Writing Beyond Race: Living Theory
and Practice by bell hooks reports on the battle fought
by cultural critics, progressive thinkers, and scholars from the left against white
supremacist thought. hooks writes that many have grown weary of the battle and believe
that America’s political system will always be an “imperialist white
supremacist capitalist patriarchy.” However, bell hooks feels the battle is not
lost, but, she argues that white supremacist thought is at the root of American
racism, and that no substantial conversations concerning race can occur without
understanding how white supremacist thought influences racism.
She writes:
If
everyone in our society could face that white supremacist thinking is the
underlying belief system informing nearly every aspect of this nation’s culture
and habits of daily life, then all our discussions of race and racism would be
based on a foundation of concrete reality. Everyone could move away from the
us/them dichotomies which promote blame and prevent us all from assuming
accountability for challenging and changing white supremacy. Unless we make a
conscious effort to change thought and action by honestly naming all the myriad
ways white supremacy impinges on daily life then we cannot shift from a
politics of hate and create a new foundation based on a revolution of love. (12)
bell
hooks believes that white Americans are influenced by white supremacist
thought; the thought that white people are superior due to race she feels
permeates the white American consciousness. It is this thought that leads to
white privilege, segregation, and even a discontinuity among people fighting to
end racism. This is largely due to white supremacy being an unconscious thought
for many. hooks argues that many support white supremacist thought without
knowing it:
Significantly,
despite class differences, as a group, white people (whether consciously or
unconsciously) maintain some degree of bonding despite diversities of
standpoint. White supremacist thinking continues to be the invisible and
visible glue that keeps white folks connected irrespective of many other
differences. Politically, white supremacist thinking was created to serve the
purpose. Imprinted on the consciousness of every white child at birth,
reinforced by the culture, white supremacist thinking tends to function
unconsciously. This is the primary reason it is so difficult to challenge and
change. (3)
The
unconscious functioning of white supremacist thought is also a problem for
blacks and other people of color, and it begins in childhood:
While
there is discussion of white children’s negative imprinting around race, it is
equally true that black children and other children of color may have similar
imprints that come from either images they have seen or stories they hear. Most
folks have heard about the doll study, where black children choose white dolls
over dolls who look like themselves because they have learned white is better.
(13)
Chapter
by chapter, bell hooks identifies how and the avenues in which the demeaning
thinking of white supremacy works to maintain the racially skewered status quo
of American society. In the sixth chapter titled ‘Interrogating: The
Reinvention of Malcolm, X,’ she uncovers an attack on the image of Malcolm X,
who has risen to icon status among American youth.
His
popularity, as a black man who spoke of black independence and black love of
self and high self-esteem as opposed to blacks wishing they were white, was
directly against white supremacy. Malcolm’s strong black male image has been
attacked by repeated reports of a single homosexual act which works to
deconstruct the iconic image that American youth have come to revere. hooks
writes:
Conservative
critics, white and black, who dwell on Malcolm’s sexuality aim to depoliticize
him by slyly suggesting that he was just another brother on the down low (i.e.
posing as straight, screwing females to cover up his homosexual appetite).
Since much African American youth-based pop culture mirrors the homophobic
values of this imperialist white supremacist capitalist patriarchal society, to
inform this group that their “shinning black prince” was really a queen in
disguise is a character assassination aimed at both promoting homophobia while
simultaneously encouraging this group to denounce Malcolm X, to no longer see
him as a champion of black manhood but as an enemy. If this accomplished,
Malcolm X’s life and experience will no longer serve as the catalyst for youth
of all ages and all colors to come to critical consciousness and radical politicization.
(79)
Media,
specifically movies, hooks feels is another contributor to spreading the white
supremacist thought; she offers the surprising example of Crash; a movie that
Americans view as honestly portraying race relations in the country. hooks
argues that the film is detrimental to any conversation about race:
I
am startled when black people tell me that Crash
talks about race in a new and different way. It simply does not. . . In Crash, the images of black people are
poorly executed clones of the images of blackness depicted in Quentin
Tarantino’s film Pulp Fiction and in
black exploitation films.(108)
Later in the text, she continues with:
Sadly,
Crash is a film folks are using to
engage in a public discourse about race and racism, but ultimately it’s a
conservative discourse the public hears from the conservative right. The
message is that racism is not real- prejudice is real and everyone has these
feelings or that it is natural for people who differ based on race or
nationality to be in conflict. (115)
hooks
does not leave the reader in the dismal state of mind that America is doomed to
forever be an “imperialist white supremacist capitalist patriarchy.” She
believes that love with enlightenment will conquer the hatred of racism and
white supremacist thought. However, to bring about change the country must realize
that the acorn of racism in this country is white supremacist thought. Once
this is understood, Americans will begin to see beyond race and honestly be
able to begin conversations concerning race in America.
***
Tony Lindsay is an award-winning author and adjunct professor at Chicago State University. His book ONE DEAD DOCTOR was chosen by Conversations Book Club as one of its Top 100 Books of 2012. Lindsay was named Conversations Author of the Year 2012-2013. His new book EMOTIONAL DRIPPINGS is available now on Amazon.com. He can be reached on Facebook at www.facebook.com/tony.linssay2.
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