Yes, Even You are a White Supremacist

The American Project is a White Supremacist project. One of assimilation, submission, malice, and colonization. And we have become White Supremacists. Yes. You, your parents, your friends, the ultraconservative neighbor, the neo-liberal radical queer, the Black rights advocate, and yes, even myself. 

We are stuck, complacent to the forces around us. Complacent to the violence we witness. Complacent to the violence we perform. Complacent to White Supremacy. Yes. You.

You, who work to gather your degree, attempt to skate by “drama-free.” You, who stands for the rally, for the protest, but sits for the planning, the policy-making, the deliberation, the learning, or the reflection. You, the one who is making the “economic” choice. You, who follows the teachings of praxis, ephemera, and affect. You, who does not acknowledge the role and responsibility of privilege. And of course, You, the White Supremacist. 

The framework and way we walk through life is inefficient and unhelpful in our journey to justice. We have become unable to reflect on our placements in the world. We call our acts of violence “minor inconveniences.” We contextualize our country as being “better and safer,” than the rest of the world. Or our section of the country as “better and safer” than the rest. We become uncomfortable with difficult conversations. We hesitate. We nod along. We use anonymity. We minimize. “Some of us— go out into the streets, and say, ‘I love you, Mr. Trump.’” We commit these actions at any given time, and we bow our heads to White Supremacy.

I get it. Change is difficult. Accountability is difficult. There is Truth that this country’s circumstances are different than other countries. Yet, we activate difficulties and truths not to lend a hand. Build a bridge. Gather a collective. But instead to shove our responsibilities of social engagement and growth, to shy away from our reflections and faults. We disengage. We hide. 

We’re not biding our time, making a strategic move, or playing “the game.” We’re killing ourselves and our people, and people that we do not call our own. While you sit idly, while you take up space in your day-to-day, someone is crying, hurting, and dying. Someone is missing. A child is falling through the cracks. Your peer is loathing in silence. And where is your hand? Where are you reaching out to help?

 Yes, pick and choose your battles. Radical self-care is necessary for this perpetual labor. But, know you pick and choose your battles not just for yourself, you don’t rest just for yourself, you don’t do nothing just for yourself. You do these respites for the explicit purpose of doing the Work. Not your day job, but the Work to create a better world, to aid people, to dismantle hierarchies, to invite people to the table, to find justice. 

Otherwise know that each day, you’re not picking between which “drama” to not engage with, you’re deciding which structure of power you will decide to be complacent to. Don’t trivialize the impacts of even the smallest microaggression. It’s not “drama,” it’s racism. It’s not “drama,” it’s classism. It’s not “drama,” it’s transphobia. It’s ableism. Queerphobia. Religious persecution. Sexism. It’s not “drama,” it’s someone’s life and lived experience. 

Your actions are your own but understand if you can’t understand the “small” shit, those typically unnoticeable microaggressions. You should not be comfortable assuming you can not only notice but address the macro shit. For each day you wake up unable to practice resilience, revolution, reflections, and assistance will be another day you wake up a White Supremacist. For each day someone dies and you are not in the coalition room, you are a White Supremacist. For each day others have had enough and you sit doing nothing, you are a White Supremacist. For each day a White Supremacist is in power and you don’t start sprinting to help create change, you are a White Supremacist. Because when the day comes when we start dropping, when our names end up on your feed, when we have been reduced to a statistic without a soul, you will not be ready to fight White Supremacy.

So, Yes. In fact, You are a White Supremacist.