OPINION
Page 6 n THE ASIAN REPORTER
September 21, 2015
Volume 25 Number 18
September 21, 2015
ISSN: 1094-9453
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n Dmae Roberts
Musings on white privilege
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MY TURN
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ast year I attended a public radio con-
ference that featured a panel discussion
about “unintentional bias.” Unintentional
bias is a way of defining unconscious racism that
occurs from ignorance or viewing the world through
a specific lens that doesn’t include people of color.
Panelists presented examples of bias and how it
leads to public radio’s overwhelming whiteness.
Some reporters of color commented that they are
often the only persons of color in newsrooms, which
do not reflect the diversity of America. Many of the
reporters said they are encouraged to change their
voicing style to sound like they fit the public radio
sound, which is essentially white.
A network executive, a white woman, rushed to
defend her company by cutting in front of a Latino
producer who was about to make a comment at the
microphone. She felt so strongly about defending
their broadcast policies that she thought nothing of
asserting her privilege by moving to the head of a
long line of mostly people of color. My mouth
dropped open. Right there was a perfect example of
unconscious white privilege played out in front of
the crowd. I looked around the room; it was filled
with people of color with stunned expressions. I
doubt any of the white attendees thought much
about the moment.
Times like this make me re-examine my own
actions when I get impatient and speak up. Is it the
white part of me that makes me assertive and
unwilling to put up with situations that don’t make
sense to me, or is it just my personality?
Then I reflect on the differences between my mom
and dad. Ma was always impatient and vocal; my
dad was quiet and non-confrontational. My mom, a
strong Taiwanese woman, let the whole world know
when something seemed stupid to her or when she
was pissed off. My dad, an easygoing white man,
was more willing to accept situations.
It’s difficult to navigate the sources within my
biracial identity. Am I more direct and confronta-
tional because of the traits I inherited from my
mom? Or is it a product of certain privileges because
I’m assumed to be white? Sometimes I believe it’s a
mixture of both.
Often, I’m the one who speaks up in a crowd. I’ve
been known to organize a bathroom rebellion at
theatres and convince the women standing in line to
take over the empty men’s bathroom during
intermission. I will speak up for someone who is shy
or afraid. I have returned bad or spoiled produce I
just bought from a grocery store, just like my mom
taught me to do. And when I’m dealing with a
health-insurance company or a mistake on my
L
credit-card bill, I use my stern voice and am
generally a pill to deal with until I get my account
straightened out. In addition, if people tell me how
to do something that I believe could be done more
efficiently, I let them know what I think.
When I was an actress, I freely auditioned and
received many white roles. Even though roles for
women with my body type were limited, I’m sure I
was given more opportunities than if I’d looked
more Asian. The few times there were auditions for
Asian roles, I didn’t try out for them because it was
highly unlikely anyone would cast me as Asian. I
became a good actress because I was given a lot of
opportunities to play roles that stretched me, from
Shakespeare and musicals to drama and comedy.
For most of the roles, it was assumed I was white.
This became uncomfortable for me because I felt
like I was always passing as a white person. It’s
even more complicated to examine the privileges
accompanying that assumption.
I have never been racially profiled except as a
white person. When I received a traffic ticket, the
police officer wrote “white” or “Caucasian” under
ethnicity. Each time I’ve seen my medical records at
a doctor or dentist’s office, I notice the word “white”
written in the file. Even my driver license in the
past had my race marked as Caucasian.
Because I’m a mixture of two races, I’m highly
attuned to the subtle and not-so-subtle examples of
white privilege. As a witness to racism against
others, starting with my own family members, I can
attest to the different way white people have talked
to me versus my mother and my brother, whose
Asian traits are more visible. I’ve been out with
Asian friends where I was assumed by white people
to be the only one in the group able to speak English
— and an interpreter for the others.
Once, when I attended a Cambodian-American
community fundraiser, an older white gentleman
asked me if Cambodians also eat dog. Really? While
my inner self wanted to yell at the guy for being an
idiot, my outer self has learned to speak calmly and
find a diplomatic way to tell people they are
essentially being racist. Usually it involves a
historical explanation about a myth or stereotype
that led to their “unintentional bias” and inane
statements. It can be exhausting.
Before people find out I’m biracial, it’s not
uncommon for me to hear racist jokes and
comments, which leads me to first reveal my
identity and then tell them what they said wasn’t
cool. That is met with either outright defensive
anger or the exact opposite, in which I become the
Continued on page 7
Opinions expressed in this newspaper are those of the authors and not necessarily those of this publication.