Sorry For Being White

Several months ago, through a heated discussion with a friend, I had what I would consider to be a psychological breakthrough. I acknowledged my considerable (albeit subliminal) shame and guilt for being lucky enough to have been born with white skin. And chances are, if you look like me, you probably suffer from a similar pathology.

The mere fact that I have white skin is enough to warrant an apology. Not for anything I’ve personally done, or for what my parents or grandparents may have done, but for the seemingly innate belief that this is a white man’s world. An apology, however, is unambiguous. What I now recognize is my own subconscious arrogance; my ignorance towards other cultures and races.

The opinion that dominates Western foreign - and for that matter, domestic - policy is that our way of life is the best possible. While this is not exclusively the opinion of a white majority, it is the dominant theme among our political and social elite - most of whom happen to be white.

We export our values by combining economic and military clout with the not so subtle manipulation of the media. As a collective, we pretentiously believe that we hold a monopoly on modernity, ethical values and the key to the future. This is wrong. The inherent privilege bequeathed to white, Western (North American, European, etc) children upon birth is too seldom acknowledged or seriously discussed. A mandatory, standardized cultural sensitivity curriculum would probably rub against the established grain. Humility is bad for business.

Consider the history of imperialism and economic competition - it’s necessary for us to believe we are superior. Without this well entrenched belief, the occupation, colonization and subjugation of inferior backwater nations - the very same we depend on for our tennis shoes, computer components, automobile parts and any number of agricultural imports - would become morally repugnant.

We have nothing to lose from a broader “live and let live” model of domestic and foreign policy, and in fact have much to gain in the way of cultural and diplomatic relations. We’re led to believe that without them, our way of life would not be possible. While this is true to a certain extent, it would require no significant sacrifice by the average Western citizen in order for a smaller nation to regain its sovereignty and national dignity.

Our way of life is superior, but our hedonism and the freedoms we enjoy - yet seldom exercise - would not be possible, were it not for our position as the capstone on top of this economic human pyramid. Virtually every major conflict in our recent - and not-so-recent - history is attributable to the necessary maintenance of our position. How many lives could have been spared, had we been raised without such nationalistic egoism?

This is not to say that attacks within our borders should be ignored or rashly forgiven, on the contrary. The attacks on 9-11, for example, were reprehensible and merited an appropriate response. However, the proper avenue would have been an international response of economic sanctions and limited military intervention. Likewise, at home, it would have been supremely useful for meaningful debates to have taken place as to the psychological origin and motivations of the attacks. Our differences are merely ideological - as merely the differences in ideology between slave and master.

So why is it important for us to be humble? Why am I sorry for being white? Because we are born privileged; because we are in a position of boundless freedoms and incomparable influence. We have choices and the opportunity to affect change. This position bestows upon us a certain amount of responsibility. We owe it to the nations we employ to become more involved in our country’s politics, and we owe it to our future generations to begin a regimen of tolerance and understanding, as opposed to the xenophobia inherent in our current system. It’s important to understand that the choices we make - vis-a-vis our lifestyles, the brands we buy, the clothes we wear, the vehicles we drive, etc - these are conscious choices, and they have potentially serious consequences, no matter how far removed we are.

We’re at the mercy of those below us in the pyramid, so it’s in our best interest to look towards flattening it out. After all, if it collapses, whoever’s on top has the farthest to fall.