I suppose I should explain the title to this post and the above mug shot. Since this post of mine was shared by a number of people, I’ve begun receiving email responses about the segregation and discrimination I witnessed as a young child born in Raleigh, North Carolina. Most express appreciation or thank me, but not all. A few are oddly off topic, and one went to some length to advise me of the story of C.J. Pearson. (Long story short: 12 year old African American kid claimed he was banned from Facebook after he posted a YouTube video questioning President Obama’s love of America, which led to a major conniption fit by the right wing media thanks to Fox News. The usual suspects claimed a conspiracy to censor conservative criticism by the administration in league with Facebook. In fact, Facebook requires account holders to be 13 years of age, and when advised of his age, they deactivated his account. Facebook has now given Mr. Pearson a public figure page to get around its own terms of service restrictions.)
By far the one reaction I did not expect was the following one in which I was asked for proof of my whiteness:
That was a great piece you wrote for Dailykos. Unfortunately, a young friend of mine, who is not always the most progressive thinking had this to say.
“JR. While I agree with this article. I think he is lying about his ethnicity. Almost seems like he really believes he will get more respect from saying he is white. I guess living in the Midwest for most of my life may scour my opinions on racism, but I really do not think it is as bad as it was in the 1950s. I agree that we have a long way to go as people, however, bringing up the ancient past most likely will not help.”
It would be great if you could send me a proof of life picture so that I might hit him over the head with it.
Clearly, some people believe no white person would ever write about the segregation and overt anti-black racism prevalent in the fifties, so that means in their minds my skin tone must be of a darker hue.
At first, as you might imagine, I was put off that someone would suggest I wasn’t who I said I was. It also seemed odd to me that someone would think that the rather mild stories from my childhood regarding the existence of segregation, Jim Crow laws and overt racism prevalent at that time, must have been written by a black person. After all, real stories from African Americans who lived in the South during the era of the Civil Rights movement are generally more harrowing then mine. Experiences, for example, such as those described by the people like Pearl Avery, an African American woman born in Birmingham, Alabama, who were interviewed by the Library of Congress’ Civil Rights History Project. In the following video she speaks of, among other events she recalls, the effect the deaths of Emmet Till and another black man (both killed for the crime of looking at white women in an inappropriate manner) had on her at a young age:
If you have the time, you can view other oral histories from this collection at the this website.
I considered not responding at all to this bizarre request, but then I realized that the person who questioned my identity, was not only insulting me, but his or her words were also an insult to every black person who lived during that era. Indeed, his or her reaction to my post is further evidence of a persistent racist attitude among far too many people. That is, the attitude, whether expressed or not, that African-Americans complain too much about racism, that racism isn’t that big an deal anymore, and that Americans, whether white or black, should all just get over it because things are so much better now.
You see, this person, whoever he may be, did not just question the authenticity of my white cred, but also the relevance of any discussion of racism in America, past and/or present. Because, talking about our nation’s history of racism against African Americans is just not helpful. Or to repeat the person who suggested I must be black stated:
… I really do not think it is as bad as it was in the 1950s. I agree that we have a long way to go as people, however, bringing up the ancient past most likely will not help.
I guess I have a different view of what constitutes the “ancient past.” Considering African Americans are presently being disproportionately killed in cold blood by the police, imprisoned at higher rates than whites, are discriminated against in housing, financial services and employment, and are witnessing their voting rights increasingly eroded, I think a discussion of what this country went through a mere 50-60 years ago is not only relevant to our times now, but essential.
So to that person who doubted my story, yes, I’m white, and yes speaking about the history of the racial divide in our country, whether discussing slavery, the Jim Crow era, the Civil Rights Movement, or the history of white backlash from the 1970s to the present, is more than relevant to today and our country’s persistent problem of racism. Ignorance is not a virtue, for if we fail to understand our past, how can we possibly hope to address the issues of our present?