"Paw-Paw,

Thank you for sharing your viewpoint on the U.S. history and the current reality of black people and other cultural minorities. I wholeheartedly disagree with you on most parts, but I respect your right to your own beliefs. I hope you acknowledge that neither of us should occupy a position of subjugation in our dialogue. I recognize that conflicting worldviews and actions exist in a world and a period of life that belongs to both of us equally. However, please do not carry an inherent assumption that only your views are right, and that at the end of the day, I'm going to see it your way.

I am well educated on the history of Civil War, and I am aware of what went on in the North and South in terms of economy and politics. I have read the Emancipation Proclamation myself. I have read stories written by slaves and slave owners. Obviously, I see the history through completely different lens from yours. I am not interested in what the oppressors have to say, or what their reasons for oppressing marginalized groups were. I’m interested in learning from the oppressed groups, and how resilience had helped them survive through those times.

As a white person, I often am blinded by my unearned privileges, just like how right-handed people are often unaware of how school desks are set up for right-handed people, baseball mitts are designed for right-handed people, guns are designed for right-handers to shoot, and appliances open to the right, making it easy for right-handers to open, while left-handed people have a harder time with those things. This is a small example of how we all have different forms of privileges that we often overlook. Those privileges may unintentionally or intentionally make our lives a bit easier.

Because of this, I often make a point to check in with the minority group, be it Black, Latino, Women, Deaf, Homosexual, Blind, or Left-handed people when talking about their history and current issues. When I want to know what misogyny is, I don’t ask a man. When I want to know what racism is, I don’t ask a white person. When I want to know what homophobia is, I don’t ask a heterosexual person. The definitions of oppression are best articulated by the oppressed.

I know I have benefits of being a white person in this society. I’m a racist. Being a racist doesn’t means I hate black people. Racism is not simply a series of random, isolated, overt acts by individuals. It is an institutionalized system of reality that infects every action and thought and requires conscious action to combat and reject. Like most right-handed people, I recognize that I am unaware of AND benefit from my privileges as a right-handed person. Like most white people, I am unable to see things from the oppressed's perspective whilst black people live it, breath it, and see it every day. Most people think being called a "racist" is a personal attack, and some people use this term to attack others. I can understand why white people like myself can get defensive when this happens and say, "No! I'm not a racist! I just don't see it the way you do!" BUT the reason why we don't see it the way people of color do is because we are ALSO victims of the racist system. We DO say, think, and do racist things without realizing it. So when someone points this out to us, I do hope that we, white people, are able to examine our position of power and privilege. I always believe and support the oppressed group, even if I can't see "it".

Here is a checklist of white privilege: https://docs.google.com/viewer?url=http%3A%2F%2Fsap.mit.edu%2Fcontent%2Fpdf%2Fwhite_privilege_checklist.pdf

I know you don’t hate people of color, but you do have a patronizing perception of them. “I have black friends, I grew up around black people, my ancestors treated black slaves well” do not, and should not mean anything. You have white friends, you grew up around white people, your ancestors treated white people well too. Why should black people be any different? You did the right thing by treating everyone with equal respect and dignity.

The difference is that the majority of black people continue to experience discrimination, not by you perhaps, but by many other white people who perceive them as dangerous, uneducated, and inferior. I even had this perception myself while growing up due to the media’s negative portrayal of black people, due to many black people living in the poor areas, and due to the amount of black people in jail. Now, I realize that the reason why they are poor is because the system (set up by white people) does not work in their favor, just like the reason why many Deaf people are uneducated, because the system (set up by hearing people) had failed to provide the education that we needed.

Here is a concrete example of how people of color are being discriminated against in our country. In 2009, NYPD stopped 575,000 New Yorkers. Of those stopped, around 490,000 were black or latino. Even though nine times as many people of color were stopped, the NYPD found that of all people stopped, white people were most likely to be carrying illegal drugs and illegal weapons. Black people receive 60% longer sentences for same crimes as white people.

This is just one example among many I’ve been reading from the people of color community. We cannot deny that injustice exists in our country. I’m trying to be more aware and educated on this topic so I will not contribute to the problem by being colorblind and ignorant of what most marginalized groups experience in U.S.

I know some successful black people too, but it does not invalidate that there is a functional racism in the country on a larger scale (this form of discrimination also exists for women, Gay people, Deaf people, and other marginalized groups)

I do not expect you to agree with me, and that is completely okay. However, I do hope you understand the lens I see the world with.

I know your viewpoint, and now you know mine. I know the kind of person you are, and now you know who I am. I am not interested in continuing this dialogue any further if the goal is to change one or the other’s mind. But if the goal is to get us to know each other better, then I’m comfortable with this.

Cheers,

Leala"