The Spaghetti Test.
I always say that cognitive dissonance is America’s love language. Picture a gift wrapped up pretty and tight but, on the inside, instead of the justice we asked for, there’s coal. You’re visibly disappointed, but the gift giver flashes a brilliant, toothy smile. Clasps their hands together in excitement and asks, “You like it, right? I know it’s not exactly what you asked for, but it’s the best I could do.” That is America in a nutshell regarding addressing (or not addressing) its problem with racial injustice. There is a halfhearted attempt to acknowledge that racism is wrong but no investment in change. An outraged response to someone’s pain that is not rooted in accountability is chiefly meant to assuage white guilt and bypass accountability. There can be no change without acknowledgment of fault (because hell yes it’s somebody’s fault).
Most Black people I know refer to America’s racial “awakening” and sudden affinity for BLM yard signs as “before 2020” and “after 2020”. Finally, we didn’t have to whisper Black Lives Matter; we could scream it and even say it at work! (Unless of course, you work at Starbucks or Whole Foods, mucho shade intended) Suddenly non-Black people were starting book clubs and having discussions. Soon it became clear that the people being centered were the same people racism does not affect, and “the work” was a euphemism for gentle cleansing of consciousness and not the repudiation of whiteness and its privileges.
To further complicate things, two years later, Black folks are seeing a rise in organizing from people who shied away from disruption in the past. This paid family leave movement is powerful. There are whole think pieces with action items, people creating demands (not asks), blowing up the Instagram pages of Congressfolks…it’s an absolute force. And don’t get me wrong, I’m here for it. But. I can’t help but wonder where this energy is when Black children are handcuffed at school by school “resource” officers. Where is this energy each year for Black maternal health week? We regurgitate statistics for Black death over and over without action items (other than reading this think piece/book/article”), and then we do it all again the following year. Where was this organizational fortitude, people happily redistributing portions of their paychecks to fund #savepaidleave? First, we got systemic racism acknowledged and then somewhere along the way, “it exists” became the standard and I’m here to say that isn’t enough.
Last year on my Instagram I posted about how the National Institute of Health in an effort to acknowledge “diversity” replaced the faces of white researchers that have long lined the halls with cartoon renderings of Black and Brown researchers who work there. Now I’m not in the field of research, but I know that funding for Black researchers and anything benefiting people who have been minoritized is disproportional. Black researchers and researchers of color must deal with covert and overt racism from their team and colleagues and swallow it, as we all do at work. Cartoon renderings of their faces… I can be reasonably sure that no one, not one, asked the NIH to prioritize that.
Talking about racism, and performative gestures like what I just described is throwing the proverbial noodle at the wall and hoping it sticks. While simultaneously praying the cook doesn’t come in and ask why you’re playing games when your time and attention were supposed to be spent doing something different — i.e, productive. Additionally we know the stickiness of pasta does not indicate when its done. Pasta cooks from the out, so while it may seem “done” at first glance because it sticks, the inside is not and it will slide down the wall, sooner than later.
In 2022 the work is not “done” just because we name racism and talk about it. That’s throwing something out aned hoping it sticks. This rush to master antiracism education hinders progress. Acknowledging the work is not the work. In 2022 we will not stop critiquing people (of any color) who declare themselves activists for repeatedly saying out loud, “racism sucks.” Mainly because the people who *actually* do the work are suffering greatly from the stress it takes to truth tell, organize, lead and who repeatedly risk retaliation. Performance and weak protestation in front of people in power is not dissent; naming it as such is dangerous. Talking about racism is useless to our liberation. There is nothing new under the sun, no resource explaining power and privilege and that has not been tapped. If people wanted to they would. And because they don’t, we disrupt. Period.
