- Mar 11, 2015
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This is why I oppose what right wingers call colorblind meritocracy.
While we know race is a social construct and nonsensical, we can’t ignore race and the legacy of racial distinctions without reproducing the faux neutrality central to white supremacy. Pretending the laws that don’t mention race are neutral usually results in privileging the white cishet men who have historically made the same law.
Since the end of Jim Crow segregation, conservatives have had to enforce racism through “facially neutral” legislation (that is, laws that don’t mention race). They have had to rely on the discriminatory outcomes of neutral law that’s still racially targeted, such as voter ID requirements or mandatory minimum sentencing, all under the guise of “colorblindness” and the promise that the law does not see race.
The Voting Rights Act was a gold standard for race-conscious law in that it required the consideration of race when examining the impact of congressional district maps or voting restrictions.
That it worked meant it has also been repeatedly targeted by the Republicans.
The only way to address racial harm without reproducing white supremacist racism is by relying on the self-identification of those within the racialized groups. The court redefining Blackness is trying to subordinate Black people and define their group identity for them. Blackness must be defined by Black people.
So now the no government right wing wants the government to define what black is. Never mind that whites check off boxes and if a case was bought before the supreme court demanding the court to define whiteness the whining would be insufferable. But white privilege doesn't exist.
The Republicans want judges to define 'Black' | Opinion
The Republicans and their allies hope to take the country back to the time of asking judges to define race. That hope lies in the Supreme Court case concerning gerrymandering, Ardoin v. Robinson.While we know race is a social construct and nonsensical, we can’t ignore race and the legacy of racial distinctions without reproducing the faux neutrality central to white supremacy. Pretending the laws that don’t mention race are neutral usually results in privileging the white cishet men who have historically made the same law.
Since the end of Jim Crow segregation, conservatives have had to enforce racism through “facially neutral” legislation (that is, laws that don’t mention race). They have had to rely on the discriminatory outcomes of neutral law that’s still racially targeted, such as voter ID requirements or mandatory minimum sentencing, all under the guise of “colorblindness” and the promise that the law does not see race.
The Voting Rights Act was a gold standard for race-conscious law in that it required the consideration of race when examining the impact of congressional district maps or voting restrictions.
That it worked meant it has also been repeatedly targeted by the Republicans.
The only way to address racial harm without reproducing white supremacist racism is by relying on the self-identification of those within the racialized groups. The court redefining Blackness is trying to subordinate Black people and define their group identity for them. Blackness must be defined by Black people.
So now the no government right wing wants the government to define what black is. Never mind that whites check off boxes and if a case was bought before the supreme court demanding the court to define whiteness the whining would be insufferable. But white privilege doesn't exist.