Subtractive views of race, and why they just don’t work out…
After the Democratic Convention, there were a lot of conversations on Plurk about Obama. One of the saddest was a thread from Lisa Parisi, about her conversation at a local bowling alley with a Democrat who said they would never vote for Obama because he is black. She was shocked, but many of us who have worked or are a part of the African American community were saddened but not surprised. I think a lot of this centers around a view of race that some Americans have that is subtractive, and not only is it corrosive to adult relations and polity, but it can hurt your classroom too.
This thread led me to discussion with African American men I know, one is my husband of twenty+ years, and the other, Ken Shelton, who I haven’t known very long, but we’ve become fast friends. The discussion centered around their experience being told by whites, “I don’t think of you as black…” or some form of that statement. The person saying it often doesn’t realize how negative this is because what they are saying is that they like this black person because they are not like other blacks, and this necessarily implies that they didn’t think much of other black people and what they perceived to be that culture. They have a subtractive view of black culture. This means they (the person making these statements) think that blacks should be working on being less black, and more white. This is because they are ONLY associating pathologies with black culture (crime, gangs, out-of-wedlock births) instead of having a fuller, richer view of what that culture is.
But, there is no way for a black (or Mexican, or Chinese, or whatever other race, ethnicity) student to win in that situation because they will never be able to “shed their skin” enough and be “white” or non-ethnic. It is part of who they are. You can ask them to be individuals, you can ask them be different than others, you can ask them to be their own person, but please, don’t ask them not be who they are.
As I was thinking about the bind of race that Obama is now in with some voters, I remembered the character of the sheriff played by Cleavon Little in Blazing Saddles. No matter how polite, or pleasant he is, to the townspeople, he is still an n-word. It takes a true crisis and the realization that NO ONE else will help for the townspeople to let him be their leader.
Is it only when there is a life-or-death crisis when we can accept a black leader? Is it only a black person that we see as white that we can accept as a leader? In your classroom, do you only see the black students who fit your ideals, who conform to your notions of what is “normal”? Questions to ponder as the school year starts, and Election Day approaches.
Thank you for this valuable reminder. I work in a very diverse area and I do believe this has made me more aware of culture and race. I think it is wonderful that the children can share their extremely different homelives, their traditions, who they are…and still be chosen for the recess soccer game, asked over for a playdate or invited into a group project. And my fervent hope is that these children will grow up respecting differences but not really caring about them when it comes to making big decisions – like who is going to be our president.
I hope more people see your posting and realize that as educators we can either usher in a new way of thinking or perpetuate this type of thinking. It is mind-boggling and nauseating every time I deal with a narrow-minded ignorant person that views me in this manner. Usually I have feelings of anger, resentment, and then ultimately disdain for those that act like this and say these things. The choice I make is to associate and surround myself with people like you who either have an understanding, or at least are willing to consider the thoughts of others. Thank you for the insightful and eloquent posting.
On another note…
I am in the midst of a cubicle farm and can’t help but overhear various conversations throughout the day. On Friday, there was a lunchtime birthday party in the break area next to my desk. There was some talk about McCain’s VP choice, since it had been announced that morning. The scary thing was that one of the educational program specialists (someone with a PhD and admin license) was saying how she voted for Hillary in the primary simply because she was a woman…and how great it was that McCain picked Palin for the same reason. The conversation came to a complete and total halt. I think everyone else over there was thinking the same thing I was, which was “Oh s***.” There really are people out there who think that choosing a candidate solely based on skin colour or gender is just as valid as excluding someone for the same reason (per your example). Perhaps voting for is the lesser evil, but they both amount to the same thing: making a choice without considering the real person—only what you can see on the outside.
Thanks for the comments. Lisa thanks for sharing the original incident that led to this. Ken, I hope I did your opinions and experience justice.
Doug Noon, one of my favorite edubloggers, has a great piece on Palin. He lives/works in Alaska and I think could be categorized as a lefty, but he has a pretty honest evaluation of the appeal of Palin, that goes beyond ovaries, and discusses things she has done well in Alaska (he still finds her woefully under qualified for the position). Like everything he writes, it’s a good read.
Science Goddess, what can you say to that situation? Sometimes stunned silence is the best answer. The interesting thing that struck me in this campaign before the primary was how Obama did not start off with a solid block in the African American community.
The only person I’ve run across now who is voting for him based on race is just to the left of Michael Moore, and finds Obama too conservative in his policies, but doesn’t want to vote for Nadar (a choice I think she has made before, to her folly) and deny the White House for a black candidate. I estimate that she is probably 0.5% of the electorate on a good day. I also think she needs an excuse not to waste her vote on Nadar, yet again, and is really making a lesser of two evils choice.
The critical thing for us as educators is, how does this affect our teaching, and how we deal with our non-white, non-male students, which Lisa hits on solidly.
Hey Alice,
Thanks for the positive review. You’re right about my lefty-ness. I come by it naturally (since I’m left handed). I don’t actually “lean” to the left politically, though, since I’m positioned so far in that direction there’s no need to lean at all.
Since you’ve touched on the Palin business, maybe you’d be interested in another Alaskan blog (besides mine) which I just discovered through my searching for more local reaction to Sarah P. An Alaska Native woman wrote about what Palin has done for Natives in the state – and what it means for Palin to claim sympathy with Native issues because she’s married to a Yup’ik Eskimo man. The short answer: NOthing.
The interesting thing about these labels, whether they’re racial or ideological, or…whatever. They can mean whatever people want them to mean. The Democrats have to learn this. Republicans and conservative Christians have it down fairly solid, and have been practicing for a while. George Lakoff has a little bit to say about this, today, in fact.
I’ve been told by a few parents of timid little girls that I’m too loud and (in a word) male to be an elementary school teacher. And by the same token, people sometimes request me to be their kid’s teacher because they say the kid needs a “male role model.” I hate both of those things. Not only can I not stop acting like a guy, I also don’t want to represent half the human race for some poor kid who may not have a good dad around to look up to. I’m just me. Once we get to know each other, that’s what we all become.
It’s damn hard to stay out of the boxes people keep trying to stuff us into.
-Doug