Typically, I will only discuss things that make me laugh. However, silence is assent. So, for once, I will forgo my golden rule and jump right out there by saying: EVERY human on the planet has prejudice. If you just read that statement and said, “not me,” you are a liar. Don’t go yet. Let me explain. Bias is hardwired into our brain, and it is there to keep us safe. It started with our Neanderthal ancestors. If Flintstone saw his buddy mauled by a tiger, going forward, he remembered not to mess with anything that looked like a tiger. Bias is part of humanity; granted, we no longer hunt and gather but that basic brain functioning is still there. It is why first impressions are so vitally important. Our first task is to understand and accept that one simple fact. The second task, which is where our tiger comes in, is to acknowledge the biases you have unconsciously developed, and tell yourself to quit your shit. In nicer terms, and sticking with the first impressions analogy, that equates to looking past your immediate snap judgement and getting to know the person before deciding if you like him/her. Remember, your feelings are not facts, and the facts CLEARLY state that there is a problem that we need to address.
Our disconnect is lack of education and the fear of discussing race. One of my tigers is uneducated/uninformed people. I fear them. I judge them…so let me remedy that by establishing a bridge of understanding. If you have never truly experienced prejudice there is a lot of misunderstanding on what racism really looks like. It is not always blatant. It is often subtle. It is sometimes unconscious, but it DOES exist. African Americans, especially African American men, have unwittingly become our societal tigers. They are hunted as predators, and they are treated much more harshly than their white counterparts. So much so, that they fear for their lives. These are facts regardless of your own personal feelings about how and or why. Again, just because someone doesn’t FEEL like they have a bias doesn’t make it an actual fact. For example, white men and women are committing crimes (fact), and yet all white men and women are not suddenly considered dangerous because of that fact. Imagine being lumped in as a tiger threat simply because of the amount of melanin in your skin. Would you be angry about that injustice? Yes. Yes you would.
It goes so much deeper than that. Many people will say that they don’t have a problem with color and I believe that. I also believe that some of those same people are not aware of what they unknowingly consider a tiger. For example, do you unconsciously touch your wallet or clutch your purse a little tighter when you see a black man dressed a certain way? Statistically, you do. Google it. It is called microaggression. Watch the videos. THAT is the face of racism today. It isn’t in your face, wear a white sheet, and meet in the town square to burn some stuff. It is quiet. It is prevalent; it is often unconscious, and it is getting people of color killed because we are not doing a great job about discussing it.
When I was 7mos. pregnant, I decided to walk to the beach alone. It was early. No one else was around. I saw a man, who had clearly been out exercising, walking my way. He was full of muscle, extremely tall, and black. I literally watched him try to fold into himself to create a non-threatening demeanor for the pale pregnant girl passing by. I stopped and greeted him. I think I gave him a heart attack, and I may have come on a little strong, but his demeanor relaxed and he could carry on being himself. I was not his tiger (how the term Karen developed) and he was not mine. Having to constantly watch your body language to appear less threatening to others is not freedom, guys.
I hear a lot of opinions on how you should or should not protest, or how you should or should not approach an officer. Whatever. Can we move past that for a moment and agree that there really is a problem and people are scared for their lives? Educate yourselves on microaggression. Look at the FACTS. What are your tigers? Do you even know? More importantly, is your brain registering a tiger when there isn’t one, because we seem to be shooting at everything around here. Get to know those tigers of yours. I am well aware of mine, and I am intelligent and educated enough to acknowledge that I have them, and I can look past them by using common sense and factual evidence.
Of course, my one exception… clowns. They suck. I can’t relate to them with any kind of rational thought. Get past it. I had to throw some levity in there. It is really heavy around here.
General Musings of a Gen Xer 