Do Most Whites Lack An Identity?

No offense, I'm just dying to know. I'm the least racist person you know.

Notice how people define themselves by their "other" usually, for example black or gay?

There's a black identity, which is why it's so rare to find a black atheist and why there's more homophobia and anti-atheism in the black community. Arguably, this identity centers around oppression.

So what about a normal white person? If you say "who are you," what would they say when they have no other?

Believe it or not, a white guy once told me that most whites in fact lack an identity!

 

That's an opportunity to learn more about a person vs what society has labeled them; or vs what identity crutch they fall back on.

 

The least racist person I know wouldnt make a thread with that title

 

Actually most white people I know will answer irish, scottish, english, french, polish, etc.... sounds like an identity to me.

And because I can't help myself... "normal white person"? So no one else is normal?

 

Identities are the understandings of a disjointed being. We are all one pretending at separation.

 

You've had your bee in a bonnet lately.

 

Normal as in the norm -- normative. No one's "normal."

 

You also have certain subcultures like punk rockers but that's not the norm.

 

I figured that's what you meant, that's why I started with the I can't help myself bit.

 

I'm not racist but, white people have no soul

 

I guess I don't really think anyone lacks an identity. Do handicapped people lack an identity? What about mentally ill people? I think you should look a little deeper for an identity than the obvious cultural sources. People identify with different things at different times in there lives. Those 'things' give them a sense of identity. I can identify with listening to music. I can identify with goin to the gym! Those things may comprise my identity. A cancer patient may identify with receiving treatment, or surviving cancer. It all depends on your own personal experience in my opinion. It hasn't got so much to do with a white person or a black person.

 

Most white women I know would define themselves primarily as a mom, then they would probably mention something about church, and political and social conservatism. I think most of them also define their own identity in terms of social class, but they wouldn't say it out loud.

 

I've never really felt like I fit in with the usual white norm - described above by Karen.

So I would say that white people do form identities that fall into specific norms, just like any other race and culture - and I would also argue that every race and culture has outliers who don't really fall into the norm.

On a personal level I do feel like I very much have my own identity and I am happy to report it solely belongs to me, not to my caucasian race as a whole.

 

In another thread, Hotwater stated that he felt like he could speak for black people, as a whole.

I told him then that there was no way I'd dare to, or even care to, try to speak for other white people.

I don't base my identity on the color of my skin, for sure.

 

I have noticed many white guys present themselves by their line of work, such as a plummer, a lawyer, or a denist. Others present themselves by what they like, such as a cyclist, a Hardly Dangerous motorcycle rider, or a golfer. In these examples I see the white guy not presenting a true identity. When someone says they are Irish or Italian, it would be a group identity, not what makes up one's own self. We are dealing with self esteem and self actualization here. Lots of folks haven't got there yet.

 

Also, it depends on who is asking you to identify yourself.

If I'm at the ballpark, I identify myself as so and so's grandmother.

If I'm at a family reunion, I say I'm so and so's daughter.

Etc.

 

what you are talking about is cultural identity and yes, every "group" does identify with the culture they were raised in/with.
not really all that big of a thing, except of course whenever folks want to throw racial identity into the mix.

and what is this nonsense about "black identity" resulting in less atheist and homosexuals???
WTF?? sounds like your pulling stuff out of your ass..umptions.

if you ask me "who are you" why do I have to quantify it beyond saying. "I'm a human, just like you" ?

 

... but some individuals actively reject it.

This really is a thing. I've seen it. I don't go along with it, but...

 

Because we're individuals.

 

Whites are not allowed to identify by race, and this is why there would never be a White Entertainment Television channel without creating mass hysteria.

Personally, I think focusing on race is stupid, and I could not care less about identifying with my race. People are people, and race should not be of importance to anyone with a functioning brain. But you cannot deny that race identity is generally only allowed if you're anything besides white, and it's promoted by the system to "minorities" as a way of keeping the notion of race alive in people's minds. In other words, it's about furthering the divide and conquer mentality.

Most white people walk around with their metaphorical tails between their legs when it comes to the issue of race and being politically correct. I don't, but a lot of people do.