Anti-Racism II

CU Boulder

Week 1 Discussion Prompt A

[Introduce Yourself! Thank you and welcome to the course! Please use this discussion to introduce yourself to your fellow learners. Reveal a little something about whom you are, what you do, what you like to do, or what you wish you could be doing. This is not one of the standard surveys; you know the one that asks for race/ethnicity, gender, and so on. Disclose what you feel is the best way to self-identify. Discuss what brought you to this course, or why you feel the ensuing work and self-engagement you are about to take on is important to you.]

Discussion Prompt: Introduce Yourself!

The British Isles and Northern France. Then on to Canada, eventually moving down to the Southern US and subsequently to the American West. White. Nothing extra. Nothing that even begins to bring me by genetics or natural disposition into a more inclusive branch of our humanity—or so my Ancestry profile informs me. I’m OK with being white. Despite my own complicated plate of challenges and difficulties, it’s worked for me all my life. And yet I care about current perceptions and realities regarding Racism. I care about its origins in our great but seriously flawed country, about white ancestral complicity in the historical context, and about my responsibilities as a citizen of the 21^st Century.

I’m now retired—both as a public-school music teacher and as a guest services representative at a Christian conference center. My interests include music, reading, climate science, religion, astronomy, and writing. I’m an aficionado of Bach and Brahms and Mozart and many of the Renaissance composers and Arnold Schoenberg and Philip Glass; but I’m also a fan of Queen, The Beatles, ABBA, The Statler Brothers, and Aerosmith; and again, a devotee of Leo Tolstoy and Jane Austen and Cicero and Clive Cussler and the Brontë Sisters and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. When younger I would hike and camp and canoe and crawl through caves and participate in ropes course activities—not so much of that anymore. But I remain a lifelong student.

This is my third Coursera on-line course based on racial theory and praxis. And I’m looking forward to the continuing enlightenment; the stimulating and practical conversation; and the encouragement and prompting necessary to actively pursue racial and social justice in this time and place. In her article, ‘Settler Colonialism, Race, and Decolonization,’ Dr. Natalie Avalos remarks, “. . . that this isn’t about guilt. Rather, this is a reckoning.” Welp, I gotta say I feel a bit of the guilt; and it’s past time for a substantive reckoning.

My sister (the university academician) insists I’m a Liberal. I’m not convinced about that, but I do know this pursuit is important to me. Very.