"I'm Not a Racist, But..."

Okay...so maybe you're not as racist as this guy.  Maybe your family never owned slaves.  Perhaps you don't walk up to the first person Black person you see and call him or her a "nigger".  There's a possibility that you don't believe in burning crosses on lawns or hanging "strange fruit" from trees and then having a ham sandwich and a cold glass of lemonade with the family to celebrate it.  However, you might be bold enough to say this...

Or this...

Or perhaps this...

Or maybe even this...

So you're not a racist, huh?  Welp, you're right...by virtue of your words, you're not a racist.  However, it is abundantly clear that you need to give the public that disclaimer because in the aftermath of the Trayvon Martin, Donald Sterling, Eric Garner and Mike Brown incidents, you know how much racial tension there is in our society.  I know that the last thing you want to be viewed as or called is a racist, although you have the unmitigated gall to let your dissatisfaction about 11-year-old Quvenzhané Wallis playing Annie, Idris Elba possibly playing James Bond or (most recently) Malia Obama wearing a T-shirt from the rap collective Pro Era--a group who has been accused of being "anti-White" and "anti-police"--flood the Internet.  So since you--and frankly, many of your accusers--are confused about the qualifications for being a racist, please allow me to shed some light on this tricky subject...

During my first year of college, I felt like I was living out a scene straight out of Higher Learning as a naive freshman who had a limited opinion of what racism was.  Although I knew that racism dealt with prejudice and discrimination, I overlooked the biggest component that makes racism tick: power.  A few of the "brothas" told me in so many words that if power is not being exercised by one group of people and taken away from another on the basis of race, then it's not racism.  Still not sold?  Let's refer to the dictionary definitions of racism:

1) a belief or doctrine that inherent differences among the various human racial groups determine cultural or individual achievement, usually involving the idea that one's own race is superior and has the right to dominate others or that a particular racial group is inferior to the others; 2) a policy, system of government, etc., based upon or fostering such a doctrine; discrimination.

Notice the language and keywords...the right to dominate? Policy or system of government?  Insert two apropos Kanye West quotes--"racism's still alive, they just be concealin' it" and "no one man should have all that power"--and whoomp, there it is.  One could argue, "Well, if we go by that definition, there are loopholes for people to still be racists without exercising power," and that would be a fair point.  However, that would also deflate a racist's platform if you take away the power component; no self-respecting racist would want to be called that without being able to wield some form of control over someone else because he or she views himself or herself as superior to them.  Think about the fascination that many people have with domination and submission in the world of sex.  Somebody has to be the boss and somebody has to be the slave.  Somebody has to inflict the pain and someone else has to be the recipient of said pain.  Otherwise, that would be called something else: equality.  Equality goes against the very structure of a racial hierarchy, and most hierarchies are based on the unequal distribution of...wait for it...power.

So if you said "I'm not a racist" before throwing someone like young Quvenzhané Wallis under the bus, then that is your only astute point.  No, you are not a casting director or a movie executive who could've denied Wallis from playing a role traditionally reserved for a young, curly haired "ginger" girl like Andrea McArdle from the original Broadway production.  No, you are not an executive of a movie theater franchise who can say, "We're not showing this film in our theaters because we don't support a Black Annie unless she's our maid or trying to sell us her fried chicken."  What you are is just a frustrated person who wants to be a racist, but you have no power to exercise in said situation except not to financially support the film.  Even then, although 72 percent of critics who panned the film, the general public gave the film an A- rating as well as $89.5 million in support.  Oh, and how about Wallis making $750,000 as a base salary with the potential to double that if the film earns $145 million domestically.  Not bad for an 11-year-old Black girl.  Yup...still not enough power, buddy.

Oh, but you still have hope.  So what you have no control over the aforementioned situations...eh, you'll get over it and here's why.  You can ensure that one of your four token Black "friends" attends your exclusive dinner party not as an equal who could potentially hobnob with some of your influential and powerful associates, but unknowingly as entertainment because of his or her "colorful" slang, knowledge of hip-hop culture or so you and your friends can touch their hair to see how real it is.  You can flood your civic association meetings to keep community-based residential facilities from being developed in your neighborhood, especially when many of the faces might be Black and that these people must be criminals or degenerates.  You can refuse the home improvement services of a highly-qualified, minority-owned business because you assume that the family jewels will mysteriously come up missing.  You can hint around to your son, daughter, relative or best friend that they should date "like" people, although they clearly believe the hype that we live in a post-racial society.  Are you imagining the possibilities, or are you even more in your feelings because you've probably done one or all of these things and then some?  Oh...and don't think that this excludes you, fellow "brothas" and "sistas". Contrary to popular belief, you can be racist, too--even against your own people.

Speaking of Black folk, we are not off the hook in this discussion.  While I get perturbed by remarks like the aforementioned, I need us to stop being so quick to holler "that's a racist remark".  A small part of the reason why a lot of White people have to preface their remarks with "I'm not a racist" is because we're quick to call them one because of what they say in lieu of what they do.  Granted, many of them are closet racists for real, but that's neither here nor there.  We have to understand the difference and react accordingly. Being called a "nappy-headed ho" isn't the racist remark; someone saying "I don't like her hairstyle, so no matter how well she interviews, she can't work here" is.  Being called a "nigger" isn't the racist remark; a bank manager saying to his employee "loan to anyone else, but make sure that he and anyone who looks like him doesn't get the money to start a business" is.  Being referred to as "you people" isn't the racist remark; a homeowners' association  saying "we don't want those people living around here and bringing our property values down" is.  So next time you want to classify someone's remarks as "racist", make sure that he or she is taking power away from you with actions instead of you giving power to their offensive, but ultimately toothless words.  Don't know about y'all, but I'm about taking action against something that threatens my livelihood, not my feelings.

To put a bow on this post, I simply implore the following two things of the "non-racists": 1) if you're bold enough to say that Annie (or James Bond) should be portrayed by White people only, then stand by it without having to pseudo-apologize for it beforehand; and 2) please display that same, all-caps outrage and dare to call it "stupid" the next time that actual people from the Bible who were from Israel are played by White folks with American or British accents.  I know, I know...that's forcing you to step outside of your White privilege.  Heaven forbid that Hollywood should make you uncomfortable with the truth.  Lord knows that you don't want to have that conversation about race...just the one that's convenient for you and those who specifically look and think like you.  My apologies.  You couldn't in a million years possibly be a racist, right? Riiiiiight...now ask your four Black friends how they feel about what you said and let me know if you still have those four Black friends at the end of that conversation.