Alright, weird but important conversation:

Were y’all aware that there are DIFFERENT types of racism?(a guide to arguing with old white people... and your friends)(A Thread)

So to start, scholars have multiple different ways of approaching this topic, but the model I’m going to use identifies four main types of racism; Internalized, Interpersonal, Institutional, and Structural.

Internalized Racism refers to personal, private beliefs that stem from your own culture, and can affect how you view and think about others or yourself

Interpersonal Racism is the next step up, and refers to any racially based bias you might show when interacting with another person either inside or outside your racial group

Institutional Racism occurs within Systems of Power; these are unfair or discriminatory practices inside a specific institution(school, work, etc) that regularly produce racially inequitable outcomes. Think “less likely to get a bank loan” or “natural hair is unprofessional”

Structural Racism is a bias among institutions and across society. This is where we get into things like Redlining, unfair policing practices, the War on Drugs, and our carceral system. Structural Racism regularly oppresses entire communities

When we talk about INDIVIDUAL racism, we’re usually referring to internal or interpersonal racism

When we talk about SYSTEMIC racism, we are referring to Institutional and Structural Racism

Yes, you can be INDIVIDUALLY racist towards white people. I could decide that all white people are good at math, and that would count as racism. However, at present, white people cannot suffer from SYSTEMIC Racism as those systems were built specifically to BENEFIT them.

This is the crux of the “All Lives Matter” movement; it likes to confuse Individual and Systemic racism, which are not interchangeable. Someone assuming I’m good at basketball is very different from me getting arrested on the MAX (true story lol)

When we talk about race and racism, it’s important to be clear about what we mean, because there are many different ways to define racism and confusing these definitions just creates an assload of problems. Anywho, thats my time; thank you for taking the time to read this