Kyle "Guante" Tran Myhre - How to Explain White Supremacy to a White Supremacist

Summary

This poem delves into the pervasive nature of white supremacy, highlighting how it is not just a collection of overt acts like hate groups, but a deeply embedded system that affects institutions, policies, and individual actions. It critiques the ways in which racism is perpetuated through silence, inaction, and the everyday privileges that go unnoticed. Using vivid imagery and metaphor, the piece contrasts the sensationalism of explicit racism with the quiet, insidious forces that continue to harm marginalized communities. It ultimately calls for an awakening, urging people to recognize and confront the systemic nature of racial injustice.

Takeaways

• 😀 White supremacy is not just individual hate or violence; it is a systemic issue that shapes policies and structures.
• 😀 White supremacy functions like water, subtle but pervasive, rather than something as overt as a shark.
• 😀 Racism is embedded in everyday systems like immigration law, public school curricula, and policies such as redlining, mandatory sentencing, and voter ID laws.
• 😀 Discrimination in housing, banking, education, and employment continues to impact millions of people each year, far beyond individual acts of bigotry.
• 😀 Despite the focus on visible symbols like white hoods and Confederate flags, the true power of white supremacy often operates in more insidious, invisible ways.
• 😀 The focus on 'bad apples' in the system ignores the broader, foundational injustices that create and perpetuate systemic racism.
• 😀 There is a distinction between individual acts of racism and the larger, more harmful systems of oppression that continue to marginalize people of color.
• 😀 White supremacy is perpetuated not just through action, but also through inaction, silence, and indifference.
• 😀 The idea of equality based solely on 'working hard' and 'all lives matter' can often dismiss the historical and present realities of racial injustice.
• 😀 The script challenges the listener to confront the uncomfortable truth about how pervasive and entrenched white supremacy is, even in the seemingly small, everyday actions.
• 😀 The poem ends with a call to action: to stop ignoring the ongoing struggles and inequalities faced by marginalized communities, and instead, listen and act to change the systems that uphold them.

Q & A

What does the author mean by 'white supremacy is not a shark, it's the water'?

The author is emphasizing that white supremacy is not just an overt, visible force like a shark, but rather an invisible system that permeates and shapes the entire environment, much like water. This suggests that racism is deeply ingrained in society and often goes unnoticed or unchallenged.

How does the metaphor of 'a lit match dropped into a boiling ocean' relate to the feeling of confronting white supremacy?

This metaphor suggests the overwhelming and hopeless nature of confronting white supremacy. It evokes the image of a small, fragile match being rendered ineffective in the vastness of a boiling ocean, symbolizing the futility and overwhelming scale of challenging systemic racism.

What is the significance of the line 'you meanest glare in the chat room all poker face and no cards'?

This line critiques the passive, performative nature of online racism or the disingenuousness of people who claim neutrality or 'politically incorrect' opinions without taking meaningful action. It highlights the emptiness of such actions, as they lack substance and impact.

What is the metaphor of 'a burning cross' used to convey?

The burning cross is a symbol of the Ku Klux Klan and violent white supremacy. The author contrasts its dramatic, overt symbolism with the more insidious, subtle forms of racism, such as saying 'I don’t see race' or 'All lives matter.' These statements, though less violent, still perpetuate inequality.

How does the speaker describe the role of silence in upholding white supremacy?

The speaker suggests that silence, whether through inaction or avoidance, contributes to upholding white supremacy. When people say nothing or avoid speaking out against injustice, they implicitly support the status quo, allowing systemic racism to persist unchallenged.

What does the phrase 'how many skin heads do you think are in the room when they set immigration law or decide curriculum for public schools?' suggest about the nature of systemic racism?

This question critiques the idea that racism is always visible or overt. It points out that decisions which affect millions of people, like immigration laws or public school curricula, are often shaped by racist ideologies even when no openly racist individuals are involved in the process.

How does the author use the concept of 'sharks' and 'drowning' to explain systemic racism?

The author contrasts the image of a shark, a rare but dramatic threat, with the more common and insidious danger of drowning, symbolizing the systemic nature of racism. This suggests that while explicit, visible racism (like the actions of a shark) may be rare, the pervasive and damaging effects of systemic racism (like drowning in water) are much more widespread and harmful.

What is meant by 'a gavl can speak as loudly as a grenade'?

The gavl, a symbol of legal authority, represents how the legal system can enforce policies that harm marginalized groups, just as a grenade represents sudden, explosive violence. The line suggests that the impact of legal decisions and authority can be just as destructive as overt violence.

Why does the author refer to white supremacy as 'a system we tread water and you chum in a bucket'?

The metaphor highlights the inequality and disparity between marginalized groups and those in power. While marginalized communities struggle to survive within a system that oppresses them, those in power, symbolized by 'you' (the dominant group), continue to profit and maintain their privilege by keeping the system in place.

What does the line 'how long do we keep pointing out the bad apples ignoring the fact that the orchard was planted on a mass grave' convey about the nature of racism?

This line critiques the tendency to focus on individual instances of racism ('bad apples') rather than addressing the broader, systemic issues that perpetuate it. The 'orchard' metaphor suggests that racism is deeply rooted in history and culture, and simply addressing isolated incidents will not change the foundational problems.