I do not find Barack Obama’s pastor’s remarks offensive at all and I would really appreciate it if someone could explain to me what the problem is. I do not find his church problematic either – in fact, I am getting the impression that it is quite lucid. It certainly does not bear a “message of hatred” as I have heard several people say.
Why is it that when people say there is institutional racism in this country, and/or point out that many white people do not understand this, I do not feel attacked or guilty…although I do feel it might be my civic responsibility to help to address the problem?
In Reeducation, it was felt that this attitude of mine was the sign of a Deep Psychological Problem. My relative lack of fear of or anger at Persons of Color, who, as Reeducation knew, were probable Abusers, meant that in the past I must have been Abused in far more serious ways than I could admit.
I told Reeducation that this was a racist hypothesis, and Reeducation told me I had hurt its feelings. I had attacked it and accused it of racism, which was among the most serious of possible insults I could have proffered.
Reeducation was silly, but I still want to know: why, in the face of so much concrete historical and other factual evidence, is it so hard for people to admit the existence of racism? Why do they feel so attacked and guilty when the existence of racism is pointed out?
Axé.
coldhearted scientist وداد 
I don’t know why people are as you describe. I think that if you have a materialist’s view of the world, you can more easily accept that the world isn’t perfect and isn’t going to be, but that there are things you can do about it. Idealists, however, are in a different boat. Imperfection to them doesn’t mean what it does to the materialist. To one of an Idealistic mindset, imperfection means SIN. So, if there is imperfection — that is, racism — in the world, then it has been caused by sin. It’s a if when you point out the imperfections you are making the assertion, “You dirty vile sinner!” So people feel very very bad, and want to say that it is not their fault but somebody else’s — yours, perhaps.
And here are some hazy reflections on the matter from last night.
I’m not sure, but a lot of abuse victims seem to report something similar at the family level. Certainly my family has it. It’s like a “don’t snitch” thing maybe. You should feel bad about getting somebody in trouble.
And then, while you’re off balance from that, it’s easy for someone to put the original problem up for new bidding. Perhaps it wasn’t so bad? Here’s your chance to get in on the ground floor.
People talk about logic and dialectic, but I guess a lot of times the accepted truth is really established by negotiation.
I agree with all of Wright’s comments and think that a lot of people have gotten involved in this election because they, too, agree with Wright’s comments. Somebody has to be in a pathological state of denial to believe that 9/11 was other than blowback , that the U.S. does not routinely slaughter (or sanction the slaughter of) people all over the world, and that African-Americans (or anyone) should be proud to be American no matter what. And I don’t know why the majority of white people are so defensive about racism. As a white woman, I witness this attitude very commonly among those who think that because I’m white I’m an “insider” and that they do not have to “censor” themselves. This is a very reductive point, I know, but I think that Americans have been brainwashed into the idea that power is a scarce commodity and that they will somehow risk whatever advantage they have by conceding that injustice and inequality are real in the present and not just in an always already gone era? And if one is into the idea of God, then saying “God bless America” is like walking into a church, saying “God bless me,” and then walking out, I think.
J – Idealist model, makes sense.
Tom – interesting. How about abusERs and beneficiaries of abuse, though? In my experience they are the main ones that do not want things brought to light.
A.F. – people interested in this election because they agree with Wright, that’s exciting!!! I *do* think many Americans are in a pathological state of denial about what this country is up to. I have the same experience as a white woman. And I guess it’s true, people are afraid to lose their advantage.
Power as a scarce and desirable commodity – I guess this is a more common view than I realize.
P.S. – and here, from A.F., is Obama “distancing himself” from Wright. Depressing.
http://amfunknola.blogspot.com/2008/03/blog-post_15.html
I sent the church this e-mail:
Dear Trinity United Church,
I would not know about you or Pastor Wright were it not for the Obama candidacy, and I am not African-American or Christian myself.
I am writing to say that I, for one, hardly found the comments of Pastor Wright, from which Mr. Obama felt it necessary to distance himself, “inflammatory.” They are in fact right on point. I find it sad that in the twenty-first century a Presidential candidate still has to distance themself from so lucid an analysis of the present situation. This must have been painful for both Mr. Obama and you, so I thought I would write to send greetings. I have been pleased to support a candidate whose spiritual practice espoused the kind of social responsibility your organization does. I am hopeful that despite the unfortunate necessity of public distancing now, Mr. Obama will still have your principles at heart when he is elected.
Yours very truly.
My huge Vallejo tome (bilingual edition) arrived today. I’m hoping to find in it some similarities to Marechera’s poetics.
good for you for sending that email to them. i agree with you, i found it completely true. it seems that whenever racism is brought up, white people who do not recognize their own privilege get all pissed and act like the person who brought up the racism is out of line. since you know, slavery was a long time ago and “they” should just get over it. ughhhhhhhh.
profacero, yeah, the abusers wanna keep it quiet, is what I was trying to say. I’m having a garbled day.
More on the larger context here: http://acropolisreview.com/2008/03/barack-obama-condemns-reverend-jeremiah.html
J – I’ll be fascinated to hear what you think!
JustMe – so the church is getting so much mail that if you e-mail them on Obama, you get an auto-response!
Tom – yes, they want to keep it quiet … and how to address it in the WORKPLACE is a serious problem I am trying to figure out now.
TC – I’ll look at that post!
That’s a beautiful letter. You’ve given me the idea to write one, too. I can’t imagine being the person who has to read through all of the mail to find the pearls like yours, though. I hope I’m being too pessimistic.
Hmm… paper mail? I don’t have a printer at home. I could write it out in handwriting. Now that I realize it’s a good letter maybe I should.
Also, it’s to the general church e-mail. Perhaps one addressed directly to Jeremiah Wright would get to him.
I think some kind of fear goes along with the guilt. I think the fear can be really intense sometimes. I don’t understand why. Maybe it’s a fossilized “oh no mom’s gonna find out”?
Sorry to hear that there are problems in the workplace—ugh.
Problems in workplace, yes, verbal abuse, does it sound familiar? But now having been in and gotten out of an abusive *romance,* I am better equipped to recognize and handle such problems than I once was. I’m going to rise above them, but not by saying they shouldn’t matter.
Intense fear, yes. That’s astute. I notice it in these people. I wonder: is it because their entire worldview is that of an abuser – i.e. whatever was done to them is OK, and whatever they do now is OK, something like that – and that it is only that worldview that is holding them together??? It is as though their entire identity and subject position were going to be annihilated.
My ex used to say: “You cannot object to any of my behavior, because to do so is to say I am a bad person generally.” (About that my psychic friend said: “Was his mother really that cold?”)
Yeah … And so many bloggers have been making exactly that point about racist remarks lately. Metaphorically, a lot of folks are trying to explain, very patiently, that they’re not saying Person X is necessarily a bad student generally when they say that X got a C- on this particular paper. And, also, that they don’t have to prove that X is a bad student generally in order to justify giving him a C- on this particular paper.
Hm, I do also personally have that problem of assuming that any wrong behavior on my part means I’m a bad person generally. And in fact I did have an amazingly cold mother. Do have, I mean.
On the mothers, I guess it makes sense. If they communicated that any bad behavior by a child meant they were a bad child generally, and if they were also that cold, I assume the child would think that if they were perfect, she might warm up a little bit. I myself thought that if I could find just the right way to act and organize things just the right way, my mother’s health would improve.
Hm: that last sentence is something I still tend to do in virtually every area of life. I’ll watch out for it.
“And, also, that they don’t have to prove that X is a bad student generally in order to justify giving him a C- on this particular paper.”
Yes – isn’t this wild – !!!
It boggles the mind. The fear. The ignorance. The dead minds, but I repeat myself…
I’ve never quite grasped the racism or the unaccepted fact that racism flourishes, especially from supposed Christians. Since it is highly probable that Jesus was black (“bronze skinned man with wooly hair”) it boggles the mind even further. I suppose since most “white Christians” think the representation of Jesus hanging in their church is an accurate depiction of the man… they really can’t be blamed for such ignorance. They can, but you could never convince them that they’ve a perception problem, for we are going to hell and only point these things out because we work for the devil or some such nonsense. It’s the easiest way to avoid personal responsibility- the devils work!
I’ve not one smidgen of a problem with the reverend’s words. The racists can use this as reason to not vote for a “black” man, but the truth scares these types more than the idea of a black man as president (or a woman, for that matter), which is, in a sense, a representation of a truth they cannot bring themselves to face.
What I find odd about this discussion is the refusal of any commentator to place Wright’s comments on the spectrum of Christian social critique. I mean, he’s a pastor, and he’s speaking in a church. But no one is saying, hey, it is a long-standing Christian thread to critique oppressors and oppression.
Power as a scarce and desirable commodity – I guess this is a more common view than I realize.
The power to hurt, to dominate, to punish others in order to vent my own self-doubt and bad self esteem — this is the kind of power that people seek to express as bourgeois individuals. What they don’t see is that they have full access to the opposite sort of power: The power to stand up for what is good and right, the power to choose their own lives and the shape of those lives, the power to make others feel good. These are in great supply, but nobody notices.
“…but the truth scares these types more than the idea of a black man as president (or a woman, for that matter), which is, in a sense, a representation of a truth they cannot bring themselves to face.”
This is true and brilliant.
S – yes: churches are supposed to have charity work that supports the state, not a social justice agenda. MLK didn’t do his work out of any kind of religious agenda, says PZ sarcastically.
J – yes, and this is why I always have conflicts in academia. I have a lot of power – it falls to me – but I don’t use it in the expected ways, and it confuses everyone.
Watch Rev. Jeremiah Wright’s 9-11 sermon in context
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QOdlnzkeoyQ
Not everything wright says is off the mark, but Wright’s teachings are quite different than those of ML King. Watch these two videos from Wright and King and see if you cannot discern the difference.
Is Wright required to be King? I don’t have that expectation. –Z
wright is rich and he lives in a million dollar home in an all white area. he got rich buy taking donations from poor black people who live in a slum.
Dave, I wish you’d cite sources instead of just spread rumors. And what is your interest in this at this time … are you still hoping to get people to vote Mccain because of Jeremiah Wright?
And I am not a Christian, and I do not approve of megachurches or tithing, and I am not nearly so mainstream an American generally as is Wright. However, I like what Wright has to say, and I find it ridiculous that telling the truth about what this country is is considered so wicked by people (like you, apparently), and that was the point of this post.