Everybody is Racist!

The morning after the 2012 Presidential election, I was sitting in an office with a some of my colleagues. Inevitably the conversation turned to the election results and speculation about how the Republicans could have mis-judged the sentiment of the country and lost the election so conclusively.  At one point, one of my colleagues, who is a white male who grew up in South Africa, began recounting tales of people in his neighborhood who consistently say disparaging things about ethnic minorities.  He began to explain how at first he would offer rebutals but over time had given up trying to influence his peers.  At some point in the conversation, some one said "Well, we are all racist."  To which I replied, "NO. We may all have biases, but we are not all racists."

It dawned on me in that moment, that the rhetoric surrounding race is this country has become so twisted and convoluted that people who would normally be change agents and advocates for inclusion, just throw up their hands and say there is nothing we can do.  But I would like to examine this belief.

Racism, according to Websters dictionary is " a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and
that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race."

Bias, is defined as, "an inclination of temperament or outlook; especially: a personal and sometimes unreasoned
judgment : prejudice."  

If someone has an affinity for a political candidate becasue they feel a connection with the candidate based on a particluar trait or characteristic, that would be a bias.  Also, if you felt you could not connect with a political candidate because of a particular trait or characteristic, that would also be a bias.  If white voters, for example, felt that Mitt Romney was more like them and more likely to view the world the way they do, that would be an example of a bias.  If those same voters, decided that President Obama was unfit to lead them because black people are inferior and have no right to hold the office of President, that would racism.  Both of those examples have an element of race, but only one of those examples is racist.

If black voters felt a sense of pride about Barak Obama being the first bi-racial President, and felt that he was more likely to understand the issues that affect them, that would be an example of bias, not racism.   If those same voters simply revelled in the irony that a black man is President of this country given its history of instituionalized racism and bigotry, that would also represent an unreasoned judgment, but it doesn't amount to racism.  Everything that is racial isn't racist, and I think we would do ourselves a huge favor by recognizing this and stop using the words "racist" and "racism" when what we are really referring to is prejudice.   

Why parse words?  I believe these distinctions are important and we need to be precise in the language we use because words have meaning and they impact our relationships and our interactions with others.  I want to mean what I say about issues of race, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation etc.  I want to have credibility and be thoughtful in my communication.  Being loose with our vocabulary blurs the lines and prevents honest dialog. 
 
Inclusion365 Mission # 1

I will say what I mean when I discuss issues of diversity, and I will not allow my biases and prejudices to to lead me to conclusions about the character and abilities of others. (that would be racist)
 

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