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Written by
Susan B. Goldberg and Cameron Levin
Back to AWARE-LA home page
"Our
attempts to dismantle dominance and oppression must follow a path other than
that of either vilifying or obliterating whiteness....Whites need to
acknowledge and work through the negative historical implications of
'whiteness' and create for ourselves a transformed identity as White people
committed to equality and social change. Our goal is neither to deify nor
denigrate whiteness, but to diffuse its destructive power. To teach my White
students and my own children that they are 'not White' is to do them a
disservice. To teach them that there are different ways of being White, and
that they have a choice as White people to become champions of justice and
social healing, is to provide them a positive direction for growth and to
grant them the dignity of their being."(1)
With these words Gary Howard captures the challenge for white(2)
people who struggle to stand against racism. In this paper we endeavor to
share the work we do to "teach different ways of being white," by
offering the idea of a Radical White Identity. This identity offers white
people a racial and cultural identity which directly addresses white
supremacist history in this country. We center our work in racial identity
development and from this foundation we build a clear analysis and practice
for creating radical white culture. Our aim is twofold: 1) To create an
alternative to the dominant white culture through building a community of
white anti-racist people who represent a sub-culture of whiteness; and 2) to
offer a form of white identity that is explicitly anti-racist and allows
white people to acknowledge and embrace our histories and cultures. Through
this evolving cultural/racial identity we will create our anti-racist practice,
our racial identity model, and our role in the process of creating radical
social transformation.
In our work we hope to put forward an analysis that looks at the dynamics of
race, power, privilege and the white supremacist system, the historical origins
of whiteness, the diversity of experience of white people as it is impacted
by class, geography, gender, sexual orientation, family of origin, and the
historical and contemporary work of white anti-racist organizing and action.
We offer this analysis in the hopes of fostering and nurturing a viable
identity for white people: a radical white identity.
Introduction
We are continuously struck by the power and legacy of white supremacy and
racism on every aspect of United States culture and history. It is a legacy
that continues to fester and bleed because truths are not told, reparations
are not made, and racism, rather than being eradicated, has been embraced as
a vital tool shaping our nation's history and present day realities. The
historical examples of racism from many different peoples in this land are
overwhelming and endless. We have come to see and believe that until the
legacy of the white supremacist system is fully addressed, all people living
in the United States will be unable to move forward with our humanity intact.
It is in the interest of facilitating change in white people, both those
conscious and unconscious of racism, that we do the work we aim to summarize
in this article. We address this community because it is our community. We
have struggled with the painful realities of racism all around us and have
searched for the most effective way to be involved in a movement for change.
In our personal journey to come to terms with the realities of racism we have
been told time and again by our friends of color that a critical piece of the
work is to engage white communities to create change.
We were compelled to write this article as an attempt to coalesce the work
against racism we have been fortunate to be immersed in for the past several
years. As children one of us was raised by radical parents with a long
history of struggle and the other was awakened to injustice based on his
early experience in the educational system. We began our initial formal
exploration of whiteness with the National Conference of Christians and Jews
(now the National Conference for Community and Justice) Brotherhood
Sisterhood Camp and in Children of War, a group that worked with refugees
from war-torn countries, in 1990. These groups offered us a series of unique
and invaluable experiences in beginning to discover our identities. The
programs emphasized that we had a racial identity as white people, we had
absolute responsibility for actively addressing racism, and based on race we
had privileges that gave us advantages over every other group of people.
We continued in different parts of the country to actively struggle against
racism through community organizing and social justice campaigns and to help
articulate and define an identity and process for white people to be
effective allies in the struggle for racial justice. We have been very
fortunate to learn from and work with mentors and teachers including the NCCJ
Los Angeles community, Sharon Martinas and the Challenging White Supremacy
Workshop, The Peoples Institute, and many other individuals who have taught
and continue to teach us about white identity and racism. The articulation
and practice of the radical white identity is our effort to contribute to and
build upon the foundation we stand.
Our framework is rooted in our belief in the importance of a racial identity
model for white people. We recognize that racial identity is a social
construct, and yet we cannot deny that racial identity is meaningful as it
impacts and shapes every person's experience in this country. The progression
and development of white identity has not moved along the same lines as
identity development in oppressed communities. We recognize the emergence of
a critique of politics based solely on identity. Many progressive people in oppressed
groups are moving beyond an identity politics framework to an integrated
analysis based on understanding the interlocking nature of oppressions.
Contrary to an in-depth dialogue in progressive communities of color about
the realities of racism and white supremacy, white progressives, as a large
community, have not struggled with the contradictions of being white in a
white supremacist system. While we fully appreciate the limitations of
identity politics, our intention is not to replicate the model other
oppressed groups have created but to develop a specific model in the context
of whiteness.
In our time spent working against racism, we have often come across overly
simplistic analyses of racism, from liberal whites and from movements for
change. Some of these analyses include:
- Seeing
racism as the problem in itself rather than a tool of a greater system
- Seeing white
people's experience as monolithic and creating a group identity solely
based on racism
- Seeing white
people as having no real stake in changing the system
- Failing to
offer any alternative anti-racist white racial identity
We
believe that too many anti-racist models for white people are constructed out
of guilt. We recognize that feelings of guilt, as one begins to fully realize
the extent of the realities of racism are an important part of a heartfelt
process of conscious development. Guilt is a place to visit, not a place to
live. When guilt becomes the operating force of a white person involved in
anti-racist work, their work and relationships are negatively impacted. Some
examples of this are placing people of color on an unrealistic pedestal, and
a disassociation from whiteness and white people. Disassociation from
whiteness can lead to cultural tourism, rejection and judgment of white
people, and the inability to fully embrace all parts of oneself. White people
driven by guilt (consciously or unconsciously) are limited in their ability
to be effective allies in multi racial movements and in building radical
white communities of resistance.
    Systemic Analysis
In a traditional liberal analysis, racism is seen as the source of racial
oppression. This means that in the liberal model there are two roles;
oppressor and oppressed. This model tells white people that they are only in
the role of oppressor and have no common bonds with people of color and no
stake in changing a racist system.
We see racism as a tool of the larger white supremacist system. The
white ruling elite has power and class interests in keeping white people and
people of color divided. For example, one of the very early formations of
racism in law and custom in our country was motivated by the desire to break
any potential bonds between poor European indentured servants and African
slaves. When the system is hidden, it obscures the role of the white ruling
elite, the complexity of difference amongst white people, and the power of
white people and people of color uniting to create a road to fundamental
change. With an understanding of the white supremacist system a white person
can also see that ending the system's control allows for the fullness of
their humanity, because in denying the humanity of another we also deny our
own.
Forging a Radical White Identity
With this analysis as our foundation we can begin to create an alternative
identity for white people. All human beings must develop and sustain a
healthy self-identity in order to thrive. This is particularly important for
people who commit to a life struggling against the injustices of the White
supremacist system. Often we have witnessed conscious white people who are
aware of and understand racism but deny that they are white because of the
guilt and shame associated with what it means to be white in the United States.
As we discussed above, the problem with this denial is that white people are
white, and when this is denied it creates an often confusing internal
conflict which affects both one's work against racism and one's
relationships. It is important for white people who challenge and fight the
injustices of racism to have an honest sense of themselves without hiding,
dismissing or subjugating any of their realities. It has been our experience
that white people who have developed this holistic radical white identity
have the ability to sustain the struggle against racism, to challenge,
connect, and bring more white people into the struggle and to create and
maintain honest relationships with people of color.
The liberation movements of the 1960's are examples of the power of radical
racial identities to transform communities. During this movement era many
communities of color developed radical racial identities such as the Black
Power, Asian American and Chicano identities. These identities challenged the
dominant socially constructed oppressive identities that had been forced on
them by a white supremacist system. These racial identities stressed
reconnecting with ones stolen cultural roots, resisting the white supremacist
system through political and  social struggle, and
creating an identity based on self expression and creation of culture. These
identities offered people of color a way to resist the white supremacist
system, take control of their communities and claim their own culture.
The creation of a radical white identity offers white people a way to resist
the white supremacist system by having a positive racial identity. This
radical racial identity can lead to the creation of an alternative white
culture. Culture is an integral part of racial identity. It is our
culture/cultures that allow us to define who we are, our values, and what
makes us distinct and unique from one another. Some elements of an
alternative white culture include redefining social relationships, the
creation of art that embraces a new vision of whiteness, and the
participation in rituals of celebration and community.
Components of Radical White Identity Model
The development of the radical white identity is an ongoing process that is
based on the following core pieces - understanding white privilege,
ethnic/cultural roots, multiple identities, history of multiracial struggle
and white anti-racist resistance, and white anti-racist practice.
Privilege - All white people raised in this society are granted
fundamental privilege in all institutions and aspects of U.S. culture. This
white skin privilege is granted differently based on one's socioeconomic
class, gender, sexual orientation, physical ability, and age. The white
privilege we receive shapes our whole lives and how we experience our racial
selves. White culture and racial identity are made invisible to white people.
We are like fish who don't know what water is -- it is everywhere and yet we
do not know how to see it or name it. It is difficult to understand how our
actions, and behaviors, which are not intentionally racist, in many cases,
can be oppressive to people of color. Through uncovering these "cultural
norms" of white privilege we can begin to change and modify them so we
are not acting out our ignorant racism, cultural racism, or institutional
white supremacy. It is important to be continuously engaged in a process of
uncovering how white skin privilege shapes who we are and how we relate to
the world around us. We also need to explore how we can use privilege to
undermine the larger white supremacist system. In our work we have found that
for many white people the process of uncovering our privilege is a
challenging and transformative process. For many this is the beginning of a
journey to awareness and fundamental change.
Ethnic/religious/cultural roots - As white people we have tremendous
privilege, but it has not been without a price. When we came to this country
we were not "white." We were Irish, Jewish, Russian, Italian, etc.
Our ethnic identity was our primary identity, and it linked us to our
community and culture. The dominant white racial identity was created through
the process of assimilation. This meant people from European countries would
be allowed access in this country as long as they would leave their customs,
traditions, cultural practices, and social norms behind and assimilate to
become (white) "Americans." When European immigrants came to the
United States there was immediate pressure to change their cultural practices
and act "American." There were many "educational"
services offered by churches and charity organizations which
"taught" these immigrants how to assimilate into being white. More
blatant measures were expressed in news stories in papers like the New York
Times, Harpers, Atlantic Monthly, and many other publications. In 1877 the
New York Tribune identified the Irish as "a race with more wholesome and
probably unreasonable terror of law than any other...Is there no other way
[besides violence] to civilize them? This editorialist wanted to know."
(3)
In her book Learning to Be White, THANDEKA writes that in the 1870's the
Chicago Times "characterized the city's Slavic inhabitants as
descendants of Scythians, "eaters of raw animal food, fond of drinking
blood of their enemies... Let us whip these Slavic wolves back to the
European dens from which they issue, or in some way exterminate them." (4) One of the primary ways of becoming "American"
and erasing one's ethnic culture was to become a consumer. European
immigrants were told to act "American" by becoming consumers of
"basic necessities." Immigrants were actively discouraged from
their own cultural practices such as making clothes or home remedies -- these
were to be replaced with consumable goods and services. The market, butcher,
or tailor, were all offered to replace our ability to provide the needs that
we once knew how to provide for ourselves.
Today most white people think of themselves as having no real culture. We
look at communities of color and see culture lacking in our own lives. These
feelings leave a void in white people that causes us to develop oppressive
solutions for filling this void. Sometimes white people appropriate the
cultures of people of color, for example embracing Native American spiritual
practice without reflection or consideration, or we deny any sense of racial
identity, focusing on everyone being a colorless human or part of a
non-distinct colorful rainbow.
It is up to each individual to decide how we want to connect to our ethnic
roots. But all white people need to understand the history of assimilation
into the dominant white race. It is important to understand that the primary
way to assimilate people is to sever them from their ethnic/cultural roots and
that this process has a profound impact on the humanity of a community.
Multiple Identities - Our whiteness always exists in relationship
to other aspects of our identity. It is tempting to oversimplify for the sake
of clarity when exploring our white identity. However, when we do this we are
not telling the whole story. While we must strive to understand our
whiteness, we have to be aware of all the different identities that make up
who we are. Whether it is one's class, gender, sexual orientation, or age,
they all interact with racial identity and white privilege. We need to better
understand how our identities are interconnected. When we see our overlapping
identities we can recognize the interlocking nature of oppressions and
privilege. A poor white lesbian living in the South is very different from a
CEO who runs a Fortune 500 company. Both of these people are white and share
racial privilege, yet society treats them very differently because of the
realities of their other identities. Ultimately all  systems of oppression
are constructed around supremacy of one group exercising power over another.
We must challenge and understand the interlocking nature of how these
identities interact and shape one another.
History of multiracial struggle and radical white anti racists - For any culture to
exist it must have a history. Radical white people have a history of
resistance to white supremacy from the founding of this country. Millions of
white people have stood against racism and white supremacy throughout the 400
year history of the United States. The history of white people actively
resisting the white supremacist system has been covered over and lost.
We never read in a standard high school history text about how white people
imposed a white supremacist system on people of color. We also do not learn
the history of how some white people have actively resisted racism or about
multiracial efforts to come together to fight white supremacy. These
individuals and groups serve as role models for white people and shining
examples of resistance. The history of resistance in this country also
includes countless examples of effective multiracial coalitions. Whole
multiracial societies such as the Maroon societies, consisting of escaped
slaves, poor white indentured servants, and indigenous peoples of the
Americas existed throughout the Americas. Learning our history gives us the
ability to imagine and create new possibilities.
Anti-Racist Practice - At the core of our model is a white
anti-racist practice which grows from a holistic foundation. As white people
we need to develop a conscious practice that provides meaningful tools to
stand against systemic racism and that teaches how to participate in a
multi-racial society in ways that do not perpetuate oppression. An
anti-racist practice involves becoming active white people who work to build
alliances with other white people against racism in our homes, schools,
workplaces and communities. We need to continuously practice the skills and
tools for challenging personal and interpersonal racism and engaging in cross
cultural communication. In addition we need to work collectively with people
of color and white allies to think critically and work collectively towards a
radical systemic change that addresses the root systems of supremacy.
 Workshop Model
In our work with white people we integrate the above core pieces into a model
for developing a radical white community. Most training models that work with
white people either focus primarily on giving a space for white people to
talk about being white or on the practice of being anti-racist. We are
interested in integrating both, the power of meaningful personal discovery
and the importance of a viable active anti-racist practice. Again, we believe
that a model which holds a positive radical identity at its core is essential
to this integration.
 The workshops we
facilitate create a dynamic learning environment based on experiential
learning models. We create exercises to facilitate a process of self
discovery and deep exploration of the realities of the larger social systems
and institutions in a safe and supportive environment. At the foundation of
this work is a model of active dialogue. This model of dialogue allows for
personal growth in a context of collective learning. In addition, we use
tools from the world of theater and movement, popular education techniques,
readings from radical writers, and visual and written expression.
We believe strongly that this work is ongoing. We also understand that many
people are not able to commit to an ongoing process of meetings so we offer a
six-workshop series to introduce white people to this process. Within each
workshop we explore white racial identity, historical analysis, and building
practical anti-racist skills. Each workshop is organized around a specific
theme which builds the development of the radical white identity. The
workshops are created in such a way to be inclusive and meaningful, both for
white people who are new to a racial consciousness and for those who are
engaged and committed to anti-racist work.
In addition to the workshops there is a group of white people in Los Angeles
meeting regularly to engage in the development and practice of the radical
white identity model. This group is calling itself AWARE -- Alliance of White
Anti-Racists Everywhere. There are now several projects initiated by this
group, including study groups to explore the literature and theoretical basis
for the identity model and a history project to collect the history of white
people working together, as individuals or with people of color, to end the
racist system. In addition, this group has initiated a multi-racial dialogue
which is beginning to look deeply at how we talk about race and racism and
how to further the work of racial justice.
A Never Ending Journey
The work of struggling against racism is life-long. The work of deepening
one's clarity of her/his role in the struggle is also life-long. In order to
sustain this journey conscious white people need to have a process of understanding,
challenging, growing, and developing a healthy radical white identity. An
identity that is not about arriving at a fixed destination but rather one
that shifts and changes with time, knowledge, experience and history. An
identity that claims the multiple truths of white people's experiences, the
racial skin privileges, the history of resistance to white supremacy, and a
role in the process of social transformation.
The radical white identity is about the practice of anti-racist work and the
practice of building and sustaining authentic relationships. It is important
that white people develop the skills to engage with people of color in truly
respectful and accountable ways. It is also important that white people
develop the skills to connect and build community with other white people,
continuously growing the ranks of conscious white people, ready to work for
racial justice. A racial identity based on the inherent valuable and complex
humanity of each person involved will lay the foundation for this important
work. "The work of dismantling systematic racism and building new
institutions that are not based on white power and privilege needs to be
infused with a deep love for and among all of us who are working together.
Antiracism work can quickly become warped if it involves white people who
fundamentally do not love themselves." (5) We hope
that the model laid out in this article will help in some way to develop and
sustain white people who are able to contribute fully to the incredible task
of radical racial transformation.
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We would like to thank
everyone who contributed to the writing of this piece. We would like to make
a special mention of the members of AWARE in Los Angeles. Thank you. If you
would like to contact the author's please send email to struggle@earthlink.net. You may
reprint this article without permission please credit authors.
AWARE’s new home page is located at http://awarehome.blogspot.com.
Please visit us there for
updated information about our growing body of work.
Citations
(1) p. 17, Howard, Gary: We Can't Teach What We Don't Know: White Teachers,
Multicultural Schools
(2) For the purpose of this article we will use the term "white" to
describe a socially constructed racial group made up of European Americans
living in the United States.
(3) P. 49, Jacobson, Matthew Frye, Whiteness of a Different Color,
Cambridge: Harvard University Press; 1998.
(4) P. 67 Thandeka, Learning To Be White, New York: Continuum
Publishing Group; 2001.
(5) Tobin Shearer, "White spaces:" The Other Side Online, (March-April 2002, Vol. 38, No. 2.)
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