I Would Love to be White

I would love to be white. Not forever, but perhaps a weekend. Don’t you ever get sick of being a minority?

I mean, there is the whole pride thing that white people don’t get to have, because you can be anything and be proud but you can’t be white and proud because then you seem like you are in the Ku Klux Klan.

There is definitely something to be said for having aspects of minority life illuminated so you can thoughtfully examine your own culture and feel lucky to be who you are. Discussing a heritage and having a collective past that is oppressed and depressing can be a lovely way to spend time after dinner on the front porch as the sun goes down. Friendships can be built on a legacy of loathing, and how wonderful some of the bonds forged in this repressive world can be. But sometimes, I just really get sick of fighting all the time. I am doing battle when I am sleeping. I have to slay the dragons of the myth of heterosexual European male society in my dreams, then get up in the morning and be an activist. I have to watch movies and news about the people that I am not, then I have to translate all of my difficulties and observations in order to make my struggle palatable to those who don’t have to march, but are sympathetic to my voice. This is a major part of my audience, an easy ear to bend – yet I still myself must bend it.

What if I didn’t have to bend anything? What if there really was a level playing field? I would love to see how far I could actually go. What if all I had to show off was my mad skills? Wouldn’t I really be able to fly then?

I have posed this question to other minority artists, and get stumped by answers like “No, not ever have I ever wanted to be white.” And I just don’t buy it. Why would you not want things to be easier? What if you were just secular, and everything you did were taken at face value, without having to factor in any minority sliding scale or affirmative action?

One thought on “I Would Love to be White

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *