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Comment of the week: taking a stand against racism without being 'paranoid' Comment of the week: taking a stand against racism without being 'paranoid'
(2 months later)
In this series, Comment is free writers and editors want to highlight some of the best comments on the site. Each week, either an editor or the author of a recent piece will pick a comment that they think contributes to the debate. We'll get in touch with the commenter and ask them to expand a little on their post, as well as tell us more about themselves. Hopefully, it will give staff and readers an opportunity to see how thought-provoking such contributions can be and allow great posts the chance to be seen by a wider audience.In this series, Comment is free writers and editors want to highlight some of the best comments on the site. Each week, either an editor or the author of a recent piece will pick a comment that they think contributes to the debate. We'll get in touch with the commenter and ask them to expand a little on their post, as well as tell us more about themselves. Hopefully, it will give staff and readers an opportunity to see how thought-provoking such contributions can be and allow great posts the chance to be seen by a wider audience.
In our latest instalment, Maya Wolfe-Robinson, an editor on the Comment desk, has picked a comment found below Lola Okolosie's piece on racism. The comment is by AllyF:In our latest instalment, Maya Wolfe-Robinson, an editor on the Comment desk, has picked a comment found below Lola Okolosie's piece on racism. The comment is by AllyF:
"I think one of the most insidious and harmful forms of racism is the one that says 'I've got nothing against black people, I'm not prejudiced, but I get really pissed off when they start getting uppity and complaining about racism. Why can't they just be nice and stop talking about it?' It basically says 'we won't hate you so long as you know your place' and goes a long way to ensuring that racism continues unchallenged.
"I think one of the most insidious and harmful forms of racism is the one that says 'I've got nothing against black people, I'm not prejudiced, but I get really pissed off when they start getting uppity and complaining about racism. Why can't they just be nice and stop talking about it?' It basically says 'we won't hate you so long as you know your place' and goes a long way to ensuring that racism continues unchallenged.
Maya explains why she chose this comment:Maya explains why she chose this comment:
"Lola Okolosie wrote about Martha-Renee Kolleh's decision to place a sign in the cafe that she owns informing customers that she is black because she is fed up with people walking out when they see the colour of her skin. Okolosie described the cafe owner's actions as 'speaking back with defiance – she has opened a space for the little town of Ossett to engage in a dialogue'. The piece highlighted the more insidious sides of racism and ignited a fierce debate below the line. Although I found some of the comments slightly depressing as they questioned both Okolosie's and Kolleh's experience of racism even though Okolosie had described the fear of being labelled as paranoid, it also opened up a dialogue among commenters.
"I picked the comment from regular contributor AllyF because I thought he had taken the point that Lola was making and cleverly used it to address some of the comments below the line. Ally's comment carried weight – not only because of the reputation he has built among our Cif community, but because, as a white man pointing out the harms of insidious racism, he was less likely to be accused of paranoia. This, obviously, is a shame in itself, but it was great to have Ally in the thread."
"Lola Okolosie wrote about Martha-Renee Kolleh's decision to place a sign in the cafe that she owns informing customers that she is black because she is fed up with people walking out when they see the colour of her skin. Okolosie described the cafe owner's actions as 'speaking back with defiance – she has opened a space for the little town of Ossett to engage in a dialogue'. The piece highlighted the more insidious sides of racism and ignited a fierce debate below the line. Although I found some of the comments slightly depressing as they questioned both Okolosie's and Kolleh's experience of racism even though Okolosie had described the fear of being labelled as paranoid, it also opened up a dialogue among commenters.
"I picked the comment from regular contributor AllyF because I thought he had taken the point that Lola was making and cleverly used it to address some of the comments below the line. Ally's comment carried weight – not only because of the reputation he has built among our Cif community, but because, as a white man pointing out the harms of insidious racism, he was less likely to be accused of paranoia. This, obviously, is a shame in itself, but it was great to have Ally in the thread."
AllyF tells us his reasons for commenting on Okolosie's piece, and gives us a bit of personal information:AllyF tells us his reasons for commenting on Okolosie's piece, and gives us a bit of personal information:
Have you commented on Cif before?Have you commented on Cif before?
Once or twi … OK, about 15,000 times.Once or twi … OK, about 15,000 times.
For how long have you commented on Cif?For how long have you commented on Cif?
I was using the dear departed GU Talk when Cif was but a glimmer in Alan Rusbridger's eye. I threw myself into this brave new world when my own MP wrote here in 2006 that we should fall to our knees and give thanks to Tony Blair. I haven't calmed down yet.I was using the dear departed GU Talk when Cif was but a glimmer in Alan Rusbridger's eye. I threw myself into this brave new world when my own MP wrote here in 2006 that we should fall to our knees and give thanks to Tony Blair. I haven't calmed down yet.
How would you describe the community of commenters you find here?How would you describe the community of commenters you find here?
Like a large, fractious and frenetic family wedding, with the full range of characters, jokers, flirts and scary uncles. Disgracing yourself and getting into fights is not compulsory, but you've got to have some respect for tradition.Like a large, fractious and frenetic family wedding, with the full range of characters, jokers, flirts and scary uncles. Disgracing yourself and getting into fights is not compulsory, but you've got to have some respect for tradition.
Why did you feel motivated to comment on this piece?Why did you feel motivated to comment on this piece?
I generally like bolshie people who opt to take a stand rather than take the shit. I instantly loved Martha-Renee Kolleh when I read about her. I always imagine racism in Britain to be something like Scotch mist – hard to see when you're looking out through a window, but if you're walking in it all day you quickly find yourself soaked through. That is how I understand the types of incidents Okolosie described in her article. I can easily understand why non-white people snap back against racism, whether with anger or with barbed humour like the Ossett cafe owner. I cannot easily understand how white people can acknowledge that racism exists, but then get resentful when its victims complain about it. That attitude really doesn't compute to me, and is a real barrier to reducing racism in our society – not least because I can imagine it could make black people doubt themselves or be deterred from speaking out. I was sensing a fair bit of that on the thread.I generally like bolshie people who opt to take a stand rather than take the shit. I instantly loved Martha-Renee Kolleh when I read about her. I always imagine racism in Britain to be something like Scotch mist – hard to see when you're looking out through a window, but if you're walking in it all day you quickly find yourself soaked through. That is how I understand the types of incidents Okolosie described in her article. I can easily understand why non-white people snap back against racism, whether with anger or with barbed humour like the Ossett cafe owner. I cannot easily understand how white people can acknowledge that racism exists, but then get resentful when its victims complain about it. That attitude really doesn't compute to me, and is a real barrier to reducing racism in our society – not least because I can imagine it could make black people doubt themselves or be deterred from speaking out. I was sensing a fair bit of that on the thread.
In regards to your comment highlighted here, do you feel you changed the conversation or moved the debate on?In regards to your comment highlighted here, do you feel you changed the conversation or moved the debate on?
I don't think a single comment ever changes minds, there and then. The best hope is that you lodge a glimmer of a thought in someone's head which causes them some reflection at a later date. I know that my own opinions are often swayed by comments I might have read months earlier that have been slowly percolating through ever since. But I was grateful to those who added several comments of support and agreement, which I didn't entirely expect.I don't think a single comment ever changes minds, there and then. The best hope is that you lodge a glimmer of a thought in someone's head which causes them some reflection at a later date. I know that my own opinions are often swayed by comments I might have read months earlier that have been slowly percolating through ever since. But I was grateful to those who added several comments of support and agreement, which I didn't entirely expect.
Where are you in the world?Where are you in the world?
Straddling Nico Ditch, which once protected the noble souls of Manchester from the roaming barbarian hordes of Cheshire. Or Tories, as we now call them.Straddling Nico Ditch, which once protected the noble souls of Manchester from the roaming barbarian hordes of Cheshire. Or Tories, as we now call them.
• Let us know your thoughts on this exchange in the comments below, and tell us whether it has given you a new insight into the issue• Let us know your thoughts on this exchange in the comments below, and tell us whether it has given you a new insight into the issue
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