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Dear White Men, I worked at a Methodist bookstore. We had a section for Women’s Authors, where we put all the books written by women. There was a section for African-American authors, where we put Black scholarship. These sections were on the bottom row, back corner....
They were considered “Feminist” or “Liberationist” for one reason. They believed that they had the same worth as White Men.
There was no separate section of books for White Men Theologians. If you were a White Man who wrote theology, then you were put on the central shelves for Theology, without any further descriptors. These shelves were at eye-level.
Our seminary was over 50% women and POCs, yet women and POCs were forced to read White Men’s perspectives 95% of the time. White men were the primary texts, unless you took a much smaller class, specifically focused on Feminist Theology or Liberation Theology.
There were only 3 men in the Feminist Theology class. And people laughed about it a lot...
When we graduated from seminary, White Men got the best jobs, even when Women or POCs completely outshined them. They were the norm, the standard, and what people wanted to see in their pulpits.
When I started writing books, I went to a bookstore owned by my own denomination, I was thrilled to find my books. (Such a joy for an author!) Until I noticed that they were in the “Women’s Studies” Section.
My gender is mentioned almost every time my writing is mentioned. I win awards for “Best Women’s Author.” There was no “Best Men’s Author” because a Men’s author is an author.
So if you get your feelings hurt by seeing the delineation “White Man,” then please remember that we have been using those descriptors all of your life. This is simply the first time it’s been used on you.
It is not a slur. It is not racist. It is not hate-filled. It's not a stand-in for MF. It is simply you having the same descriptor of gender and race that others bear all of their lives.
Except, at the end of the day, you will still got more deference, make at least 25% more money, and get the better jobs. And we will find your books eye-level and central in the theology section.
