Wednesday, November 29, 2006

White Supremacy

See, I can say that, acknowledge the ways it works, decry its existence all day long on this blog.

But for some reason, that was the hardest phrase for me to write into my dissertation. I wrote about intraethnic conflicts being characterized as if they occur solely between non-white racial/ethnic groups. What is often obscured, I said, is that they occur in a framework of white supremacy.

I debated and debated about using it. Would advisor think I had gone too far (and that is TOTALLY my projection. She has never given any indication that she underestimates the impact of white supremacy, especially on labor)? Am I sophisticated enough to make an argument to back that? Was there some other phrase I could use that wasn't so...

Harsh?

Eventually, cautiously, I used it. But for the life of me, I still can't explain my hesitance.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

i feel like sometimes if we use the words "Racist" or "white supremacy" we know we will immediately be challenged becasue those are 'serious' accusations. and so we sometimes hesitate to use them. go you, for saying it!

elle said...

i think you nailed it, justme

Revelations and ruminations from one southern sistorian...