Armstrong and Wildman's "Colorblindness is the New Racism" and Hobson's "Color Blind or Color Brave?"

 The authors argue that...colorblindness, which is the belief held by white people who deny the existence of racial inequality, is harmful and should be combatted by color insight, which is the recognition of racial relations and intentionally using that recognition to challenge racial inequality.

Three Talking Points:

Beginning: I appreciated the mentioning of how colorblindness specifically impacts the education system at the beginning of the reading. Armstrong and Wildman mention "Efforts to equalize educational opportunity that recognize that race is still a determinative factor become bogged down by the rhetoric of colorblindness. Courts invoke colorblindness and divert attention from examining how race impacts the distribution of educational opportunity." I would have loved an example of how the courts have invoked colorblindness in relation to educational policy issues. That being said, I would agree with this statement and take it a step further that it requires anti-racist educators to disrupt the system of inequality by acknowledging how historically our schools have been built upon the premise that black and brown students are incapable of performing as good as their white counterparts. 

Middle:  The middle sections discuss the process of color insight and how it can promote equality and emphasize nondiscrimination between races. The authors suggest different exercises that apply color insight instead of color blindness in the classroom. For example, educators can name white normativeness that permeates our culture instead of being silent or neutral about the issue. This made me think of how important it is to call out the standard way of teaching certain topics by naming the ways in which it has been taught by for years by white people. 

End: In the conclusion, the authors write "Color insight does not provide a magic wand that dispenses with racism, but it does offer a vocabulary and some significant points of entry for deeper conversations." I think this is very important to recognize because just being aware of people's races and their struggles associated with it does not end racism once and for all. I think a large cultural and political shift would have to occur in this country with actions and reparations, but I think if people turned from colorblindness to color insight then it would be more achievable to make change. 

Reflection/Connection:

The first thing I thought about this week when I realized what we were reading about was the saying I have heard dozens of times through my life by a white person "I don't see color." This phrase eliminates any acknowledgement of their privilege even though right after someone calls them out for saying this they always go "But I'm not racist I love everyone the same." I don't think it's possible to love everyone the same or be a true ally without recognizing each race's unique struggle up until this point and the challenges they STILL face today.

With respect to the Ted Talk, I loved how Hobson says to be color brave and actively seek out uncomfortable experiences, because learning how to live in your discomfort is going to make you a better person. I found another Ted Talk by Afrika Afeni Mills titled 4 Ways to Have Healthy Conversations About Race that gives more tangible ways to have healthy conversations about race if you find them to be uncomfortable and wanted to learn more about race. 

This made me reflect on my experiences with having conversations about race. I grew up in a rural and conservative small town in Connecticut, but my first experience actively seeking out people who had different experiences than me was when I became a part of a traveling social justice theatre group based in Hartford, CT. This experience really taught me at a early age how to have conversations with people of different racial backgrounds than mine and led me on the path to being super passionate about social justice. 

Finally, here is an image I found on how to be an ally when having a conversation about race.