2016 Postmortem
In reply to the discussion: White progressive analysis of politics is fundamentally broken. [View all]NoGoodNamesLeft
(2,056 posts)And you can usually tell it's the right thing to do when your gut tells you that you can't just ignore or overlook something simply because opening your mouth will not be welcome, popular or painless.
I don't expect gratitude. My motivation is simply being able to look myself in the mirror and KNOW that I always try to do the right thing, not just the easy or convenient thing. The easy thing it to make assumptions about people you disagree with...like Trump voters. It's easier to assume that they are all bigots than it is to inspect and accept the flaws and mistakes from within.
I'm saying the things I am because I'm being honest and because I want to make a difference. I want to help people understand that they are going about this battle all wrong. If the approach towards resolving a problem is turning off people on your side then there is something wrong with the approach.
Unfair, and false accusations of being a racist is one of the most deeply hurtful things you can toss out at someone. In doing so you are saying that person hates others based on something that other person has no control over and for doing absolutely nothing. Let that sit with you for a moment. Would you want to be accused of being that sort of person unfairly? I'm guessing not.
There are really not a mass amount of actual racists in this country. The few there are tend to be obnoxiously loud and disgusting. They are evil and disgusting...and easy to spot. They are loud and proud of their vile hatred. There is no hope for those people, period. Next you have people who aren't really racists but have been treated like they are too many times and they are resentful for that reason. These are the ones that can be seen displaying the confederate flag not because they are racists but because they just want to piss people off because they are mad and are lashing out. Then there are people who aren't racists and aren't bitter or trying to piss anyone off. Pretty much all people are impacted by stereotypes and biases to some extent, but they are not conscious or intentional. This may be seeing a young black man walking towards you at night and feeling uneasy and a little afraid. This is societal bias at play, but it's often not intentional and not done consciously or with ill will.
Too often this societal bias is treated as if it is done on purpose, planned and intentional when it's not. I am NOT saying that minorities should just accept and be OK with societal bias or actual racism...in NO WAY am I saying that. What I am saying is to stop assuming that everyone who is white who doesn't agree with someone of color is motivated about race. That's really usually not the case. People are not that simplistic in most cases. If you think someone might be doing or saying something because of race then ask them what their motivation is. Ask them to explain. Have a goddamned discussion about it. Just don't assume because doing so rarely provides the right answer.