Pittsburgh Left: It’s time for whites to confront racism in a meaningful way
http://www.pghcitypaper.com/pittsburgh/pittsburgh-left-its-time-for-whites-to-confront-racism-in-a-meaningful-way/Content
I have never been discriminated against. I have never been pulled over by a cop without cause. I have never been beaten by a police officer. I have never been shot once, let alone multiple times. I have never been called a racist slur.
As a 44-year-old white male in America, I have never been the target of racism in any form. But as a white male, I’ve certainly seen my share of racist behavior. The reason, quite frankly, is that a lot of white people are entitled, pompous idiots and a lot more allow them to be that way — and the latter may be a bigger problem than the former....
The only way that we’re going to make any advances is if we start standing up and not accepting this behavior. As white people, we can empathize with African Americans, we can rally, march and protest in solidarity. But a change of this magnitude has to come from the inside out.
That’s what I’ve tried to do. I no longer turn a blind eye to this problem. If someone I’m with makes a racist statement or goes on a racist rant, I tell them to stop. It used to be I would just leave the room, but what good does that do? This type of behavior has to be confronted head-on. Because if we don’t have the power to tackle this problem when it comes into our lives, I’m not sure that we can claim to be much better than the person who’s actually exhibiting the behavior.