From what I've seen, most accusations of "playing the race card" translate to "OMG! Someone said race might be relevant to this situation! But nobody's being enslaved or told to go to the back of the bus, ergo, we have no racism, ergo, they are just playing the race card to get away with something they shouldn't!"
AKA, "how dare this person of color insist on the same consideration and comfort that White people are due by right of birth."
Yeah, it's pretty obvious from listening to my students what "play the race card" means: that upholding the myth of the equal, post-racial society-- and by extension, white privilege within it-- depends on the staunch belief that none of our social problems are ever about race. That race is a superficial difference among people, and because it is superficial, anything that seems to be about race is always really about something else. That people of color presumably are totally equal, and don't have anything to complain about anymore; therefore, if they mention that racism is an issue, they are invoking superficial difference that presumably don't matter anymore in order to gain an unfair advantage. Basically, it's a whole lot of denial and projection. But I want to give them something to read that makes that point a whole lot more clearly than I can.
depends on the staunch belief that none of our social problems are ever about race.
It's generally not claimed that *none* of our problems are about race... just that whichever one is being discussed, is not about race, and therefore any mention of racial issues is "playing a card" to get special consideration or advantages.
And it's tied up with a whole lot of denial of privilege, and usually jumps right into all the "special bonuses" that have been carved out of white privilege.
That post makes the most brilliant point about racism I have seen before or since, and can easily be extended to sexism (think of the vitriol spewed at Secretary Clinton or Teresa Heinz Kerry).
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TransGriot: Sick of Hearing the Term "Race Card"
The Angry Black Woman: The Race Card
Both of those are short and sharp; comments on the latter are fascinating. And by "fascinating," I mean "headdesk inducing."
Stuff White People Do: Play the race card
From what I've seen, most accusations of "playing the race card" translate to "OMG! Someone said race might be relevant to this situation! But nobody's being enslaved or told to go to the back of the bus, ergo, we have no racism, ergo, they are just playing the race card to get away with something they shouldn't!"
AKA, "how dare this person of color insist on the same consideration and comfort that White people are due by right of birth."
Reply
Yeah, it's pretty obvious from listening to my students what "play the race card" means: that upholding the myth of the equal, post-racial society-- and by extension, white privilege within it-- depends on the staunch belief that none of our social problems are ever about race. That race is a superficial difference among people, and because it is superficial, anything that seems to be about race is always really about something else. That people of color presumably are totally equal, and don't have anything to complain about anymore; therefore, if they mention that racism is an issue, they are invoking superficial difference that presumably don't matter anymore in order to gain an unfair advantage. Basically, it's a whole lot of denial and projection. But I want to give them something to read that makes that point a whole lot more clearly than I can.
Reply
It's generally not claimed that *none* of our problems are about race... just that whichever one is being discussed, is not about race, and therefore any mention of racial issues is "playing a card" to get special consideration or advantages.
And it's tied up with a whole lot of denial of privilege, and usually jumps right into all the "special bonuses" that have been carved out of white privilege.
Reply
http://duikermeisie.livejournal.com/96414.html
That post makes the most brilliant point about racism I have seen before or since, and can easily be extended to sexism (think of the vitriol spewed at Secretary Clinton or Teresa Heinz Kerry).
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