Thread by @frodofied

Assuming any minority's individual experience with oppression will automatically translate into recognition of another person's experiences or even into empathy for other experiences will almost always leave you disappointed. It also shows a misunderstanding of oppression.

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Oppression is debilitating; all consuming. It colors all your experiences, even if you think you've moved beyond it, you 'll soon enough find you never will.

The culture of oppression has created endless subcultures that exist in, on, over, under, behind, & in front of it.

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These subcultures often provide the framework for a person's overall worldview. Language, style, education, goals and expectations, and even their willingness to move beyond the common experiences of their specific group are informed by the groups internal codes.

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When most people look at me they probably assume that I am part of the problem. It's an easy mistake to make given my two most obvious physical features are my whiteness and my maleness. In fact, put me in a shirt and tie and it's not hard to imagine I'm a GOP clansperson.

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I was born into my minority identity, but it is not immediately obvious to anyone. And if I keep my head down and limit the number and kinds of words I choose to communicate with I can "pass."

But only for a short time, and often my comportment tells my truth before I do.

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But my truth is real, and the social and cultural costs to me are also real and can, at times, incite beligerance and even violence.

So, while my face and my hands might not show it, I know oppression, intimately.

It has been my constant companion for over 40 years.

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One fact that almost never gets discussed is that oppression is always unique, tailored, personal, both for the oppressor and the oppressed. No two. experiences are the same.

This is mainly due to the fact that we are largely at the mercy of our oppressors.

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Because prejudice and hate are fickle and inconsistent. And most people aren't actually bigots in the true sense of the word. Most prejudice or bias against a group or groups is formed in ignorance, earned from a lack of true experience.

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True bigots are those who demand the most attention, believe themselves to be the real victim, will take rumors or urban legends as fact, while shunning even the facts of their own lives experiences. They generally hate everyone not like them.

They are the loud kids.

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You can judge the preposterous nature of prejudice and hate by the glaring inconsistencies, the fickleness, and the shifting parameters. None of which are based on logic or reason.

And people will always surprise you.

And they will often disappoint you as well.

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