I haven't posted in a while because it can be somewhat draining at times, and life in general has been pretty busy as is. I've cutdown my Facebook time too because it's a little disheartening to see so much conflict. Normally I just scroll past posts, figuring that people who post questions like this are doing it in a rhetorical sense... But it caught my eye when I saw that my daughter Lindsay and our dear friend Danika responded in such a thoughtful manner. I'm so impressed by these young ladies and I asked them if I could use them as guest bloggers. Happily they said yes, so here are their responses....
Lindsay:
I think the issue arises because "white" itself isn't a heritage (I'm not really sure what an overarching white heritage would look like). The meaning of what constitutes "white" has changed over time (like in times when Irish and Jewish people were not considered white, for example), and it's based on superiority and exclusion (to be white vs. not to be white). There are a lot of European heritages that white people descend from, and it's okay for people to be proud of that (and many are). Some people will probably still object (there is someone to object about anything), but it would certainly raise less eyebrows.
Danika:
Essentially everyone is absolutely entitled to be proud of your ethnic and cultural heritage (I.e. saying you have Irish Pride or Greek Pride) because when you are saying that, you are celebrating your personal history and culture, a culture that can be in the form of that culture’s history, that cultures food, that cultures clothing, etc. It is for this reason that you don’t see protests against St. Patrick’s Day parades or other European cultural celebrations because you are celebrating a rich history that is a part of your being. There is historical and cultural context associated with being proud of your heritage. For example, I am both Chinese and Irish and I am proud to be a part of both cultures and celebrate both cultures. But that is the key point, I am celebrating my culture, not skin color.
When someone says they are proud to be white, it gives no context other than the fact that that person is celebrating the color of their skin and, most importantly, being white is not a heritage. There is no cultural connections and no history to add to support a statement of white pride and instead adds a level of implied superiority, intended or not, because of the history that is associated with statements of white pride (such as white nationalism and Nazi-ism).
It is the reason that most people and most persons of color do not care if a person says they have Irish Pride or Italian pride but feel negatively towards someone who says that they are proud to be white. All statement says is that they are proud of their skin color and nothing more. If they need to clarify and say that what they mean is they are proud of X-heritage, then they should say they are proud to be of that heritage.
In short there is nothing wrong saying you are proud of your culture and your heritage because it is a part of what makes You you, not your skin color.
