Reminds me of my early life experience /observations that in the deep south black folks were (are) the primary objects of derision, prejudice, bigotry, resentment, poor treatment while along the borders of southwestern states brown folks were (are) the targets of exactly the same kinds of derision, prejudice, bigotry — spoken of, treated in almost exactly the same dehumanizing ways.

Poorer folks were (are) always understood as/treated as having ‘less value’/’lower than’ the more well off, better educated, more ‘popular’, better dressed, better employed…’better’ being understood as having higher status due to having more money, with color of skin adding another layer of ‘value/worth’ (or lack thereof) to the calculation — not due to actual contributions to / betterment of the human condition or treatment of others.

Hell, we (especially in the legal/financial/corporate/militaristic realms) proudly proclaim ‘it’s better to be feared than …. anything else’!

And women/girls of ALL skin colors were (are) regarded universally as inferior to, far less valuable/worthy — always sneeringly (snickeringly, snidely) derisively dismissed/referred to and presumed ‘ less than / inferior to’ any male present or not — additionally distributed along / refined bythe heirarchies of color and class. Anything remotely female was/is regarded as unworthy of respect, value, standing up for in the presence of other (overwhelmingly insecure, developmentally arrested) males of any age/color/creed.

One of the most conscience/consciousness-impacting facts that pointed out to me the stark differences in the lived experiences/dailyness of life between men & women — most women live w/ the awareness that their biggest daily life vulnerability for themselves (and their children) — the biggest life fear in relation to MEN/males is the fear of physical/sexual assault. They practically have to arrange their lives to avoid it, always have to be aware of it in their & their children’s movements — it’s barely even conscious it’s so automatic and inherent.

What’s our biggest deep dark fear in our daily life, our biggest fear in relation to women? Fear of humiliation. (yeah it’s all about performance & egos which know no boundaries or humility, full of self-involved insecurities, as usual).

That’s a huge difference in not only perception, but lived experiences, and a glimpse into gaining a sliver of understanding of just how much the implicit/hidden threat of violence by us and the fear of violence we invoke toward women, children–‘the others’– on the deepest (unconscious) levels.

That’s when I began to understand the ‘problem’ was not people of color, or poor people or women — the problem lay primarily with the white people in power and those whom they/we bestowed/accorded the most power, privilege, entitlement, access, benefits upon (primarily other white males –I.e. ‘my own kind’) — those w/ the most who took (take/reserve) the most for themselves, and resent like hell anyone, any group not a privileged member of the group (not entitled to group membership) who presumes to have the right to the unearned benefits, entitlements, privileges of this power-wielding group based on not much more than a history of entitlement based primarily on gender, ethnicity & skin color, followed by class ( in this country for sure).

Turns out: Not very much has fundamentally changed in the 40+ years since I understood what was really going on.

No wonder diversity training doesn’t take with the primary group(s) most in need of enlightenment — the privileged, entitled power holders farthest from the lived experiences of those who actually are ‘diverse’ — those whose lives are ‘divergent’ from we the self-perpetuating ‘masters of the universe’, no matter our actual work positions because our cultural positions mandate that we reject all those ‘others’ and anything they might teach us. Reject. Out. of. Hand. Period.

We are uninterested in being enlightened. We prefer our unearned, self-bestowed benefits, privileges, entitlements, power. Too much to lose. Or so we fear/believe — deep down I think many of us do know we’re short-changing ourselves, our workplaces, or families, friends, loved ones. But we’re actually too afraid and too arrogant to find out. And we well kniw how powerful fear really is.

– John C. Norcross, Psychology Professor at the University of
Scranton (NYTimes, 02/14/2005)

That thread was probably going to break anyway, don’t you think?

He’s so happy in his relationship with Jesus that he is talking about it. Does it really bug you that much? Seems like the perfect situation to live and let live to me. If you can’t, how about an anonymous email?

The other claim I doubt is the claim that only white people in your workplace go there. If the place has sensitivity training, then every employee had to go there. Unless you have been sent there as a punishment or warning.