The Automatik

Geraldine Ferraro’s recent racist remarks are actually nothing new for her. In 1998, she made similar comments about Jesse Jackson:

“If Jesse Jackson were not black, he wouldn’t be in the race.”

And sadly, but again, unsurprisingly, these types of comments are not limited to Ferraro. John Edwards’ wife Elizabeth was quoted in the August 2007 issue of Esquire saying:

“We can’t make John black, we can’t make him a woman. Those things get you a lot of press, worth a certain amount of fundraising dollars.”

Only someone in complete denial of their own white privilege or the existence of racism would make such preposterous remarks. What is it that white people are not getting? Why is it that we refuse to see, to hear, to believe?

Photo courtesy Jakob Holdt

As a white person, I do not presume to speak for those who have experienced racism. So here are some words from people of color I’ve read recently, although to get the full effect you should read the entirety of each posting:

Jill Tubman, at Jack And Jill Politics writes:

“Being a black woman, I feel I have a perspective that I’d love to share with Geraldine. I’ve gotten few breaks BECAUSE of my race or gender. Instead, I have often received opportunities DESPITE my race (in particular) or gender.”

Resistance, at Resist Racism writes:

I’ve gotten into this argument any of a number of times with white people, almost always with the same dispiriting results. A white friend, after being wait-listed for grad school, complained that the selected cohort was 1/4 people of color and how they had taken “her” place. I pointed out that her assumption was predicated on the belief that she was more qualified than any of the students of color and was inherently racist. She didn’t complain about the white students who were admitted before her. She also seemed to have an underlying belief that she was entitled to a spot.

We went round and round on this, and finally I asked her whether or not it was true that I was academically more qualified than she was.

“Yes, but. . . ” she kept saying.

And Tamara K. Nopper writes of her recent experience on a Southwest Airlines flight:

Shortly after sitting down, an older white man sat in the seat next to mine. He then proceeded to spread his legs wide open as if, to quote a wise person I know, “he thought he had balls the size of pumpkins.” In response to the uninvited pressing, I requested room for my legs. The man then proceeded to imperiously point his finger to the floor to emphasize that his feet were within the boundary of his seats. He never addressed the fact that his legs were spread beyond them so as to invade my space and press up against my body. Instead, he said to me, “You’re a big girl.” Talking on my cell phone, I interrupted my conversation to calmly tell the man “Don’t fucking talk to me that way.”

With his right hand, the man reached across himself to grab my left arm. With my arm in his grip, he looked me in the eyes through his glasses and replied, “I’m going to slap you in your mouth.” I freed myself from him and then stood up. I called out to the steward at the front of the plane that I needed assistance since I had just been grabbed by the person sitting next to me. Hurriedly, the man bolted out of his seat, muttering that he would move. As he exited the row he made it a point to emphasize that I had cussed at him, neglecting the fact that he had made the comment that initiated our negative exchange.

I turned around to be met by a young, white woman steward named Crystal G. Webb. When I told her that I had been assaulted by the man who was now making a mad dash for a seat a few rows back, she began to laugh. As she bit her lip, a smirk escaped.

These stories are not isolated incidents. They are but a fraction of the hundreds, thousands, even millions of stories like them from around the world.

Why aren’t we more outraged about this sort of behavior? Why do we refuse to believe that racism is still alive and well?

When mainstream media reports on racism, it’s called “liberal bias.” When independent bloggers report on it, it’s not considered news because it doesn’t come from mainstream media.

What is the mainstream experience then, if it is not the voices of millions telling first hand accounts of the suffering they’ve endured due to racism?

We must see, we must hear, and we must believe.