Law in Contemporary Society

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RaceVClass 27 - 11 Apr 2012 - Main.TomaLivshiz
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 I realize this is going to be a pretty damn controversial post, but I feel compelled to speak on the subject. I sometimes become concerned that classism becomes too easily conflated with racism in our world.

There's many draws to calling a certain policy racist:

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 I don't think Kipp was trying to argue that people of color should circumscribe their views so he doesn't feel bad (although, cynically and politically, it may be a valid argument). Kipp is invested in trying to help the poor, but a history of white supremacy means he operates in an arena where the upper class is predominantly white and the lower class is predominantly minority. I don't see why he's not allowed to feel alienated when he's framed as the problem (because of his race) when he's working to help solve it.

-- SanjayMurti - 11 Apr 2012

Added:
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>		 “..Promoting the racial divide with divisive rhetoric hinders movements for social justice. Power relations rest upon both race and class hierarchies and alliance across race and class would strengthen challenges against these hierarchies.” This statement by Michelle’s in an earlier post captures a concept which is at the essence of what I think Kipp is trying to express. From what I understand, Kipp is not positing that the conversation about race should be tailored to avoid offending the fragile sensibilities of white people. His proposition is much broader. He is saying: let us not "other" needlessly.

The exercise of “othering”, no matter who is engaging in it, can be detrimental to the pursuit of social justice. If we have in mind a vision of the future that is truly post-racial—one in which a person would have to look at their hand to find out what race they are—then we should be skeptical of any attempt to reinforce racial boundaries. If we have in mind a vision of the future which is less classist—in which we are no less kind to the poor than we are to the rich—then we should, at the very least, be wary of alienating anyone who supports our cause.

This does not mean that we should avoid conversations about white privilege, about systemic discrimination, or about the all-too-strong correlation between race and class. We must talk about these things. We must DO about these things. But it is probably possible to engage with these questions without using acerbic language which exacerbates racial tensions and discourages candid conversations such as this one.

-- TomaLivshiz - 11 Apr 2012


Revision 27r27 - 11 Apr 2012 - 05:44:48 - TomaLivshiz
Revision 26r26 - 11 Apr 2012 - 04:55:36 - SanjayMurti
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