FAQ 24 - Can Blacks Be Racist?
Personally, I don't like this move of redefining "racism" in a self-serving way and then saying we can't be racist. It's oversimplifying.
Firstly, there are situations when Blacks have the power to oppress others. An example which has been on my mind recently is the Prop 187 issue in California which many Blacks voted for. The proposition denies basic services like health care and education for illegal aliens and many people see it as an example racism directed mainly against Latinos.
Like it or not, there is a certain amount of political power which comes with being an American citizen and an Anglo (regardless of race) and African-Americans are certainly able to use that status against other people of color.
But at the same time, I would want to keep in mind the point which folks are trying to emphasize when they say that Blacks can't be racist: there is still a difference between the political power which Blacks are able to exercise against others and the power which whites are able to exercise. There is a vast difference between a couple of Black old men, sitting on a corner talking about "Peckerwood this" or "cracker that" and a couple of white old men sitting in a War Room deciding "Are we going to invade Panama or Libya this week?" Yeah, I would say that both are being racist, but there is a world of difference in terms of effect.
Gilberto -- April 1995
Some will argue that Blacks cannot be racist because, collectively, we have no "power" in the United States. Others will argue that power has nothing to do with being racist; race does. The answer? Yes.
-- darkstar 4/95
I always try to distinguish between individual racism and institutional racism.
Anyone can be an individual racist if they believe in the inherent inferiority/superiority of one race over another, or if they advocate basing the treatment of others on their race.
Blacks can't be very racist at the institutional level, for to really be racist at that level, they would have to control a large enough chunk of this nation's institutions to act on whatever individual racist tendencies they might have.
When many people claim "blacks ca't be racist," they are presumably referring to institutional racism. But I claim that all racism is not institutional, and for that reason they can be racist. They may lack the ability to oppress whites based on that racism, but in a few people it is there, and those people wouldn't hesitate to do so if given the opportunity.
-- Tim Irvin 4/95
But at the same time, I would want to keep in mind the point which folks are trying to emphasize when they say that Blacks can't be racist: there is still a difference between the political power which Blacks are able to exercise against others and the power which whites are able to exercise. There is a vast difference between a couple of Black old men, sitting on a corner talking about "Peckerwood this" or "cracker that" and a couple of white old men sitting in a War Room deciding "Are we going to invade Panama or Libya this week?" Yeah, I would say that both are being racist, but there is a world of difference in terms of effect.
-- Lane Singer 4/95
racialism:
the belief that there are differences between human beings which are inherited such that it they can be ordered into separate races in such a way that each race shares traits and tendencies which are not shared my members of any other race. each race has an 'essence'.all forms of racism build from the premise of racialism. notice that racialism is not saying anything 'good' or 'bad' about races just that mutually exclusive races absolutely exist and divide the species.
extrinsic racism:
the extrinsic racist says that there is a moral component to the 'essence' of a race which warrants differential treatment. these differences are, to the extrinsic racist, not particularly controversial.intrinsic racism:
the intrinsic racist says that the moral 'essence' of a race establishes an incontrovertable status for the race. no matter what an individual member of a race does he should be treated just like the rest of his race.anyone who can understand race can be racist. any racist is equally wrong. the amount of control or influence of the racist party does not change the moral component. the white man who killed one black teenaged boy in one southern town and tied him to an air conditioner fan and tossed his body in the river is no more or less racist than the man who moved forward a presidential campaign on the principle that the opponent would let loose crazed black criminals if elected. racist is not as racist does. racist is as racist is.
certainly there are priorities in anti-racist struggle. the greatest is probably that of racist residential segregation which is a product of white supremacy. but that doesn't change are even effect the fact that there exist racists of all types in american society, black, white , latino, asian and otherwise.
an 'uncle tom' by definition is racist. an 'uncle tom' is a black person who internalizes white supremacist beliefs, hates themselves and other blacks, finds little redeeming about black life and always defers to white authority. if you read 'black boy' by richard wright, the book from which this term gains some perspective.
M.Bowen 4/95--
there was something that i thought was in the faq i published that i should put in having to do with racism and power.
most people who say that blacks can't be racist mean to say that blacks cannot and do not exert a system of control against white people. blacks can't get whitefolks tracked into inferior schools, for example. blacks can't deny whitefolks access to capital, blacks cannot create a police department policy that cracks down on whites.
however, let us be clear. the reason that there is a such phrase as 'institutional racism' is to underscore that type of power. that doesn't change the meaning of racism itself. racism has to do with *the way you think*. secondarily, racism is not simply a black & white thing in the american context. it has to do with the concept of race and one's regard for one's own and others'. in america, we rightly talk about white supremacy, which is the dominant form of racism in this country. that doesn't mean that black supremacy doesn't exist. it doesn't mean that black separatists aren't racist. it doesn't mean that ordinary blackfolks can't or don't subscribe to some form of racism.
let us also not quibble about degrees of racism. you cannot be 'somewhat' racist or 'sorta' racist or 'not quite as' racist as someone else. either you are, or you are not. period. it's like belief in god. either you believe god exists or you don't. it doesn't matter how much you do or don't go to church. racism, like belief in god is binary. (although it's true that somepeople can't, or refuse to make up their minds.) there is certainly a matter of degree about the consequences of your racist beliefs. you might never act on them. but that doesn't change the basic fact of your racism.
racism is an error. it can be a moral error, or it can be a cognitive error. people might believe racist things for [il]logical reasons or for [im]moral reasons. whatever the reason, it doesn't change the fundamental error of racism.
however it is the matter of power and responsibility that makes the greatest difference in the consequences of that error. someone who says that 2+2=5 is making a mathematical error. if that error takes place on a first grade pop quiz, the consequences are trivial. if that person is the quality engineer for the o-rings on the space shuttle, the consequences are deadly. if that person is the engineer for the valves on the poison gas lines in bhopal india, the consequences are catastrophic. but the error is the same.
the fact that someone is racist may or may not be consequential. everyone has the same reasons to correct the errors of racism. but depending on who that person is, the correction can be not worth the time of day or that correction can be life-saving.
so let me say three things in conclusion:
#1. there is absolutely no question that there are blackfolks who are racist, and if given the opportunity and power, would subject white people to the most profound humiliation, degradation and suffering. in a heartbeat. but they don't have the power, so you might as well ignore them and save yourself a headache.#2. there is absolutely no question that there are whitefolks who are racist, and if given the opportunity and power, would subject black people to the most profound humiliation, degradation and suffering. in a heartbeat. but they don't have the power, so you might as well ignore them and save yourself a headache.
#3. look at whom, in this country, has suffered the most humiliation, degradation and suffering at the hands of racists. do something about it.
m.bowen 3/01