Here in the U.S., the conversations around racism have seemed to transpire at an exponential rate. This is mostly due to the most recent grand jury hearings involving law enforcement and African American perpetrators. This is only fueled by the fact we have a second term president who is a person of color. So, needless to say, there is a lot to talk about and a lot of fuel to keep this fiery subject burning for quite a while.
Having been born and raised in Denver, CO, and as a person of mixed race, I’ve traveled the length of the racism and prejudice spectrum. As a child and pre-teen I really knew nothing about racism. Then I went to college in Atlanta where I was called a nigger right to my face. Because of my school of choice, I also learned how to dislike white folks. In returning to Denver in 1997, I have since had this very peculiar stance on race relations.
First, I have to define the words “racism” and “prejudice” because they are not the same. Racism is the belief that with your race comes some power and/or influence or lack thereof. Prejudice is something each and everyone of us have: the assumptions about a person or a group of persons we have made without knowing said person and their background or circumstance. You can totally be prejudice without being racist, but I doubt you can be racist without being prejudiced. An example: I see a group of black teenage boys. I instantly think because of their dress and vernacular they are gang members. This is prejudice. I see a group of black teenage boys . Because I’m a light skinned black man, I think these boys are drains on society and a leech on my tax dollars. I go one step further to think they should be locked up and thrown in jail because unlike me, they will never amount to anything. This is racism based on prejudice, even if it’s among black folks. (Yep, we do it to ourselves) You see, there’s a difference which often doesn’t get discussed, we’re too lazy to call it properly, and just name everything as racism. But I digress on the purpose of this post.
Many folks believe they are not prejudice or racist. And I would say, consciously, they might be correct. But as I have been told by many white friends and acquaintances I’ve had over the years, it’s impossible to be white in the U.S. and not have just a little bit of racism and prejudice inside of you. I would say similar about folks of color and I speak from the Mexican/Puerto Rican/African American experience. We folks of color tend to have assumptions of white stereotypes and regardless of how many “good white folks” we encounter, we disparage the greater demographic because of history and recent events.
So, even if we don’t actually say these things out loud, we have all thought bad things about folks based on their appearance. If you’d like to refute this statement, I can engage with you for 15 minutes and reflect how your everyday language is reflective of my statement. Just give me a call. :0) However, even our actions, both conscious and subconscious can perpetuate racism and prejudice. For example, let’s talk about gentrification. Oooo, I know, scary word, eh?! This is something we all have experienced at one time in our life, whether directly or indirectly. Right now, Denver, I would say as a whole, is deep in the throes of this phenomenon.
Where my husband and I live currently — the Highlands — there is a lot of change going on, but nothing more apparent than the swapping out of one racial group for another. What was for many years a Chicano/Latino/Hispanic area is quickly becoming a middle to upper middle class white bastion of urban renewal. This term alone “urban renewal” reeks of privilege, prejudice, and racism, however, these days it’s seen as something for which to strive. But when you bring this point up in discussions, one is often met with hostility and resentment for even implying that anyone who lived in Denver, particularly of the Caucasian persuasion would think less than about any person of color. Enter this past summer when someone felt the need to post signs telling “Mexicans” to leave because this area is a “white” neighborhood now. There was brief outrage about this which only lasted long enough to build a new set of row homes which sell at more than $500,000 a piece. Then it was business back to normal.
As a Denver native, I never foresaw that simply changing neighborhoods would cause such a stir. Oh, but it has. It’s all about the company you keep. You may consciously say, “I’m not a racist,” or “I harbor no prejudices.” However, you just might. If the majority of the folks with whom you hang out with, enjoy life with, vacation with, live around are like you, then you might be prejudice and/or racist. I know harsh words, huh? But how can you fully say you believe in diversity if your very life does not reflect such. And I’m not talking about that one black friend you talk to every four to six months on facebook, or the white dudes you have drinks with every Super Bowl Sunday. I’m talking real, I would bail you of of jail, call me if your spouse is cheating on you, friends. How many do you have who don’t resemble you?! Very few of us can answer this in the affirmative. But it is something just this simple — being comfortable around and with those who do not look like me, which can begin to alter the conversation of diversity.
Take this game I just found today in my news stream Parable of the Polygons. This is a great way to see how personal perception and comfort with being around folks who do not look/act like you can fuel the fire of segregation and leads to no semblance of diversity.
Yep, I wrote all these words to get to that last point, but it was quite worth it for me. Most of my friends don’t look like me or act like me. I’ve got problems of the other sort, but I’ll save that for a later discussion. HAH!
For more from Londell Jackson, check out his blog HisLifeUncensored.com.
