Assholes in the news

[Irreligious Atheist]

If that is the part that's messed up, maybe you should realize that that is the part that's in your head?

Stop.

For the record, it’s not so much a slur as a sociological term that probably isn’t being given enough explanation. If I’m interpreting your reply accurately, I think my spiel about Katherine Johnson gave you some idea what DiAngelo means by whiteness. You might think it unfair to associate white people with oppression, but, to be honest, given that the idea of “white people” as opposed to, for instance, Englishmen or Spaniards or Germans originated as part of a power structure that placed themselves as “white people” on the top and “black people” on the bottom, and for the longest time, most white people have actively supported that power structure, it’s a fitting term, although it does require a lot of explanation to keep it from sounding like essentialist bullshit.

Robin DiAngelo is a self hating white woman who phrases things the way she does because of guilt. I've listened to enough of her over the years to see this.

I refuse to see white as a negative. Slavery has existed since the beginning of humanity. Groups of people have always conquered other groups of people. There have always been different classes and life has always been unfair. None of this started with whites. It's human nature. We're animals and this is what we do.

Whites are probably the most non-racist people per capita, or right up there, so no, I don't want people to be told to be less white. Do random white Coca-Cola employees really need to be told not to oppress their black co-workers? I can understand the people in positions of power being told to be fair to everyone regardless of race or orientation, but regular employees? How are they oppressing their co-workers? By speaking over them? That happens in almost all conversations. You've got to learn to be more assertive if you want to make your point and you're worried about being shut out because you're being spoken over.

I don't want whites to be less white. I want blacks to be given more opportunity and help with investment into their communities so black excellence can rise closer to the level of white excellence. I want them to have the opportunity to be more like us (per capita) and share in the successes.

So yeah, I understand what whiteness is supposed to mean in some academic circles, but clearly the branding is not working as most white people just see it as insulting and racist.