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vthemaroontiger.com
November 10 - 16,2010
OPINIONS
9
The Big Black Elephant in a Room Full of (White) Joes
Karen Bullock
Associate Opinions Editor
karenalisebullockC&'gmail.
i com
O ver spiked apple cider
and Halloween-themed
cookies, 1 made social with
white people where I am, as
usual and to my great de
light, the token Black, the ra
cial guru, the splash of color
on an all-white palette. Not
since high school, excluding
a handful of informal class
reunions, have I been the one
sole Black figure in a setting.
The general swing of the eve
ning made rne wonder about
race relations in America.
Are America’s modern liber
als post-racial or contentedly
racist?
Political correctness was
dulled by warm whiskey in
the course of the evening and
my host and his friends found
it appropriate to take turns
sharing funny videos from
YouTube. The videos were
universally funny, at first -
Antoine Dodson, leprechauns
in Alabama, an autistic kid at
a book signing.
But soon enough 1 got to
feeling like a big Black el
ephant in the room.
Joe (not his actual name)
and his friends were being en
tertained in a way that made
me feel racially offended.
They found it appropriate to
ridicule these YouTube stars
for their cultural differenc
es: choice of dress, dialect,
KKc7W
w
and level of education. They
weren't all Black people, but
they were mostly Black, and
while Joe’s friends didn't
seem to be racist, Blackness
seemed to be a target of ridi
cule in itself.
The irreverent middle class
has managed to ridicule ev
erything from religion, to
death, to race and racism.
They seem to believe that all
is fair game for comedy. I find
it somewhat relieving to be
able to discuss everything so
openly: to engage their inter
est in racial issues and then
dismiss our differences with
humor. I find that it allows us
to open dialogue and discuss
taboo subjects.
However, I also find that in
pushing the racial envelope,
there is a subtle reassertion of
white supremacy. There is an
interest in cultural differenc
es. but then those differences
are made ridiculous in com
parison to their own cultural
normality. While watching
one video, one house guest
found it appropriate to laugh
at the boxer-basketball shorts-
sweatpants combination of
some YouTube character.
For me to chime in would
be to laugh at every brother,
boy cousin, and Black man
under the age of 40 that I've
ever met. -
I noticed that what this
group found humorous was
not only Black, but all that
was non-white, non-middle
class and uneducated.
Despite my discomfort. I
wanted to understand the per
spective of my new friends.
They didn't seem to be mo
tivated by hate, so much as
a misguided desire to tackle
the taboo. With that, I began
to wonder what was so wrong
with their laughter and why
1 was so uncomfortable. In
her article “Pedagogies of
Crossing,” Jacqui Alexan
der discusses the tendency of
post-modern White feminists,
despite a desire for gender
equality, to discount the ex
periences and struggles of
non-white and non-American
women, because they are so
unlike their own.
There in Joe’s living room
was a group of white Ameri
cans who were so accus
tomed to measuring normalcy
against their own experienc
es. I’d like to assume that they
were unwittingly perpetuat
ing white supremacist views
- especially since they were
so decidedly against the Tea
Party.
What, then, is the respon
sibility of the token Negro
friend? I’ve been grappling
with the question. Do I cry
racism as soon as the jokes
start flying or do I listen in si
lence, taking account of their
racial misunderstandings?
These are yet questions unan
swered as 1 continue to try to
understand how to turn casual
conversation into a ground
breaking communicative ac
tivity.
Karen Bullock is a gradu
ating senior of Spelman Col
lege. Majoring in English,
Bullock hopes to further her
literary' accomplishments by
becoming a full-time writer
after graduation.
In Memory of Paul Martin...
Remembering Paul
It seems as though it was just yesterday that we brought our son,
Paul Martin, to begin his college years at Morehouse. We were
filled with a sense of pride and hope not only at NSO but each time
we visited the campus. Now since the senseless, cruel tragedy of
Paul's death, we are filled with pain and hopelessness. Despite our
grief, we are appreciative to Morehouse for the support and
organization of Paul’s memorial service that was held Nov.20,
2008. We have had an outpouring of support and kindness from
our friends in Michigan, with many friends and family making
donations to Morehouse in Paul’s memory. We matched the
donations and were able to send $3500.00 to Morehouse in Paul’s
memory.
Paul was an outgoing, fun-loving young man with a bright
future that was ended by a cruel act. As his mother 1 want to
cherish his memory and hope to establish an ongoing fund in his
name in the near future. I would also like to ask any of his friends
or instructors at Morehouse to write memories of Paul and forward
them to me at my e-mail address Djrmdl (maol.com . These shared
memories mean a lot to me. I have written a poem about losing
Paul that is printed below. Please continue to keep us in your
prayers.
Diane and George Richards
‘WOVLCDNT giV.E
Ms fat I wouldn’t give to...
see your smile
hiss your cheeff
or even hear you spealf
‘Why oh why have you gone so soon...
we didn’t do all the things we meant to do
Mlhat I wouCdn't give to...
have it the way it used to he
me there for you and you there for me
I’ve stored all your memories in my heart
hut despite that there’s still an empty part
There's no question 1 'd give my life for yours
■what 1 wouldn't give to have let you live
Id- . dUsdd/Ug
'^edClL'
Recycle The Maroon Tiger