Comments on: An Open Letter to My “White” Black Friend

By: bstarr1104

bstarr1104 — Fri, 11 May 2018 05:26:27 +0000

I applaud you for your honesty and introspection. Confronting our implicit biases is the first and arguably hardest step in this process of confronting the racism that plagues our society. It is interesting to think about where our standards for whiteness vs. blackness stem from, and how so many things that we say as a joke have deeper connotations when you analyze them. I think about the trite expression “actions speak louder than words” and realize that words do speak quite loudly in that these are how microaggressions manifest.

By: Zachary D Katz

Zachary D Katz — Wed, 09 May 2018 19:51:29 +0000

Kyle-This is an interesting phenomenon, and I thank you for sharing. I have experienced situations such as these. Living in a predominantly white neighborhood, there were a couple people of color, and all of them were considered “white” based off of their interests, the way they speak, and who they are friends with. It is scary that these people are almost praised in a way that being like this is good, and you will be rewarded if you act like a white person.

By: Tovia Marinstein

Tovia Marinstein — Tue, 01 May 2018 21:11:02 +0000

Wow. Thank you for sharing your introspection with such honesty. When socialized in a culture that does not encourage inter-group dialouge it’s so important to reflect on our own relationships to understand how we act when with people who are different from ourselves. While it may not be within our power to change the outcome of past actions, we can always learn from our own behavior.

By: Maia Brint

Maia Brint — Mon, 23 Apr 2018 19:34:30 +0000

I cannot relate to the same experience that you have written about, but I have a friend at school who is openly bisexual and will confront individuals who say things to him when they are ignorant or just plain offensive. I have seen him get upset because some of his closest friends have told him he is a “raging homosexual” in a joking manner, which was still perceived of offensive. But yesterday, they were playing frisbee, and one of the males playing had mentioned how great their bisexual friend is at sports and how typically people who are homosexual are bad at sports but that he is breaking the stereotype. I immediately cringed when he was saying this and I now understand why. This mentality, just as you mentioned, of ascribing an identity to this person for performing a certain way that aligns with the White master narrative is not positive and is a completely microinvalidation to that person.