No, Newsmax, interracial marriage doesn’t prove systemic racism isn’t real

Editor’s note: The following article is an op-ed, and the views expressed are the author’s own. Read more opinions on theGrio.

Black Baby Jesus, help me now. I have to defend interracial relationships again? But this time from the other side? Reader, this is not the life I chose, this life chose me. I do not aspire to be a leader for people in interracial relationships. We do not need a leader, and we are not a tribe, but when you come for us, it feels personal, and I have to get out my knife. 

You may recall that earlier this week, I had to educate a young sister who tried to say that you can’t be pro-Black and in an interracial relationship. I showed her that, yes, of course you can. This time, we’re slaying George Kelly of Newsmax (or maybe it’s Greg? I get Caucasian names mixed up.) [Editor’s note: It’s Greg.] Anyway, he’s on-air for Newsmax, so you know he doesn’t have anything intelligent to add to the discourse, but here we are. Kelly did a whole segment this week pointing out prominent Black people who are married to white people—he spotlighted my friend Jonathan Capehart, VP Kamala Harris, soon-to-be Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson—and positing that because some Black Americans are married to white people, then systemic racism does not exist. His logic, if you can call it that, is that some white people marrying Black people means white people (in total) don’t hate Black people, so racism’s over, problem solved. You know, sometimes at night, I pray for intelligent foes but sadly, I don’t have that problem.

Kelly did that segment “destroying” the notion of systemic racism without saying anything about the racial wealth gap, mass incarceration, police violence against Black people, the dearth of Blacks in positions of power in business and politics or beauty standards that prioritize European features. Major American companies need to have officers focusing on diversity to make sure they hire and respect some Black employees, but sure one tiny data point destroys systemic racism. Let me explain some things about America to George [Editor: still Greg], whose head is stuck in the sand.

When we talk about systemic racism, we’re not saying every white person or even most of them harbor hateful or mean feelings toward Black people. We’re saying that whiteness is beneficial in America, and Blackness is generally a hurdle to be overcome. That doesn’t mean every white person succeeds in America, but for those who don’t, whiteness didn’t hold them back. You don’t need to dislike Black people to benefit from whiteness because there are systems that make whiteness inherently valuable and penalize Blackness in all sorts of areas. Let’s look at homeownership as one example.

In the 1930s, the federal government began giving out loans to help create a nation of homeowners. The overwhelming majority of those today! 

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