The banality of systemic racism
Image by iStock
Image by iStock
In considering the Holocaust, Hannah Arendt wrote of the “banality of evil”, the notion that evil comes not only from a person with a gun but also from those who uphold systems and structures which enable that person. Most Germans never killed a Jew themselves. Most never shattered a window on Kristallnacht, or turned their neighbors over to the Gestapo. Most never joined the Nazi party.
At the same time, however, few spoke out against what was happening. Few took action to protect their oppressed neighbors. Few stood shoulder to shoulder with Jews, or with others who were being targeted. Most did nothing. They did nothing because they were afraid. Because it wasn’t their problem. Because they basically agreed with the policy. Because they didn’t want to risk their own standing in society. And because they were opposed — but just not willing to get involved.
We are not living in Nazi Germany, or anything like it. But we do live in a country with systems and structures which enable the ongoing oppression of Black Americans and other people of color. We predominantly white Jews talk of “Never Again” and, yet, live in a country that allows Black people to experience “Again and Again.” We are not doing enough to change their deeply unequal and unjust treatment. Black lives matter and it’s time we do more to show we value them.
We have a double standard in this country for almost everything. The drug problem afflicting Black communities has been treated as a “War on Drugs,” but the opioid crisis is called an “epidemic.” Heavily armed white protesters occupy State Capitols and the police allow them to do so, without incident, while Black protesters are maced, sprayed with water cannons, and the National Guard is called up. People are quick to decry the rioting and looting (and, of course, no one can support or condone such behavior), but were just as critical of Colin Kaepernick when he peacefully knelt during the National Anthem at a football game to protest the very same issues.
We live in a country where 23% of COVID-19 deaths are Black people while they are only 13% of the population. Where eight out of the ten leading causes of death disproportionately affect Black people. Where health care for the Black community is so poor that their life expectancy actually goes up when they go to prison (it goes down by three and a half years for incarcerated white people).
The Black community has seldom rioted over these things. Despite the history and despite the obstacles, they have almost exclusively tried to create change through the system. Organizing, voting, following the rules. And it has not availed them. Sure, things are better than they were, but that bar is awfully low.
Black people are incarcerated at nearly six times the rate of white people. They are more likely than white people to be charged with crimes that carry heavier sentences for the same acts. They are less likely to be paroled from prison. If Black people and Hispanic people were incarcerated at the same rate as their white counterparts, prison and jail populations would decline by almost 40%. These fundamental injustices endure, and are endured, every day. But not everything can be, or should be, endured.
And so we come to George Floyd. And Ahmaud Arbery. And Breonna Taylor. And. And. And. Black people are three times more likely than white people to die at the hands of the police. Police violence against Black people is so common that Amy Cooper knew simply calling the police on an African American man was a mortal threat. You won’t find a single Black man who hasn’t had at least one scary run-in with the police.
And, finally, people have had enough. But it’s not just Black people who are finally taking to the streets. It’s also people no longer willing to watch oppression affect our families, friends, colleagues, neighbors or even just other human beings. The riots and the destruction are a tragedy that can be neither supported nor condoned. And they are a tragedy that pales in comparison to the tragedy that’s visited every single day on people of color in this country in ways both large and small. It shouldn’t be controversial to understand that Black lives matter more than property.
For too many people, there is no right way for the Black community to push for change. No appropriate method of protest. No reason to change the comfortable systems and structures that have always been in place in this country and which have, without doubt, benefitted so many. Still, as Gandhi taught, “The true measure of any society can be found in how it treats its most vulnerable members.” And by any measure, we are failing.
We cannot continue to stand by while Black people in this country continue to be treated as second-class citizens, or are held to a standard of perfection before being granted the same privileges ordinary white people enjoy. We cannot continue to stand by while these systems and structures of inequality, built up over centuries, run like a machine of oppression, operated by functionaries able to comfort themselves because they’re not the ones pulling the trigger. To say nothing and do nothing in the face of all this is banally evil. It condemns us to the harsh judgment of history in a way that should be horrifying.
It’s time to stop being comfortable. Time to stop justifying inaction. Time to stop rationalizing the easy or moderate path. Time to stop enabling systems and leaders that perpetuate oppression and inequality. Time to stop accepting a country that won’t care for its most vulnerable. It’s time to recognize that not being racist isn’t enough.
We must both learn and take action. To begin learning, read this account from Black Jews responding to George Floyd protests in their own words. Listen to the Black community by reading this article, What We in the Black Community Need from Jews Right Now. Review and practice 75 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice. Read How to Be an Anti-Racist, by Ibram X. Kendi.
To begin acting, find organizations in your community that are fighting these systems and lifting up the Black community such as Color of Change or engage with Repair the World, which partners with such organizations. Volunteer locally and volunteer often, which helps to forge connectionsbetween people of different backgrounds and life experiences who might not otherwise meet. Join a local SURJ (Showing Up for Racial Justice) Chapter. Amplify voices of Black Americans and people of color in all of your platforms and networks. Call and write our political leaders and demand change. Vote, in local as well as national elections.
Most importantly, join me in doing the challenging work of recognizing our own inherent biases, racism and actions that uphold our unjust systems. For “Never Again” not to be an empty phrase, real change needs to be undertaken, for which a real price will have to be paid. We are so quick to demand that others leap to defend us from anti-Semitism, yet so many of us have too easily turned away from the constant injustice being visited on the Black community without doing the same for them.
Changing the dialogue with family, friends, and colleagues around race and privilege will be hard. It might cause friction or even damage relationships. It might make us feel insecure about our jobs or social circles. That price is a debt long since owed to Black people in this country and we must pay our fair share.
It is said that the best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago, and the second best time is today. We can, and must, step forward to sow the seeds of justice and equality today. It’s evil not to.
Robb Lippitt is the Board Chair of Repair the World, a member of the Executive Committee of Tamarack Camps, a past Chair of JFNA’s National Young Leadership Cabinet, and the COO of High Level Marketing, a Digital Marketing Agency committed to the growth of small businesses.
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