Ali Michael, a writer for the Huffington Post, sometimes wishes she
wasn't white. And she decided in her 20s that she would not "have
biological children because I didn't want to propagate my privilege
biologically."
In an article titled, "I Sometimes Don't Want to Be White Either," Ms. Michael details her feelings on being white and the Rachel Dolezal story.
Ms. Michael writes of Dolezal, "She is stuck in the immersion/emersion
stage, in which White people, having learned extensively about the
realities of racism, and the ugly history of White supremacy in the
U.S., "immerse" themselves in trying to figure out how to be White in
our society, and "emerge" with a new relationship to Whiteness."
She concludes, "her way of dealing with the pain of the reality of racism, was to deny her own Whiteness and to become Black."
Ms. Michael notes that Dolezal is not alone, however. In fact, she went through it herself and identifies with Dolezal.
"I definitely experienced this," she explains. "There was a time in my
20s when everything I learned about the history of racism made me hate
myself, my Whiteness, my ancestors... and my descendants. I remember
deciding that I couldn't have biological children because I didn't want
to propagate my privilege biologically."
Thus, Ms. Michael details, she will never have children, but she may adopt.
Tuesday, June 23, 2015
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A good idea, I'd say.
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