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amouseinmyhouse  ·  3208 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: A Conversation With White People on Race

Yeah, I understand that feeling. I think the word racist is undergoing the potential for a definitional shift - from applying to an individual to applying to a system.

The individual definition is an indictment of a single person and generally reflects on that person being "bad".

The systemic definition is an indictment of a system and asks all participants of the system to recognize how that system benefits some and detriments others.

I find that many progressive conversations use the systemic definition, and that causes a defensive reaction from those using the individual definition. I also think that's one of the core truths of this video series, while there's a lack of resolution as to the actual definition of racism, people won't know how to talk about it.

For me personally, seeing the systemic definition of racism and of white supremacy helped to absolve me of my guilt and allowed me to have much more beneficial conversations about the very real social structures which exist all around me.