The privilege of supremacy is silence. White superiority is ingrained in the unspoken ideology and institutional prerogatives that guide our lives.
There are any number of quotes that might encapsulate the message of Dax-Devlon Ross’s Letters To My White Male Friends. And while the passage above is more than adequate, it’s a disservice to suggest that a book like this can –or should– be summarized or succinctly described. Indeed, the point of this timely, important book is that coming to terms with systemic racism is a process. More, a process that must be, necessarily, thorough and, at times, difficult.
Another quote, this one from Upton Sinclair, which kept coming to mind as I worked my way through what’s now a very dog-eared copy of this book:
It is difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depends on his not understanding it.
That was true one hundred years ago; it was true five hundred years ago, but it’s never been more accurate or relevant than it is right now. As such, conversations like the ones Dax is encouraging us to have are critical.
And one last quote, with props to the immortal George Clinton. This whole manufactured crisis around Critical Race Theory, “Defund the Police” and the cynical appropriation of #BLM (etc.) could boil down to one undeniable proposition: Free Your Mind and Your Ass Will Follow!
The key question –and crux of the dilemma– remains: how do we get minds freed?
Dialogue.
Ask questions. Listen to the answers. Seek out insight from folks with experience (in Dax’s case, a reporter and professional with decades of practical, not to mention lived, experience). It’s my sincere hope that this discussion (video below) will inspire some folks to check out Letters To My White Male Friends. I’m counting on the one thing that we have going for us, as Americans and human beings: once the scales drop from your eyes, you’re left with two stark choices: go back to sleep, or let the awareness become contagious; keep learning, keep talking, and begin healing.
As always, I’m grateful to collaborate with our partners at D.C.’s historic The Potter’s House; I encourage you to support them –and independent bookstores– and acquire your copy here.
Dax-Devlon Ross is the author of five books and his journalism has been featured in Time, The Guardian, The New York Times, Virginia Quarterly Review, The Washington Post Magazine and other national publications. He won the National Association of Black Journalists’ Investigative Reporting Award for his coverage of jury exclusion in North Carolina courts and is currently a Puffin Writing Fellow at Type Media Center.
A New York City teaching fellow turned non-profit executive, Dax is now a principal at the social impact consultancies, Dax-Dev and Third Settlements, both of which focus on designing disruptive strategies to generate equity in workplaces and education spaces alike. Dax received his Juris Doctor from George Washington University. He currently resides in Washington, D.C. with his wife, Alana, and their two kids. Find him online at https://dax-dev.com/
