In what ways do you agree or disagree with Kendi?
I think the last time I was forced to face a difficult truth was when I got lost driving in Anaheim, California. I was on the way to Disneyland, looking forward to a weekend of fun, when I made some wrong turns and suddenly found myself driving down a street completely lined with homeless tents on each side of the sidewalk. Some of the shelters could hardly be called “tents”, often only consisting of a single tarp hung over a grimy old mattress, or more commonly a single sleeping bag or blanket. I remember the surprise that flooded over me seeing this part of town and the homeless people that lived there, completely lining the street of what would otherwise be a totally average stretch of road in the middle of the city. I also remember the sense of guilt I felt at the unease that crept over me driving down that road. And just as soon as I had discovered it, I turned the corner and it was gone; as soon as I was able to reroute onto the correct highway the street that I drove down, the people I had passed, and the emotions I had felt all disappeared together in my rearview mirror.
It is hard to face things that you do not want to accept as parts of life, especially if they are not directly related to your own life experiences. To me, it is moments such as the one I experienced while being lost that perfectly show how it is easier to live in a state of willful ignorance than to let the burden of knowledge and guilt of compliance weigh down on your conscience. Even so, I know that that does not mean that it is okay to let yourself do so. With that being said, a lot of what Kendi discussed in the excerpt I found to be surprising, due to what I presume to be my own privilege/background and my ignorance of what other races/ethnicities struggle with and are forced to face living in America.
I am aware that my experiences alone do not paint an accurate picture of what life is like for those other than myself. When I allow myself to take off the rose colored glasses of my own willful ignorance, the inequity of the world around me begins to come into full view. Issues such as the accessibility of quality healthcare for Alaskan Natives and rural villages, the increasing poverty rates among people of color across the United States, the initialization of voter ID laws that is steadily growing across the country, and a plethora of other examples of racial inequity begin to rise to the surface the closer you allow yourself to examine the world around you.
How do we Reconceptualize Power?
I find Kendi’s viewpoint to be a very dichotomous way of thinking, but perhaps necessary. The simplification of policies/ideas as either contributing to or counteracting the effects of inequity between races, and therefore labeling those policies/ideas as either racist or antiracist in nature, helps shed light on many topics that might otherwise be regarded as too complicated for the average American to reach a clear decision on by cutting to how it affects the root of the issue.
I believe that by using this way of thinking, social workers can encourage more people to invest the time and energy it takes to educate themselves on the various issues that different racial or ethnic groups across the country, and even across the world, are facing. I would expect to see a sharp spread of the ideas taught through Critical Race Theory, and see a large movement for its implementation sweep across the country, specifically from those working within the field of social work. Already, we are seeing CRT emerge as a topic of hot debate in things such as both the republican and democratic primary debates. Perhaps it is possible that something like this has already been set in motion.
Redefining Discrimination
When you google the word “discrimination”, two separate definitions are presented to you;
“The unjust or prejudicial treatment of different categories of people, especially on the grounds of ethnicity, age, sex, or disability.”
AND
“The recognition and understanding of the difference between one thing and another.”
It is my opinion that if we are to hope to enact the kinds of change Kendi spoke about, we first need to change the interpretation of the word “discrimination” from its historically negative connotation, to one that is much more neutral in nature. There is power in words, and even more in the way in which people choose to perceive them. They are used to describe and shape the ideas we seek to share with the world. For example, if we were to take Kendi’s argument for discrimination, and apply each of the two definitions to it, the results yielded would be contrasting in nature. But if we were to change people’s initial interpretations of the word “discrimination” from that of a negative connotation to one that simply means the recognition of difference, we would begin to see the kind of change Kendi advocates so strongly for.
The Ethics of Intervention
“The only remedy to past discrimination is present discrimination.”
— Ibram X. Kendi
If we successfully change how people interpret the word “discrimination”, and by doing so change the ethics tied to the idea of the word, it will open the door for much change in the world of social work. Having it no longer be tied to its past, we can use it as a tool to carve out a new pathway for our future by helping us recognize and legitimize the existence of racial inequity within our country. Systems that claim to be “race neutral” or “colorblind”, yet still display clear signs of racial inequity within its policies, will have less of a foot to stand on. The argument to implement our newly defined “discriminatory” changes within those systems in order to restore equity to a variety of different racial groups would no longer stir feelings of uneasiness within those who hear it, and I believe that progress would inevitably be made.
The Fluidity of Racist and Antiracist Labels
While I find Kendi’s definitions on what does and does not define something as racist or antiracist to be very static, the principle itself becomes quite dynamic when applied to people as a whole. When applying this kind of mindset, the true defining factor in differentiating a person from one label to another then becomes one’s own level of awareness and how self-critical they choose to be. They should be able to discard any personal lenses or blinders that they use to navigate the world, open themselves up to the ugly reality around them, and let that be the drive that inspires them to change it. Social workers as a whole should strive to remain mindful of this, and stay vigilant in their efforts as they fight for the advocacy of their clients or to express allyship to those they work on behalf of. By doing so, they will be able to continue advocating for antiracist policies, ideas, regulations, rules, and guidelines.
Intersectionality and Broader Systems of Oppression
A common phrase when referring to change is, “Rome wasn’t built in a day”, and that holds true when regarding social work. No one implementation or project will ever fully deliver the results that those in social work seek to accomplish. Racial inequity, along with the multitude of other challenges social work takes on, is too massive of an issue to be able to conquer through the initialization of one single program, policy, law, or practice. The key to successfully bringing about this change is to accept that the problem is multidimensional and put efforts into making changes that affect all aspects that contribute to the issue. Approaching from multiple angles is key to overall success. In spreading out their resources throughout each of the contributing factors and inciting changes across several different issues, social workers can begin to tackle the overarching issues that are found in the macro-level of social work.
Abbigale Wheeler
Hey Kelsey, I think that you made an interesting point about discrimination and how words can hold power over us, but I do not think we need to or even should start using the word ‘discrimination’ in a neutral way, instead I think we should just learn to not ignore our differences and to acknowledge and embrace them instead. I do agree with you that we need to accept social work as a multi dimensional field and that we need to start working on making changes that affect all aspects of the field. I agree that we as social workers need to be self critical and always evolving to best advocate for those we work with.
Kelsey McFarland
Hey Abbigale!
When I said that about the definition of discrimination, I didn’t mean we should allow ourselves to forget its main use up until this point. We should never shy away from the past, but instead learn from it and grow from those experiences. But just as some other words have multiple meanings based on the context of the topic you’re using it to describe, the same can be said with “discrimination”.
Basically, I feel like it has become one of those buzz words that people hear and immediately make assumptions about instead of taking the time to learn more about the actual context of the situation, and if we were to direct the narrative away from that by a little it could potentially be beneficial to the field of social work. 🙂
To that same point though, I suppose that neutralizing the word could also hurt us in the sense that we essentially would be dulling the blade of one of the more “sharp” terms we currently use to describe racial inequity. It really is a rather interesting debate the more time I spend thinking about it.
Either way, I appreciate your feedback! Thank you!
Mindy Haley
Thank you for relating your story about being lost in Anaheim, and acknowledging things that made you uncomfortable. It is so important that we, as members of society, play an active role in our understanding of the world around us and are willing to subject ourselves to discomfort as we navigate a landscape of racial inequity.
I liked the definitions Ibram X. Kendi supplied, and the importance he placed on having fixed goalposts for racism and antiracism. Further, it was helpful and liberating to accept his mindset that there is fluidity between those two states. I think an enormous hurdle we face in eliminating racist (and race-neutral) mindsets and actions is that many people do not want to think of themselves or their associates as racist. It is uncomfortable to acknowledge that we can and must do more to create equity among racial groups. Ending slavery, closing boarding schools that forced indigenous people away from their homes, returning (small parcels of) stolen land for sovereign governance, and ending segregation are all great accomplishments – but it cannot stop there.
I think this ties in greatly with Brenee Brown’s studies on vulnerability. We have to be vulnerable to reflect on ourselves, be honest about whether our actions and thoughts are racist or anti-racist, and redirect accordingly. Rinse and repeat.
Kelsey McFarland
Hey Mindy,
I agree with you, and I appreciate your kind words regarding my experience; admitting discomfort with something is extremely important when it comes to ensuring that we are taking in the world as it is instead of how we would choose to see it. Sometimes it can be hard to put yourself into other people’s shoes especially if you have not lived through something similar yourself, and I think that has a lot to do with the issues that we commonly see in social work today. People cannot fix what they do not know or care to know; that is why I think that ensuring that issues such as those that we see in the field of social work are shared with the world is critical. Sharing stories, asking questions, and supporting those that speak out about their situations to me are all crucial aspects of social work.
Matti Sperry
I rather like your perspective on the word discrimination, Kelsey. Most words hold more than one definition and all too much we ignore alternate meanings. You’re probably correct as well; if we started using discrimination not with its negative meaning but with a meaning of acknowledging differences, it would open opportunities. People would be handed a new perspective and businesses that are marked as neutral would be given an opportunity to acknowledge differences in positive ways.
I had never thought of this perspective on this topic, but I rather like the idea of changing a word’s obvious meaning to one with more optimistic notions.
Kelsey McFarland
Matti,
You summarized my thoughts on it spot on! I’ve always had the opinion that it is easier for people to see the negatives than the positives. It is easier to be shadowed by the clouds than it is to fight to see the silver lining in things, and the same applies to language, even though it may not be something we do consciously. However, language is an extremely powerful tool we use to shape ideas, and in discovering more ways we can use it to our advantage, I think it will lead to more positive changes we will be able to see in the world.
Kaylila Johnston
Hello Kelsey,
You did a good job with your blog! I liked that you input your experiences because it made me put myself in your shoes. I related to and felt some things you have said. I agree that the word “discrimination”, should be up to date. Language changes over time and our worldviews evolve over time. To avoid conflict and negative perspectives we should keep moving forward, work with one another, provide neutrality and understanding, and adapt. We are living in the present where we should be viewing one another as equals. We should be creating diversity for future generations. Just like in history, we should be taking lessons from the past so that we can do better for now and for the future.
Quyana (Thank you) for sharing!
Kelsey McFarland
Hello Kaylila,
Thank you, I’m glad you could relate to my blog! I agree with what you said; we cannot move successfully into the future without first embracing the past, learning from it and from our many mistakes, and then putting our best foot forward into our futures. Understanding our flaws is not just a key part of being a social worker… it is something that is in my opinion a key part of life; you cannot truly achieve growth (individually and as a society) until this has been embraced.
Ariel Oviatt
Hi Kelsey,
I really appreciated your post and your story of driving around in California. I think that sharing that experience is one that takes honesty and humility, which are necessary traits to work in the social work field. As I read through your post, I found myself asking a couple of questions.
1) Where do you feel cultural appropriation falls in these categories? Some may argue that cultural appropriation is performed because someone wants to mimic another culture, but is doing so considered racist? How can anti-racism thinking be utilized to address this?
2) Do you feel the society pressures individual to discriminate against themselves, whether it be over disability status, gender identity, sexuality, race, etc.? How do we as social workers combat it?
Also, I really liked the mention in there that embracing the concept of a “colorblind” society is discriminatory. It would seem to me that embracing the concept of a “colorblind” society is to actually minimize the differences in between races, which is akin to “white-washing”. You can’t ignore that someone is from a different race or culture than yours, but you can embrace it and learn about how their race or their culture has impacted them in order to be more culturally competent and to better understand another individual.
Kelsey McFarland
Hi Ariel,
Those are hard questions! I’ll do my best to answer and share my POV.
1) Identifying the line between cultural appreciation and appropriation is something that has been an open debate for awhile now, between people of different and even the same ethnicities. There are several mixed views about it, over hundreds of examples. It is important to be able to appreciate another culture, without attempting to demean it or steal from it, but does that make participating in some of its practices appropriation? I am not sure, nor do I feel as though I am in a position to make those kinds of judgement calls. The general rule that I set for MYSELF though is that as long as I do not try to steal those aspects for my own, and give respect and credit to the cultures/ethnicities that it originates from, I’m staying a safe distance from crossing that line. With that being said, if someone did try to do those things, then I would say that is an act of racism, as it would be demeaning a culture or attempting to take from it.
2) I feel that society has definitely put pressure on identifying aspects of oneself from that of another. Individualism has become trend-like in today’s world, and I feel as if in some aspects it has become almost weaponized against us. While I strongly believe that it is critical to embrace and celebrate each of our individualities, it seems as though we have turned away from the positive aspects of that and in some ways let it become much more of an “us vs them” argument. People get too caught up in celebrating themselves or those that share attributes, personality traits, ideals, etc. with them and forget that as important as it is to recognize and love these things it is equally as important to appreciate the differences amongst us. If we were all to recognize this, I think the world would be a lot better of a place.