Race in America

The discussion that followed Dean Esmay’s excellent post about racism in Chicago looks to have topped out at forty-two comments, but discussions have been continuing in and between other blogs.

Inspired by the discussion, and Cobb’s observation that “If you can't write a 1000 word essay on the topic of whiteness, the subject of race-consciousness is out of your reach”, Ms Lauren at feministe has suggested that people might like to write an essay and post it, so others can see their thoughts on the subject.

the suggested questions are aimed specifically at whitefolks, but please feel free to expound on the subject if you are of another race or ethnicity.

1. what does it mean to be white? what does it mean to be White?
2. how has whiteness affected your worldview?
3. how has whiteness affected your educational experience?
4. how has whiteness affected your experience with authority?
5. how has whiteness affected your experiences with people of other races and ethnicities?

A thousand words on my skin tone? I couldn't do it; it's just not that relevant. But then, to tell you the truth, the phrase “race-consciousness” has only negative connotations in my family. So I’m at a loss when people use it to mean something positive. I'm not criticizing, just saying I don't understand.

I pretty much agree with what Liminel Liberal says in this post and I can certainly identify with her when she says:

Maybe I need to get out of this diverse city for a while. Figure out what everyone's talking about.

What I’d like to figure out, is what people mean when they talk about race. I know what I mean when I use the word, but I often get the strong impression that other people give it a different meaning or use the word in a way I find hard to understand and accept.

I’m not saying there isn’t a problem with race in America, there clearly is. I understand that prejudice and discrimination exist and that they promote inequality and social exclusion. I am not blind to the very real difficulties that large numbers of Americans face on a daily basis when confronted with the ignorance and bigotry of some of their fellow citizens.

I was fascinated by the breadth of experience and diversity of views represented in the comments to Dean’s post. I’m interested to hear more of what people have to say, and I’ll be following the links from feministe to see what’s been written in response to Ms Lauren’s initiative.

UPDATE
My compliments, and apologies, to Negroplease, who caught an earlier version of this post which was edited for focus and clarity. The earlier version included a list of questions around the definition of race. On reflection, I didn't think they were particularly helpful. I was writing directly to Blogger so I don't have a saved version of the original post. If anyone's interested, and I can remember all of them, I'd be pleased to include them in another update.