Raptorific

I go to Temple and enjoy soda. I also like dinosaurs and Batman. I promise, I am not a child.

Posted 1 year ago
I know! And the thing is, most White people pretty much don't understand that only they have the ability and privilege to ignore issues of whitewashing because it always works in their favor and only supports White hegemony. Like, whitewashing makes the media consumed by White people more comfortable and palatable, whereas the scant stories about PoCs can barely exist, and when they do exist, have to be changed to make it seem like we don't even exist/are evil. It's dangerous and scary.

Asked by silkchemise

The truth is that we white folks get the lion’s share, and saying the only reason racism exists is because people pay attention to it is presenting PoC as people who get an equal slice of the pie, but still unfairly want more, which is outright racist. Like, there’s nothing covert about it.

Imagine two kids who are sent to a fast food restaurant by their parents for lunch. One is given an allowance of $10, the other is given an allowance of only $1. The first kid buys himself a large burger, french fries, soda, and a milkshake. The second can only afford a small item from the dollar menu. Several hours later, the second kid complains to the parents that he is hungry, and the first kid says that he should have gotten more food when they were at the restaurant. The second kid points out that he only had one dollar, so he couldn’t afford to buy the same amount of food as the first kid. The first kid acts offended at the implication that he is being given special treatment and that the second kid should have gotten the same allowance as him, then says the only reason he’s hungry is because he keeps complaining about it. Obviously the first kid is a brat, and the reason the second is hungry isn’t because he’s complaining, it’s because he was given less to begin with.

It’s the same with the “racism only exists because people talk about it.” No, racism exists because we have a system designed to keep people of color down, and “not talking about it” won’t solve the problem any more than the second kid will stop being hungry just by pretending he’s not.

(By the way, “stop talking about it and it will eventually go away on its own” was one of the arguments used by people on the pro-slavery side of the abolition debate.)
- 10