I actually enjoyed reading this article and agreed with a lot of what Johnson was saying. One idea that stood out to me was Johnson's argument that being defensive is what keeps people from becoming part of the solution. I agreed with his point because once someone feels "attacked," they no longer want to participate or help. When Johnson says, "If we dispense with the words, we make it impossible to talk about what's really going on," I was like, EXACTLY!! Because avoiding terms like racism or privilege doesn't solve the problem. Making people feel comfortable doesn't make these issues go away or create change. It is through those uncomfortable conversations that we can begin to create change. Making things "easy" for those with privilege does absolutely nothing.
Talking Point 2:
I was struck by the statement, "Her misfortune is connected to my fortune." I found that to be such a powerful statement that really resonated with me because it shows that privilege and disadvantage are connected, even when people are not intentionally trying to harm others. Simply by being able to go to a store and have a completely different shopping experience than his African American woman colleague, he demonstrates how, in everyday life, he can indirectly contribute to her disadvantage without actually doing anything other than existing as a white male.
Johnson's discussion of race as a social construct is a familiar conversation that we often have in my friend group. His reference to James Baldwin's idea that race is created by society made sense to me because, outside of the United States, people often identify first by their nationality or culture rather than simply by race. We're all from different ethnic backgrounds—Black American, Nigerian American, White American, Dominican American, etc. So, we often have conversations about how race doesn't really exist in our parents' countries the way it does in America. We all agree that colorism plays a role in those cultures, but race does not have the same significance. For example, in Haiti, people identify as Haitian, and being "Black" is not the defining part of their identity because we're all Black. Identity is more likely to be associated with differences in skin tone, from fair skin to dark skin. I also agreed with Johnson's point that people naturally make assumptions about others, such as assuming someone is heterosexual or white, which shows how deeply social stereotypes influence our thinking.
Argument Statement:
Johnson's main argument in this article, is that social inequalities are maintained by systems of privilege and power rather than individual differences. To create lasting change, everyone, especially those who benefit from privilege, has to to recognize these systems are real and be wiling to put their defensiveness aside to actively work together to challenge them.
Hi Ashima!! I found your talking point three so interesting. My biological dad immigrated here from Germany and he didn't talk about the different conceptualization of race at all. I wonder if he had internalized the American constructs surrounding race or if he simply hadn't had to think critically about it because he was white. This point also really emphasized for me that race is a socially constructed identity that changes and shifts over time.
ReplyDeleteHi Ashmina! I really appreciated your perspective on Johnson's discussion of social constructions of race outside the US. For the past two years I've taught US history and literature to 11th graders, including several international students, and it's really reminded me how the American concept of race is so specific to the US. As I was reading Johnson, I wondered if his examples of the African woman and the Norwegian man were a little oversimplified--I was thinking about the fact that most African nations are still dealing with the legacy of European colonialism, for example, and how indigenous people have long been oppressed in Scandinavian countries, not to mention recent waves of anti-immigrant sentiments--but your point about colorism helps me think about how these forms of oppression and privilege are still distinct from the specific kind of anti-Black racism that exists in the US.
ReplyDeleteI can't edit my comment but I want to apologize for spelling your name wrong, Ashima! People spell my name wrong all the time & while I'm used to it, it's annoying.
ReplyDeleteHi! I agree with talking point one - people's discomfort and ability to just overlook issues that don't "directly" affect them is a major problem. I think he explained this concept really well and clearly. I also like his way of pointing out the words and language used around these issues and how people are so discomforted by these problems.
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