The Emotions Behind Native American Racism
We read magazines, we watch the news on TV and then soak it up into our repository of knowledge that we use to form opinions, debates and shape our everyday lives. Yet where do these opinions come from? What shapes the media and in turn our internal processes of thinking? I believe The Case for Reparations by Ta-Nehisi Coates helps us delve into these questions and come out with an answer. The essay, published in June 2014 is emotionally, factually and persuasively written for the government and for you and I to look at. It talks about how the American government owes African Americans for hundreds of years of unrelenting racism.
When we read such strong opinions in the media that only argue one point and deny all other possibilities these opinions absorb themselves into our consciousness and we in turn develop similarly strong opinions, for or against the topic. Perhaps this is an evolutionary advantage; when our ancestors were debating whether they should run or hide from a lion close by I’m guessing ambivalence didn’t get them very far. For us though ambivalence may be useful, when we try to create political policies all or nothing approaches actually aren’t the best, for example, Australia’s current refugee policies of putting these people in terrible conditions has in turn put Australia in the deep end with the UN. Unfortunately, thousands of years of natural selection in the wilderness hasn’t prepared us to debate fairly, or to admit guilt. Imagine if we had; we would have all starved to death.
When one of us is guilty of something we try to push it away and deny it happened or that we are responsible. We convince ourselves of our own innocence because we have to feel good about ourselves, and of course that’s what counts (sarcasm intended). Often we need a helping hand from our pride to get us over the line, for example, thinking we are better than refugees because in our minds we may have attained a higher education level. This arrogance removes our ability to fix the problem. Coates essay, addresses this inherent and subconscious processing and unfolds to become a beautiful work of criticism that focuses on native American oppression as something we should appreciate as an issue today. (Balfour p. 33), “”The costs of choosing not to face up to the enduring legacies of racial slavery are incalculably high.” Balfour states we must stop the cycle of racism and like him many people spoke up but not all held his view. The text generated a truck ton of media attention and thus a strong reaction from those who choose either to support or reject Coates’ argument was formulated and similarly publicised.
The Case for Reparations is a potent example of how emotions manipulate public opinion. Peoples identities are washed up into the whirlpool of political debate which dumps them into two parties, for and against what is being discussed. Truth is not what is being debated but instead what is being discussed are people’s identities and feelings. The norms of society are challenged in this essay. This reaches an emotional level as the intended readers, the white majority, are being called upon to change. Coates essay emotionally engages public perceptions of the traditional place of African Americans as subjects for white people to discuss. This is done through essay writing.
Essays are generally hard to define, as a genre they are designed to write many topics. They were designed for the white male as is typified in their confident demanding nature. Black essays in contrast use critical pedagogy to redefine the genre. Coates’ essay is by its very nature defiant against white male domination by the simple fact that it was written by a black person. This serves to make the intended readers, the white and dominant people in society, unnerved as their identities as mediums for communicating and shaping opinion are challenged directly in the essay and indirectly by its form. The journalist R.R. Reno comments on the theory that white liberalists, the people in power, continue racism by being the only voice that can speak out about it:
“The rhetoric of racism has an important role in contemporary liberal culture…It allows the liberal establishment to denounce any white challengers to its moral right to rule.”
Coates is breaking from liberal culture by addressing inequality himself. The voices of African Americans were largely not heard before Coates publication. This is partly due to education levels but heavily influenced the by white liberalist culture. Sceptics around whether to accept Coates essay as historically accurate tend to dismiss him without commenting on the issues he addressed; instead dismissing him as an emotional windmill that churns out nonsense. This shows on the one hand a racist culture but on the other the real reason why the essay is debated; it touches the emotional core of people and many choose to deny its potency.
R.R. Reno argues that the rhetoric of racism in American history is shaped by white Americans who tell the stories of what took place without any real experience. This is not right, but is emotionally comforting to the general majority and so is accepted at a national level. Reno also argues that this form of rhetoric stops those with personal experience of racism speaking out and being heard. The media attention given to The Case for Reparations makes it an important text to analyse this suggestion. Coates essay appeals to people at an emotional level as it explores themes of racism that are often denied or generally considered inappropriate for a black person to address. This emotional response is typical of highly publicised material; very strong opinions are formed on an emotional basis as people choose either to support or reject The Case for Reparations.
When discussing politics of 2014–2016 journalist Conor Friedersdorf said of Coates that he was opinion based and it was not reasonable to trust his opinions as if they were fact. “I cannot disprove Ta-Nehisi’s less flattering theories. I am open to the possibility that they are accurate. But I see no evidence in favour (sic) of that proposition.” Here once again a white voice is silencing a black one. This is allowed to prevent the white majority from having to feel the guilt that Coates suggests they should and in turn the threat that they might owe something. As humans we really do suck at saying sorry, you can ask any minority group that has been discriminated against and they’ll confirm it.
Friedersdorf focuses not on the racism experienced but on an acceptable response. He addresses the public on an emotional level to try and persuade them that they need not fear reparations. There is little attention given to proving the statement that Coates argument is based on opinion rather than evidence but a black person with evidence is still not the same as a white person without. Stating that Coates’ intellectual argument is merely an emotional rampage allows the white majority to ignore The Case for Reparations presented without feeling guilty. This is an example of how emotion shapes opinion.
Interestingly both The Case for Reparations and Friedersdorfs’ article were published by The Atlantic. This shows an assumption that public debate will result in continued interest creating further revenue for the Atlantic. Public opinion will be fortified by debate and rather than aiming to dismiss the reparations claim The Atlantic is creating an environment where people will be persuaded to take stronger sides. The Atlantic is prolonging media attention which in turn will prolong the time given to debating the topic thus allowing opinions to fester. On one side will always be those who feel the injustice of racism and on the other those whose identities are threatened by admitting it. The more publicity the article gains the stronger people’s opinions will become to support their wishes.
Coates agreed that the reparations debate is one of feelings and identity. “The idea of reparations threatens something much deeper — America’s heritage, history, and standing in the world.” Not only are individual identities shaped by debates but so are entire nations. What Coates is saying is that racism has been so engrained in America that to change it would cause the substructure of society to change. America is founded on racism and to change that would mean to accept that native Americans have an equal voice. Whether consciously or unconsciously Coates implies that Americans must continue to deny reparations so that the way society is structured with the white person at the top can continue. Therefore, The Case for Reparations debate centres around how people view themselves rather then what actually took place.
The Atlantic helped circulate the debate and continue its potency by continually publishing opinions which led to more intense responses. Another response is from Jia Tolentino, he stated that the Case for Reparations,
“…is as precise and blazing and undeniable from every angle as a giant diamond under a spotlight; it should be bound as a textbook and given out as required reading in every high-school history class for the rest of all time”.
Tolentino believes The Case for Reparations deserves to be treated as holy, that it is a perfect recount of events and the racism that was felt and is currently felt was accurately depicted. Tolentino goes on the suggest that everyone in America should appreciate and understand what happened from Coates essay.
This is directly challenged by those whose gut reaction is to be opposed to the idea of reparations. Author Cedric Johnson wrote;
“Ultimately, Coates’s views about class and race — and this nation’s complex and tortured historical development — are well-meaning and at times poetic, but wrongheaded.”
Both Friedersdorfs and Johnson reject Coates argument without addressing eyewitnesses from his account, or even referencing the injustices described beyond sweeping statements. The refusal to discuss these claims shows a reluctance to accept, even subliminally, the evils that have been inflicted on Native Americans and the emotional reluctance to repair them as this would entail admission.
With the knowledge of how our identities and emotions manipulate our decisions we are faced with a new responsibility which is to do justice to all without prejudice. An example where this has not been done well publicly is The Case for Reparations by Ta-Nehisi Coates. We have too long denied evidence and must consciously make an effort not to blur fact with opinion. Doing so will help humanity move forward with acceptance and equity.