WT in the IE (White Trash in the Inland Empire)
You know, the oddest thing came up recently in my "hood". It seems some
of the neighborhood kids have been getting picked on for being "white
trash". One of the boys I know really well, Anthony, almost got into
a knock down fight two days ago with a boy who told him he was white trash.
These are some pretty ordinary kids, from working class families.
They're not poor, per se, but they'll never be rich either. For the most
part, these kids that are being picked on come from good homes, from good
parents, and are basically good kids. In fact, some of the kids labeling others
as white trash are from the same kind of family. So why the negative label?
Unfortunately, I can't answer that for any of these kids. They tell me
this is happening to them, and I can't offer much of a reason for it. All
I could do was tell them, hey, if people want to slap a meaningless label
on you, embrace it and make it yours. When some asshole calls you white
trash, holler out "darn right! WT in the IE man!!". The other kids will
tire of their game if they can't upset you. I told Anthony, "Dude,
I'm white trash too, if you are, so rock on!", and raised one fist in the air
in defiant salute. To which he solemnly raised
one fist into the air, with both a look of defiance, and relief, on his small
face. I guess the label hurts less when someone you look up to endorses it.
It just goes to show, you don't have to be black or hispanic to suffer
variations on racism. You don't have to have dark skin to suffer bias
and bigotry. Racism can hurt even if your skin is white.
Just ask Anthony.
Posted at 19:40 # G