Brief for 9/10 – Welcome to The System!

Can You be Black and Look at This?

Elizabeth Anderson made several well validated points throughout this article. She talked about how black people feel connected to one another’s struggles even though they may not have experienced the exact same incident. For example, Emmitt Till was senselessly murdered by white men without remorse. In today’s day and age, this level of blatant racially motivated violence would not be tolerated. However, black people can still relate and empathize with this just with the thought of “that could’ve been me.”

This idea of empathy within the black community brings me to Anderson’s main focus. “This essay considers the inchoate way that black people might understand themselves to be apart of the larger group. I mean this more than I mean political, ethnic, subcultural, or diasporic. I am talking about what it is to think of oneself , in this day and age, as having a people.” (82). Personally, I feel as if black people are able to identify as a “people” because for so many years we have been viewed as the outsiders. Therefore, no matter what differences we possess, we know we share the trait of “other” in the eyes of society.

This idea of being “othered” reminds me of a term that I learned in my Intro to WGSS class: alterity. In lamest terms alterity is just the state of being othered. Simone Beauvoir describes how alterity is used to make the “others” viewed as negative and binary. It creates this mindset that if I’m not this then I’m that. For example, if I’m not white, then I’m black. If I’m not rich, then I’m poor. If I don’t have a college education, then I’m ignorant. Then, all of the traits of each binary are grouped together, insinuating if you possess any of the “negative” traits, then you must have all of them. This is exactly how alterity has created many problems in our society, many of which only those who face these problems can fully understand.

The system we operate within everyday was built upon alterity. It contributes to economic disparities, negative stereotypes, and disparities within our justice system. By dissociating themselves from black people, white people have been able to use alterity as a way to justify these inequalities. Is there a way to disconnect “other” from being associated with black people? If so, will this disconnection help reduce disparities? How would that address the inequalities black people have already faced for so long? What are some other alternatives to the situation? Lastly, considering that black people find a sense of community in our “otherness,” how can we keep this idea of “having a people” without all of the negatives that come along with this term?

Casey Friedman says:

September 9, 2018 at 8:14 pm

I agree that the notion of “alterity” has created many problems in our society, but I wonder, is it possible for racial, ethnic, or any group to exist in the real world without some sense of alterity? Does alterity strengthen in group identification?

Eden Kim says:

September 9, 2018 at 9:39 pm

Your discussion of alterity is very interesting to me. It is burdensome for the people who do not identify as “this” or “that.” One of the examples you gave was, “If I’m not white, then I’m black.” However, this leaves out an enormous population of Hispanics, Asians, and more. Knowing that there are groups of people that feel excluded from society’s main conversation, how can we be more inclusive of the people who are not even mentioned in the conversation?

Kevin Villagomez says:

September 9, 2018 at 10:57 pm

I am going to have to agree with Casey, I do believe that it is this alternity that creates a stronger bond of any group of identification. It is in response to their likeness not only in appearance but also their history, If there were no alternates then how would someone identify as something different, something that is not following the normality of things.

Renata Stankowska says:

September 9, 2018 at 11:00 pm

Elizabeth Alexander often referred to the different languages that exist within the retelling of stories and history. Whether that be the imaginative language to enhance a story in one’s favor, the traumatized language of a victim or witness, or the language from the body which “‘speaks’ what it has witnessed”87. Do you think the lack of a common language also gives into this alterity?

Kayley Hoffman says:

September 9, 2018 at 11:21 pm

The concept of “alternity” is an interesting view to explain many of the social structures we see today. I, however, question if people are able to “other” those in their same group, in order to distance themselves from the majority. If so, what consequences could this have on the structure of the group and society as a whole?

Iklim Isyar says:

September 9, 2018 at 11:36 pm

I am so glad that you mentioned the emphaty and “alterity». The emphaty part resembles the characters who “suffered” from hyperemphaty in Parable of Sower. I feel like such sentiments of people, especially of who are systematically oppressed by larger group, help to build courage to raise voice, abd thus a stronger community. However, for the alterity view, I have the same question with Eden, would not giving only two options underestimate the diversity of choices of community?

Mysia Perry says:

September 10, 2018 at 1:13 am

You brief brings up an important point made by Anderson, that through these violent experiences we, Black people, develop a cultural identity. Thus, we experience damage and scarring psychologically due to the imprint left by that trauma. With that being said, is this concept applicable to other groups? If so, are these groups only minorities? Is there such a thing as bottom line whiteness?

Phillip Daniel says:

September 10, 2018 at 3:33 am

The concept of alterity speaks to me on many different levels, especially as someone who has various intersectional identities. While many of us African-Americans will never personally experience the pain associated with senseless violence being enacted onto our community, we are still connected by the stories of our ancestors and the traumatic experiences that our people have faced throughout time. With all this being said though, do you believe that we will eventually reach a point in the future in which we stop being connected to the pains of our peoples past?