Spring Break
Wise discusses myth of post-racial America
News Department
Issue date: 11/4/09 Section: News
Author and anti-racism activist Tim Wise shared his views on race relations in the United States at Jorgensen Center for the Performing Arts Tuesday as part of UConn's Month of Kindness.
Wise is the author of four books including "White Like Me: Reflections on Race from a Privileged Son" and the most recent, "Between Barack and a Hard Place: Racism and White Denial in the Age of Obama." The lecture focused on the subject of the new book - the notion that just because Americans have elected an African American president it does not, as some believe, mean the death of racism.
Wise used a careful mix of humor and hard facts to drive his point home.
"It's easy to ignore [racism] in this so-called 'Age of Obama,' this 'Age of Oprah.' She could buy us and give us out to her audience, and it would be impossible to stop her," Wise said to laughter.
Even though Oprah is one of the most powerful people in the world, it doesn't mean the age of racism is over, he said.
Wise delved into various subtopics throughout his lecture, touching upon the history of white privilege, racial stereotypes, the government's role in elevating whites above black people and the lesser-known adverse effects of racism, but each section supported his thesis that racism is still a very real problem, and it's up to the current generation to fight against it.
"[We're] tired of living with the residue of the legacy that has come before us," he said. "We inherit the legacy when it comes to race. History isn't a video game that you can restart. We need to take personal responsibility for [our] unearned advantage."
Wise used an analogy to show how illogical the thought that a black president means the end of racism is. He said that if the same logic were used, it could be said that women and girls in Pakistan faced no challenges or discrimination anymore since Benazir Bhutto, a female, was elected Prime Minister of the country twice.
Wise is the author of four books including "White Like Me: Reflections on Race from a Privileged Son" and the most recent, "Between Barack and a Hard Place: Racism and White Denial in the Age of Obama." The lecture focused on the subject of the new book - the notion that just because Americans have elected an African American president it does not, as some believe, mean the death of racism.
Wise used a careful mix of humor and hard facts to drive his point home.
"It's easy to ignore [racism] in this so-called 'Age of Obama,' this 'Age of Oprah.' She could buy us and give us out to her audience, and it would be impossible to stop her," Wise said to laughter.
Even though Oprah is one of the most powerful people in the world, it doesn't mean the age of racism is over, he said.
Wise delved into various subtopics throughout his lecture, touching upon the history of white privilege, racial stereotypes, the government's role in elevating whites above black people and the lesser-known adverse effects of racism, but each section supported his thesis that racism is still a very real problem, and it's up to the current generation to fight against it.
"[We're] tired of living with the residue of the legacy that has come before us," he said. "We inherit the legacy when it comes to race. History isn't a video game that you can restart. We need to take personal responsibility for [our] unearned advantage."
Wise used an analogy to show how illogical the thought that a black president means the end of racism is. He said that if the same logic were used, it could be said that women and girls in Pakistan faced no challenges or discrimination anymore since Benazir Bhutto, a female, was elected Prime Minister of the country twice.
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