That Feminist Dyke

girljanitor:

deleuzingmymind:

“Somebody told a real life woman that her skin was too brown to play an imaginary creature. That basically in the whole fictional world of Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, where you have dragons and trolls and talking trees, where you draw the line, where imagination is capped out, no more room, is for a brown hobbit. Like firery eyeball thing, no problem but don’t even try to imagine a Samoan elf. That shit will blow your mind.”

—

Wyatt Cenac [x] (via modernmonkeys)

i love me some wyatt cenac

(via kickdrumheart)

forever reblog, because somehow it’s never not relevant.

(via shadesoffantasy)

Hey fantasy nerds, guess what! LOTR and hell most of the fantasy genre is white as fuck; Get over yourselves

BREAKING NEWS: The fantasy genre, one which I love and have been a fan of for 25+ years, is white as fuck, YOU GUYS!!!!!

WHICH THING SHOULD I DO?????????

1. Give my undying support to all fantasy writers who include people of color and even MORE to fantasy authors of color and promote them heavily on my blog accompanied by detailed reviews and links to sample chapters;

call out racism in the fandom and fight for my right to like the things i like without being subjected to racist harassment;

Use money from my own pockets to help fund POC authors, writers, filmmakers, and creators of all kinds;

Reach out to other fans of fantasy who are people of color and talk about stuff we like and the way the whiteness of the genre has affected us;

Make my own fan art and reblog/promote other people’s fan art of characters of color;

post critical reviews of various works, point out how whitewashed fantasy art covers have been in the past and still are to this day;

Follow blogs dedicated to people of color in fantasy fiction and art;

Write detailed accounts of how the whiteness of the fantasy genre directly affected my self image, self-esteem, and my physical health ;

celebrate every piece of fantasy writing and fantasy artwork that features people of color;

or

2. “get over myself”

girljanitor:

freedominwickedness:

The fact that adult consumption of milk is perceived as normal by most people is primarily a function of the forcible exportation of white European culture by white imperialism. Because biologically speaking, it is incredibly abnormal for anything but an infant to drink milk.

What people typically refer to as “lactose intolerance” is actually the natural state of every mammalian species — adults cease to produce the enzyme lactase and hence lose the ability to digest milk. However, most white people and some people of color have a genetic mutation which causes them to lose the ability to shut down lactase production.

Here’s the interesting part: the European version of lactase persistence — traced back to the “Funnel Beaker” culture of Northern Europe — is the only one that has been spread globally. Other lactase persistence mutations have not been widely spread outside their area of origin — in fact, non-European persistence mutations are so rare that none were positively identified until 2006.

In other words, the normalcy of milk and milk products is almost entirely a product of how effectively whites have imposed their diet and associated culture on everyone else. Milk isn’t actually good for you unless you can digest the stuff, and most people of color can’t. If we’re exposed to it on a regular basis we usually become resistant enough to drink modest amounts without becoming sick, but we still can’t gain any actual nutrition from it.

I get what you’re going for here, and while I respect it, I have to say I’d need some links and sources to back up what you’ve got here, because it just…doesn’t jive with a global perspective.

Paneer? ghee? literally every Indian dish?

The Maasai, who live off their cattle and rarely kill them for meat, usually partaking of their milk and blood?

And then there’s 20 million pastoral households (about 180–200 million people), who are mostly people of color around the world who subsist largely on sheep and goat’s milk (which is more digestible, and not because it contains less lactose but because it actually contains less casien protiens, which is what a lot of “lactose intolerant people are actually allergic to!) in Mongolia, Ethiopia, Europe, Namibia(the Khoisan domesticated cattle 2,000 years ago or so), Pakistan, Peru, and many, many more..?

(a mongolian woman making sheep’s milk cheese)

I mean, I get that cow’s milk doesn’t work for a lot of people, but it’s far from the “natural human state.” And it just sorta doesn’t make room for the fact that consumption of milk and milk products is fairly ubiquitous everywhere except East Asia.

I’m not trying to make some huge stand for milk or anything, it’s just….you know, milk is all over the place, maybe even especially in POC cultures…

thelittlekneesofbees:

[Tw: Racial slur]

*note before I start*These are only a few things I thought of today which could answer your question seeing as this question is dissertation (broad but very heavy) worthy to begin with. Also, I’ve been on vacation and just got off the plane so this is 7 hours late and not proofread because most of this was started on my phone. I’m also probably going to get a lot of hate after I publish this saying how all of this is fairytale and unrealistic but you asked so you get an answer*end note*

First white people would look at what they’ve done to society and stop seeing just greatness.

They’d see the Diasporas they’ve caused and instead of complaining when white guilt sets in. Actively do things to change it. Get the fuck out of African Nations(give them back their free water supply, stop invading for oil, trees, metals, and gems). They would see the pain and the illness in this world and not pass over it in the name of Manifest Destiny, economy, profit gains, or means to an end. They would throw away Manifest Destiny from this day forth. They would apologies to Natives, and treat them with respect, they would lower the prizes of food on the rez, get them proper shelter, and get them off of all mascot, shirts, pins, backpacks; etc positions because they are people, not tokens. They would dismantle the KKK and other Brotherhoods(Aryan, Italian; etc).  They would redo history books to include original thinkers and creators whose names were overlooked in favor of white apprentices/thieves. They would apologize and compensate the Chinese for the railroads they built. They would look back at the Industrial revolution and see how big of a role race played in getting Lithuanian and other migrant countries to accept lower wages and apologies to them. They would look at what it means to be white and understand whiteness for the step stool made of PoC’s backs, fingers, and heads that it is. Look at projects,”ghettos” and jails and realized the historically the color scheme has gotten darker in those areas for a reason. White people during the IR moved into these places and when white privilege made it easier for them to move up in the word the broken down developments became home to more PoC’s than sometimes humanely possible. Respect Rroma people and understand that they suffer too. Stop calling them ‘gypsies’! They are not a costume they are a people who have long earned the respect white people have refused them. Speak to them about whether they want to be considered white people. Respect their lives. Give what they ask in terms of respect and resources.

And so and and so forth. 

Second, they shouldn’t beg PoC about their opinions and advice about race to alleviate their guilt like we are mammy milkmaids.

They would do what white privilege denies them and that is be accountable for what happen and let* it mark their history because no one else (besides men in general) have gotten a free pass at globally editing history. 

Third, when someone said or done something racist(in “isolated” incidents) there is no consoling the racist. Period.

They are to feel ashamed for what they have said or done because HISTORICAL WEIGHT GIVES NO JUSTIFICATION FOR SUCH THINGS TO CONTINUE UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE. POC HAVE SUFFERED ENOUGH FOR A MILLENNIA. Stop thinking other PoC can’t say problematic shit but don’t think that it’s OK to rip them apart for it either. Your boat for that sailed a long time ago. Say your piece and go away. Also, stop treating lighter PoC or straight haired PoC better than others. You are only adding to the disgusting institution your families created and uphold.

Fourth, I need media/Hollywood who ever to realize that PoC can have complicated roles, dark skin, natural hair, and are human beings.

Like Games of Thrones (obviously this story will contain more European/white characters)has 2 African descent person and he’s a pirate with less than 100 words combined if that. I’m tired of all of the stories, movies, books, making me feel like white people are the only people who ever had adventures, were heroes, have conflicts, and doubt their abilities even if they are excellent people. I’m tired of race being a way to real in viewers with controversy instead of because it makes the sense that PoC should be involved in everything white people are involved in. Shows like NBC’s Scandal need more light but I shouldn’t have to be excited because 5+ of the 14+ characters are PoC. The point is we have rich history and stories to be told to. They can be just as good as Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, Dexter, BBC Sherlock or Supernatural.

Fifth, white people realizing money is apart of privilege in a very real way.

Let’s see white people refuse their inheritance and give it the DREAM organizations or black youth or other PoC self development organizations. Find the families of your ancestors and pay reparations to children of laborers. Rebuild places like Newark, NJ where race riots are still historically visible in broken down/fire damaged buildings and NOT gentrify them like white people are doing now.  Go to schools where white people aren’t the overwhelming majority in both classrooms and faculty rooms and see how different your education turns out.

Six, Most importantly. PoC are intelligent, efficient, and capable just like white people. Don’t think you need to coddle us forever.

Once we have sufficient tools for ourselves we will not stand for White Saviors; that’s just another way to keep PoC from being their own people and being their own heroes. We don’t need collective parents we need peers.

Don’t just live out change on the internet. Don’t just go to the projects for a class assignment. Actually cut off the white-only bootstraps and live with us. 

So those are 6 or so ways I think racist institutions can be dismantled.

Anon will stay open for a while so stop in if you have anything else to ask. Also, just like when most of my loaded asks come in. I’ll be on Skype too: rjanedoe69 (which is what I use for tumblr only).

racismfreeontario:

White privilege is one issue that must be confronted as a precondition to releasing the energy required to successfully challenge institutional racism.  It is the collection of benefits based on belonging to a group perceived to be white, when the same or similar benefits are denied to members of other groups. It is the benefit of access to resources and social rewards and the power to shape the norms and values of society that white people receive, unconsciously or consciously, by virtue of their skin color.

Whiteness and White Privilege

Just as there are racial identities of colour in Canada, there is also a white racial identity. To Canadians of European descent whiteness  is akin to normalness; yet, as Frankenberg points out, it is unacknowledged and unknown to most white people. Euro-Canadians do not define themselves as white - they merely construct themselves as NOT being people of colour. This invisibility  of whiteness is historically, socially, politically and culturally produced and linked to relations of domination. This domination manifests itself in the form of white privilege. These privileges are invisible  to most Euro-Canadians; yet, they exist. They are built into Canadian society. It is a protective pillow of resources and/or benefits of the doubt that repels gossip and voyeurism and instead demands dignity.

Examples of White Privilege

• Author Frankenberg mentioned examples of white people moving to the opposite side of the street when two, tall, black men approach on a sidewalk. These people do not move aside when approaching other white people because the are assumed to begood  or normal.  She also indicates that she received shoddy or poor service when she went into cafes in her town with friends of colour.

• Powell talked about expectations of failure for people of colour in US universities. A university sent out two different letters to new students. A letter to white students stated that they were the best and brightest, that the university was delighted in offering admission, and that they would be honoured to train the students for the leadership roles they would take in the community and country. A letter to black students stated how wonderful the university was and how fortunate the students were to have a chance to attend. The letter also outlined that many remedial and support programs were in place to help them when they ran into difficulty at this world-class university.

(Under) normal circumstances, white students get the “white” letter and never know that the second letter exists, while black students are absolutely clear that theirs is a race-coded letter. Black and white students meet at the same college in the same classes but with fundamentally different messages about their right and ability to be there. 

• A similar effect as the one above exists in Canada with inner-city schools. Inner-city, in this author’s experience, is really just a race-coded word for Indian/First Nations where there is an assumption of failure and lower standards, translating into lower achievement.

• Powell also found that white students know the rules of the game and are better achievers just as members of white society know the rules of the game. This is one of the advantages of being white - they learn the rules as they grow up and succeed in life. Those who are not white, never get a chance to learn the rules and they are generally not successful.

White students who were overwhelmed and unable to finish the paper asked for an extension. Several of them took an extra 24 hours and turned in A papers, receiving an A-. Black students also reported lack of time as a major difficulty in completing the paper; however, none of them considered asking for an extension, which as one black woman said, 1) would put me (the teacher) in an awkward situation and 2)would feel like “asking for welfare”. 

• Personal stories related to this author by persons of colour tell of scrutinization by police on the streets, discrimination in renting apartments (and the assumption of a partying lifestyle), and university professors being followed around by security in department stores. This lack of trust or expectation of wrong doing is not accorded the average white person.

One way that white privilege is maintained is through the construction of stereotypes of people of colour. Generally these stereotypes are different from ideas of a normal  Canadian and depict negative images. Examples of this include those of Natives as alcoholics and lazy; of Chinese as treacherous; etc. The overall effect is to infer that whiteness is goodness.

Much of their (white) identity production swirls around the creation and maintenance of the dark “other” against which their own whiteness and goodness is necessarily understood. The social construction of this goodness, then, provides moral justification for privileged standpoints. 

People of Colour are expected to conform to the values of whiteness  yet this is impossible because it is based on race. As long as whiteness  goes unacknowledged, anyone of colour will have difficulty in conforming.

Blacks and other people “of colour” are viewed as recent newcomers, or worse, “foreigners” who have no claim to Canadian heritage except through the generosity of Canadian immigration officials, who “allow” a certain quota of us to enter each year. 

Even if a person’s family has been in Canada or the US for a number of generations, a person of colour will never be as good  as a white person, and will never be allowed access to the privileges that accompany colour in our society.

To most residents (in the US), African Americans and Mexican Americans were simply the latest (and not too welcome) newcomers in a series of immigrant groups and would have to engage in the same process of self-help, assimilation, and perseverance that previous groups had experienced.

Other literature illustrates this privilege and the lack of incentive for whiteness to be cast aside. Roediger examines the struggle for acceptance into the privileged white race by the Irish from a historical, political, economic and psychological perspective. The Irish immigrant was once negatively stereotyped as the “Irish nigger”  during the flood of immigration during the mid-1800’s. The “success of the Irish in being recognized as white resulted largely from the political power of the Irish … voters. The imperative to define themselves as white came but from the particular ‘public and psychological wages’ whiteness offered”. These wages included preference in hiring over other groups, admission to public venues on equal footing with upper classes, admission to white schools, etc.

They were given public deference … because they were white. They were admitted freely, with all classes of white people, to public functions (and) public parks. … The police were drawn from their ranks and the courts, dependent on their votes, treated them with leniency. … Their votes selected public officials and while this had small effect upon the economic situation, it had great effect upon their personal treatment. … White schoolhouses were the best in the community, and conspicuously placed, and cost anywhere from twice to ten times colored schools. 

The Irish and African-Americans “lived side by side in the teeming slums of American cities of the 1830’s”. Yet, there was little incentive for the Irish to question their class position and dependency on wage labour. The “pleasures of whiteness could function as a ‘wage’ for white workers. That is, status and privileges conferred by race could be used to make up for alienating and exploitative class relationships. … White workers could, and did, define and accept their class positions by fashioning identities as ‘not slaves’ and as ‘not blacks’ ”.

Creation of ‘Whiteness’ in Canada

To fully understand the creation of whiteness  in Canada, one needs to look at its historical formation. The study of whiteness  is derived from the study of colonization. Edward Said described the relationship that British colonizers had with the people of the Middle East during early colonization. At that time, this area was referred to as the Orient and Said described this relationship as Orientalism. The Oriental or other  was an image or stereotype created by the British. The other  was basically everything that the West was not - s/he was dark, savage, bestial, lowbrow, etc. (Roediger, 1991). In some ways, British culture was able to define itself by positioning itself as opposite to the other. For example, British culture was civilized because its citizens did not live in grass huts. British culture was technologically advanced as compared to the spears of the other. From this othering , colonizing countries like Britain, France, Germany, etc. were able to see themselves as civilized, advanced and dynamic when compared to the stable and primitive others . The fact that no single Oriental identity even existed was not taken into consideration (i.e. India and Egypt are very different cultures but categorized as Orientals in early colonizialism). This othering  process also provided justification for colonizing as the colonizer could claim that they were civilizing a primitive culture.

This process of othering  was carried to North America and was used in the colonization of Native Americans and in the enslavement of African Americans. “Indians”  were seen as a homogeneous group of savages despite the fact that individual groups varied extensively and had well developed social systems. “Niggers”  were also portrayed as savage, uncivilized and with low intelligence. By creating this identity, expansion into North America was justified.

Stereotypes have an important function in the maintenance of racism. Between 1500 and 1800 A.D., the stereotype of Indians as savages served to justify the dispossession of Indian lands. The dispossession and its legacy have created a powerful-powerless relationship between white and Native peoples. In order to maintain this power structure, new stereotypes of Native peoples have been created, as the need has arisen. (Larocque, 1989, p.74)

Besides providing a justification for dispossessing lands of colonized people, the creation of a stable other  has helped to maintain this relationship of inequity. In Canada, the stereotype of a traditional Indian  conjures up images of mocassins, beads, canoes, etc. It is as if these groups of people have been untouched by western civilization during the last two hundred years. This stable identity has been perpetuated by the othering  process involved in traditional anthropology since its inception.

(Traditional anthropology) depicted the colonized as members of a harmonious, internally homogeneous, unchanging culture. When so described, the culture appeared to “need” progress, or economic and moral uplifting. In addition, the “timeless traditional culture” served as a self-congratulatory reference point against which Western civilization could measure its own progressive historical evolution. The civilizing journey was conceived more as a rise than a fall, a process more of elevation than degradation (a long, arduous journey upward, culminating in “us”). … It portrayed a “culture” sufficiently frozen to be an object of “scientific” knowledge. This genre of social description made itself, and the culture so described, into an artifact worthy of being housed in the collection of a major museum. (Rosalda, 1989, p.31)

Inherent in the construction of these static stereotypes is the assumption that whiteness  is goodness. Other races need to conform to the norm of whiteness . There is no room in Canadian society for the other  unless they are in their purist form (i.e. unless the Indian remains primitive and stays on the reserve where s/he belongs). Otherwise, they should be assimilated into Canadian culture . By creating and maintaining static stereotypes, public attention to cries of structural inequity by marginalized groups can be deflected. For example, people of Native descent are no longer real Indians - if they were, they would not be having these problems because they would be living their traditional lives.

There seems to be a need to deny that racism exists. … An area of growing concern to me is the very common practice of blaming Native peoples for their socioeconomic conditions. Blaming “forgets” that racism has also been institutionalized in government policies of assimilation, paternalism, and the historical and continuing confiscation of Native lands and resources. These policies have had a devastating impact on Native peoples but the fallout has been explained away as stemming from “cultural differences.” In turn “cultural differences” are reduced to stereotypes such as “Indians can’t or won’t adjust” to city life. In other words, Indian “culture”, rather than colonization or racism, is blamed for whatever has happened to Native peoples. (Laroque, 1989, p.74)

With the rise of Quebec nationalism in the 1960’s, the federal government’s response was to “increase and centralize its power. This entailed supplanting supposedly British institutions within Canada with indigenous Canadian equivalents” (Legare, 1995, p.348). Concurrent to this were the demands by other groups to have their contributions to the development of Canada recognized.

(Other) sections of the country began to imitate Quebec nationalists and articulate their own claims based on ethnic background and regional interests. They contended that, as immigrants from other (i.e., non-British and also non-French) nations, they too had contributed to the developing nation. They argued that their contributions were being ignored in the two founding nations debate, and they demanded equal recognition with French and English Canadians. (Legare, 1995, p.349)

Following the recommendations of the Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturialism, the government of Canada officially recognized the multicultural nature of Canada within a bilingual framework. This strategy was an attempt to reconcile the division in Canada between French, Aboriginal, and immigrant assertions of rights; and, to define a Canadian identity in the face of an invasion of US culture.

 is no coincidence that ethnicity and multiculturalism were officially discovered at a time when Canada faced internal and external threats to its nationhood. From the start, it was ‘intended to ground Canadian nationhood in an identity that could be differentiated from threatening Others both within and without.’ Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau believed that multiculturalism could serve as ‘the glue of nationalism’, a glue that could bind a uniquely defined nation, governed by a strong federal government. As a solution to internal divisions, official recognition of multiculturalism within a bilingual framework could counterbalance the contesting regional loyalties that endangered the unity of the nation. At the same time, by accepting all ethnically defined claims as equally valid, it could effectively neutralize nationalist claims to special status or rights, re-establishing and strengthening national unity.

Multiculturalism (MC) views Canadians as having British values, customs, etc. while still allowing for immigrants to celebrate their past cultures in a formalized way. These celebrations take place on special occasions and showcase historic traits such as food, clothing, music, material objects and language. However, this display is very much like the cultures found in museums or on a bookcase. They are taken out on special occasions but afterwards they are put back and everyone returns to normal  or British customs. The overall effect of MC is to neutralize nationalist claims of special groups by making everyone the same or equal in present-day, British Canada or French Quebec. Those groups that do not accept this have to make a claim of distinctiveness or special status. However, this is impossible because under MC everyone is distinct and equal.

Although MC sounds very egalitarian and defines Canadian culture by its tolerance for the other cultures that make it up, it is still racist. MC reaffirms Aboriginal and immigrant groups as the other of traditional colonial discourses. By refusing to accept folklorization of their cultures and demanding to express their own cultural identities, these groups are excluded from citizenship in the eyes of many Canadians. They are “redefined as “special” (the problematic Canadian) or even unfair to those citizens who “chose” to give up their old ethnic selves and embrace loyalty to the Canadian nation”. Whiteness  is the norm to which they are expected to conform as expressed by a quote from the Winnipeg Free Press: “By what right do Aboriginal people (and immigrants) receive services and demand rights when they are unwilling to contribute to (i.e., be of) the nation?”.

MC only recognizes diversity superficially. The underlying assumption to most Euro-Canadians is that Canada is still white . Stereotypes play an important role in perpetuating this view. The construction of the other  through stereotypes has helped to maintain whiteness , white privilege  and its invisibility . The construction of static, primitive and dark images are used to elevate the status of whites and define them as NOT the other. The goodness and dynamic nature of whiteness  is inferred but not overtly stated; and, the privilege that accompanies whiteness  is assumed the normal consequence of not being the other.

References:

• Kivel, 2002; McIntosh,1988; Potapchuk et al., 2005;
• Media, Stereotypes and the Perpetuation of Racism in Canada by James Crawford

RACISM FREE ONTARIO FAQ:  What is “white privilege”? – Racism Free Ontario Initiative

 Racism Free Ontario is a 100 day anti-racism campaign across Ontario. Like our facebook page and follow us on twitter! For more info visit RacismFreeOntario.com

See more FAQ: What is racism? What are different forms of racism? / What can you tell me about the history of racism? / What are important terms and concepts to know? / What is a Microaggression? What are Racial Microagressions?  /Who are People of Colour? Why can’t I use the term “coloured”? / What is colour-blindness?/What is white privilege? / Is there such thing as “reverse racism?”/ What is meant by the racialization of poverty?/How does racism relate to the other “isms”? / Is the Canadian legal system in denial of its white privilege? /What if I have spent years using harmful language? / What should I do if I witness racial violence?