Re:What Happens to #MeToo When a Feminist Is the Accused?
by dragonwriter on Tuesday August 14, 2018 @05:38PM
(#17762150)
> Seriously, I don't know why the "prejudice + power" definitional distinction is so hard for well-meaning people to understand.
It's not hard to understand, it's just a redefinition that was consciously created to justify claims that it was impossible for blacks to be racist, and which serves no good purpose. Yes, power dynamics are relevant to the impacts of racism; no, that doesn't make the effort to redefine racism in terms of them useful. Particularly because power isn't a binary trait, it's a multidimensional continuum, and prejudice is always accompanied by power, of some degree or scope.
And particularly, also, because he history of the redefinition is well-known and makes it divisive and redirects any discussion into a heated fight over semantics rather than substance, even if revisionists attempt to save the redefinition by trying to apply it in a more nuanced way.
It's not hard to understand, it's just a redefinition that was consciously created to justify claims that it was impossible for blacks to be racist, and which serves no good purpose. Yes, power dynamics are relevant to the impacts of racism; no, that doesn't make the effort to redefine racism in terms of them useful. Particularly because power isn't a binary trait, it's a multidimensional continuum, and prejudice is always accompanied by power, of some degree or scope.
And particularly, also, because he history of the redefinition is well-known and makes it divisive and redirects any discussion into a heated fight over semantics rather than substance, even if revisionists attempt to save the redefinition by trying to apply it in a more nuanced way.