On Racial Discomfort
I am writing in regard to Attica Scott and her column "Color Conscious" [Vol. 10, No. 32]. Having been a reader of Metro Pulse for several years now, I was especially delighted to see the appearance of a column devoted to issues of race and racial justice (among other things). I thoroughly enjoy reading Ms. Scott's commentary on things local and national with regard to race relations. However, I have noticed a recent spate of negative letters to the editor in response to some of her editorial columns.
Ironically, Ms. Scott's critics prove the continuing significance of race and the intransigence of racism. Their comments consistently re-frame the issues she addresses in the column in a feeble attempt at rebuttal. Further, these criticisms reveal how uncomfortable white people are at sharing power (in this case, the power of discourse) with non-whites. By robbing her words of their import and shifting the terms of the debate, these critics attack her via invented and imagined premises which avoid the truth of her observations.
Some respondents trivialized black pain while others suggested that the only victims of racism are whites. A constant implication is that presently blacks do not suffer from racial discrimination because, as one person suggested, laws have been passed as a result of the civil rights movement. This line of argument ignores the reality of the American experience. For example:
Political and physical attacks on blacks since the Reconstruction era were always illegal (i.e., lynching was murder; the use of poll taxes violated the 15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution). In addition, most of the civil rights legislation evolving from the 1960s and 1970s is under attack and has been under-enforced for most of its brief history. History reveals that legislation offers little guarantee of racial justice.
However, what I find especially disturbing are the attacks on Ms. Scott's person, intellect, and character. Again, ad hominem attacks serve as poor retorts and, more often than not, reveal the weakness of those employing them.
George White, Jr.
Knoxville
Listen for a Change... and Learn
I am writing to express several thoughts:
1—Thank you, Attica Scott, for taking on the difficult task [Vol. 10, No. 32] of being a bearer of bad news to the people of our community (educating us that racism still exists and that white people benefit from it).
2—Praises to Metro Pulse for providing a venue for this important learning and growth opportunity.
3—In response to the embarrassing letters from John Schmid and John Snyder:
It is important to recognize that both these responses to Attica Scott's articles were viciously negative. The writers of these letters demonstrate just how vehemently serious white people are about denying the problem of racism. Racism causes suffering. Those who are suffering (people of color) have been trying to educate white people about their suffering for hundreds of years. We have not listened. Instead, we become defensive and angry, call names, and essentially distract from the opportunity to learn and change. Why? Because there is a lot at stake: White people will lose the benefits of being white when racism is eradicated.
I strongly encourage white people to learn more and to do some soul-searching. Read Paul Kivel's book, Uprooting Racism. Begin a dialogue with the people you know. And most importantly, listen to people of color...the human beings who are suffering the most because of racism...they have a lot to teach us and it is time we listen and learn.
Christy R. Hickman
Knoxville
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