If a black friend of mine showed up at a costume-ish party with his exposed skin dyed white that would bother me; I would feel a little insulted. That is not what I need help with. That is how I would feel. What I need help with is understanding why that would bother me.
In trying to understand the Justin Trudeau brouhaha..when we try to understand anything we don't at first understand it is de rigueur to "put yourself in the other guy's shoes." I started out trying to articulate in my mind the answer to "why does that bother black people?" and couldn't intellectually come up with an articulable reason. I then went to what if I, Benjamin Harris, old white guy, was at the party and my friend Justin Trudeau showed up in blackface. It would bother me. Is he making fun of black people? I would think. If there were other of my black friends at the party I would be fucking furious...for my black friends. But is that the test? What I think my black friends would think? What if I was wrong and they weren't bothered by it? I don't think that that is plausible but it's possible! Would I then feel like an ass? I would be surprised. Black friends: "Ben, Ben, calm down." It doesn't bother me. If that happened, no, I would still be bothered by it. Why? I still can't articulate it.
I thought of near analogies. If the...face changer...If the face changer went further, as I imagine one might do at a costume-ish party (Perhaps you gather that I have never been to a costume party and if you gather that you have gathered correctly.), if my black friend also came with blonde wig--that would start to piss me off; what if he affected, say, a Middle-Atlantic accent (William F. Buckley)? Then--my reaction, okay, I don't know why--then I think it would be funny. (?) But now conversely, if Justin Trudeau put on an Afro wig and started talking with a blackcent, I as an old white guy, I'd kick his ass out of the party or if it was not my party to be kicking I would unfriend Justin.
Near analogies: A friend shows up cross-dressed (Rudy Giuliani). That still weirds me the fuck out but I would not be bothered with the same concern that he was making fun of another class of people. It weirds me out, doesn't bother or insult me.
Help an old man across this street. Email me at publocc@gmail.com.
In trying to understand the Justin Trudeau brouhaha..when we try to understand anything we don't at first understand it is de rigueur to "put yourself in the other guy's shoes." I started out trying to articulate in my mind the answer to "why does that bother black people?" and couldn't intellectually come up with an articulable reason. I then went to what if I, Benjamin Harris, old white guy, was at the party and my friend Justin Trudeau showed up in blackface. It would bother me. Is he making fun of black people? I would think. If there were other of my black friends at the party I would be fucking furious...for my black friends. But is that the test? What I think my black friends would think? What if I was wrong and they weren't bothered by it? I don't think that that is plausible but it's possible! Would I then feel like an ass? I would be surprised. Black friends: "Ben, Ben, calm down." It doesn't bother me. If that happened, no, I would still be bothered by it. Why? I still can't articulate it.
I thought of near analogies. If the...face changer...If the face changer went further, as I imagine one might do at a costume-ish party (Perhaps you gather that I have never been to a costume party and if you gather that you have gathered correctly.), if my black friend also came with blonde wig--that would start to piss me off; what if he affected, say, a Middle-Atlantic accent (William F. Buckley)? Then--my reaction, okay, I don't know why--then I think it would be funny. (?) But now conversely, if Justin Trudeau put on an Afro wig and started talking with a blackcent, I as an old white guy, I'd kick his ass out of the party or if it was not my party to be kicking I would unfriend Justin.
Near analogies: A friend shows up cross-dressed (Rudy Giuliani). That still weirds me the fuck out but I would not be bothered with the same concern that he was making fun of another class of people. It weirds me out, doesn't bother or insult me.
Help an old man across this street. Email me at publocc@gmail.com.
