Dread Scott, Artist
Check out Dread Scott’s work “Boom” at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City. He is part of the exhibit “Recent Acquisitions for an American Museum” showing Nov 6, 2003-Jan 2004. Among other themes, Scott’s work pointedly addresses various forms of violence faced by people of color with searing critiques of the dominant culture, its hypocrises and contradictions.
Scott’s work, “What is the Proper Way to Display a US Flag?” came under fire this Fall at an exhibition at Nassau County Community College where Nassau County officials attempted, unsuccessfully, to have the exhibit taken down. The College refused.
December 17th, 2003 at 9:52 am
As a poor white male in the south I see many injustices on both sides. On the one hand white privilage is rampent ,but it’s the wealthy white that get this privilege. Not me and my friends. I’m an indifferent. A senior in high school who can’t for the life of him can’t get any insight. This artwork is great for that situation. Because as I can say that I am not threatend by blacks, there is a tension in the air down here.(Appomattox Viginia where the civil war ended)My family is from Sweden and arived to this country way after the war. Yet as I’m being called redneck and cracker, I know there is no defense for me. I’m not trying to say there is like a race divide out here but,it’s odd to me. The other side to the artwork is I don’t feel that any blacks are threatened by much out here. This thought of all whites should feel guilty of slavery is ridicules and have given birth to neo-nazis(kids whos family is from europe came over here and were accused of having been slave holders then getting pissed) and the klan who are just wrong.I don’t know any more, just whoever reads this and can help me get more insight pls e-mail me or post another comment
December 29th, 2003 at 12:06 pm
William. I wish i could say i know where you’re coming from, being a white middle class person from Long Island New York, but i think some things are pretty universal. What you’re experiencing is Classism, which is interconnected to racism, but very different. White people can be working class, buried in debt, even homeless, and still have white privilege, just as black people can be super rich, and still experience racism. Though I agree it is Rich white males who do perpetuate most of the overt and deadliest racist acts, we as whites, no matter what our class standing need to acknowledge the white privilege we have, even if we’re poor, and then stand in solidarity with our working class brothers and sisters. And i agree, we should not feel guilty about slavery. To feel guilty about something isn’t constructive, especially for something our great great great grandfathers may have done, or may not have if they didn’t arrive here until post 1865, though reparations still need to be made, in some form or another, simply because we still benefit from the legacy of slavery. my advice for when people call you redneck or cracker is to just be yourself. It will take some time and a lot of resiliency, as at first people may not trust you as they don’t know you. All they know about you is that you’re a white boy. But don’t take offence. take pride in who you are, and stay true to what your heart tells you. Your true self will shine through, and those people will only call you cracker in jest, or hopefully they’ll give you a new nick-name, one that you can take pride in. Get involved in anti-racism/anti-classism activism in your area, and stick with it. They’ll see that you’re committed and that you’re intensions are good, though be respectful of the group you join. some may be a save-space for blacks and you should respect that. Simply ask them how you can help, if there are any other resources or groups that you can join, or if you’re really up for the challenge, start one up yourself. e-mail me if you want help doin this, it’s not as hard as it sounds. It just takes a little committment
January 2nd, 2004 at 10:58 pm
But there is still a system, which the white’s ancestors built, for the better of whites and it still exist. We also have a media that needs to change. YOU, or any individual don’t have to feel guilty, they have to know it, and not just know it. They have to know what happened with it, know the arguement for slavery, against slavery. Know the morals behind the master, and slave. Not just go, “Oh yeah yeah, slavery happened, it’s over.”
Slavery happened, and it is over, but there are still problems within black communities, because the slaves never really got free. They were just sent to the gutters of poorness. With no compensation to get started. Both of you check this site out, it’s not just going against the kind of racism that’s extreme, it’s also against the racism that is very hidden. Such as people who claim that they’re not racist, but know how to hide their racism with sincerity, or with catchy words. Like I said, check this out. It’s pretty interesting. http://www.jrn.columbia.edu/studentwork/race/2002/white-jean.shtml
January 3rd, 2004 at 9:30 am
Slavery, racism, white supremacy are tactics. They were intended to distract the masses from the real reasons, money and power. The system of greed and power need to brought to justice. If we continue to focus on the smaller movments we loose sight. The solution to our problem is to do away with the current system. We need to struggle toward a new one. As woman of African descent, I more passionate about justice. I have experienced oppression with sexism, racism, and classicism. For any human suffering because of this system, I support sincerely .
January 12th, 2004 at 7:26 pm
I’ve been oppressed, as an Asian Male, you’re right about the “pawns” of problems, but in order to get to the “king” you must get those obstcles our, obstacle after obstacle, or somehow stealth your way into the system’s power and use it to turn the system.
I support you too. I’ve experienced stereotypes, racism, oppression, etc.
January 17th, 2004 at 8:38 pm
Hi, life isn’t fair and people who are born into a disadvantaged life shouldn’t complain. Blacks were definately wronged, and I won’t deny that that has led to a sequence of events which resulted in blacks being born into a disadvantaged life even today. But how long are we going to dwell on this? A thousand years from now, will blacks still be entitled to certain benefits because twelve hundred years ago their ancestors were slaves? I am Greek, and my ancestors were oppressed by the Turks for several hundred years. Yet I don’t see how I could justify asking for compensation from the Turks. Maybe asking for an apology, yes, but financial compensation, definately not.
The fact is that everyone has some kind of burden, a cross to bear, something that puts him at a disadvantage compared to everyone else. Life isn’t fair, and people need to learn to accept that.
You say that white privilege exists, well what if I say that “handsome privilege” exists? All people who are handsome get certain benefits over people who are ugly. Can you deny the fact that many (not all but many) people treat good looking people differently than they treat ugly people? It’s true… So should we introduce laws which give ugly people advantages? For example, if you’re ugly you get into college easier than if you’re good looking. Or how about “thin privilege”, everyone knows that fat people are at a disadvantage. Or maybe “tall privilege”? Where do we draw the line?
January 31st, 2004 at 2:11 pm
Too cold for coherence
Another mixed-bag entry, but I have special dispensation to do that sort of thing. So nyaah. First off, Michelle sent…
January 31st, 2004 at 3:48 pm
Too cold for coherence
Another mixed-bag entry, but I have special dispensation to do that sort of thing. So nyaah. First off, Michelle sent…
February 9th, 2004 at 1:38 pm
People can think in stereotypes or they can relate to real human beings, sans the racist color judgements. Monkey Fist socialists exclusively deal in stereotypes…this is the irrationality that allows them to oversimplify the entire earth’s population into two groups, the “oppressors” and their “victims” and then presume that socialist (government enforced) resource confiscation and redistribution is the means to “justice n’ equality,” rather than major social chaos. This same plan didn’t work in Nazi Germany, when Hitler presumed his stereotypes allowed him to redistribute the property of the “oppressor Jews” to their Ayran “victims” for “the good of the country” …it didn’t work in Communist Russia, when Stalin presumed that his stereotypes of “oppressor rich” and
“victimized poor “could be used as the basis for yet another socialist redistribution scheme, “guaranteed” to bring peace and prosperity to the (former) USSR. Neither did any stereotype-driven apartheid ideas result in African peace, but was as ineffective in this goal as the tribalism that preceeded it. The fact that most black Africans and many white ones united to overturn apartheid, by no means infers that Africans are united in thought and goal, or that even a few understand that the lionizing tribal stereotypes, and the anti-white propaganda proselytized today are no different than the racial stereotypes of the former era, in which whites were speciously lionized, while blacks presumed inferior. Nor did the slavery and segregation plans for Americans result in “liberty, equality and justice for all” as advertised by the American Constitution. And the racist beat goes on…the AffirmaNazi era’s unjustifiable anti-white discrimination has already created enough hostility to support the same kind of racial violence created by anti-black discrimination…bank on that violence.
In the end, the only way anyone can support anti-white discrimination (or any group-oriented discrimination) is by way of an ARBITRARY negative moral judgement based upon a superficial similarity, that is then mistaken for objectivity, a critical error that obscures individual humanity and allows the racist to hate others without ever knowing their names or anything else about them.
By claiming “white privilege” as the bigoted monkeys on this website do, these racists are claiming that _EVERYTHING_ possessed by every white working person, whether newborn, cancer ridden and poverty stricken or Bill Gates, is never honestly earned by honestly working people, but is the byproduct of black oppression, thus do these Monkeys speciously validate both the anti-white hate and anti-white economic and educational discrimination that is the philosophy of the affirmaNazi era.
I see race war as nearly inevitable; all that remains to be seen is whether it will be confined to American borders or include Africa and Europe. Given the well established bigotry of socialist U.N. leader Kofi Anan, and the prevailing spews of socialist Monkeys infesting colleges, government schools and the internet, I ‘ll predict race war on a worldwide scale.
But isn’t it interesting that socialist Monkeys always presume “capitalism” is the problem…what a laugh…as though such freedom could ever exist amongst a majority of authority-ridden, self-righteous socialist “believers” who are quite sure their morality must be imposed upon everyone.
Judy Helton
American-American (snicker)
February 14th, 2004 at 8:31 am
I agree with Judy another civil “war” in America is almost inevitable. If it wasn’t for the black overcome by greed instead of unity this would have probably happened already, I believe this will come from one too many brothers being murdered under the watch of those so-called meant to protect and serve.
As far as whites in the south being accused of being slave owners and Klan’s men, I’m a light colored black male and I don’t need to travel to Africa to know I have African in me. Weather your immediate family was a slave owner or not you still have that racist blood in you somewhere. Some one in your bloodline has committed relentless acts and if you are a Christian then you know that God punishes not only the children but the children of the children.
All of the accounts that you see today are prophecy being fulfilled. From September 11th to the U.S going to war in the cradle of civilization. White history has been noting but violence and gore, and that tradition still carries on today, where ever the white man has planted his feet there is violence. We came to America bound in chains and even that bond was broken by the white man.
From history we know that every great nation must fall and the position America has put itself in, is one were the entire world is planning its demise. Can you imagine if we step on one too many toes and India or China decides that they want to rid us of our weapons of mass destruction?
February 15th, 2004 at 1:48 pm
And yet you choose to live in such an oppressive country? Hypocrite. Why don’t you move?
April 14th, 2004 at 6:05 pm
I couldn’t possibly be happier here in the good ol’ USA. If I thought the US wasn’t the best country in the world to live in, I would move. I firmly believe all people who complain about the US should move. Why stay where you’re not happy?