see at the same scope.

Growing up I was probably more aware of how foreign white people are to many blacks on any meaningful personal level, than I was the amount of ignorance white people have about blacks. Just like there’s the stereotype of white people who try and mention “their one black friend, ” I grew up as the one white friend to more than a few of my black friends.

My point is to say that the cross cultural ignorance, as much as we are all Americans, is a greater divide than most truly acknowledge at all.

I dated a white woman born and raised in Marin County (think SNL “Sausalito” sketches) for a while. When we’d watch Desus and Mero together at my place (I love that show), I was surprised at all the things she didn’t laugh at.

I came to find out, the jokes were funny once I explained them to her the problem was she couldn’t understand what they were saying. Their slang was like a fucking foreign language to her.

I was struck because she was such a social justice proponent, vocally, but was also so being with such ginormous blind spots.

Our social circles in America are largely segregated and compartmentalized between our races and cultures more than most people realize, and the impact IS severe. The absence of cross race experiences breeds an ignorance informed only by stereotype and racist projections against our unknowns.

If you’re trying to decide what to believe or know endeavoring to advance antiracism, or at least equality, let the simplest advice guide your thinking: “Listen to the people who are being affected.” Don’t believe your ignorance is mutually exclusive to their experience.

Don’t underestimate your own blind spots and how ignorant you may actually be.

#2 BLUF: We are all monuments now in body to the future we choose to accept.

I hope you read this whole article. My words aren’t capable to praise it well enough befitting. Powerful. That’s the best I can do.

Why culturally do we recognize mixed people as black more so than white? Why not the other way around? Why does it matter? Doesn’t it? Yes, in reality, it in fact DOES. Let’s acknowledge this fact together, please.

It shouldn’t, but, objectively, hypodescent is our cultural norm around most mixed people’s identity. Mixed = black, in America. Typically, I’ve only seen hyperdescent self identity in wealthy mixed people… and it’s rare in my experience at all, and DEFINITELY isn’t the standard in American society.

People might say “oh you’re half white too”, as I do to my son, or my brother, or sister. But on forms and statistics, and as a culture, America classifies “gray shades of white” mixed people as black, or “other,”… even if they’re the President.

If you are somehow in denial of the existence of racism in our society these very basic truths around mixed race Americans are another obvious example for you.

Now, against the esteemed author’s headline, and to all, I must also say this:

Monuments in our country aren’t necessary for preservation of history. They are about what’s morally right now to us, to carry into the future. It’s what we aspire to carry forward that we monument for reminder.

We should tear down monuments to ideals or ways of life that condone rape and slavery and oppression… and the fucking treasonous confederacy. duh. Every American should objectively agree with that.

We should put up monuments that honor freedom and equality in the kind of way that is in keeping with our ideals of tomorrow. And bodies light brown from lineages of love can be monuments we’re better for as a norm in our culture too.

Each of our bodies plays a role in the future of this country. What America will you be a monument for today?

#3 BLUF: Not my white. Crazy is crazy. Lock ’em up FELONY!

Hey someone should start a #notmywhite. Let’s make that a thing. These two should be stripped of their 2nd Amendment AND voting rights. They are felons, and not upholding MY American values.

The best I can figure about why the black mom allowed herself to end up behind the car as it pulled out is that she didn’t think these people were as crazy as they are.

FELLOW WHITE PEOPLE: If you don’t agree that this white couple’s behavior is fucked up and should be severely punished and publicly shamed you are definitely part of the problem, and mentally unfit to me.

That is, you’ve either got a mental disorder or disability (like racism or sadistic narcissism or something) or you’ve got some cockamamie faux woke idea that anarchy is the way to go, or something like that.

If you’re someone like the white woman in this video, who would say “there’s no racism, that’s not real” and don’t see it plainly right here too, I don’t believe ANYTHING I say will change your mind. You’re a racist whether you know it or not.

However, nonetheless, I defy you to look at this video imagining them all the same race, or flip flop their races between the two arguing groups.

Heck, pretend everyone in this video is white if it’ll help, and put yourself in the mother and daughter’s shoes.

If any adult bumps into my kid and then makes comments at them it’s definitely my business. Reasonable adults should expect this. It’s also, ya know, supported by law.

The man in the video definitely postured up on the mother to show her threatening demeanor and intimidate her, even more so as she started to walk away. What a douche bag piece of shit that guy is. I see why his wife is so hair triggered, apparently. Sad, really.

The woman in the video who got out of the van and cocked her pistol was never in physical danger. She was a blink away from murder in cold blooded anger. She is a danger to the community. I hope she can be helped and reformed, after she serves her max time.

The mother and daughter in that video didn’t do anything that should get a gun pointed at anyone in America. Not in my America.

These two wackadoodles in the van are #notmywhite.

#4 BLUF: White people who aren’t antiracist are effectively racist in America.

I hope you, reader, took the time to digest and reflect on that whole article above thoughtfully, and with open mind. There’s not much else I can add.

But, for those of you in too much of a hurry this is a takeaway:

White people who don’t intend to be actively racist but don’t actually do things to call it out and rebuke it in our day to day interactions and take actions that support eliminating it from our culture and systems perpetuate it more than active racists and white supremesist actually do.

You see, the amount of white people who are intentionally, actively (anti-American) racist and/or white supremacists in their ideologies about this country ARE NOT the majority of white people.

They are surely not the majority of Americans either, in the face of all the rest of the white people and other races in our country combined.

However, I’d say the active racist whites have plenty of wealthy in their ranks, the system on their side, and in my experience do outnumber actively anti-racist whites.

The passive whites who basically do nothing to fight against our racekin actively oppressing blacks and inflicting racist violence against them is the vast majority of us, I believe. Their inaction is what permits the injustice to thrive.

White silence perpetuates the violence. #notmywhite

More white people need to step up, get educated, and raise the standards we are willing to accept as behavior of “respectable white people” in America anymore when it comes to rooting out the machinations of oppression, inequality, and racism in our culture, behavior, and society.

#5 BLUF: Advancing accountability on the privileged is important!

Hey Claira… here’s the thing: it’s ok to be mad, but not to make threats. You must expect consequence IRL for what you do online. I don’t feel sorry for you. You will be fine.

Whether you like it or not, Americans are entitled the freedom to say “all lives matter” if they so choose, and the sentiment of wanting to harm others who don’t agree with you ain’t my America. That’s oppression. #notmywhite

But black lives matter, at least you’re right about that.

However, your attitude probably alienates some amount of folks who would listen and learn if they weren’t tired of being talked down to. You’re kinda being Karenist here, do you see that? Threatening the group your opposed to, wanting them harmed simply for being as the are, and all.

There are people who will probably vote the same way as you, Claira, but won’t say black lives matter, just sayin.

If white supremacists were saying they’d stab people who said black lives matter on Tik Tok we’d want them to get outed too.

Equality means holding everyone accountable to the same standards of behavior. Objectively, her choice did sink below the level we should uphold as the high road we want America on.

Talk like this further divides, and folks gotta see racism beyond left and right wing, it’s rampant in all walks of Americans.

#6 BLUF: White privilege and white spoiled ain’t the same thing, but stop, vigilantes!!!

Oppressed white people are out there too. Poor white folk, middle class even, working hard but getting nowhere.

No opportunity, no higher education, limited work skills, maybe some legal troubles, health problems, drug problems maybe, not feeling treated fairly by our society… and rightfully so, based on the life they’ve experienced.

The kind of folks that other “holier than thou” white folks might call “white trash” or “low people” in their social circles, for example, or under tip, or overwork, and surely would under pay.

I know many white folks that are Trump supporters and anti-left probably mostly because they simply feel like “things are tough all over” and that they need every break they can get. They can’t see racism issues as a priority over their survival mechanism, some of these folks, I think.

The assertion of “white privilege” and “black lives” instead of “all lives” just doesn’t make any fucking sense to them. The same way “defund the police” is a misleading tag line, they are not going to look deeper beyond their impressions of the buzz words at face value.

By the way, I know plenty of lefty whites are this same way too.

It is outside of their scarcity tunnel, that’s why… they are unaffected by racism.

And the things that are in their scarcity tunnel, they feel, are under attack. They are not intentionally racist, most of these folks I know, but often just don’t know what they don’t know, like anyone else.

And the messages they hear from progressives, and the media, and blm, and the left, and the right, is that they should be stabbed, for example, and other divisive rhetoric that only furthers perpetuates the gaps.

And so grows unaffected to utterly indignant.

White people play into the hand of setting back America further for all we the people because we are, in other words, too self involved (entitled) to recognize it.

The system as is dysfunctioning sustains itself by keeping white divided aligned to factions of the divided rich.

Please be aware, fellow white people, that when your vigilante machinations are put on blast online and your reaction then is to threaten the people who call you out on your maladjusted intentions with violence…

…and then pay them off to try and save face… and you have a breakdown all of a sudden and try to blame your behavior on brain surgery…

…and give control of your restaurant businesses to your wife, since clearly your brain can’t be trusted… and in hopes that the businesses won’t be impacted…

…and check into rehab for depression about it all because now you need to lay low and let it all die down…

Honestly, it doesn’t matter what the gender or race of person you were threatening online is to me.

You shouldn’t treat ANYONE that way, especially since you’re so fragile (Karen, dude). You’re not oppressed white. You’re not white privileged. You’re white spoiled, and you get no sympathy from me. #notmywhite

In fact, law enforcement should put some charges on this guy for his online vigilantism, perhaps, as an example. Just sayin. Vigilantism is #notmywhite

#7 BLUF: Not my white, not fit for duty, not fit to teach anyone, Ma’am!

Here’s the thing: whether you want to believe it or not, many of our “most respectable whites” deserve no respect at all. Not one more person should salute the Officer above.

There’s all kinds of shades of white out there. Let’s make sure the standards we uphold as norms in our culture align in shade to a more true American white ideal united, regardless of contrast, with red and blue, aligned to equality, freedom, and justice for all as intended.

In order to get there we’ve got to stop accepting such despicable behaviors from people we might encounter everyday or any day, anywhere, and from our leaders in office, public trust, enterprise, and in service to we the people, AS WHITES.

Truly though, it is not a matter of left vs. right, nor black vs. white that should be fought for the future of America to reach its full potential.

It is anti-racists against racists.

All Americans should be behind upholding customs in our society that do not put whites, or anyone, beyond the pale of equality.

Thanks for reading! What’s your point of view?

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