Understanding white supremacy from within
White supremacy has always - and continues to - uphold hate in all its forms. It fueled the violence and radicalized greed from which our country was founded: first by creating whiteness to justify violent attempts to erase indigenous people and take their land, and then by using whiteness and a race-based caste system to use Black people from around the world as chattel.
Full stop: this dehumanization is our collective history and a mere snapshot of the violent foundations our institutions rest on today. Our social, economic, religious, and moral frameworks were built primarily for white, cisgender, heterosexual, able-bodied men and, secondly, for all other white people. We must contend with that and move forward accordingly.
Insidious in nature, white supremacy culture creeps into our psyche so deeply that it is accepted as the way of life. It disguises itself in language like “tradition,” “legacy,” or “it’s always been this way.” It perpetuates itself in calls for neutrality or demands that progress be slowed down or stalled entirely.
White supremacy culture ensures our history is fully whitewashed, conditioning us to believe that the constructs of yesteryear are working equally for us all in the present.
As a queer organization, we understand the ways our lives depend on questioning norms. We understand that those who benefit from our systems - and have never known anything else - often fail to see the inequities.
Where injustice is maintained, and our differences exploited, hate thrives, profoundly impacting people's right to self-determination and joy.
In its many iterations, white supremacy permeates the societal structures where LGBTQ+ youth learn, live, and grow. Our society was built on a foundation not designed for all of us to succeed.