Blog Post #1 - Tommy Drorbaugh

Tommy Drorbaugh

February 1, 2017

Christina Ivey

Com 160

The most interesting quote to me from this months reading comes from the Russo reading. Russo's article is about how feminists and white people can help combat institutional racism through active listening and just the right amount of speaking out.

I think the whole story from Russo's friend is interesting but I'll just take out the main chunk of it that made me think: "From this exchange, she invented what she came to call the 'Race Game.' She suggested that her colleague, over the course of one week, ascribe the term 'white' whenever she mentioned the name of one of her Euro-American cohorts. Thandeka instructed her friend, for instance, to say --- 'my white husband, Phil' or 'my white friend Julie.'"(43) In this segment that the quote is from Russo uses an anecdotal story from her friend to highlight the observation that white people avoid talking about white privilege and institutionalized racism. Thandeka's colleague asked her "what it felt like to be black" and became flustered when she responded with "what it felt like to be white." At the end of the story Thandeka's colleague never got back to her about the results of her "Race Game".

The reason I picked this quote and story is because of the self-reflection it induced in me. I realized that I'm guilty of using the race adjective but only when they're not white. For example, I'll always talk about one of my closest friends, Andre, as my 'black friend Andre'. But if I talk about one of my white friends I will just say their names. I never thought to myself that this could be racist or even realized I was doing it for that matter. In my defense, I never meant 'black friend' to be a warning or to demean Andre in  anyway. If anything I meant it as a brag. I now feel guilty because I consider myself not racist and all loving. All of this self-reflecting made me think back to my sister, who identifies as a feminist and is always trying to keep me "woke".

My sister always brings up how the institutionalized racism in the U.S is subtle (for the most part) and hard for white people to acknowledge and see what is happening. My sister always tells me to just acknowledge that it's happening and to speak out against injustices while also listening to minorities plights; an active listening. Realizing my subtle racism during this reading makes me question how any of this will ever get accomplished. Russo concludes her article with some self reflecting of her own on how to change this institutionalized racism power structure in America. Russo's explanation for how to conquer this injustice seems like she's walk on thin ice over a frozen lake; like it is so easy to let things slip back to normal. I think as long as white people can acknowledge when they're in the wrong and form friendships across races this will end soon. Inequality is what brought us into this mess, so equality has to be what gets us out. To quote the late, great MLK "darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that."