Thread by @howardtayler

It cuts pretty deeply, but it cuts true. If you ignore racism, if you pretend it's not a problem, or if you tell yourself that it's not worth focusing on because there are other issues, you're being racist.

For proof, have someone examine the language you use in your defense.

There are biases, subtle influences on our behavior, that come from systemic racism. I suffer from some of them. I'm trying to do better, but I grew up in a community that threw the n-word around as a punchline. Rooting that stuff out is a life-long task.

I posit that for many of us, racism is something we find in our own behavior in unexpected places. We scour it out, and are ashamed, because we don't see ourselves as racists.

I REJECT racism, but sometimes I unconsciously engage in racist behaviors.

I benefit greatly from being white. I'm not ashamed of that, because it's not something I have any control over.

I am, however, ashamed of the way members of my demographic seek to extend the benefits of this accident of birth. We should be REPAIRING the system.

The highest compliment I think I can be paid in this domain would be for a white supremacist somewhere to call me a "race traitor." If POCs see me as an ally, that's fantastic (and hard to live up to), but if a whey-faced proud boy sees me as the enemy, I'm winning.