The first question is adressing the lives of everyone everywhere. But on this topic, I’m also curious about white people, who may feel like they have no racial identity. It is often said the white people have no culture. I feel like I agree that they don’t when it comes to racially based things, but I also feel like they can have culture in other ways.
“White” culture is artificial, and the result of a deliberate effort to stamp out the cultures of European immigrants in order to create a new, uniquely American culture to focus tensions against black, brown, and Jewish people (see: Henry Ford and Square Dancing).
I feel so embarrassed for the American kids being forced to squaredance for a grade in public school.
Technically, ‘white people’ do have a culture. It’s a bad culture, but still one nonetheless.
This may sound weird but a lot of the times when we say “white people”, we don’t really mean by their appearance or where their ancestors are from. Moreso, we mean “white” as a class. Even within that class there are norms and customs, but that doesn’t mean it’s good. Remember that many members of the WASPy ruling class despise “rednecks” and members of the white working class and wholesale reject them.
White people have no culture because there are specific US policies enforced through global violence to maintain a social group of people who are alienated from any human contact except capitlaism.
Any attempt to develop culture and meaningful relations to other people are systematically destroyed to ensure maximum alienation.
How so? I mean I feel like you’re right, I just don’t know how.
You are right in that most policies are not specifically designed so such. As capital works based in class primarily. So my claim somewhat exaggerated. As most policies are to reinforce neoliberalism and white supremacy is simply entrenched in neoliberalism. However some policies are specifically as such. So car dependace is for neoliberalism. Howver it enforces social isolation that produces social alienation and “White” identity separation. Thenbyou have stuff like redlining and drug policy which only exist to create systems to opress minorities and manage society
White USians have to steal culture from other white people and tell everyone they’re part Irish or some shit while they pretend to like soccer since that semester they studied abroad in England.
i mean as a non kkkracker i strongly prefer that over them embracing the american construct of whiteness. part of abandoning that construct means that whitemericans need something to engage with besides post ironic self loathing or whatever and if the only real harm to come from them exploring ancestral roots is some upset euros, i’m pretty ok with that too.
I agree with you, and I appreciate you sharing this since I don’t hear it too often. Obviously there are annoying ways to engage with one’s cultural heritage, and I can see why it would particularly grind on say, the Irish in the given example. Actually, Irish is a great example in particular due to their historical conflict with the English. I’m actually trying to leverage this right now with my own brother. Getting him hyped up on Irish anti colonial resistance in order to shift his perspective on Palestinian anticolonial resistance.
ya, fair, i will absolutely take the Irish more seriously on that complaint than most other Europeans, at least to a point
Nah. I think anomie of culture is actually the correct way to go. I dont think white usians deserve or should have access to ‘ancestral roots’ because the vast majority are so far removed that it might as well not exist
Racially based cultures are kinda bullshit. People from specific cultures will often have a specific race, but not necessarily. For example a black frenchman will have a very similar culture to the white frenchman. There will obviously be some differences where the black frenchman might carry some traditions from their African roots.
Same could be said for a white guy in Mexico or whatever. If his family has been there for a few generations, his culture would be mostly indistinguishable from the broader Mexican culture.
American culture is a mix of countless different cultures due to our history of immigration. When you think of “American Cuisine” its stuff like hamburgers (German), pizza (Italian), and tacos (Mexican). Much of American music heavily draws of African music (Rock, Hip Hop, R&B). Hell even the banjo has its roots in African traditions.
Since the racists would have you believe the only “true” Americans are white, that makes the white folks look like culture vultures, despite the fact that American culture is a rich tapestry of all sorts of cultures because everyone who came here brought their traditions with them.
I would argue “white” isn’t a culture at all. My culture is barely different than the asian dude down the street who’s grandparents moved here 100 years ago. Also any knowledge of Europe show “white people” have plenty of culture, but its not “white culture”, its italian or swiss or whatever.
I think the main reason its acceptable to refer to black culture in the US is because their cultural identity was stolen from them via chattel slavery. Also because of this history and the continued systemic racism in the states, they have very specific interests in working together and standing against the prevailing racism in American culture.
(im a baby leftist so yall go easy on me please)
