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Anti-Racism
White Supremacy is a Hell of a Drug
Its addictive nature makes it a hard habit to break
Americans have a responsibility to denounce white supremacy. Yet, we cannot do that by dancing around the pink elephant in the room. We should counter white supremacist ideology by creating paths to rehabilitation. After all, racists exhibit some of the same symptoms as addicts.
People can develop fixations to all sorts of things. Whether to chocolate, exercise, or drugs, addictions don’t develop overnight. Long before a white person becomes a white supremacist, they dip a toe in. Once they get a feel for the benefits, drawbacks become an afterthought. White privilege then becomes positive reinforcement for their dependence on white supremacy.
Like any person who develops an addiction, racists begin romanticizing their substance abuse. Rationalizations creep in. They may theorize that helping Black people hurts white people. Using this logic, keeping Black people oppressed helps to secure their bag. Yet, many white people fail to acknowledge how whiteness sets them up for success. White people enjoy opportunities deprived of minorities. We can see systemic racism in the disparities in educational and professional settings.
Addicts often attempt to justify their behavior. Finding people with the same addictions feeds their habit. That’s where white extremist groups enter the scene. Associating with these groups means white people won’t have to engage in self-reflection. They can cling to white supremacy by surrounding themselves with like-minded white people. Fearful of moving down the social ladder, white people begin courting white supremacy. In white-dominated spaces, no one will confront them about their racist beliefs. It’s at this point that they begin abusing their relative privileges.
Whiteness is an expectation (sometimes an unconscious expectation) that the government will maintain laws and policies generally benefiting White people. (1) That system, which has been effectuated through all institutions that govern American society, is White supremacy — the hierarchical ordering of human beings based on phenotypic, or physical, attributes that we call ‘race.’(2) But the ongoing, daily expectations of privilege are Whiteness…
