A string of recent events in the country has prompted some white Americans to become overly apologetic to black Americans. This is commonly known as “white guilt”. And it is slowly, but surely, destroying America. It is, however, reversible. And that’s good news. The bad news is that white guilt is already ever-present all throughout the United States.
White guilt is not a new thing. But for many years, it wasn’t necessarily a common thing. However, the death of George Floyd has skyrocketed the prevalence of white guilt to the point where it is out of control. How does this newly-reignited phenomenon present itself? That is a great question that may take some time to “unpack” as the cool kids say.
Dinner Table Becomes Mainstream Television
Tough conversations around race in America typically happen in small venues. Among friends at home… online message board forums… live stream hangouts with friends and/or colleagues. Not much comes out of them except for a few individuals gaining some knowledge that they didn’t have before. But once these hard talks reach the mainstream, something totally different happens.
People that were unprepared to have very tough discussions on race are now forced into it. This puts everyone on eggshells. So, anytime a racial grievance is brought up, people tend to become afraid. “What can I say that won’t be considered racist?” Or “what can I say that won’t be considered self-hating?” The internal question depends on the race of the person thinking it, of course. Non-black people don’t want to be labeled with the scarlet letter of racism, while black people don’t want the scarlet letter of self-hatred.
Adults Fall Victim To Peer Pressure
The strange peer-pressure dynamic that harsh race talks place upon American citizens takes it toll in a variety of ways. Overcompensation is very common. If a black person is in a grocery store, non-black patrons may look at them with pity. Or they may go over the top to do nice things so they can be absolved from racism. Then you have black people that become more militant and angry in their everyday walking lives and conversations with people, especially non-blacks.
There are non-blacks who become more militant and engage in more violence, but those are generally different cases. These types of individuals care less about white guilt peer pressure and more about the political gain of anarchy. And that’s an entirely different subject.
And of course, not every person falls victim to white or black guilt peer pressure. Actually, most people don’t. Especially not adults. But if even a small percentage of Americans do fall to this peer pressure, then that is potentially millions of people.
There Is Money In Groveling
Corporations want in on the i’m-not-racist-please-forgive-me pie. Social media is an easy place to do this because the majority of people upset about George Floyd (and those causing the unrest) live here. Instagram went dark for a day or so when influencers and random people posted black squares for Black Lives Matter. Countless other brands online gave a tribute to Black Lives Matter and/or to George Floyd.
The co-founder of Reddit, Alexis Ohanian, stepped down from Reddit’s board and asked to be replaced by a black person. Maybe his marriage to Serena Williams, a world-famous tennis player, isn’t enough?
Dangerous Waters
White guilt is a dangerous thing if allowed to persist. One person, George Floyd, died while in police custody allegedly at the hands of a white officer. The other officers including a Somali and a Laotian, are totally ignored because their races do not fit the narrative. But since the first officer is white, then Minneapolis city leaders are considering “dismantling” their police force. As other cities across the nation. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti is slashing LAPD’s budget and redirecting those funds to “communities of color.”
Of course, this will make crime skyrocket in the very same communities “they” say are under attack and need resources. So far, nearly 20 people have died in the George Floyd protests across the nation. Mostly black. One can only imagine what the outcome without police. Maybe it’s not as important to protect black lives as it is to appear like your police aren’t needlessly taking them. So if the black-on-black murder rate quadruples in one year after the abolishment of the police force, then it’s no big deal. Because Black Lives Matter!
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