A very somber and realistic view of humanity and this fine mess we’ve gotten ourselves into.
If it was only whiteness that has gotten us into the current circumstances I might be a little more optimistic. However, it now appears that being human of any color or caste contains the ability to wreak havoc on our neighbors.
On this first day of a new year I celebrate my community of amazing friends who have come together through pure happenstance to build honest connections that respect and celebrate our differences. Will this save or solve the world’s horrific ills? I can only hope that it’s an honest start.
The term, and concept of whiteness has all the perils of any idea. It can begin to seem more important than the reality it points to and become yet another thought-stopper. I did refer to the way the Tories, and now the GOP, have turned to wealthy, co-opted "people of color" to act as their spokespeople/leadership. Whiteness has nothing to do inherently with skin color or ancestry, but how skin color and ancestry have been weaponized by ideology. What's being done in service of whiteness now in Gaza and elsewhere was first done to the indigenous people of Europe as this power-at-any-cost attitude conquered them.
We grew up when this deeply violent racism was endemic in the developed world. All of the stories we were exposed to defended and supported this attitude. The revelations we face today shake these foundations to their core. They must if we are to learn anything from what we are living through. What was "just-so" must become intolerably uncomfortable. The changes we face, either as proponents or antagonists, are and will be "unthinkable" from the perspective of whiteness where an attitude of superiority and claimed innocence vibrate with cognitive dissonance.
Yes. While to the destroyers everything is a zero sum game we need to maintain contact with the wellsprings of Life. Create, share, enjoy, love.
Good morning Tony,
A very somber and realistic view of humanity and this fine mess we’ve gotten ourselves into.
If it was only whiteness that has gotten us into the current circumstances I might be a little more optimistic. However, it now appears that being human of any color or caste contains the ability to wreak havoc on our neighbors.
On this first day of a new year I celebrate my community of amazing friends who have come together through pure happenstance to build honest connections that respect and celebrate our differences. Will this save or solve the world’s horrific ills? I can only hope that it’s an honest start.
Happy New Year!
Rob,
Good to hear from you, as always.
The term, and concept of whiteness has all the perils of any idea. It can begin to seem more important than the reality it points to and become yet another thought-stopper. I did refer to the way the Tories, and now the GOP, have turned to wealthy, co-opted "people of color" to act as their spokespeople/leadership. Whiteness has nothing to do inherently with skin color or ancestry, but how skin color and ancestry have been weaponized by ideology. What's being done in service of whiteness now in Gaza and elsewhere was first done to the indigenous people of Europe as this power-at-any-cost attitude conquered them.
We grew up when this deeply violent racism was endemic in the developed world. All of the stories we were exposed to defended and supported this attitude. The revelations we face today shake these foundations to their core. They must if we are to learn anything from what we are living through. What was "just-so" must become intolerably uncomfortable. The changes we face, either as proponents or antagonists, are and will be "unthinkable" from the perspective of whiteness where an attitude of superiority and claimed innocence vibrate with cognitive dissonance.
Yes. While to the destroyers everything is a zero sum game we need to maintain contact with the wellsprings of Life. Create, share, enjoy, love.