Current events have made white people confront racism in our country in ways that are long overdue. But how is the best way to do it? As a white person, I know I am privileged in this society, but what can I do about that? How can I be a good ally?
The first thing to do is confront how I might be racist in my own life, no matter what my personal intentions. To that end, I read author Robin DiAngelo’s White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism.
DiAngelo’s book, in a nutshell, can be divided up into two central ideas that white people have a hard time understanding for one reason or another. The first is simple: racism isn’t only felt by bad people. There are many different ways that racism can manifest in our society, and it isn’t just how bad people feel hatred for people who are different from themselves.
The second is that white people need to understand that their words and actions, whether intentional or not, can be hurtful to people of color and they need to both recognize this and do their best to alter their behavior. To that end, DiAngelo frequently points out she herself is white and she likewise still needs to improve herself because she grew up in a culture set up in such a way to benefit white people and not other people.
The problem is many white people don’t recognize the first idea, and so they tend to balk at the second. Many react harshly in ways that put the attention on them and not the people they’ve offended or hurt. Such behavior makes reconciliation or sincere apologies difficult if not impossible. Essentially, as long as white people believe only bad people can be racist, then there will never be any progress on making society better for all.
Books like this are important. I know I spent time thinking about my own words and actions to other people. I can only hope that I can move forward the next time I do something hurtful to someone else, and not simply try to make excuses for bad behavior, whether intentional or not.
Grade: A
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