The American Experience

I’m kind of all set with the “white-people-are-being-oppressed” trumped up nonsense being peddled by the same mouth-breathing, knuckle-draggers that brought us the “War on Christmas”.

Really. Over it.

I’ve read and listened as people try to define their experience as the “typical” American experience. How arrogant are you? To decide that you define the American experience? More than that, I’m disgusted as they try to deny experiences that are different from theirs or consider them as atypical or not fully American. How reprehensible is that? To deny someone their experiences as irrelevant or unimportant.

There are more than 300 million people in America. Know what that means? That means that there are more than 300 million ways to be American. None of which are more right or proper than any other. Everyone forges their own experiences - their own life story. The commonality we share is that they are American experiences.

Unique. Enduring. Individual.

Watching and reading the reaction to the Trayvon Martin case almost made me lose my mind. Watching as some try to co-opt the African-American experiences of institutional racism and oppression, I’m left thinking: This is evil; you are evil and you need to stop.

You look – and sound – like crazy people and If I hear one more person tell me that racism is dead, I will seriously lose my shit.

A young man was shot and killed. His killer was acquitted and instead of decrying the loss of innocent life, people are celebrating. Fucking celebrating. That a boy is dead. That parents lost a child. They are pissed off that the president dare answer a question about the case in a thoughtful and honest way. How dare he?! He’s a racist. He wants to start a race war! Muslims. Or some other fucking bullshit. By acknowledging Trayvon Martin, the president did not piss on all the other young men and women who have been murdered before or since. He spoke to his experiences as a black man in America and people got pissed and said his experiences were not authentic. Grow the fuck up.

Or let’s talk about this: A New York singer, born and bred, had the temerity to stand up and sing “God Bless America” and because he didn’t look sufficiently “American” racists on Twitter lost their collective shit. Yeah, racism is so over.

Stop it. Just stop. You look like fucking morons.

White people are not oppressed. Not in any way, shape or form. Shop keepers are not following my fair-haired, blue-eyed son around. People do not cross the street when they see him coming. Women do not walk a little faster if he walks behind them.

Because he has the privilege of being white in America.

That makes his life less of a hassle.

I’m not saying that he’ll have an easy life. He may not. I’m not saying that he’ll get everything he wants or needs. He almost certainly won’t. But he won’t be handicapped because of the color of his skin, or by the texture of his hair, or burdened with the “wrong” last name.

Because he has the privilege of being white in America.

If you can’t – or won’t – see that being white in America is still a pretty fucking great thing, you are damaged in a real and fundamental way and I pity you. 

Enough is Enough

I really haven't been myself this week.

I'm so beyond done with all the stupid crap that has been swirling around since Friday that I just do not care anymore what people think or feel about what I write.

This started as a status update on Facebook but it grew so quickly that I felt it deserved it's own blog post.

I'm disappointed.

In people.

Deeply and – what feels at this moment – irreversibly disappointed.

Disappointed with people I know,

Disappointed with those I don’t.

But I’m not just disappointed; I’m tired.

I'm tired of hearing that all society's ills are because we can’t pray in school.

I’m tired of explaining that homosexuality isn’t a life-style choice.

I’m tired of hearing that abortion is what is ruining America.

I’m tired of defending my gender and their fight to control their own bodies and make their own decisions.

I’m tired of watching young black men die just for being black.

I’m tired of watching people try to keep us divided in order to control us.

But I’m not just tired; I’m disgusted.

I’m disgusted with religions and religious people who preach hate and bigotry and label those who believe differently as evil.

I’m disgusted that we have people who think arming teachers is a solution.

I’m disgusted that people think that prayer in schools would have changed anything.

I’m disgusted with myself and others like me that have turned a blind eye to the massacre of urban black children but spring to action and demand Congress act when a school full of suburban white children are slaughtered.

But I’m not just disgusted; I’m outraged.

I’m outraged that we even need to have a discussion on whether someone should be allowed to own and possess weapons that are designed to slaughter the most people in the shortest amount of time.

But I'm not just outraged; I'm sad.

I'm sad that people will call for more and better access to mental health care yet want to cut funding to the very services that would provide the care, including repealing Obamacare.

I'm sad that people vilify teachers as lazy and incompetent then post pictures calling them heroes.

I'm especially sad that these people are not "others". They are friends and family and colleagues.