Calling all white people, part 13: And now for a brief update…

Calling All White People, Part 13

(A periodic attempt to mobilize white people for something other than supporting just other melanin-deficient folks and maintaining a status quo of a nation geared toward whiteness as the baseline and the norm)

By An Average White Guy

TODAY’S EPISODE: What this thing is all about

[To find other installments of “Calling All White People,” click here]

I’m going to take a very brief break from the usual pontificating and thinking and sharing and perhaps even sometimes sticking my foot in my mouth to say “Hi” and let you know what this column I write here at Black Girl in Maine is all about. And what I’m about when I show up here.

Nope. Not gonna tell you who I am. If anyone does that, it will be BGIM herself. That’s her business and her call.

However, in this installment of “Calling All White People,” I’ve now reached that “baker’s dozen.” That lucky number 13. Seems a good a time as any to make clear what the purpose of this regular column is.

First off, I’m surprised we’ve gotten this far, folks. Or at least that we’ve gotten to a 13th post from me this soon. Honestly, this whole thing was started with the idea it wouldn’t run for long or at least not run very often. I figured those first three posts I did would be something BGIM peppered the blog with lightly every couple months and that maybe she would call on me every once in a while thereafter to address some issue of value for her readership, in particular the white readers.

And while I hope my words have value to most of the readers of this blog, or at least a large chunk of them, this column is aimed primarily at white people. One of the things I’ve sensed about this blog is that as well-read as it is by many people of color, in particular Black people, BGIM has a lot of white readers. And while she has great things to say to white people and to others, I’m also cognizant that we white people have been urged for some years now to not only educate ourselves about the lingering stink of racism and to understand what white privilege, white supremacy, institutional racism and implicit bias are (among other concepts) but also to educate our fellow white people and open their eyes (or open them wider if they are already opening up).

And, by the way, that white privilege thing is one of the reasons I don’t have a byline here. Why my name isn’t up at the top (or even the bottom) of these posts. I’m not shy. I’m not hiding behind anonymity. I just am really unwilling to center myself in this venue. I don’t need the publicity. I don’t want a spotlight on me. I have other places and ways to do that. This blog was started by a Black woman and has grown to become a platform to showcase and elevate the voices of other people of color, especially women of color. That’s where it deserves to continue to go.

So, here’s hoping what I write here has value. Here’s also hoping that the contributors of color continue to grow in number and I become even less prominent on these pages. But here’s also hoping that I’m here as long as some of you need me to be (BGIM included) and that I say things that are worth saying.
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