Again, I was asked the question this time face to face the difference between white people and white folks. So once again I think I have to explain and reshape my Etymology of Whiteness. So what does it mean to be white in America. To best answer that question, again, I feel it is essential that one explores whiteness in terms of oppositional relationships. The opposite of black is white. The opposite of good is evil. The opposite of moral is immoral. So that said: entering into a discourse of just the word itself, white: in our country -- their is this long standing association of the word white with all things positive. The power, be it economic, political, and or social, white has been associated with many positive aspects of our culture. I remember when I attempted to make this case to a majority white teenage audience and how just the word white in our culture has such significance. I remember making the statement about the power of the name we call the presidential estate, The White House. This shook the audience up pretty hard because it was a concept that I think they just could not or refused to understand. Some of the remarks were like well its called the white house because it is white. My response, OK, it that is the case, then why are you so anti calling it the white house as opposed to calling it what it really is, the presidential estate. Mind you I was making this case in they year 2000 prior to the arrival of Barak Obama, the first official African American to be elected to the position of POTUS.
Back to the person who asked about my blog title: I explain that being white is not just simply waking up and walking out your home and life is simply good. No, position is that being white in our culture is a performance of sorts. In my mind I delineate the notion of being white from the performance of being white. To be white requires an existential probe. To be white (again from my POV) is simply being white and not buying into the privilege or the easy access to the accouterments afforded by the dermatological and epidermal definitions.. That's a convoluted gobbledegook which simply says, I am white and that is it. To me, this represents a white person and NOT white folk. White folk again I link to imperialistic, classist, sexist, race consciousness which one uses either blindly or on demand for self identification and accessibility not afforded to others again because of dermatological and epidermal considerations. I have had to politely and sometimes with less decorum check check a few whitefolks who just for lack of better term got on my last half of the few good nerves I had left on particular days.
Crossing the line:
Again, at Barnes and Nobel I was wanting to check out with my purchase of books and cards for various occasions and I noticed that an older white man was running the cash register. There was a senior white couple in front of me and the store clerk was insistent on following the rules to a tee. To some degree I understood his position but at the same time I am like it should not take 20 minutes to buy books. While there were looking for their Barnes and Nobel card, I offered to allow them to use mine. The clerk said no no no, they can't use your card unless their family members. I was floored because to me what difference did it make.. Give them the discount, they're spending money and frankly I really don't care. So I tried to play the race card, in a nice way. They are my long lost cousins, now can you let them use the card. Now the couple was shocked that a young black man with locks would advocate for them. The clerk's response was, "Sir I'm going to have a hard time believing that." Part of me was insulted because I was like, who are you to tell me about my family genealogy. In fact, by marriage and even genetically there are white people in my family. Even the couple was taken aback. But I think I got the message. Sir, you are not white today, you were not white yesterday, and you will not be white tomorrow, hence, you cannot come to the aid of these white people tonight. But that wasn't the shocker. The real don't taze me bro moment came immediately afterwards. Now as I said-the clerk was older and a little slower. (Its sad that in the present or better yet post bush economy that 70 year olds have to work) Needless to say he was the only one working the desk for a while and a line was forming. Eventually another clerk came to the check out desk. I am thinking I am the next to be assisted in the line since she showed up. But no!!!! This short baldheaded Mr. Slate looking like SOB snatched my spot and everyone in the line saw how he did it. Again, white Folk in the front and now in the rear. This guy, with no consideration for the fact that I too was waiting to be assisted completely ignored me. In his world I was invisible, non existent, not even a structured set of molecules. Just broke the line. Now of course the spotlight shines on me.. people are wondering --what's he going to do now? What's he going to do now? Now by rights, he did deserve a sonic boom to the head, but no instead I elect to chill because. Its more important in my mind at least not to go for the bait that life throws at you. That's how one catches a heart attack or stroke. Now please don't misunderstand, in my mind I was pounding his head on the desk saying "da line is right here!!!! da line is right here you stupid (you fill in the blank). I can't go Shaft on people all the time. Thats the dilemma black people face. When and when not to go Shaft.
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