Against White Pride [edited for text size]
From my white perspective I understand the definition of pride that Tim Wise is getting at in this paragraph and I applaud him:
"It is for this reason that white pride is more objectionable than 'black pride,' or 'Latino pride.' In the case of the latter two, those exhibiting pride are not doing so as a celebration of their presumed superiority, nor dominance over others. If anything, they are celebrating the perseverance of their people against great obstacles, such as those placed in their way by discrimination, conquest and enslavement. In the case of white pride, whites as whites have not overcome obstacles in the same fashion, because we have always been the dominant group. Although Irish pride or Italian pride makes sense given the way in which persons of those ethnicities have faced real oppression in the past (and even today, in the case of Italians, who sometimes face negative stereotypes), white pride, given the historic meaning of whiteness, can mean little but pride in presumed superiority."
FMWP, the term "white pride" makes me feel clammy and a bit nauseous; I will only ever make associations with the KKK and other groups who publicly flaunt their "pride" in white people's existing and wrongful superiority. Having settled that word, though, I have new questions. They're relevant to my personal understanding and they come up when I talk to other white folks.
When white folks first have the anti-racist conversation about whiteness as the "default" in our society, some of them think they are being told that white people have no culture, no ethnicity, no race, etc. If not that, there is always the pitfall of white guilt that leaves the person feeling ashamed of (and obsessed with) their white culture/ethnicity/race/etc. And then there are the revisionist folks who make really problematic statements like: "Well, except for slavery... [insert statement of white pride here.]"
When I think about how I would replace those statements I draw a blank. All I can come up with personally (and forgive me for being wishy-washy) is the fact that I am glad to be who I am, whiteness included because my whiteness is inseparable. At the same time, I will work for a world in which my whiteness will not mean what it does now. Basically I'm a white girl with a lot of self-love who also hates white supremacy.
So my question is this: If I won't use the word "pride" for my race; if I won't feel guilty for being white; if I won't ignore history, racism and privilege as part of my identity, neither will I believe that I have no racial identity... how do I talk about that identity in positive terms? Or, is this completely the wrong question to be asking? ...the wrong way to be asking it?
"It is for this reason that white pride is more objectionable than 'black pride,' or 'Latino pride.' In the case of the latter two, those exhibiting pride are not doing so as a celebration of their presumed superiority, nor dominance over others. If anything, they are celebrating the perseverance of their people against great obstacles, such as those placed in their way by discrimination, conquest and enslavement. In the case of white pride, whites as whites have not overcome obstacles in the same fashion, because we have always been the dominant group. Although Irish pride or Italian pride makes sense given the way in which persons of those ethnicities have faced real oppression in the past (and even today, in the case of Italians, who sometimes face negative stereotypes), white pride, given the historic meaning of whiteness, can mean little but pride in presumed superiority."
FMWP, the term "white pride" makes me feel clammy and a bit nauseous; I will only ever make associations with the KKK and other groups who publicly flaunt their "pride" in white people's existing and wrongful superiority. Having settled that word, though, I have new questions. They're relevant to my personal understanding and they come up when I talk to other white folks.
When white folks first have the anti-racist conversation about whiteness as the "default" in our society, some of them think they are being told that white people have no culture, no ethnicity, no race, etc. If not that, there is always the pitfall of white guilt that leaves the person feeling ashamed of (and obsessed with) their white culture/ethnicity/race/etc. And then there are the revisionist folks who make really problematic statements like: "Well, except for slavery... [insert statement of white pride here.]"
When I think about how I would replace those statements I draw a blank. All I can come up with personally (and forgive me for being wishy-washy) is the fact that I am glad to be who I am, whiteness included because my whiteness is inseparable. At the same time, I will work for a world in which my whiteness will not mean what it does now. Basically I'm a white girl with a lot of self-love who also hates white supremacy.
So my question is this: If I won't use the word "pride" for my race; if I won't feel guilty for being white; if I won't ignore history, racism and privilege as part of my identity, neither will I believe that I have no racial identity... how do I talk about that identity in positive terms? Or, is this completely the wrong question to be asking? ...the wrong way to be asking it?