Unlearning the White Hero

We need to be clear that there is no such thing as giving up one's privilege to be "outside" the system.  One is always in the system.  The only question is whether one is part of the system in a way that challenges or strengthens the status quo.  Privilege is not something I take and which I therefore have the option of not taking.  It is something that society gives me, and they will continue to give it, and I will continue to have it, however noble and egalitarian my intentions. 

- Harry Brod, from Understanding White Privilege by Frances Kendall

Speaking from personal experience (ie, my own racism), it's kind of marvelous to me how hard the "No, no, no, but that doesn't apply to me - I'm one of the good white people" trope dies.  There's one that's followed me around pretty much all my life, and taken on different forms to reflect my current understandings.

Elementary School
We are taught that racism is a thing of the past. There were Race Good Guys and Race Bad Guys.  The Good Guys won.  All that's left now is the Race Good Guys, and a few straggling KKK members.  You too are a race hero, you learn, though it's not as heroic and cool now that there's "nothing left to fight for."  At around age 7, I learn that I am one of the good guys. At age 8, I go and repeat something I've heard my father say, "Why is there no white history month!"

Middle School
I have begun thinking about what I will be when I grow up, and Dangerous Minds has just come out.  Maybe I will become a white Race Hero and heroically save "urban" schools, which I have been taught cannot be saved without the help of well intentioned white people.

High School
In high school we are taught how to use the phrase "Can we just not bring race into this?" in academic settings.  You know, because we're all race heroes here, right?  We're the good white people, so why bother worrying about race?

College
With white friends, I watch t.v. shows that make jokes about race to show how hilarious racism is.  Check out the subtlety here - The comedian pretends they are racist when of course they could never be real racists.  You know, because we're all white heroes here.  No harm done.  This way we can all laugh at racist comments and no one has to be the bad guy who really meant them.  It's not as if racism is a persistent pattern of dehumanization and abuse.  Why not sprinkle some Holocaust jokes in while we're at it?

Grad School
I am taught a thing or two about white privilege, and now I've arrived.  I'm convinced I've got it and now I'm definitely one of the race good guys.  [A shout out to the directors of the program for first nudging me down the path of anti-racism.  You gave me the biggest gift I could get.  Wish I'd been able to "get it" faster.]

Afterwards
I read a thing or two more, and start to think harder.

Thing is, if I had been given the tools to really get started on the learning(unlearning) process earlier in my life, I could have pinpointed and fixed this earlier on.  Precious time wasted.  That's why it's so necessary to give kids the tools.