Alright – I apologize in advance but it is soapbox time. This is something that has been stewing lately as I read various posts and comments (Youtube, Facebook, blogs, etc.) in recent weeks mostly regarding the election but also even more recently about the Ferguson issue. Specifically what is raising my feckles (to coin a Cat term) is the phrase “playing the race card”. It’s not even just the phrase, but the deeper connotations. The context in which it bothers me is when used to dismiss someone’s opinions on what they find offensive. Someone posts a picture of the President of the United States photo-shopped onto a chimpanzee body. Someone replies that they find that racist. Another replies, “Oh there THEY go again, playing the race card”. The implication is that someone’s offense at something is some kind of faux-indignation aimed at getting attention or distracting from the deep spiritual meaning of our president’s face on a chimpanzee body. In other words, it is telling someone else how they should feel about something and THAT pisses me off. The specific usage of the term in recent times seems to be directed at African-Americans, but variants have been used against pretty much every minority group (Indians are told we are ‘too sensitive’, women cry harassment for attention, equal rights are ‘pushing an agenda’ and so on). What I have learned in my short time on this planet is that absolutely none of us know what it is like to be someone else. That includes on an individual basis as well as larger grouping. We can imagine, we can guess, but can never truly know. Empathy is doing our damnedest to make a good guess. We take what we know about how we feel in what we believe to be similar circumstances and combine that with the views of others and make a decision on whether or not our actions or words will cause harm. I will never know what it is like to be female, gay, black, raised ultra-rich or ultra-poor, etc. So what I can do is take what I do know (what I am) and try to relate that to being someone else while recognizing I will never really understand. But also know that there is something noble, something Human in making the attempt. By any of this I do not mean that it is not okay to have a viewpoint or disagree, that is as human as empathy. But we have to assume (until sufficient evidence otherwise) that people are sincere in their expression of how something makes them feel. And, only because I am on a rant), when someone tells you that something is offensive the correct answer is not, “Sorry you are offended but when I say that I mean it in a good way”. Here is an example: Several years ago a Youtube personality I liked and respected (he made excellent science videos) started using a character to explain in simple terms points that seemed too complicated for the respondent (usually creationists). He would start to explain, then stop and say, maybe Tonto could explain it in words you understand (or something like that). Then an old photograph of a Native guy would appear and he would narrate in his best ‘Tonto’ voice “Seed grow tree, tree make fruit, bear eat fruit…”. Now I had no reason to believe this wasnt really him just not knowing any better (he is English, so likely to be unaware of the complex social issues specific to Native people here). So I wrote a very polite private message explaining how that character comes off to someone who, like pretty every Native guy in the US, has heard the term ‘Tonto’ used as a pejorative. His response however was that he respects the character from his childhood in England, and if I don’t understand that I can just STFU because he isnt going to stop just because someone is too sensitive. Anyhow – I am off of my soapbox!!!!!!
Posted on: Wed, 26 Nov 2014 01:00:20 +0000
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