#languageofrevolution

As we emerge further into this current era of Black Lives Matter protest and activism, it occurred to me that many of the terms that we've been using to discuss what is currently going on in America and what has been going on for centuries are not well understood by many people, especially non-POCs.  On one of my previous blog posts, someone replied to it (thanks, btw) and innocently but incorrectly defined colorism. And that made me realize the importance of everyone and especially white allies being given the opportunity to learn what these important terms mean so that they can then use them appropriately as they continue to advocate for change.  This is by no means a comprehensive list, but it is a good place to start for those who want to ensure that they understand what we are advocating for and how they can aptly convey that message. ⋆﹥━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━﹤⋆

Antebellum - literally means "before the war"; in America, this term is most associated with the era of slavery in the American South before the onset of the Civil War and subsequent emancipation of slaves and is often referred to with nostalgic undertones which many Black Americans see as problematic slavery romanticism

Bias - when a person favors one perspective or group of people over another; does not need to be based on race or ethnicity Example: I am biased against those who refuse to acknowledge that Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player to have ever played the game.  (That’s right; I said it.  Fight me.)

BIPOC - a relatively new acronym that stands for "black, indigenous, and people of color" and includes all non-white people who have suffered at the hands of systemic and explicit racism in a dominant, white society; but specifically highlights black and indigenous people, noting their long history of combating slavery, genocide, and European colonialism Note: It turns out, even I was using this term incorrectly, and I had to defer to information provided by both The New York Times and Dictionary.com for help with this one.  I’m definitely learning new things, just like everybody else.

Black Power - a slogan that was popularized by civil rights activist Stokely Carmichael (later known as Kwame Ture) in 1966 to accentuate the need for Black Americans to seek and exercise the agency needed to advance the pursuit of black equality Note: I referenced Encyclopedia Britannica for the year noted above and the correct spelling of “Ture”.

Civil Rights Movement - generally refers to an era that occurred in the middle of the 20th Century during which African Americans and their allies actively protested through marches, boycotts, sit-ins, freedom rides, and other methods to advocate for African Americans, particularly the South, to reap the full benefits of their previously established citizenship rights

Colored - a term once used to officially categorize non-white people; in America, this term most often referred to African Americans, but has largely been abandoned since the mid-20th Century, and modern-day usage is considered offensive Note: This word appears as a part of the acronym for the NAACP, which stands for “National Association for the Advancement of Colored People”.  In this context, no offense is generally taken, given that the organization’s origins are dated fairly early in the 20th Century.

Colorism - when a culture and the people within it have embraced a standard of beauty that celebrates those of any race with lighter skin tones because they more closely align with traditional European ideas regarding what features are most attractive

Karen - a term coined by Black America to identify white women who routinely utilize their privilege to instigate trouble or aggression against people of color who are largely innocent of any wrongdoing; this includes instances of being dishonest about a person of color being a legitimate threat in order to invoke fear within that person of color and ultimately establish her power and authority as a white person over them Note: Some white women have attempted to decry this term as a racial slur, but said assertions have largely been ignored, and the term is now widely used by those in the black community as well those of the larger American society who abhor Karen-like behavior.

Microaggression - ideas and statements directed at people of a marginalized group that, on their face, appear to be neutral or even complimentary but are actually reflections of internalized biases that have informed someone’s impressions of that particular group of people; examples include complimenting black people for speaking eloquently, referring to America as “a melting pot”, teachers who fail to prioritize learning how to pronounce a student’s name even after being instructed how to do so, and complimenting boys for showing leadership traits while admonishing girls for being “bossy” Note: Ideas for solid examples were aided by referencing a page on the University of Minnesota’s website as well as a page on the Messiah University’s website.

Negro - another term for black people that was once popular in the United States and used for categorization purposes but has more recently been deemed antiquated and offensive when used Note: This word also appears as part of the acronym for the UNCF, which stands for “United Negro College Fund”, and like the use of “colored” in “NAACP”, is not considered offensive in this context.

Oppression - the act of subverting the growth and progress of a particular group of people often based on the biases held by the predominate group in power Note: Despite the insistence of those who denied the seriousness of the Covid-19 pandemic, being asked to socially distance, remain at home as much as possible, or wear a mask in public in the name of preventing the spread of a deadly illness IS NOT an example of oppression.  They are confusing their distaste for not being able to do as they please in order to serve the greater good as losing their civil liberties, most likely because they have had no prior experience having actually lost their civil liberties.

POC - an acronym which stands for "people of color"; it encompasses those of all non-white backgrounds including black, Asian, Latino, and indigenous populations

Prejudice - when one holds a pre-established belief of particular groups based on race, ethnicity, gender, religion, sexual orientation, sexual identity, or similar social categories; the person with this mindset often believes that those who do not share the common attributes with which he or she identifies is therefore less worthy of having their humanity acknowledged and respected Note: This does not require one to exert power such as with racism. Therefore, people of color CAN be guilty of exhibiting prejudice against white people.

Racism - an umbrella term used to describe a system of beliefs in which those who are in power value their own race ahead of the needs and importance of other races and believe they are wholly deserving of this power; without power, there is no racism

Reconstruction - refers to the period of American history that occurred after the Civil War during which specific initiatives were implemented to ensure that Black Americans who were no longer enslaved were able to establish themselves as free persons and exercise their citizenship rights.  This included efforts by Northerners to prevent former Confederate Southerners from exercising retribution against the formerly enslaved and working to establish ways in which Black Americans could exercise political power.  This period was cut short, however, due to many reasons but largely because continued involvement in Southern affairs no longer appealed to many Northerners, and they had grown tired of issuing the necessary funds to pay for its continuation.  This failure directly contributed to the establishment of the Jim Crow South and other policies that greatly inhibited the advancement of Black Americans after emancipation.

Reverse Racism - a fallacy; often used to describe an instance when white people believe that a person of color, specifically in America, is inflicting pain and suffering in some way upon white people solely due to their race; despite the assertions of white supremacy apologists, this is not a real phenomenon, because a key component of racism is power, which people of color in America DO NOT have

Stereotype - ascribing a specific characteristic or trait to everyone who belongs within a particular community to further insinuate that they are all the same; they can be positive ("Americans are all rich") or negative ("Black people do not like to read"), but they are often oversimplifications of complex individuals within an even more complex culture and are, therefore, largely inaccurate

Systemic Racism - a specific subset of racism that refers to the ways in which practices of subjugation have been embedded into the core fabric of a system and continuously upheld in order to deny people of certain races access to opportunity, prosperity, and power

Systematic Racism - a specific subset of racism that goes beyond just the bigotry and hateful acts of individual people who are racist but also includes a larger structure or methods through which these racist people can thrive and continue to exercise their bigotry and even join forces

White Fragility - a term that refers to the prevailing sense among people of color that, historically, white Americans have been catered to and placated to the extent where now many of them greatly object when they no longer experience such treatment; it is, in part, the perception that some white Americans believe everything revolves around their comfort and feelings, and ideas and initiatives in conflict with that should be avoided at all costs Note: This term also refers to a tendency described by author Robin DiAngelo in which some white people become defensive when asked to discuss issues of race and racial inequality and “lack the racial stamina to engage in difficult conversations”.  While I concede the validity of this definition, I also contend that the aforementioned issues are also at play.  As such, when I use this term in my writings, I am referencing my more encompassing definition.  Perhaps that’s not “allowed”, but it’s my blog, so I’ll do what I want.  😁

White Guilt - a sentiment in which white Americans acknowledge that racism still exists in America and might thus feel compelled to act in ways that they feel will atone for that, even if those acts are themselves couched in racist ideology; it can also prevent white Americans from wanting to hear or learn more about past transgressions against people of color because doing so is uncomfortable for them

White Privilege - the benefits that come with being white in America that allow for one's advancements to not be inhibited by one's race;  it does not mean that white people do not deal with their own forms of adversity, but those impediments to their success are not based on the color of their skin

White Supremacy Apologists - those who may not necessarily subscribe to overtly racist ideology themselves but continue to allow and make excuses for those who do; they may also lend their support to policies and practices that are more covert instances of racism which hide under the guise of more innocent pretenses such as opposing initiatives like forced busing in order to integrate schools and claiming that this stance is due to a desire to preserve “neighborhood schools”

White Tears - a term that is also associated with white fragility in that, once a white American has experienced that aforementioned discomfort or perhaps is confronted for exhibiting racist behavior, they will sometimes weep or otherwise display visible sorrow that is not necessarily reflective of feeling regret for the harm they have caused others as much as it is self-pity now that people are upset with them in ways that might lead to additional consequences previously not anticipated

Womanism - a term coined by author Alice Walker to encompass the activism of black women who have found themselves to be left of out the gains of feminism because they are not white and the gains awarded to black men in the name of civil rights because they are not men.

Xenophobia - a term that reflects either an individual's or a culture's belief that the race and ethnicity that is predominant in a particular country is superior to others, and those who do not belong to that predominant culture but wish to emigrate to that country are unwelcome; often denotes fear and/or hatred as a motivating factor Note: I referenced Dictionary.com to help me craft a more comprehensive definition.

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