White supremacy a great idea – until exposed to the light
Re: “Let’s expunge the myth of white supremacy,” editorial, March 19.
Wow. As a white guy, I was considerably chuffed to learn that there is a category of people called white supremacists who believe that white dudes (and dudettes) are superior to everybody else. If you’re wondering why it’s taken me so long to find this out, it’s because I lead a reclusive life. Since most white supremacists are (apparently) white themselves, I think that we may safely infer that they suffer from a certain absence of objectivity. The doctrine of white supremacy would require me to believe that I am morally superior to Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela, and physically superior to LeBron James and Tiger Woods.
And here’s a shock. Looking at myself and my fellow whiteys, I find that the colour of our skin is not actually white. Snow is white. Milk is white. Most “white” folks are a sort of off-white. Precision of language requires the world to call us that. Truly “white” folks are albinos.
Eager to affirm my superiority over people of darker hue, I examined myself for evidence. Bad move. Physically, I found a wreck of a man who was old, fat, bald, and diseased (diabetes). Morally, I found a being stained by several weaknesses, especially when wandering on Soi Cowboy. Mentally, I found a wobbly mind prone to misperceptions, misconceptions, fantasies, and delusions. It’s true that I outgrew my childhood belief in Santa Claus, but I retained an ardent faith in the authenticity of the Turin Shroud until they carbon-dated it to the 13th or 14 century in 1988. This error cast serious doubt on my personal infallibility.
Spiritually, I found a flawed creature who aspired to the stars but was unable to escape the grim grip of gravity. Jesus’s dictum “The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak” summed up my predicament exactly.
So I think these off-white supremacists need to rethink their position, assuming that they think at all. We off-whiteys have a defect that, so far as I know, we do not share with our darker-hued brethren. We sunburn easily. When brown people are exposed to the sun, they merely become darker. When off-whiteys are thus exposed, we turn lobster-red, our skin burns and peels, and we may subsequently develop skin cancer. This is hardly an indication of superiority, let alone supremacy.
Not keen on off-white supremacy,
An Off-white Guy
