Colorblindness Is The New Racism 

by:  Armstrong and Wildman

    The authors, Armstrong and Wildman, argue as the title states:  that colorblindness is the new racism.  The medical definition of colorblind according to google is a reduced ability to distinguish between certain colors; a color vision deficiency in which treatment can help but it can not be cured. In social society today, colorblindness asserts that whites are living in a world where racial privilege no longer exists. Whites fail to see how the privileges and statuses that they enjoy are due to being white.  Whites do not think about race and fail to notice that they have a race, one of social status, therefore they do not discriminate.  The modern move towards colorblindness came to the forefront when government programs that recognized race (affirmative action) became a disadvantage for white people. The authors believe that the presence of colorblindness does not erase the effects of racism and the advantages of white privilege. They state that society is not post racial although a past president was a person of color. The authors stress that one must have color insight/treatment to combat racism/colorblindness.  Color insight is the opposite of color blindness.  If one has color insight he is aware of his race, the races around him and how racism and privilege affect peoples lives.

       Armstrong and Wildman make a connection to Jonson by stating that race must be named and talked about in order to do something about it.  It must be addressed.  Armstrong and Wildman quote Williams:  "race is the elephant in the room that everyone tiptoes around or claims we should avoid."  Johnson states:  "you can't deal with a problem if you don't name it....when you name something, the word draws your attention to it.....the bottom line is that a trouble we can't talk about is a trouble we can't do anything about."  Armstrong and Wildman state:  "Society cannot battle a phantom that it cannot recognize and name."  Both texts advocate for society to take note, name and speak of the everyday occurrences of racism and racial privilege in order to combat the harmful racial hierarchy experienced in the day to day lives of people of color.

     The authors, Johnson, Armstrong and Wildman speak of the existence, structure and idea of white privilege in society and culture.  Race discrimination involves being excluded from privileges.  Armstrong and Wildman state:  "The emphasis on discrimination alone, as if it existed in a vacuum, obscures the operation of privilege, thus aiding in perpetuation," meaning if one fails to acknowledge and does not notice the advantages of his privileged status, he will not be able to discuss racial discrimination, therefore it will continue to exist.  Johnson states privilege is:  "one of those loaded words we need to reclaim so that we can use it to name and illuminate the truth."  Johnson cites McIntosh's definition that:  "privilege exists when one group has something of value that is denied to others simply because of the groups they belong to rather than because of anything they've done or failed to do."  Privilege is a common thread throughout and between the texts of these authors.

     The "All Lives Matter" reading explains why changing the slogan from "Black Lives Matter" to "All Lives Matter" simply negates the purpose of the slogan.  It ignores the original problem of racial inequity in this country.  Before reading this brief explanation, I felt that all "All Lives Matter" was a catchy, inclusive and purposeful response; not realizing that it just swept the problem of racism back under the rug.  All lives do matter, but that message is abundant in our society.  This movement was designed to bring attention to the plight of racism and treat all lives as equals.