Honestly, with the current attention of Black Lives Matter, I think that some generations of white people are learning just how pervasive and exploitative racism and white supremacy are. A lot of white people (between ages 25-50) think that racism “isn’t that bad” or “is getting better.” They honestly think that most cops are “good cops” and that it is just the “bad seeds” that are hurting Black people. They honestly think, in America, everything isn’t about race. Well, as we know, with our struggles as African Americans, racism and white supremacy infect and infest every minuscule area of our lives; and that 95% of law enforcement are terrible human beings that to this day, I really do not understand where they karma is.
But anyway, the crux is that white supremacy is learned. Sit with that. Sit with the idea that white supremacy is a learned activity. And where do you initially learn most things: at home, with your parents and guardians.
Therefore, coming to terms with the fact that your parents are terrible people that perpetuate racism can not only be confusing, but it can disillusion a person into thinking that being racist and having a white supremacist* mindset is inherently okay. And that “Black people must have done something wrong to deserve my parents thinking this way.” Look, no one wants to accept that their parents are worthless pieces of shit. (And yes, being a racist makes you a worthless piece of shit.) No one wants to believe that their family members are uneducated, abysmal bottom feeders that continue to harm a whole group of people because God made their skin hue darker. This could disturb a person so much, they turn on the victim (Black people).
I remember talking to a former friend about her vocal support for the Occupy Wallstreet movement. As we talked more, I found out her dad was in complete opposition of the movement as well as a card-carrying Republican, who most likely had stereotypical thoughts about Black people. I always noted the hypocrisy of these types of “activists.” To me, it’s like, start with your own racist family. Talk to them about their destructive, racist mindsets before you start attempting to protest outwardly to change the world.
Don’t stomp around causing trouble until you have eradicated racism from your own family.
Anyway, bottom line is that there are a lot of people that cannot handle that their family members are the cause of racial oppression towards Black people. They cannot handle that their family members have in turn taught them how to treat another human being like garbage. They cannot handle that Black people have done NOTHING to warrant what America has made us endure. They cannot handle that they were, in fact, raised by crazy people. (You are crazy if you are racist.) They cannot handle that their “loving” parents are/were raging, hate-filled fiends that are/were simply wrong.*Please note that a white supremacist mindset is not relegated to just white people. Any non-Black person can have a white supremacist mindset.