Thread by @djed_press

Owning Your Story with Evelyn Araluen, Omar Sakr, Shirley Le, Stephen Pham, Monikka Ellah and Winnie Dunn 
#swf18 #sydneywritersfestival
@sweatshopws @SydWritersFest

THREAD: I'd intended to live tweet this #SWF18 panel, but couldn't get decent reception in the space, which is a shame. It was fantastic, such a joy to listen to these @sweatshopws members talk about their practice and stories.
Buuut then a WW asked a question in the last 5 mins

At some point during the panel the word ‘shit’ was used to describe the fundamental way most people are by a panellist, in context of a quote by Jenny Zhang about good intentions causing harm and Omar’s interest in the idea of people being obsession with good endings

A white woman (WW) heard the words ‘white people’ and ‘shit’ and apparently nothing else. She decided that the statement was a personal attack on herself. So when it came to question time, she decided to let the panel have it.

I couldn’t upload the audio to Twitter so here’s a transcript instead. I call it “If Only You Were Nicer, I’d Be More Active In Trying To Dismantle The Systems That Oppress You And That I Won’t Admit I Benefit From [working title]”

WW: I really like what you said about sharing your stories rather than owning them. I think that’s fantastic, I would love to read all of your stories. But I just, as a – full disclosure, I’m white – I just want to know what you think you have to gain by calling me ‘shit’.

WW: Everything you’re suggesting we do to you, you are doing back to us, and I just want to know what you think you have to gain by that.

: Is this your first time experiencing an identity crisis where somebody has spoken about whiteness and that you feel personally attacked-

WW (trying to interrupt): That’s not the point. That’s not the point.

(continuing): —because we’re addressing specific experiences we have had with white people and then you feel you have been homogenised in that group? Because we experience that every day.

WW: That’s not the point. The point is you’re insulting the people you’re trying to reach out to.

@evelynaraluen: We didn’t ask you specifically to come. It’s offered for everyone.

: I think I can address that, because I said that I think most people – MOST people – are fundamentally shit. I didn’t say white people.

Winnie Dunn: I said white people. She’s directing [the question] at me.

: So the reason I say that is because we get caught up in this, exactly this. So I say you’re shit, you say you’re not shit – I don’t care. I don’t actually care whether you think you’re shit or good.

OS: What I’m saying is, in stories I think we should be talking and dissecting about the forces that have shaped us into being what we are and our behaviours and the stories that we’re telling.

OS: Because how long have we been having this conversation about who is racist and who isn’t racist? We’re all racist, everyone’s racist. Let’s talk about the systemic things that are shaping us into acting the way that we act-

OS: and in perpetrating violences that we’re perpetrating against each other. That was the point.

Winnie Dunn: Well you’re directing the question at me, and yeah I said it, and I fully stand by it. Being born as a white person, you inherently gain all these privileges over minorities—

WW: I didn’t ask for these privileges

@evelynaraluen: I didn’t ask to be dispossessed from my country!

WW: Yeah and I feel for you—

EA: You’re in a privileged position to the State’s sovereignty that I don’t occupy by the nature of the race that you were born into.

WW: If I could fix it I would but—

@evelynaraluen: but I have to fix it??

WW: No we all have to fix it together! And that’s why we’re here, to listen to your stories, because we want to know, we want to know how to help, but calling anyone, any group – I don’t care, white, and other group – an insulting name is not going to get them on side

Winnie Dunn (interrupting): Let’s just not give this any more airtime. Thanks so much, thanks for your question

@stpstpstpstpstp: We can discuss it later.

Monikka Ellah: Can I just say though—

Monikka Ellah: Can I just say though, it’s a real shame that we would have to persuade you to be on our side by being nice. Because you just suggested that by not being nice, we don’t have you on our side. I mean wouldn’t you want diversity whether it was on your side or not?

WW: But you want us to read your stories…?

@stpstpstpstpstp: Are you like, threatening to withdraw your support if we don’t behave in the ways that you want?

WW (patronizingly): It’s okay. I was 20 once.

Monikka Ellah:: Wooooow. Oh my gosh. Rebellious ethnics.

/end/

Anyway. I walked out of that panel frustrated. Because yet again, a good convo was derailed, white people centred themselves, and a POC panel was told to police it's tone to make their message palatable to a white audience. Cause racism would end if we just talked nicer, right?

On a last note before I'm officially done with this thread: this entire conversation sounded eerily similar to a conversation that happened FOURTY-SIX YEARS AGO at the Tent Embassy (CW: strong language, police violence against FN peoples): at 9:52-13:00