Session 2

What are some of the factors that make talking about race and racism so difficult? What dynamics are at work inhibiting the conversation? In this session, the group will focus on language and how we use it to express ourselves and our sense of the world, and how we use it to hide ourselves by appealing to what everyone takes to be common knowledge. 

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Assignment before reading

Writing Assignment #1:

1. Write out your understanding of these words: race, racial, racism, and racist.
2. Recall and write a brief description of a conversation you had (or heard) on the subject of race and racism. What was the topic of the conversation? What did you think and feel about this conversation? Was it difficult and/or uncomfortable, and if so, why? How did the conversation end, and what affect did it have on you? Read this chapter with your experience in mind.

Now READ Chapter 1, pages 19-27

Writing Assignment #2:

 

Reread what you wrote about your conversation and identify the fears that you had (and may still have) in that discussion. Also, describe the assumptions and perceptions you had about race and racism, and take note of how yours differed from the other participants in the discussion.

Now READ Chapter 1, pages 27-30

Writing Assignment #3:

The subsection, "Factors to consider in conversation," addresses (1) the use of the language of race and racism in conversation, (2) the tendency to conceal ourselves when talking about it, (3) the influence of the environment where the conversation occurs, and (4) our own personal identity and relationships. As you look back over the conversation you described, what role did these factors play, and what do you think about the prospects for having future conversations about race and racism? Write out your thoughts.

A little research...

View the movie, A Time To Kill. Look for indications of fears and note the differing assumptions and perceptions.

Now READ Chapter 1, pages 30-37

Writing Assignment #4:

We use language to express ourselves, put ourselves out there for others. With language, we express or objectify our awareness as well as our thoughts and feelings. We also use language to conceal ourselves and mislead others, in which case what we’ve put out there isn’t "true." Go back to that conversation you described. Ask yourself: What words and phrases did you and the others use to express yourselves? Then ask yourself: In what ways did this conversation make sense of race and racism? How did the language and the conversation express race and racism? What was the "common sense" expressed in the conversation?

Now READ Chapter 1, pages 37-40

A field trip...

• Walk through a supermarket and notice the signs hanging above the aisles. Are the words on these signs abstractions? How so?
• Pick an aisle, chose a word from the sign, and then look at all the items on the shelves that relate to that word. Pull a few items off the shelf, look carefully at the packaging and read the labels. What do you learn about criteria and categorization in this area of everyday life?
• At the check-out counter, pick up one of the magazines and read any article. Look for evidence of the reification of an idea or concept. Did you find any? How important was it to the article’s discussion?

Writing Assignment #5:

Write down your thoughts on this question: What did this trip to the supermarket suggest about abstractions, categorization and reification in everyday life? Identify other areas of everyday life where abstractions, categorizations and reification are manifest.

Now READ Chapter 1, pages 40-57

A trip on the Internet...

Read the American Anthropological Association Statement on "Race" at the AAA website, and the article titled "The Language of Closet Racism: An Illustration" on the website of the Center for the Study of White American Culture. For a defense of the concept of "race" as a biological classification for categorizing human beings, read the article "Statement on Race as a Biological Concept" by J. Philippe Rushton at the American Renaissance website.

Writing Assignment #6:

Write a short statement describing how you now understand the four terms (race, racial, racism, racist) after the readings and your own further reflection.

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Suggestions for Group Discussion

1. Share your experience, observations and analysis regarding your race/racism conversation.
2. Discuss the movie A Time To Kill and the affect it had on you.
3. Identify some of the ways our everyday language assumes a "common sense" and a "common knowledge," and makes our everyday world an "objective reality."
4. Talk about the message of this Shoe cartoon (click on the image for large version). What does it suggest about the way common sense regards the "common sense"?

 

Focused Question for Group Discussion

The language of race discourse (race, racial, racism and racist) assumes an objective reality because common sense tells us that this language refers to something outside ourselves (i.e., race exists). We use the language to express our sense of ourselves and others perceived to be different. This language also contributes to building and perpetuating a race-world (naming it expresses it, giving it a kind of objectivity out there). Having read chapter 1, how do you think differently about the meaning and significance of these four terms, and how will you use them in conversations regarding the expressions of race and racism?