"Racial Thursdays" have touched a nerve nationwide. After Alaska Dispatch News reported that a platoon on Fort Wainwright is being investigated for a tradition of having no conduct rules on racial slurs or discriminatory statements on Thursdays, the story went viral. It is unfortunate at a time in our community when we need to seriously, respectfully, and productively talk about race and culture, that this screaming headline comes out.
Regrettably, this example of poor leadership and oversight will be seen as a reason why talking about race is bad, and that it leads to hurt feelings. People might feel like they cannot or should not talk about race. You may also hear commentators say things like, "what's the big deal, we are all one race you know." That may be true, but we are not all the same ethnicity, and we are not all the same culture. Perhaps most importantly, not all races are regarded as equal to each other, and we are not all victims of racial inequalities and racism.
We have differences -- that's diversity -- and that's OK. What is not OK is when we attach ideas of superiority/inferiority, good/bad, pleasantness/unpleasantness, desirability/undesirability, legitimacy/illegitimacy, and many other values unequally among the different groups that compose our highly diverse world.
The more we hope or pretend that there are no differences and inequalities among us, the further away from the promise of America we become. In fact, saying "we are all the same" is in many ways worse than pointing out differences -- it completely disregards differences and hides the very real racial inequities, injustices and disparities in our society.
Recently I had the good fortune to travel to Kotzebue as a speaker addressing the middle and high school students. It was a great experience and highlighted how important it is to talk about racial differences with an open approach. The speaker before me was a man named Lance Kramer. He was dynamic and engaging. He integrated cultural and racial differences in his discussion with the students in a manner that was foreign to me, but poignant and relevant. I remember thinking that there was more genuine dialogue on race and culture in his two 30-minute talks in the Kotzebue Middle/High School gym than I had heard in my 12 years as a student in the Mat-Su Borough School District.
It reminded me of how avoidant "culturally white" folks, like myself, can be to talk about racial differences. We are so fearful of coming off as bigots -- or guilty for how the dominant white culture has treated minorities in the past. It is much easier to defer to the "we are all the American culture" or "we are all the same race" than it is to address differences between our robust and vibrant groups in America and especially in Alaska.
This is not a free pass to go talking to your pals about how other races are different than yours. It does not work if I go talk to my white friends about Alaska Native differences, or if Samoan guys talk to each other about white people. That is an invitation to reinforce and cement hurtful and dangerous stereotypes. Talking about race in a productive manner only works when you are speaking to someone of that race to understand the differences better. These are the discussions we need to have in Alaska to help ourselves move forward.
What can happen here is if there is a misinterpretation of a particular action or behavior in a given culture, we can quickly generalize it as a cultural difference. People who study this phenomenon might call that a cultural attribution fallacy. For our purposes, we can call it jumping to conclusions. We all have preconceived notions of other (and our own) groups. It is challenging to deconstruct our perceptions in a helpful way.
Understanding others is rarely a black and white discussion. Most often there are shades of gray. Recently this seems more and more evident. Whether it is rioting in Ferguson, Missouri, violent crime in Anchorage or tragic episodes of violence and loss in rural Alaska we can erroneously attribute these events as descriptions of an entire community or cultural group. This does not mean that the acting individuals should be excused. Absolutely not. However, it also does not mean you can take the poor actions of one person within a group, and assign it to another.
Starbucks has recently introduced an innovative project that is trying to address the lack of dialogue about race. Rather than avoiding the topic, Starbucks is encouraging their employees and baristas to talk about their experiences not only amongst themselves, but also with customers. You don't have to be a multinational conglomerate to try it out though. This can start within your neighborhood, school or workplace. All that is required is being willing to share your own story and hear someone else's.
So before you jump to conclusions after reading about the practices of the 1st Stryker Brigade, try not to generalize this action as one that describes the entire military, try not to use this as an example of why talking about race is bad or dangerous. Yes, we are all Americans, Alaskans and humans, but we all have important differences -- and societal flaws, injustices, and imperfections -- that we need to acknowledge and accept before we can make our community a better place.
Chris Cavanaugh, M.Ed. is a therapist and lifelong Alaskan. He has been working with youth and families from all over Alaska since 2006 and is currently in the first year of the UAA Clinical-Community Psychology doctorate program.
The views expressed here are the writer's own and are not necessarily endorsed by Alaska Dispatch News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a piece for consideration, email commentary(at)alaskadispatch.com.