Why do many people of color sometimes feel uncomfortable even with friendly, well-intentioned white people?  Why might they want to avoid, when possible, situations or environments where the population is predominantly white?  I have heard whites in all white organizations wonder why more people of color don’t join or attend events:  “We’d love to be more diverse, but blacks and hispanics just don’t come.”

There is often a gap in how white folks and people of color experience interactions across the color line.  For example, a white person makes what she believes to be an innocent, friendly remark but notices that the person of color tenses and subtly withdraws.  This dynamic occurred in the following situation:

Rick and George have been working in the same department of a computer company for two years.  While they are sitting together at the annual company dinner, a bowl of grated cheese is being passed around the table. Rick who is white, says to George, a Japanese American, “You don’t like cheese do you?  Japanese people usually don’t like cheese.”  George tightens his jaw, silently takes the bowl without looking at Rick and sprinkles some cheese on his pasta.  Rick may simply be trying to connect or make conversation with George.  There is nothing cruel or blatantly racist in what he said.  But George might experience it very differently.

Being a member of a non-dominant group, George (who is not Japanese, but Japanese American) no doubt, has had many interactions in his lifetime where someone attempted to stereotype him.  These were interactions where someone instantly made assumptions about him, some of them probably negative, instead of taking the time to find out who he was as a unique individual.  In addition, and more importantly, these assumptions may have played a part in reducing his opportunities in life, such not being offered a job that he wanted.  Or one or more of his relatives may have been forced into a Japanese American internment camp during World War II.

In this vignette a person from the dominant racial group is telling him what food he doesn’t like. George’s ancestors may well have been in this country for three generations, as long or longer than Rick’s ancestors.  George is probably far more American than Japanese in most things, including his diet. Rick may feel that he was just being friendly, trying to get to know George better.  Yet George may think, “Here is yet another white person arrogantly making instant assumptions about me - treating me like I am a foreigner and like every other person of Japanese ancestry."

The purpose of this website is to examine problematic interactions between white people and people of color in order to better understand some of the unexamined assumptions whites may hold that are likely to get in the way of harmonious relationships with folks of color.  This is not to imply that people of color don’t have their own work to do in relationship with whites.  They do. But what is our part?  This is the question this website is addressing.

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