Stretching Our Thinking

" indicate a detour or wrong turn into white guilt, denial or defensiveness. Each is followed by a statement that is a reality check and consequence for harboring such attitudes" 

This really hit home to me as I read the article and thought about the reality check and consequence. Ive witnessed a lot of these situations in life and Ive noticed that if a person doesn't see the issue then there will be a constant state of denial. Ive told people that I don't agree with them and that the statements they make are in my opinion wrong but denial make for a constructive healthy conversation.

I enjoyed reading through the tools for better antiracism conversations. I will apply a lot of these strategies into future work and conversations that I have. For example, being cognizant not to speak for others. I also see the importance of truly listening and not always feeling like I have to speak. Finally, not relying on my friends of color to always do the speaking up and pointing out of injustice. 

1.Racism is not necessarily about holding hate in your heart toward other people or consciously believing you are superior because you’re white. 2. There is no such thing as reverse racism. 3. There are different rules for white people and people of color when talking about race. 4. It is not racist (nor is it “creating division”) for people of color to talk about how they experience the world differently than white people. Colorblindness is not a thing to aspire to. 5. If you have been told that it IS racist to see or talk about color, that was probably in a situation where you were pointing out race in a completely irrelevant context. 6. Use descriptors of race that are both inclusive and empowering. 7. Develop a listen-first ethic when a conversation turns to race, rather than insisting that race is irrelevant. 8. You can prevent knee-jerk defensiveness by actively working to de-center your experiences as a white person in conversations about race. 9. When someone hits a sore spot and you realize you’ve said, done, or felt something that you didn’t realize could be insensitive, avoid rationalizing your actions. 10. The solution is not to “stop making everything about race” and just all come together as one. We have to be anti-racism, not anti-talking-about-race.

• Speak from the I perspective (avoid speaking for others)
• Make space / take space (share the air)
• Listen to understand instead of respond
• This is heart-work not head-work, so lead from empathy and compassion
• Imagine good intentions but own the more important consequences of impact
• No tone policing of the marginalized group: “target identities” get to speak openly and share their truth
• Expect non-closure: 400+ years of racism will not be solved through one twitter exchange. Take a break when you leave the stretch zone into a panic zone (below). But it’s also important that you eventually return.

I liked the 10+ tools to fight racism.  Members of different ethnic, religious and gender affiliations can fight their own battles since they know what the obstacles are.  We just have to get out of the way and remove the artificial barriers that exist.  As teachers, we can work on eliminating the educational barriers that exist.

I really liked how she went right at all the defensive excuses that white people tend to give when they are asked to examine their racist attitudes. But I have black friends! But I love black culture! I don’t hate anyone. She said you can subconsciously hold ideologies of white supremacy even if you have Black friends. You can know in your heart that you don’t hate anyone but still contribute to their oppression. You can love Black culture, music, and slang while benefitting from systems that are designed to elevate you above Black people in social status. The fact that about 83% of teachers are white does make it our responsibility to dig deep in this conversation. It DOES apply to us. The part that I found the most helpful was the bit about racial descriptors. Language does change and evolve, and it helps to know what is currently considered more or less offensive. I grew up with my mom calling anything Asian “Oriental” and I quickly figured out in college that it wasn’t considered appropriate. This podcast taught me to try and use descriptors of race that are empowering.  Say “Black people” instead of “blacks”. The ethnic description with -American is intended for immigrants or first-generation Americans. If they haven’t had ties with Africa for centuries, they probably prefer “black people”. If you don’t know which term to use, default to “people of color”.

The open definition of racism, and how racism can be defined by even not acknowledging inadequacies of power is interesting. I never thought about ignoring the issues as being considered racism, but it is entirely true. You are just adding to the problem. The section about reverse racism is interesting. I find it interesting that she edited to add that if you are offended or want to stop reading after this section to skip to number 8. While I don’t necessary agree with the fact that being a white individual I will not be a victim to racism, I wouldn’t just stop reading the article. Parts of the article were no brainers to me. Like we should not be identifying students based on their race, and we should not try to dismiss conversations about race and ethnicity. Listening first before responding or dismissing a conversation, don’t deflect or become defensive when talking about race. I loved the quote “You are not responsible for what other white people have done, but you ARE responsible for whether you are currently upholding the systems that elevate white people over people of color”. I think it is important to recognize that we need to listen to people of color discuss race, and not be the first to make a claim or a reaction to what is said. Also the idea of avoiding rationalizing your actions.

Something that really struck me was the idea that it is not the "job" of our black and brown students to educate us or other white people. This is something that I've spoken about with my students and their opinions seem to be all over the map. A lot of my female students want to educate people and want to be a big part of the social change. We talked about why they feel that way and what I can do as a white person. Most of my students stated they wanted to educate people who were uneducated because "the world wont change if we don't make it." I thought their different perspectives were very interesting! 

I read 10+ Tools For Better Anti-Racism Conversations. The part that resonated with me was #10. Remember that anti-racism is teamwork.
It’s become apparent that in order to eliminate systemic racism, every one of us needs to be more than just not racist. We need to be actively anti-racist, and that begins with awareness, empathy, and honest, open conversations. This teamwork begins at the workplace. We need to assess the demographic makeup of our colleagues, at all levels. The entails looking at factors such as gender, race, ethnicity, disability, and LGBTQIA+ status. We should establish clear goals tied to becoming an anti-racist workplace.

Moreover, as part of our teamwork, recognize the overlapping and interdependent systems of discrimination some of them may face because of their race, gender, sexuality, gender identity, ability, and other critical forms of identity, and center their experiences in this work. Analyze the effects that your actions have on LGBTQIA+ employees, people with disabilities, older workers, and people with caregiving responsibilities and then work to develop more inclusive policies.

As a team we need to devote resources toward efforts that actually enhance the lives of Black communities and communities of color. Invest in structural changes that will genuinely benefit communities of color. Set significant resources aside for training that effectively teaches people of all races and genders how to combat racist behavior, including unconscious bias and microaggressions.  

I really appreciate this list. Many were things that I was already aware of, but so many people still are not. And the fact that they are most often completely unaware that their statements are racist is so unfortunate, because they aren't looking to actively change them. I believe as human beings we become so engrained in our habits and routine nature that we don't regularly question our more subtle statements and behaviors. So even an individual that is actively seeking to better themselves in this area may have no idea how things are coming across to people with differing perspectives. As they say, you don't know what you don't know. And humans are selfish by nature, so when attempting to confront people making these statements, they may become offended or upset. That's where being able to engage in conversations about race, especially using the list by the Annie Casey Foundation may help. 

One thing that resonated with me was #2 "There is no such thing as reverse racism". This stood out to me because I have been hearing both sides of this argument. Robin DiAngelo, the author of White Fragility, holds tightly to this ideal, but others have questioned it. Others argue, If you say this statement, then you are assuming people of color hold little to no power in any situation. To dig deeper, I think it is essential to define terms such as discrimination and racism.