Commentary to People of Color Vignette #5 (no race or ethnic group specified) Written by a white woman I have never thought of myself as a racist, but just recently I’ve realized what a segregated world I live in -- even within the progressive circles of the San Francisco Bay Area. Reading Alice Walker, Leslie Ann Silko, bell hooks and other non-white writers, listening to their interviews and talks, and watching movies and television programs about them has given me the illusion of being in relationship with non-whites while allowing me to remain comfortable in my privileged white skin. These intellectual exercises have kept "the other" at a safe distance, where I relate only in abstraction.” View Commentary to People of Color Vignette #5 Breaking out of an all-white world can be challenging for many white people - especially for those of us who don’t interact with people of color in our work settings. This is true even for white folks who are extremely interested in other cultures or who are specifically doing white anti-racist work. We may truly want to seek out friends of color but are faced with difficult questions such as - What are my motives for wanting friends of color? Where would I go to meet them? Would I be accepted by people of color? What if I say something stupid or offensive? Sometimes we might need to examine our motives when reaching out to folks of color. Examples of unhelpful motivations might be a desire to eliminate one’s white guilt, a desire to present a hip image to others by having diverse friends, or a desire to be educated about racism. All these motives contain an element of using people of color. An African American conceptual artist, damali ayo, has created a web site called rent-a-negro.com which plays off this very inclination. She has already received more than 500 requests for her services! If you are interested in “breaking-out,” one of the first steps is to notice how white your world is. Often when I’m in a group I look around to see if there are people of color present. Many times they are not

People of Color Vignette #5
(no race or ethnic group specified)

Written by a white woman

I have never thought of myself as a racist, but just recently I’ve realized what a segregated world I live in -- even within the progressive circles of the San Francisco Bay Area. Reading Alice Walker, Leslie Ann Silko, bell hooks and other non-white writers, listening to their interviews and talks, and watching movies and television programs about them has given me the illusion of being in relationship with non-whites while allowing me to remain comfortable in my privileged white skin. These intellectual exercises have kept "the other" at a safe distance, where I relate only in abstraction.”

Commentary to People of Color Vignette #5

Breaking out of an all-white world can be challenging for many white people - especially for those of us who don’t interact with people of color in our work settings. This is true even for white folks who are extremely interested in other cultures or who are specifically doing white anti-racist work. We may truly want to seek out friends of color but are faced with difficult questions such as - What are my motives for wanting friends of color? Where would I go to meet them? Would I be accepted by people of color? What if I say something stupid or offensive?

Sometimes we might need to examine our motives when reaching out to folks of color. Examples of unhelpful motivations might be a desire to eliminate one’s white guilt, a desire to present a hip image to others by having diverse friends, or a desire to be educated about racism. All these motives contain an element of using people of color. An African American conceptual artist, damali ayo, has created a web site called rent-a-negro.com which plays off this very inclination. She has already received more than 500 requests for her services!

If you are interested in “breaking-out,” one of the first steps is to notice how white your world is. Often when I’m in a group I look around to see if there are people of color present. Many times they are not. Often white folks are so accustomed to being in all-white situations that they don't even realize when people of color are absent.

A second step could be to set an intention to widen your circle of acquaintances and friends. Such an intention can help you identify opportunities to connect with people of color and can encourage you to extend yourself further when such opportunities arise.

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