MOTUS A.D.: “Nature, Mr. Allnut, is what we are put in this world to rise above.”

Monday, May 2, 2016

“Nature, Mr. Allnut, is what we are put in this world to rise above.”

I really didn’t want to, butt in the end, curiosity got the better of me so I read the “White Fragility” article linked by dchrist81 yesterday.

When you see an event titled Whiteness History Month at a college you can’t expect it to be a celebration of White history. And it wasn’t; rather it is a month long event at Portland (where else?) Community College geared more to eliminating than honoring the White race. (And if you think that’s racist, this event’s definitely designed for you.)

In a talk entitled “Imagine A World Without Whiteness,” Harrison declared confidently conflict can only cease once the power structure of whiteness is totally eliminated.

For Harrison, the term whiteness is essentially a social category to which whites belong. And a social category, Harrison continued, is a group of people sharing in a common similar (sic) attributes, even if they have never actually met.

“So whiteness, white people, share a whole lot of things, even if they don’t interact, and one thing that they share is whiteness, or white privilege,” Harrison said. – Daily Caller

Are we clear then?

One such idea is called “white fragility”, where you’re racist if you push back against the people who imagine a world without whiteness or who openly say they want to breed white people out of existence.

And why would you want to push back against that? Just concede.

So okay, we all understand white privilege,

butt are you still confused about this concept of “white fragility”? The organizers provide guidance:

White fragility is a state in which even a minimum amount of racial stress becomes intolerable, triggering a range of defensive moves. These moves include the outward display of emotions such as anger, fear, and guilt, and behaviors such as argumentation, silence, and leaving the stress-inducing situation. These behaviors, in turn, function to reinstate white racial equilibrium.”

Allow me to untangle that for you: white fragility means your lizard brain takes control when faced with race and/or being accused of anything racist; you are no longer in control. Your reaction is preconditioned and you can’t help it, it just happens.

You automatically recoil when ~~assholes~~ your betters accuse you of being a racist - because you’re white, and, your lizard brain. You can’t deal with this rationally, again, because you’re white.

White fragility is, at its essence, a [ed. - trigger warning!] gun level pushback. It’s like the fight or flight response of white people who want to believe that they, and the world by extension, are less racially divisive than they really are.”

Actually I’m beginning to see why this is perfect for the Snowflake Generation; takes the blame off them and puts it back on their parents (for being white) and their lizard brain, which they have no control over.

Actually this is all starting to make sense to me now. We respond to race and racist charges exclusively with our lizard brains - eschewing the logic and rational thought process available to the functioning brain. It’s like liberalism. They think we all suffer from it.

One of the conference presenters, Melinda Bullen, describes this aspect of white fragility:

“Seeing yourself as well-meaning removes responsibility for our actions… Good intentions are one of the great hindrances to honest conversations about race. There’s a feeling of action when we view a painful situation using the reason of good intention. But it doesn’t do anything to affect the impact that the action had on someone else… I want you to gather in groups of three. And I’d like you to discuss the impact white fragility has on your work, organization, or those you serve through our organization.”

I think I’ve found something I finally, totally, agree with a progressive on: the ash bin of history is filled with the remains of the well intentioned - along with millions of people who were “collateral damage” to their “good intentions.”