Fellow White People — Black People Do Not Owe Us Niceness

Photo by Duncan Shaffer on Unsplash

I get it. When somebody says “White people suck,” it stings a bit if you happen to have skin that vague shade of pinkish-beige.

But those who get offended are missing a few things. “White people suck” or “I am so tired of white people” is not equivalent to throwing out an N word or loudly declaring how Black people commit all the crimes.

Which is how overweight Black guys in work clothes get escorted out of department stores by no less than four cops (to be fair, he COULD have been shoplifting, but…four cops? Really?)

So here’s some things to think about next time:

Relative Harm

I already mentioned inequality in arrest. But the fact is, a Black person can’t hurt you by saying white people suck.

Okay, they can hurt your precious widdle feelings. But they can’t hurt you.

Them saying that isn’t going to get you arrested. It isn’t going to cost you your job. It isn’t going to get you followed around by a loss prevention officer.

It’s literally just words.

Words that aren’t even aimed at you, personally. They aren’t attacking you, they’re attacking whiteness.

So, think about how upset you get when whiteness is attacked. You might be nastily surprised.

Photo by Valeria andersson on Unsplash

Good White People, Bad White People…All Look the Same

Somebody asked me if I as a Jew blamed all modern Germans for the Holocaust, implying that Black people are blaming innocent white Americans for slavery.

The thing is?

Germany is no longer a Nazi country. (There are still Nazis in Germany, not a large number, but…)

America is still a racist country.

When I walk my middle aged female white self down the street, a random Black person doesn’t know who I am.

And for their own self preservation, they have no choice but to assume I’m a Karen likely to call the cops on them…