Special Kinds of White Guys
The three-step process for being a better white guy, readings for your racist uncle Larry, and this year's best posts on the Generic White Man.
Dear friends and fam,
Abs here again this week for another Bo Burnham special. We are returning to last week's newsletter on his recent Netflix special, Inside.
Here's a guest post calling IN, rather than OUT: a three-step guide to being a GWM: Good* White Man!
*a quick disclaimer by what we mean by good: Bo Burnam isn't necessarily a positive role model for growth for white men. However, due to the absence of exemplary white men across history, good in this case really means: he's a white man doing the bare minimum of what white men should all be doing. Using their privilege (and whatever that translates to for the individual) to lift up other voices and people, aka advance accurate equity. The idea here is not to deny your privilege or hate it but rather to use that privilege to do the work of our recently departed bell hooks says:
"how do we hold people accountable for wrongdoing and yet at the same time remain in touch with their humanity enough to believe in their capacity to be transformed?"
Click here to see the full video of "Comedy" from Bo Burnham's Netflix special "Inside."
The three steps we outline here are based on Bo Burnham's track titled "Comedy
about "special" white guys from his Netflix unique Inside sets out the bare minimum we should expect of GWM. But hey, we all gotta start somewhere.
White men are praised for acknowledging their past actions and understanding that great privilege comes with great responsibility. But when are those words, usually the empty words of politicians and pundits, ever held accountable? I'm saying here that we all feel like there's a lot of talking right now and minimal action. But also, let's Build Back Better with the figure of the white man.
Here are Not Safe for School's three-step system that GWM can take to actively diminish the effects of systemic racism, as illuminated by the second track of Burnham's special, "Comedy:"
In this track, Bo presents himself as a self-aware and self-appointed white savior of the universe, ready to "heal the world with comedy." He sings the following:
The world needs direction
From a white guy like me (Bingo)
Who is healing the world with comedy
The world is so fucked up. Systematic oppression, income inequality,
The other stuff…
So how can white men REALLY “use their privilege for the good?”
(Sneak peek: Speaking of white saviors... luck and theme would have it, NSFS is kicking January off with resources to do just that, but more on that next year. Subscribe for free to stay tuned!)
Context: How to be a better ally IRL (in real life)
Hi all, Abs here!
I want to share focus with an article by Tsedale M. Melaku, Angie Beeman, David Smith, and W. Brad Johnson, named "Be a Better Ally." It discusses the Black Lives Matter movement's impact on men in power. Specifically, they need to use their influence, knowledge, and resources to increase inclusivity and fairness in their organizations. They then move on to ask HOW white men can become influential allies.
Tsedale M. Melaku, Angie Beeman, David Smith, and W. Brad Johnson's HBR article "Be a Better Ally" defines "allyship" as "the strategic mechanism used by individuals to become collaborators, accomplices, and co-conspirators who fight injustice and promote equity in the workplace through supportive personal relationships and public acts of sponsorship and advocacy."
The authors write about instances where white male leaders are in positions to deny or avoid discussing racism. Maybe because it is uncomfortable, returning to last week's topic of white fragility. Reactions of guilt and anger during these discussions can prevent People of Color from trying to talk about racism with white people in general. Antiracism is simply uncomfortable, just as racism is uncomfortable for Black people and POC.
Bo struggles with guilt about his contribution to the shittiness of the world and how he benefits from it. But there is no cure for white guilt, and it doesn't help anyone, especially POC.
The people rising in the streets
The war, the drought
The more I look, the more I see nothing to joke about
Is comedy over? Should I leave you alone?
'Cause, really, who's gonna go for joking at a time like this?
Should I be joking at a time like this?
I wanna help to leave this world better than I found it
Emma Dabiri's book What White People Can Do Next contextualizes the panic and urgency showcased in Burnham's song that we all feel right now. But, most importantly, it tells us how to re-direct that anxiety into a productive self-dialog. As Dabiri puts it:
"History is now. We are living it. Suppose we can't accept the past and how it affects wealth, opportunity, knowledge production, and value systems. In that case, we remain doomed to repeat the same mistakes repeatedly. But equally, we cannot allow guilt and shame about the past to paralyze us into a state of inaction and avoidance."
Bo acknowledges his privilege a lot in his comedy in a self-loathing pattern. Like anything else, the irony of this song is mixed in with some sincerity. He may actually want to become an agent of change but feels powerless.
The world is changing
The planet's heating up
What the fuck is going on?
Rearranging
It's like everything happened all at once
Um, what the fuck is going on?
People rising in the streets
Here's NSFS's Three-Step Guide to Being a Better White Man:
Step One: Unlearn (white) guilt and shame
Emma Dabiri explains in her short book What White People Can Do Next: "You are not responsible for what your ancestors did. You are, however, responsible for what you do [and] for uncritically accepting all the advantages accrued to you under land grabs, wealth acquisition, and their justification story: 'white supremacy.'"
What this means: Accept responsibility not for what your ancestors did but for what you do and think. Don't let whiteness dictate your actions: process your white guilt and shame (on your own damn time).
How to do this IRL:
Go to therapy.
Learn to spot the ways white supremacy has poisoned your mind.
Process your white guilt and shame (on your own damn time).
Pro-tip: Always remember that it is far more painful to be oppressed than to find yourself in the role of the oppressor.
Step two: Re-learn the world around you.
So how can "special kinds of white guys" take this privilege and dismantle systematic oppression?
I want to help to leave this world better than I found it […]
Should I stop trying to be funny?
Should I give away my money? No!
The world needs direction
From a white guy like me (Bingo)
What this means:
While it is easier to ask a Black person or a POC about their experiences with inequality, as previously discussed, it is an unfair burden on their emotional and cognitive labor. However, when permission is granted and POC are open to having these conversations, these conversations are encouraged. This article provides several prompts for white people to start with a learning mindset.
How to do this IRL:
Pro-tip: Remember, education requires you to be honest with yourself before authentic learning can occur, so if you still need to arrive, go back to step one and repeat.
Step three: Stop Talking and Listen to BIPOC communities.
American white guys
We've had the floor for at least four hundred years
So maybe I should just shut the fuck up
What this means:
Await orders and further instructions from your BIPOC allies and FFS, don't ask them to help you do the work (step one) or re-educate you (step two). Instead, ask what you can do. As Emma Dabiri instructs us in What White People Can Do Next: if you are a white person in an "antiracist" space with people from minoritized groups, it is imperative to not dominate these spaces. When in doubt, ask yourself: "Do you really know what you are talking about? Are you speaking over others with the same expertise? Has a lifelong process of conditioning about your own superiority allowed you to assert yourself and speak over others who are, in fact, a lot more qualified?
What this looks like IRL:
These are all things to be navigated and negotiated with grace and an openness to feedback (the exact mindset that step one makes possible)
Recognize the privilege you have automatically been rewarded as a white man/person, which might mean admitting that you have not earned all of your success. When looking for feedback from P.O.C., establish trusting relationships and recognize the power dynamic.
The last tip from Teasdale I want to touch on is to see something and say something. Every American who has taken a bus, plane, or train post 9/11 has heard this phrase. Still, it can also be applied to Black Lives Matter and the fight against anti-racism movements.
The slogan is meant to encourage citizens to report potential threats of terrorism. Still, when applied to Black Lives Matter, it means looking out for each other in a system that brutalizes people they intend to protect and serve. On a smaller scale, you should also be calling out microaggressions by your peers, which I touched on last week.
So, boost the voices of Black people and P.O.C., educate yourself, speak up and challenge racism, and keep the conversations moving with other white people.
The Black Lives Matter movement is centered around centuries of inequality and racism directly affecting the black community. The job of a white person at these protests isn't to loot, destroy, or set things on fire. Instead, white people at rallies should do everything in their power to put themselves between the bodies of police and P.O.C.
Until next time!!
Abs & Allison
Like what you read? Please share Not Safe for School with those interested in learning more about racism in public education.
Coming in 2022 to N.S.F.S.: descriptive lists of recommended reading for all levels and interests about systemic racism, white supremacy, and U.S. education. And a guide for banishing your inner white savior.
N.S.F.S.: Not Safe for School, your snark-filled antidote to racism and corruption in education. Follow @postphdtheblog on Twitter and @allisonharbin_postphd on Instagram.
P.S. What We're Reading:
“Why Coalition, Not Allyship Is the Necessary Next Step in the Racial Justice Movement,” an interview with the author of What White People Can Do Next (also mentioned in this NSFS post): Emma Dabiri for Time by Suyin Haynes. June 22, 2021.
"Black Lives Matter May Be the Largest Movement in U.S. History," by Larry Buchanan, Quoctrung, and Jugal K Patel. New York Times. July 3, 20202.
“Five bell hooks Quotes to Carry With You While Trying to Create a More Equitable World” by Janice Gassam Asare. Forbes. December 15, 2021. This article is simple, direct, and offers a great introduction to bell hooks for your uncle Larry. It includes the actual bell hooks quote: “how do we hold people accountable for wrongdoing and yet at the same time remain in touch with their humanity enough to believe in their capacity to be transformed?”
Free resources:
Check out this list of books to get started on anti-racist education.
Take time to read, listen, and watch first.
Study the history of systematic racism and consider your own perpetuation.
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I come by my disdain honestly in a long tradition of southern writers who remain obsessed with the uneasy cultural quagmire of postbellum southern history.