It’s true that white is a made up term made to justify owning slaves and on that front it’s a meaningless way to group many different ethnicities. On the other hand as a white person I have to acknowledge that I am lumped in that group. I have privileges, and responsibilities because of it and there are social groups and spaces that are not for me. I can’t absolve myself of being white by saying white isn’t real.
I agree. It’s not about absolution. It’s about breaking down a culturally constructed instrument of oppression by refusing to participate in it. I can’t tell the world to stop treating me better because they think I’m white, which I believe is part of your point. But we do what we can, when we can, with knowledge of what we can and can’t.
It’s true that white is a made up term made to justify owning slaves and on that front it’s a meaningless way to group many different ethnicities. On the other hand as a white person I have to acknowledge that I am lumped in that group. I have privileges, and responsibilities because of it and there are social groups and spaces that are not for me. I can’t absolve myself of being white by saying white isn’t real.
I agree. It’s not about absolution. It’s about breaking down a culturally constructed instrument of oppression by refusing to participate in it. I can’t tell the world to stop treating me better because they think I’m white, which I believe is part of your point. But we do what we can, when we can, with knowledge of what we can and can’t.