Thinkin' 'Bout the Payback

Such is the situation I find myself in as a Straight White Male. Relaxing comfortably in my throne at the top of the societal power pyramid, I can assess my position of privilege -- not in the guilt-ridden frenzy that many will accuse me of, but rather an acknowledgment of how I benefit from the current existing order.

Currently there's a backlash against demonization of the SWM. It's not that difficult to see why. It's frustrating for SWM's who have fought against the status quo all their lives to be suddenly lumped in with the enemy, to be told that their contribution is no longer valid. And so polarizing politics serve to divide people involved in complex struggles and interpersonal relationships into teams with US and THEM on the jerseys.

A large amount of this frustration comes from the emphasis on history and guilt. Revisionism is a necessary and empowering first step. Re-evaluating the Discovery of the New World as a military invasion is valuable not only in understanding the continuing injustice visited on Turtle Island's indigenous peoples, but also in revealing how powerful propaganda is in repressing dissenting perspectives.

A certain amount of European-bashing is understandable, even desirable. The elevation of the African at the expense of the European is a perspective that can serve to counterbalance our society's current Eurocentric perspective. This is the positive spin to groups like the Nation of Islam. Ideally, no heritage would be raised above another -- practically, it serves as a source of self-esteem and emotional support.

SWM's have lived a life where their S-ness, W-ness and M-ness has been consistently accepted as supreme through subtle and blatant means too many to catalogue. Still, many of this class are willing to question this supremacy -- but few are willing to accept inferiority, even within the bubble of radical circles, even if it is in the interest of balancing the scales a bit. So we're at a point where radicals and conservatives alike mutter bitterly about the bum rap they're getting.

This is not a new phenomenon (Minor Threat sung "Guilty of being White" about a decade back) but it's one that is starting, like a shark fin, to be sighted quite often in the socio-political main stream. Certain egomaniacs like myself have developed a confidence base fairly independent of origin or status (though if you mock my fine taste in curtains I tend to break down). So, while I feel no more guilty for what my long-dead ancestors did than for what nasty things my father has done, there is a feeling of responsibility. Not for what they did -- but for how I personally have benefited from what they did. They established a system that is prejudiced towards my race, my gender and sexual orientation. So my responsibility is to smash that prejudice like an ugly vase.

It's a hard thing to accept that all the breaks we get aren't due to merit, or luck, but instead thanks to a system that fucks over others for our sake. Because then you start to see that we have a debt. That all of those privileges, perks, advantages that the Company put into our bank accounts were stolen from someone else.

I take immense enjoyment in walking alone at night. If I was a woman, I could not. What would I pay, in hard cash, for such a privilege? A friend tells me of how many stores he goes into give him "special attention" due to his being Jamaican. How much would he pay to escape such degrading treatment? How much would a gay man pay to be able to safely kiss his lover in public as the fancy took him?

William Upski, in his excellent book on graffiti, race theory and hip hop Bomb the Suburbs, likens the invisible power of privilege to wind in this analogy: a cyclist rides with the wind always at his back. When he sees another cyclist coming towards him (and against the wind) he doesn't understand why he's having so much trouble, and chalks it up to the other's weakness or his comparative strength.

It's not enough to pass a water bottle off to the cyclist as we pass. We've got to work against the very weather -- we've got to change the climate so that the wind itself is stilled. It's taken me a while to recognize that I am a part of the straight white male community. I can claim to be different, to be a punk, an anarchist -- but I still get the check, from the same Company that those rich, bloated, corrupt assholes-stuffed-into-suits belong to, and it's signed in suspiciously blotted red ink.

TIPS FOR CONSCIOUS WHITE BOYS

1. BE AWARE OF YOUR PREDISPOSITION TOWARDS POWER. 'Cause basically, we're bred to do just that -- become the ruling class. Like stupid water bison, we're socially engineered to use the tools of domination and aggression to get the positive reinforcement every human needs. So when you're arguing a point, make sure it's serving a purpose and not just to Win. And regardless of how excellent a strategist and orator you are, it's not your place (yes, I realize what that sounds like) to serve on the board of the Afrikan Defense League -- the damage to morale alone immediately cancels out any contribution you can make. In most cases, taking a position of power in a radical group is regressive -- it's a retelling of the SWM-as-boss-savior-god story that's caused so many of the problems in the first place.

2. DEAL WITH YOUR OWN SHIT, FIRST. Before you start dissing hip hop (and by extension the black community) for its misogyny, consider this (admittedly simplistic) theory: the black man is emasculated by the white man in a thousand daily power plays. Depoliticised, he turns his anger on the closest, most vulnerable target -- his women. So it's our community, the SWMs, who are the source and thus to blame. But within radical circles, it becomes easy to forget this source, and when the people we're struggling for show signs of imperfection we shake our heads in bewilderment, saying things like, "You'd think they would be the last ones to do that kind of thing." Ignoring the problems of struggling peoples is as misguided as romanticizing them, but it's not your place to blow the whistle. Criticism must come from within to be acceptable and effective, and you're not "within" regardless of your commitment. You've got contributions to make in critiquing and educating your own community -- since you're practically immune from accusations of self-interest.

3. LISTEN TO ME AND NEVER DEVIATE FROM THESE RULES. I've been involved in activist stuff for almost two years now, so everything I say is pretty much carved in the Stone of Ages. Nothing is up for discussion and a sharing of experience is futile, since I've already figured everything out.