Jessie Daniels White Lies: Race, Class, Gender, and Sexuality in White Supremacist Discourse - Book Report/Review Example

History and Political Science, Book Report/Review Review of Jessie Daniels’ book White Lies: Race, Gender, and Sexuality in White Supremacist Discourse. The pages of racial history of America are drenched in bloodshed, and until this day, this crying question poses threat to the unification of the country. Many books have been written on the subject, many models have been created to find the solution to the issues confronting the white and back races in many areas, but this book has something tangible to offer in the areas of class, gender, and sexuality in White supremacist discourse. Jessie Daniels quotes Toni Morrison in her book: "[t]he scholarship that looks into the mind, imagination, and behavior of slaves is valuable. But equally valuable is a serious intellectual effort to see what racial ideology does to the mind, imagination, and behavior of masters" (1). Daniels makes sincere efforts and exhibits good analytical skills of the literature related to white supremacist organizations. She is not worried much about the ignorant and harmless radicals who manage such organizations and publish literature full of racial venom against the blacks. Daniels articulates her concern by stating, “what is most alarming about the white supremacist discourses produced by extremists is that it shares much in common with White supremacist discourses produced by elected officials, Madison Avenue, mainstream political debate, academic intellectuals and popular culture representations” (2). Such negative philosophies have the capacity to destroy harmony in the society by major flare-ups created by small vindictive incidents and cause long-term damage in the affected areas and mutilate the psyche of the two races all over America. Only when the society is sympathetic to such organizations and the citizens become passible observers to their activities, the organizations draw strength and act fearlessly. The anti-White stance is noticed in the arguments by Daniels, but she has adopted a principled approach, without bias. It is the job of historians to unearth facts and not write what is convenient. So, this is not another anti-white book; it is certainly pro-black. Being a white-born is not the fault of that individual, and blacks and whites enjoy equal constitutional rights. The issues this book is dealing with relate to the ground realities: the blacks have to encounter notwithstanding the legal safeguards. Whites have been enjoying the historical advantages in all walks of life in America which no legal provisions can undo overnight. Whether one admits it or not, most of the whites are unconscious racists. Daniels argues that “[e]thical concerns surrounding issues of empathy with White supremacists and their ideologies were ultimately much more difficult to confront” (144). The present situation looks like shadow-boxing. Nobody supports racism openly and equivocally, and yet it is there. Its pain is being experienced by the black race. The American culture is based on White supremacist lies, and the blacks are aware of it. But they are unable to do anything tangible in this regard. The ground realities are tough issues for which psychologists are unable find clear-cut solutions. The frustration of the author is evident when she asserts that White supremacist is a form of terrorism that will never be included in the list of terrorist activities by the whites. Is White supremacist issue is a non-issue that is blown out of proportion? The author faces a dilemma, and is unable to provide a concrete picture. At times she thinks it is a marginal issue, but she also asserts that the issue is the tip of the iceberg. She argues that “[t]he marginal individuals who are attracted to White supremacy are most often Southerners. White supremacy is an affliction of one, especially racist, region of the country, the South. White supremacist organizations do not have nationwide appeal, and therefore, White supremacy is not a national issue, it is a regional one” (4). White supremacy is an emotional issue both for the whites and blacks. The difference is that the blacks are at the receiving end. The issue is not whether one gives the hate speech. The state of affairs is as follows: most of the whites tolerate and accept the contents of the hate speech and assert that it is protected by the concept of free speech. This shows the psychological level, the inner working the White community. The whites still believe that they are genetically superior to the blacks and other marginalized groups. The after-effects of the materialistic culture, created and nurtured by racial slavery, have not been eradicated totally. They continue to enjoy the benefits of racism in their personal lives. White supremacist groups may be fringe groups, but white supremacist ideology is not. On the slightest provocations unpleasant situations may happen. It is like the latent fire within the social structure which is difficult to extinguish when the issue goes out of hand. It is futile to expect that the whites will willingly give up the advantages which have fallen to their lot generations before. Thus, it turns out to be a social issue with wider ramifications, including black women, black children and all that represents the black culture. The dividing line is there, and no group wishes to recognize it. The worry of Daniels is about this important count. The White heart of America does not beat to the rhythm of the American core values. The author has examined over 300 publications from many White supremacist organizations. Racist ideology is carefully interwoven in constructions of gender and sexuality. The whites succeed to legitimate and sustain privileges of race, class, gender, and sexuality. Jessie Daniels is eminently suited to write a book on the subject of White supremacist. She is an Associate Professor in Urban Public Health at Hunter College, City University of New York. She earned an MA and a PhD in Sociology from the University of Texas at Austin. Daniels is recognized as a national expert on white racism; she writes blogs on racism regularly. In the book under review, Daniels has given an elaborate introduction and covered the subject in five chapters: “White Supremacist Movement(s) in a White Supremacist context”, “Visions of Masculinity, Glimpses of Femininity: White Men and White Women”, “Rapists”, “Welfare Queens”, and Vanessa Williams: Black Men and Black Women”, “ZOG”, Bankers, and “Bull Dyke” Feminists: Jewish Men and Jewish Women” and “The Ends of White Supremacy”. In Appendix A the methodology has been explained, and Appendix B provides “Publication Inventory”, making the book complete and compact. The tides of racial waves are evident in America, and they continue to affect the psyche of American people. The fear of the blacks of being terrorized by the white authorities is real; the saving grace is that they have constitutional rights. Black teachers being harassed, black students being victimized by the white groups, and anonymous calls to threaten the blacks, especially on campus, - such race-related incidents are common, and they cast slur of the day to day life of the blacks. Displacing whiteners from the contemporary construction of the society is a tough asking. I thoroughly recommend this book to all classes of readers, as it provokes thinking and draws attention to the measures to be taken in order to check the problems created by the whites well in time. Psychological suffering is more painful than the suffering of the body. All segments of the society, the politicians, the press, the cultural groups, women organizations and the Church need to have a unified agenda to address the issues at their levels. Works Cited Daniels, Jessie. White Lies: Race, Class, Gender and Sexuality in White Supremacist Discourse. London: Routledge, 1997. Print. Read More