April 13th, 2008oh, I am about to get mean
One of the things I hate about the discussion and debate on race: the idea of that being colorblind is the answer to solving racism. Bullshit. You know - the “I don’t see you as Black/Asian/Latino/etc., I just see you as a person!” rhetoric. That is laden in privilege so thick, as Gorilla Monsoon would say, you could cut it with a knife. You can’t NOT see that in me. I am Asian. My slanty eyes belay that fact loud and clear. My every interaction with people is based on my experiences as an Asian woman. My experience as a mother is colored in the same way. Thank you very much for not being able (or willing?) to see me as Black/Asian/Latino/etc. If you don’t see me as Asian, then you are blinder beyond words.
April 13th, 2008 at 2:31 pm
Thank you. It’s such a damned insult, denying people of color their identity to make yourself feel good. And it’s never true, to begin with.
Really, thank you.
April 13th, 2008 at 6:21 pm
I totally agree. It is so false and annoying. The very first thing you notice about anyone is their race. Probably even before their gender or age. Perhaps people who say that are trying to say that they turn a blind eye to race but even so it is insulting. As I heard on an Oprah show once about race, we are not a melting pot instead we are a salad and each part of a salad retains its integrity and contributes in that way to the taste of the whole dish.