I'm a White Male...and I Refuse to Be Ashamed
I am the most hated man in America. Apparently me and white men everywhere and at all times in history are responsible for everything wrong with the world. Every time a white man commits a heinous crime, as did the New Zealand shooter, it is confirmation in the eyes of many of the evil lurking just beneath our pale skin. As a white man I am fair game for invective, discrimination and insult, I am guilty by definition and absent any evidence, I am personally responsible for the evil acts of all white men now and throughout history. Yet I've never owned a slave, I've never been a member of the Nazi party, I don't think my race is superior than any other, I've never oppressed anyone of any race or assaulted anyone of any gender. I don't hate people who are black or brown or yellow and I don't think women are inferior. But my statements don't matter, society has branded me an oppressive sexist and racist and all my words or actions to the contrary are ignored.
Don't you think its time to be honest? White men do not hold the title of violent oppressor alone. Every race, every people in history have waged war, enslaved, and murdered. Mao, a non white male, killed tens of millions more people than Hitler or Stalin. Black people in Africa and brown people in Central and South America kill and murder each other all the time in revolutions and counter revolutions. Brown people in the Middle East still stone women and throw homosexuals off roofs. The point is no race can claim moral superiority over another, all have individuals or groups within them that are guilty of horrendous actions.
The flip side is that every people and race can point to great lights among them. I can take pride in the fact that it was white men in Athens that developed democracy, white men in Rome that created the republican model, white men in Italy and Europe who birthed the Renaissance, and white men in Britain and America who developed the philosophy of individual liberty and sovereignty that birthed the greatest national experiment in freedom in history. This is not to mention all the contributions white men have made in science, literature and art. Cannot I take pride in that? I do, but not because these achievements were made by white men but because they were made by human beings who just happened to be white men. To me, race is incidental and unimportant.
However, to too many, race and gender are central, they are the only things that matter. It is the first consideration when evaluation anything, everything is viewed through colored lenses. The promotion of race and gender, as long as that race is not white and that gender is not male, is the life's work of more and more people in this country. Yet is not working for the advancement of one race over another the very definition of racism, the elevation of one gender over another the essence of sexism? But is seems only white men can be guilty of these sins. There can be a Black or Hispanic caucus in congress that are not deemed racist yet they exist to seek benefits and privileges for a particular class of people based on their skin color. There are innumerable organizations that promote a specific race or national origin, sexual orientation, and gender and they are approved of and admired. Their exclusionary nature is accepted without question. NOW is not sexist, the NAACP is not racist, GLAAD is not heterophobic but if a group of white men got together and formed the National Organization for the Advancement of White Men they would immediately be labeled a racist Nazi white power group. And black men and white women would sue to become part of it based on its discriminatory nature! There can be gay pride, black pride but never can the words “white pride” be utterted. Freedom of association is a fundamental liberty that seems to apply to everyone except white men.
No, different rules apply to white men. I am expected to personally do penance for every past and present sin of my race and gender yet, for example, I am expected to go out of my way to embrace the peace loving nature of every individual Muslim whenever one of their compatriots commits a horrible act. If every Muslim is not a potential terrorist, why is every white male assumed to be a violent, predatory racist? Shouldn't each individual be judged on their own words and actions and not on the actions of people they don't know or associate with? Assigning the sins of an individual to an entire group based solely on race or gender is unfair and wrong. It creates and reinforces stereotypes, sows the seeds of distrust and divides people. Eventually it leads to the balkanization of society and that will eventually tear a society apart. Personally I hate the fact that today when I see a person of a different race I now wonder if they look at me with contempt, if they hate or resent me and, if given the chance, would they would harm me. I didn't think that way twenty or thirty years ago but after decades or hearing how I, as a white male, am responsible for all the ills of everyone else, can you blame me for being just a little paranoid?
Speaking of mental illness, have we not become schizophrenic in this country about race? On one hand America is the most racist country in the world. There are those who speak as if chattel slavery only ended a decade ago and every white male was an enthusiastic participant. People speak of reparations and happily use the power of government to coerce institutions, businesses and individuals to integrate, force hiring and association. Any move to repeal or even scale back these programs is racist. In fact, anytime a white male disagrees with another person, he is labeled racist. It has become the go to epithet that is supposed to end all argument. An epithet usually hurled by a liberal democrat who associates with a party that has a long history of violent racism.
On the other hand, we have had black men and women at the highest levels of power in our country. The richest woman in the country is black. People of all races and both sexes have been successful in all fields from science to entertainment to business. In fact, race is becoming a meaningless label. Interracial relationships have become normal and produced children. How does an individual like our first 'black' president self identify; with the oppressive white side or the oppressed black side? Its a ridiculous question. And now we have DNA profiles that show the vast majority of us are of mixed pedigree, at least to some extent.
So if the races are becoming mixed through interrelationships and science is demonstrating that most of us are some mix of races, what is race in America today? Has it has become simply self identification for some benefit or to create a bogeyman? Did Barak Obama choose to identify with his black side to gain political advantage? Does the media create terms like “white Hispanic” to create racial tension? If the reality is that race as a scientific classification for individuals is becoming meaningless, then racial distinction and the tension that the people who emphasize those distinctions create has another foundation. Racial and sexual divisions are no longer scientific but political.
Why is this self identification so important? Historically, self identification with a race or people gave an individual a sense of belonging, a history. As an Italian, I can take pride in the fact that my people produced men like Michelangelo and Leonardo Da Vinchi (Nero and Mussolini, not so much). Irish, Polish, people of African decent, Native Americans, anyone can find meaning through a connection with their ancestors. And since America was once a great melting pot, there is usually more than one branch to the family tree that merits exploration. Today, ancestral pride does not automatically lead to segregation, it does not come at the expense of others, it does not lead to contempt or hate. Diverse ancestry should be celebrated and the differences should be respected by everyone. A post racial society is not homogeneous, it is one in which all are treated respectfully.
However, self identification for political purposes is far and above self identification for personal enlightenment as a reason for labels in America today. Racial and sexual divisions have political and social consequences as well as economic benefits. Why would a biracial person such as Barak Obama choose to self identify as black instead of white if “white privilege” was such a benefit? Because there are legal benefits such as affirmative action that come with “black”. There are social benefits, especially in politics, to being identified with the “underdog” instead of the “ruling class” i.e. white men. Elizabeth Warren, an obviously white woman, received a social and economic benefit from self identifying as a Native American. Different rules apply to self identified “minorities”. Several years ago Bank of America was actively seeking illegal immigrants as customers. If I, as a white male citizen attempted to open up a bank account without proper identification and a social security number, I'd be told to pound sand. But if a “brown” person who doesn't speak English shows up, no problemo.
The social and legal ramifications of being labeled racist, sexist or discriminatory has led not only to the different application of rules and laws to different groups, but some absurdities in self identification. We had a white woman with kinky hair passing herself off as black and heading up a local NAACP chapter. We have men self identifying as women and women as men. When the scientific basis for racial distinction is inadequate and the scientific fact of gender is ignored, anyone can become anything. The only thing you don't want to be is a white male for it is the white male that is the most contemptible in our society. But for the white male, unless he wants to identify as homosexual or as a white woman, his skin tone condemns him to the lowest rung on the group identification ladder. He is by definition a racist, sexist, homophobe, xenophobe, Islamophobe scumbag who must feel eternal guilt, do eternal penance and submit to the contempt and disdain of society with a smile,
I, for one, will not. I will not feel guilty for the deeds of others just because they happen to look like me. I will not do penance for actions not my own. I will not walk around with my eyes lowered or meekly listen to others condemn me for the tone of my skin, my gender and my heterosexuality. I do not need to be “healed” of my “internal whiteness.” (yes that's a thing!) I actually believe that a man or woman should be judged on the content of their character and not some accident of their birth. And while I can acknowledge my country's mistakes and sins, I will show fierce pride in its ideals and the blessing it has been to the world.
It is the ideals of this country have made it great. Liberty, equality, justice, compassion, generosity, common sense. Just because white men founded this nation on those ideals does not mean those ideals are exclusive to white men, that is absurd. And because I strongly believe in those principles and want to make sure they remain the foundation of the country I love does not make me a racist. It is not racist to want to exclude people from immigrating that fervently believe in an intolerant, sexist, totalitarian ideology. Islam, as it is practiced in most middle eastern countries is just that. But that is not a racist position. I would not want white Russian communists to immigrate for the same reason. It is not racist to want to control who comes in in general. I don't want criminals, people with diseases, people who are going to be a burden, people who have no desire to assimilate. American culture means something and while it may evolve over time it must remain rooted in the aforementioned fundamental ideals and principles. Flooding it with people )regardless of what color they are) who don't share those ideals and principles is a sure way to destroy it. I am not going to be silent in the face of those who advocate such things and I will not accept the label “racist” for opposing them.
I believe that the foundational social contract in society is marriage between an actual man and an actual woman. This has been true for millennia and we dilute or marginalize that institution at our peril. That does not make me sexist or homophobic. Do what you want, I can tolerate your personal choices, that is what freedom is all about. But don't expect me to accept it, don't try to shove it down my throat and don't expect me to agree that your lifestyle should be a legally protected class. The idea of a legally protected class for any reason is anathema to the principle of equal protection under the law.
I believe in hard work and that the products of that work belong to the one who produces it and no one else. Private property should be sacrosanct, it is the foundation of liberty. I don't care what color or sex the producer is, the results belongs to him or her. Therefore, my opposition to socialism and communism is not racist, sexist or homophobic. I disagree with Maxine Waters or Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez not because they're “women of color” but because they're communists.
I believe in common sense. Men are men and women are women. The climate on this planet has changed for four billion years and there is nothing we can do about it. Stealing is wrong even when disguised as charity. Killing babies is an abomination. Two plus two will always be four. The refusal of people to use their turn signals is just plain stupid. Utopia cannot be created through coercion. None of this has anything to do with race or sex. Common courtesy, the golden rule, decent manners, respect, they are not the possessions of one group to the exclusion of others, they are the mark of a healthy society. We have lost these things in our rush to embrace fabricated identities for the purpose of depreciating others. The individual is the only group that matters; the individual character and virtue, the individual as a moral actor, the individual as someone of value by virtue of their humanity. That is the society I believe in, the one I will speak up for, the one I will fight for. The fact that I am a red blooded American white male has nothing to do with it.
www.michaelcalpino.com
for more on fundamental liberty read “And Hashticharot Smiled”
Don't you think its time to be honest? White men do not hold the title of violent oppressor alone. Every race, every people in history have waged war, enslaved, and murdered. Mao, a non white male, killed tens of millions more people than Hitler or Stalin. Black people in Africa and brown people in Central and South America kill and murder each other all the time in revolutions and counter revolutions. Brown people in the Middle East still stone women and throw homosexuals off roofs. The point is no race can claim moral superiority over another, all have individuals or groups within them that are guilty of horrendous actions.
The flip side is that every people and race can point to great lights among them. I can take pride in the fact that it was white men in Athens that developed democracy, white men in Rome that created the republican model, white men in Italy and Europe who birthed the Renaissance, and white men in Britain and America who developed the philosophy of individual liberty and sovereignty that birthed the greatest national experiment in freedom in history. This is not to mention all the contributions white men have made in science, literature and art. Cannot I take pride in that? I do, but not because these achievements were made by white men but because they were made by human beings who just happened to be white men. To me, race is incidental and unimportant.
However, to too many, race and gender are central, they are the only things that matter. It is the first consideration when evaluation anything, everything is viewed through colored lenses. The promotion of race and gender, as long as that race is not white and that gender is not male, is the life's work of more and more people in this country. Yet is not working for the advancement of one race over another the very definition of racism, the elevation of one gender over another the essence of sexism? But is seems only white men can be guilty of these sins. There can be a Black or Hispanic caucus in congress that are not deemed racist yet they exist to seek benefits and privileges for a particular class of people based on their skin color. There are innumerable organizations that promote a specific race or national origin, sexual orientation, and gender and they are approved of and admired. Their exclusionary nature is accepted without question. NOW is not sexist, the NAACP is not racist, GLAAD is not heterophobic but if a group of white men got together and formed the National Organization for the Advancement of White Men they would immediately be labeled a racist Nazi white power group. And black men and white women would sue to become part of it based on its discriminatory nature! There can be gay pride, black pride but never can the words “white pride” be utterted. Freedom of association is a fundamental liberty that seems to apply to everyone except white men.
No, different rules apply to white men. I am expected to personally do penance for every past and present sin of my race and gender yet, for example, I am expected to go out of my way to embrace the peace loving nature of every individual Muslim whenever one of their compatriots commits a horrible act. If every Muslim is not a potential terrorist, why is every white male assumed to be a violent, predatory racist? Shouldn't each individual be judged on their own words and actions and not on the actions of people they don't know or associate with? Assigning the sins of an individual to an entire group based solely on race or gender is unfair and wrong. It creates and reinforces stereotypes, sows the seeds of distrust and divides people. Eventually it leads to the balkanization of society and that will eventually tear a society apart. Personally I hate the fact that today when I see a person of a different race I now wonder if they look at me with contempt, if they hate or resent me and, if given the chance, would they would harm me. I didn't think that way twenty or thirty years ago but after decades or hearing how I, as a white male, am responsible for all the ills of everyone else, can you blame me for being just a little paranoid?
Speaking of mental illness, have we not become schizophrenic in this country about race? On one hand America is the most racist country in the world. There are those who speak as if chattel slavery only ended a decade ago and every white male was an enthusiastic participant. People speak of reparations and happily use the power of government to coerce institutions, businesses and individuals to integrate, force hiring and association. Any move to repeal or even scale back these programs is racist. In fact, anytime a white male disagrees with another person, he is labeled racist. It has become the go to epithet that is supposed to end all argument. An epithet usually hurled by a liberal democrat who associates with a party that has a long history of violent racism.
On the other hand, we have had black men and women at the highest levels of power in our country. The richest woman in the country is black. People of all races and both sexes have been successful in all fields from science to entertainment to business. In fact, race is becoming a meaningless label. Interracial relationships have become normal and produced children. How does an individual like our first 'black' president self identify; with the oppressive white side or the oppressed black side? Its a ridiculous question. And now we have DNA profiles that show the vast majority of us are of mixed pedigree, at least to some extent.
So if the races are becoming mixed through interrelationships and science is demonstrating that most of us are some mix of races, what is race in America today? Has it has become simply self identification for some benefit or to create a bogeyman? Did Barak Obama choose to identify with his black side to gain political advantage? Does the media create terms like “white Hispanic” to create racial tension? If the reality is that race as a scientific classification for individuals is becoming meaningless, then racial distinction and the tension that the people who emphasize those distinctions create has another foundation. Racial and sexual divisions are no longer scientific but political.
Why is this self identification so important? Historically, self identification with a race or people gave an individual a sense of belonging, a history. As an Italian, I can take pride in the fact that my people produced men like Michelangelo and Leonardo Da Vinchi (Nero and Mussolini, not so much). Irish, Polish, people of African decent, Native Americans, anyone can find meaning through a connection with their ancestors. And since America was once a great melting pot, there is usually more than one branch to the family tree that merits exploration. Today, ancestral pride does not automatically lead to segregation, it does not come at the expense of others, it does not lead to contempt or hate. Diverse ancestry should be celebrated and the differences should be respected by everyone. A post racial society is not homogeneous, it is one in which all are treated respectfully.
However, self identification for political purposes is far and above self identification for personal enlightenment as a reason for labels in America today. Racial and sexual divisions have political and social consequences as well as economic benefits. Why would a biracial person such as Barak Obama choose to self identify as black instead of white if “white privilege” was such a benefit? Because there are legal benefits such as affirmative action that come with “black”. There are social benefits, especially in politics, to being identified with the “underdog” instead of the “ruling class” i.e. white men. Elizabeth Warren, an obviously white woman, received a social and economic benefit from self identifying as a Native American. Different rules apply to self identified “minorities”. Several years ago Bank of America was actively seeking illegal immigrants as customers. If I, as a white male citizen attempted to open up a bank account without proper identification and a social security number, I'd be told to pound sand. But if a “brown” person who doesn't speak English shows up, no problemo.
The social and legal ramifications of being labeled racist, sexist or discriminatory has led not only to the different application of rules and laws to different groups, but some absurdities in self identification. We had a white woman with kinky hair passing herself off as black and heading up a local NAACP chapter. We have men self identifying as women and women as men. When the scientific basis for racial distinction is inadequate and the scientific fact of gender is ignored, anyone can become anything. The only thing you don't want to be is a white male for it is the white male that is the most contemptible in our society. But for the white male, unless he wants to identify as homosexual or as a white woman, his skin tone condemns him to the lowest rung on the group identification ladder. He is by definition a racist, sexist, homophobe, xenophobe, Islamophobe scumbag who must feel eternal guilt, do eternal penance and submit to the contempt and disdain of society with a smile,
I, for one, will not. I will not feel guilty for the deeds of others just because they happen to look like me. I will not do penance for actions not my own. I will not walk around with my eyes lowered or meekly listen to others condemn me for the tone of my skin, my gender and my heterosexuality. I do not need to be “healed” of my “internal whiteness.” (yes that's a thing!) I actually believe that a man or woman should be judged on the content of their character and not some accident of their birth. And while I can acknowledge my country's mistakes and sins, I will show fierce pride in its ideals and the blessing it has been to the world.
It is the ideals of this country have made it great. Liberty, equality, justice, compassion, generosity, common sense. Just because white men founded this nation on those ideals does not mean those ideals are exclusive to white men, that is absurd. And because I strongly believe in those principles and want to make sure they remain the foundation of the country I love does not make me a racist. It is not racist to want to exclude people from immigrating that fervently believe in an intolerant, sexist, totalitarian ideology. Islam, as it is practiced in most middle eastern countries is just that. But that is not a racist position. I would not want white Russian communists to immigrate for the same reason. It is not racist to want to control who comes in in general. I don't want criminals, people with diseases, people who are going to be a burden, people who have no desire to assimilate. American culture means something and while it may evolve over time it must remain rooted in the aforementioned fundamental ideals and principles. Flooding it with people )regardless of what color they are) who don't share those ideals and principles is a sure way to destroy it. I am not going to be silent in the face of those who advocate such things and I will not accept the label “racist” for opposing them.
I believe that the foundational social contract in society is marriage between an actual man and an actual woman. This has been true for millennia and we dilute or marginalize that institution at our peril. That does not make me sexist or homophobic. Do what you want, I can tolerate your personal choices, that is what freedom is all about. But don't expect me to accept it, don't try to shove it down my throat and don't expect me to agree that your lifestyle should be a legally protected class. The idea of a legally protected class for any reason is anathema to the principle of equal protection under the law.
I believe in hard work and that the products of that work belong to the one who produces it and no one else. Private property should be sacrosanct, it is the foundation of liberty. I don't care what color or sex the producer is, the results belongs to him or her. Therefore, my opposition to socialism and communism is not racist, sexist or homophobic. I disagree with Maxine Waters or Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez not because they're “women of color” but because they're communists.
I believe in common sense. Men are men and women are women. The climate on this planet has changed for four billion years and there is nothing we can do about it. Stealing is wrong even when disguised as charity. Killing babies is an abomination. Two plus two will always be four. The refusal of people to use their turn signals is just plain stupid. Utopia cannot be created through coercion. None of this has anything to do with race or sex. Common courtesy, the golden rule, decent manners, respect, they are not the possessions of one group to the exclusion of others, they are the mark of a healthy society. We have lost these things in our rush to embrace fabricated identities for the purpose of depreciating others. The individual is the only group that matters; the individual character and virtue, the individual as a moral actor, the individual as someone of value by virtue of their humanity. That is the society I believe in, the one I will speak up for, the one I will fight for. The fact that I am a red blooded American white male has nothing to do with it.
www.michaelcalpino.com
for more on fundamental liberty read “And Hashticharot Smiled”
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