So now comes the phony Kumbaya Brigade to ignore facts and realities.
Let’s assume you do not agree with me that accusations of race baiting are racist rhetoric. I think you have no understanding of the use of the phrase if you think that and I think even if you do, you should understand that people of color do not agree with you. Perhaps, with that in mind, you might refrain from such scurrilous charges. A true progressive would, imo.
But let’s get to what really exercises them – “people” being “mean.” And by “people” I mean me. Faheyman wrote an off topic comment in a Buhdy post attacking ME:
“Bad Karma” Alert! (2.00 / 2) [delete comment]
“So we need as loud of a voice as possible…and we need new ways to present our positions clearly and simply. …and to move the candidates AND to promote some form of unity…”
We must yell louder, but yell with good will, if unity (solidarity and united action) is the goal. To wit…I came across this comment on the front page earlier today:
[hidden comment] Fuck you (0.00 / 2)
Fuck you you racist bastard!
Hey Buhdy. Fuck this guy.’Fuck this piece of shit racist.
by: Armando @ Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 05:48:50 PST
This particlar diarist routinely spreads extremely bad karma on your site. And, since he’s a frequent front-pager, this happens all too often.
He resorts to name-calling (not to mention basic rudeness).
I don’t get it. It’s more appropriate for the Planet Orange crowd, IMHO. I thought I had found a refuge from that kind of shit over here.
(Also, thanks for uprating my diary. You’re too kind.)
Peace.
So I am attacked personally in an off topic manner. The KUMBAYA! Crowd says Hurrah! But that’s not my problem. My problem is with the dishonesty this person displays. He ignores the comments I am repsonding to. For example, this one from a person who then writes this shameless diary. The comment stated:
The only racist statement is yours (1.00 / 2) [delete comment]
“I am sure access had nothing to do with white man Solomont’s decision to bundle for Obama. Riiiiight.” Perhaps your goal is to drive this website into irrelevance?
by: notlightnessofbeing @ Mon Nov 26, 2007 at 09:17:09 PST
Faheyman was not concerned in the least about that person calling me a racist. What of the Karma of that Faheyman? But Faheyman is simply dishonest. In his diary he wrote:
Having been “called out”–not once, but twice–by an essayist here this (yesterday) evening (Eastern Standard Time), I would like to respond.
Why does Faheyman act the victim here? He ORIGINALLY called me out. He has not responded to why he ignored the charges of racism against me by NotLightnessofBeing. He is a dishonest hypocrite. He had nothing to say about Night Owl accusing me of race baiting. What of the Karma Faheyman. But Faheyman is a dishonest phony.
Let’s make this clear. All of the accusations against me are false. I initiated NO HOSTILE exchanges. It was the KUMBAYA crowd who has attacked me personally. It is the KUMBAYA crowd who called ma a raicst FIRST. It is the Kumbaya crowd who called me a race baiter.
It is the height of dishonesty, hypocrisy and phonyism from the Kumbaya crowd to attack me for being mean while they spare no opportunty to attack me personally and call me names.
I have said from day 1 that I do not give a shit about civility and Kumbaya. This is no secret. I do not complain about being attacked. I do complain about dishonest phony Kumbayers here who play the innocent when they are the instigators.
I know that many of you do not have the desire to call out this dishonesty. That’s fine. But rest assured, I will. ESPECIALLY when it comes to race issues.
I will not be silenced by the dishonest Kumbaya crowd here. Only Buhdy can do that.
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with honesty.
Will the Kumbaya crowd be honest? They have been DISHONEST so far.
How on earth could anybody silence you?
We need more discussion about race, not fewer. No doubt I will stumble in this process. Racial discussion are not in my view simply a matter of “let’s all just get along.” That is what it has been reduced to through an ideology of “white denial”. Yes, I am white. I live in the South, so I get to see it played out very frequently.
I was a bystander, so go ahead and take aim. Truthfully, you intimidate the crap out of me with your anger. That is my perception not a proposal about your intent. I need to get over it and I will. I deal with a substantial amount of anger in my job and often find in my personal life that I have to pick and chose where to dive in. I am prepared for your potential derision. I enjoy reading your posts.
…interpreting absence of action as dishonesty. If I interpreted it that day, my life would be filled with anger, because someone coming to my defense is quite rare.
Of course one could assume that racism is worse than I face. I suppose people do.
I’m getting dressed right now to go across the street to get some groceries and then go to work. In the store, I will undoubtedly attract the attention of a few people who don’t know me who will openly stare at me. I will be able to watch distaste spread across their countenances. And I will hope that they are not the person who will let that distaste turn to hatred and decide that I need to be assaulted.
All because I was born male but changed that.
There are people here are Docudharma who have demeaned people like me. There are people here who have defended others who have debased people like me. There are people here who do not think I deserve the same rights they have or would wish to have and think people like me need to shut up, just shrivel up and die.
I don’t think that you have once defended me or people like me, Armando. I do not take that personally.
Robyn
And thanks for the kick in the ass on the other thread, A. I was being an ass.
I will not be a bystander. I’ve written about this before. I want to be liked and to get along as much as anyone else. It hurts to be disliked and disagreed with. But that doesn’t matter — I have to live with myself.
To make accusations of race baiting and playing the race card is a serious business.
I read the blogs of people of color. Those comments would have been dealt with immediately. The language used would have been very different from the language Armando used (tho in the case of Blackamazon, the language would have been far more devastating).
The fact NO ONE called this out is extremely disturbing. I’ve seen this at Daily Kos and I fight it all the time. I didn’t think I’d see it here.
Think about this — think about the notion of “reverse racism.” Think about the notion of “institutionalized racism.” Think about what really shuts down discourse, especially discourse about racism.
Armando confronted all of us on this. Some responded — most used the excuse of his “language” to avoid the issue, to remain “bystanders.”
I am no different. I avoided the reality of this, I was a bystander by not confronting a poster I have such respect and affection towards. I hedged my words.
I won’t do that again. No matter how much suffering we think we undergo when battles happen here, no matter how much our feelings get hurt, the effects of racism make those hurts insignificant, they do. Imagine feeling those hurts every day of your life. And imagine folks saying you don’t really feel that way, it’s just silly of you to think the way you do. Every day.
Robyn speaks of this as well.
It’s too easy for those of us who are white and can choose to avoid looking at this issue to be bystanders.
Armando has just now made it more difficult to avoid this. And I’m glad he did.
This isn’t about him. It’s about us.
I’m offline much more than I used to be. I only have one comment to make and that is that we can’t lay any claim to being people promoting diversity when we so easily devolve into arguments. It is fine to have differing opinions and we all have egos or we wouldn’t feel so self empowered to be able to write these personal manifestos otherwise known as diaries around here. So, we can’t lay any claim to promoting diversity when we devolve so gleefully into throwing rocks at each other and I suppose what I really want to say is that we can’t lay much claim to promoting diversity when at times we seem to get stuck on and get such a kick out of winging high velocity stones at each other. Diversity vs. Ego……….Problems Solving vs. Silencing……it isn’t easy but the usable truth lies somewhere in the balances and almost never in the extremes but sometimes in the extremes when fighting extremes and if you aren’t totally confused now then just get along damn it 😉