Okay, a practical example of what I'm talking about: I've spent a lot of this twitter-conversation (and a lot of MANY convos I have in life)
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Replying to @csilverandgold @Noahpinion
Thinking, "how can I phrase this in a way that won't scare off this white man?" That's been a constant of anti-racist work for a LONG time.
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Replying to @csilverandgold @Noahpinion
Wouldn't it be nice if we had a paradigm where black folks could share their experiences WITHOUT spending our energy finding ways...
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Replying to @csilverandgold @Noahpinion
To say "hey you and people like you have been really shitty to me and people like me?" That somehow don't offend white people?
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Replying to @csilverandgold
But there are a million such platforms. Write a blog post. Post a YouTube video. Offend away, there's freedom of speech.
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Replying to @Noahpinion @csilverandgold
But if "not caring about offending white people" is a goal, then don't be surprised when white people get offended...
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Replying to @Noahpinion
But then how much of an "ally" are you if you can't even stand to hear my feelings in an unvarnished way?
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Replying to @csilverandgold @Noahpinion
And how are we going to build a world where black folks are free when all of our anti-racist work is focused on white feelings?
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Replying to @csilverandgold
Well, no one will ever be completely free, because we live in a society, and that means considering each other's feelings.
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Replying to @Noahpinion @csilverandgold
I try to explain this to libertarians. They dream of a totally free society where they don't have to consider anyone else's feelings.
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This isn't that. It's a dream of an equitable society where black feelings matter as much as white ones.
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Replying to @csilverandgold
Yeah. That's what I want. But it can only be achieved by valuing black feelings more, not devaluing all feelings equally.
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Replying to @Noahpinion
I hear that. And I'd like to believe that too, in a larger sense: it's about increasing black power not decreasing white power...
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