racism Putin

[Shannon Nelson]

Tanya wrote: “My understanding is that if you are white you are racist in America. You cannot avoid it as you profit from racism every day”

So, again trying to clarify something in my thinking — Tanya, let’s consider some imaginary white person in America. Let’s say it is someone who does not *believe* himself to be racist. Let’s say he has friends of a number of races (as many of us do), and doesn’t really think about their race, any more than he thinks about their hair color or how tall they are—they are all friends, and it is the personalities and the relationships that become primary, not the details of origin or form.

There are many places in the US where many people like that live—probably any of the big cities; University towns; port towns… just thinking out loud.

Yet you are saying that, simply by virtue of being “white”, and thereby (admittedly and undeniably) privileged in America, all of these people are “racist”, regardless of what they think, or of whether they believe themselves to be.

Indulge me, if you will—if this imaginary person were to become magically made un-racist, what is it that would change--in their behavior, or experience, or thinking? Or would you say that racism isn’t that kind of thing, that can be un-learned, that it is different from that?

I am honestly trying to understand.

Thanks,
Shannon