Why do I lack the ability to trust white people who claim to be progressive or leftist?
When a person of color, especially if they're black like me, affirms their support for causes such as queer liberation, feminism, animal rights, or socialism, I immediately feel that I can believe, with minimal doubt, that they're truly convicted and principled in what they're advocating for.
However, when a white person claims to support leftism, until my skepticism is proven wrong, I immediately assume they're a dishonest and performative libshit. I then proceed to interact with them with hefty amounts of caution. If my assumptions are proven true, I'm never shocked.
Don't view it as a "judgement" as much as you should view it as reasonable skepticism. Is being "white" inherently a bad trait? Absolutely not, especially if you're looking at this very superficially. However, it's important to consider that "white" is more than just ancestry, and it's embedded in a social construct that has enabled oppression and racial strife for a significantly long time throughout history. This means that there is absolute validity in the truth that white people can be much more half-hearted in supporting leftist causes than POC because not being able to view things from a lens of intersectionality is absolutely a hindrance to leftist ideology.
Experience matters, and being white brings an experience of racial privilege that makes you blind to how bad the plight of POC can be. It's crucial to view this less as a "mean, rude, racist judgement 😡" and more as a "wake-up call and invitation to white people gaining awareness on how to be so much better".
To condense this matter down to "You're judging people by innate, immutable characteristics like race!" without taking into account the implications and intentions of such a sentiment is seeming willfully disingenuous.
However, it's important to consider that "white" is more than just ancestry, and it's embedded in a social construct that has enabled oppression and racial strife for a significantly long time throughout history. This means that there is absolute validity in the truth that white people can be much more half-hearted in supporting leftist causes than POC because not being able to view things from a lens of intersectionality is absolutely a hindrance to leftist ideology.
Doesn't stop Anglos from judging the tone of my skin, the size of my lips, or the coarseness of my hair when they first see me. I'm just returning the favor at this point. The experiment is failed-- the only way we can coexist is if we govern ourselves under our own self-determination. The plantation empire will never be worthy of our labors; hasn't even started paying us back for all that they stole.