elainegrey

I don't really mention the global news context in my journaling that much. Partly because i believe i can find the context if i am ever curious. Partly because i don't have a significant need to refine my thinking. That's not because my thinking on political topics is particularly good, but more because i am mostly in a bubble of liberal thought and my primitive* articulation is satisfactory. I also have had little time for advocacy and i simply strive to keep messages to policy makers simple. There's a certain cost benefit analysis there: i need to communicate enough to ensure that the communication ticks the box of "constituent personally communicates pro/con on topic." It's somewhat different from when i was taking time to advocate for human rights in Colombia. Then i could not lean on the discourse already being established.

I tend to write when i am trying to work out how i feel about things, and so much about recent politics has been clear to me. The outstanding question for me is how i frame and understand The Others in my political world. It's tempting to generalize "The Fox News Watchers."† Surely there are racists. I have a strong impression of people who feel economically besieged and "we can't afford to help."

And i suppose i care about understanding that group because i recognize my inner, constant refrain, the excuse of "i can't afford" the time, the energy, the risk.

Work is giving me the day off on Friday to "reflect." I've posted on Facebook that i am willing to talk to people about race tomorrow (because of this gift, i can afford it). That was kinda scary.

I flew through the first few days of White Supremacy and Me. I think that working through my own experiences of male supremacy, and then my own cis privilege and cis fragility, has provided lessons that were easy to transfer to owning my white privilege and white fragility. ( more reflection )

White silence though. Well, yes. This is where i begin.


† The echo chamber is clearly not limited to Fox and a particular political point of view.Christine watched an hour of talking heads roll their eyes about Trump taking ... whatchamacallitquine. (I'll call it Q.) It was a pretty information-light hour. I think the one useful bit of content was the observation that the White House is well supplied with medical equipment and there are medical staff to supervise his health, and thus the risk for the president in taking Q is mitigated by that care which is not available to others. That was a message that could have been amplified. An hour spent rolling eyes and bemoaning the familiar problematic behavior just served to heighten emotional reaction and enforce a certain perspective. I suspect this does not compare to some of the Fox propaganda, but it was disappointing.

* Perhaps an extreme example was on first hearing about the DC military intervention and threats of further military intervention. I said "i have no words," Christine replied, "I am scared and sad." I added, "And i'm angry."