UPDATE (Jan 20, 2017): Why Wisconsin Voted For Donald Trump: The Coastie Privilege
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No, there is no such thing as “White Culture” – as it’s used. If they tell ya otherwise, they’re uneducated. The only people I hear consistently using this rhetoric back home are Black, but I’ve recently had a lot of “White” conversations about it since moving to LA.
First, African-Americans do have a culture – Black Culture. Since The South built its foundation from the labor of African slaves, who all had a noticeably different phenotype than their slaveowners, who were later discriminated against and pushed into a harsh, segmented pocket of our society for their physical appearance and forced to survive – a culture has formed for many folks of that background. Black is an Racial and Ethnic group created out of American Institutional Racism.
But this “White Culture” talk is nonsense. Since “White” is not an actual Ethnicity, but a Socially (Government) Constructed Racial Categorization – created to facilitate slavery in America – of course there’s no culture surrounding the megadiverse range of people that have lighter skin complexions in our country. When an American claims that someone is “Acting White,” they usually mean that the person is catering to our English-based culture – the culture that pushed our current population to come here, and also laid the commonground for many bloodsucking elitist Americans. Whether he or she is pushing another to “speak clearly,” or “dress nice,” or “act proper” – they’re promoting the lifestyle of the American-by-way-of-Great Britain.
Those speaking out against “Cultural Appropriation” appear to oppose this thought process. They’re right that exploiting another culture is foul, and it’s generally a bad look to pretend to know another’s people when it comes to his or her roots. However, there’s nothing inherently wrong with embracing a culture that you weren’t born into – like how I embrace parts of Hip Hop. This is where “Acting Black” comes in – when a person thinks another is catering too much to Black-based culture. Whether that’s having a “Soulful Voice,” or “Rhythm,” or “Style”.
Most color-coded judgements are highly subjective, childish and lazy. They’re used under the assumption that a person shouldn’t be doing what they are – that they’re going outside their lane. But America is a nation largely composed of immigrants. There are no lanes, only laws. We’re all here… and there’s still little common cultural ground between the English, French, Norwegian, German, Irish, Jewish, Italian, Spanish and other communities of the U.S.A. – outside of a certain level of support for capitalism. Most Americans don’t like our democratic system.
It’s a sheer lack of knowing that leads to these simple-minded ideas. You’ll never meet an educated person differentiating people in such a polarized way. But if we’re playing the stereotype game, at least shoot with aim. The English are stereotypically white collar and privileged, French are artsy and entitled, Norwegian are stoic and thrifty, German are hardworking and hardheaded, Irish are scrappy and hotheaded, Jewish are loud and materialistic, Italian are suave and judgemental, and Spanish (Latino) are flamboyant and resilient. There’s a general East Coast culture, a Midwest culture, a Southern culture, a Western culture, and a West Coast culture. There’s a difference between a white collar and blue collar; city, suburban and rural people.
The folk of The Midwest (Native, German, Irish, Norwegian, Black, Polish, Mexican) are an educated, politically active working class people, who fought the Nazis of Germany, the slaveowners of The South (British), many other battles in the field and in politics, and now fight internal battles in the Rust, Corn and Frost Belt, dealing with the many toxic behaviors of the metropolitan Coasties (English, Jewish). That being said, Midwesterners aka Northerners are usually more Genuine, Independent, Hardworking, Intelligent and Natural than other “White Majority” populations in the different regions of the U.S.
This is where “Midwest Nice,” Midwest Work Ethic,” and “Midwest Charm” come from. We are not a clueless, nondescript “All American” people – as Hollywood and the Media portrays us. Yes, we recognize our American nationhood, particularly during athletics, wartime, elections, Independence Day and country music concerts. But our country’s tragically backwards and uneducated views on culture are perpetuated by government and media. Few if any other places on Earth think in terms of Black and “White” like Americans are still doing in 2016. The people in power here capitalize on the common good, so of course, they have the masses convinced that we’re fat, dumb addicts from “Flyover States” – as they take the credit. Wisconsin has a culture of its own, which makes us – and especially myself – stand out even more, but since we have little apparent monetary value to them, they seek to squawk and vulture rather than sing our praises. This is what they do.
I’m not saying that I or the people I come from are any better than you or your people, whoever they are, but “White Culture” doesn’t exist as it’s described. This is just a lil education for you and yours. Another example: Go back to the history of Europe and you’ll see generation upon generation of war between those of lighter skin complexions. There is no such thing as “White on White Violence,” just the same as “Black on Black Violence.” There’s no secret alliance or an Illuminati brainwashing scheme, only the people I’ve mentioned, the law, and this prolonged fallout of America’s “Founding Fathers”. This shit runs deep, and Mainline Americans are eating alota asshole these days.
Our country is far from the front of the pack of social progress, which is mostly institutional, but also our collective fault for not actively working together to find solutions. These are just the basics – public education type shit. Now, listen to what I’m saying, go out and make you some friends of different colors, and create positive dialogue in the world. Stop screaming at everyone that’s different from you – like a whiny little baby – and maybe, just maybe, one day you can learn your way out of fear and laziness, look yourself in the mirror and see that you’re a culmination of your words and actions, and you can stop relying on a fabrication kept alive by the status quo to make your way in this land.
Bless.
