Scott Martin - Creative Connector: Chpt. 1 & 2
“The question remains, though: Why would any White person become involved?” (Pg. 13)
I have a hard time with this question… most wouldn’t, many won’t. But I come from a completely Irish heritage, in fact I am the last member of my family to be, could be debated, of 100% Irish descent. From my studies and education, the Irish have had enough of their own struggles in terms of acceptance and racial equality in the United States post Civil War. The difference is that the Irish easily became part of the “Dominant” because of the color of skin… yet, that took many years of struggle and turmoil before that was accepted as white. Thus involvement is necessary from an Irish perspective.
“Even those of us who… still tire of being the demons of history…who are not white”. (Pg. 30)
Again I am drawn to my Irish history and the fact that on the surface level… I am nothing more than white. No, I have never had to organize and stand with the oppression of the Irish Americans of the past, but when talking about the centuries of White Dominance, My family went through many of the post Civil War, and just pre-Civil War, struggles that many people of color did. Yet, I will not deny that many in my close family still take advantage of racism and dominance.
Scott Martin - Essence Extractor: Chpt 1 & 2
Trying to describe this is a difficult job. I would say it is: How we overcome the past guilt and move towards the understanding of cultural involvement.
Scott Martin - Idea Illustrator: Chpt 1 & 2 pg 15 quote: “Whether we deepen in our awareness… boundary of ignorance.
see photo above.
I think you are touching on a subject I've spent a lot of time thinking while reading this book. I think one of the fundamental problems with Howard's book is that it begins to generalize people into dominate or "other", and dominate in my understanding of the book seems to be anyone that is on the surface considered to be white.
ReplyDeleteLike you said, at surface level I am white, and so are many of my students. The discrepancy is, however, how much of us is surface and how much of us is experiences and personal background. I think the book looks too closely at the generalized ideas of these different groups and forgets to consider the individual experiences present within both.