Abnormal

I am abnormal. I am an anomaly to the perfect equation of the American dream. I am different, and because I am different society sees me as an inferior person. I am a black woman. I do not perfectly fit into the mythical norm which Audre Lorde describes as, “white, thin, male, young, heterosexual, Christian, and financially secure” (Lorde 47). Differences in American society are viewed as insignificant deviations from the norm. But are these differences what really causes racism, sexism, ageism, heterosexism, elitism, classisim, and all the other –isms which exist in American society? Just as George Aiken said, “If we were to wake up some morning and find that everyone was the same race, creed and color, we would find some other cause for prejudice by noon.” Lorde explains that in American society the term good is used to describe any type of profit but not in relation with human needs. As a result one group of people must fit into the realm of the profitable, while the other group is made to feel inferior so the profitable can appear even more superior. Within this society, that group is made up of blacks, Third-World people, the working class, older people, and women (Lorde 46). It is not our differences which separate us, rather our refusal to acknowledge our differences and examine the prejudices which result from our lack of understanding and their effects upon human behavior and our expectations of one another.

So how does America treat the “other” group? “Institutionalized rejection of difference is an absolute necessity in a profit economy which needs outsiders as surplus people. As members of such an economy, we have all been programmed to respond to human differences between us with fear and loathing and to handle that difference in one of three ways: ignore it, and if that is not possible, copy it if we think it is dominant, or destroy it if we think it is subordinate” (Lorde 46). Because American society has established a social economy based on profit the people respond to difference by pretending it is not there, by mimicking it, or trying to eliminate it. But why is this necessary, what is the cause for these reactions? Fear.

Ignoring racism is not a solution to any problem that we have in today’s society. “The logic is, ‘If I don’t read about racism, talk about racism, watch those documentaries or special news programs, or spend time with those people of color, I won’t have to feel uncomfortable” (Tatum 98). This would be a consensus among the dominant group (white people) on how to deal with the “other” people in society. White people are not forced to think about racial identity because they are the unexamined norm. Dr. Beverly Tatum led a workshop on a class she taught about racism. She posed the question, “ ‘What is your class and ethnic background?’ . . . a young White woman quickly described herself as middle-class but seemed stumped as to how to describe herself ethnically. Finally, she said, “I’m normal” (Tatum 93)! So what does that make me?

Racism is still alive and well today, but is more than simply individual acts of prejudice. Racism is an active institution in today’s society, a collective system working to degrade and belittle the outsiders. It can not be thought of on an individual basis. In I, Tituba, Black Witch of Salem the author Maryse Conde conveys this. Tituba, a slave in Salem thought that some of these people must have some good in them. She became very affectionate and emotionally attached to the child she was caring for named Betsy. She knew what some of the townspeople thought of her, “In Bridgetown Susanna Endicott had already told me she was convinced my color was indicative of my close connections with Satan. I was able to laugh that off, however, as the ramblings of a shrew embittered by solitude and approaching old age” (Conde 65). She dismissed these comments as the individual ideas of an old woman. Her husband John Indian tried to warn her because he saw how attached she became to the child. “We’re niggers, Tituba. The whole world’s working against us.” (Conde 74). Yet she couldn’t believe that this child could cause any harm to her. Tituba is eventually accused of bewitching Betsy as well as the child’s friends. When Tituba asks Betsy why she turned against her, Betsy said she hasn’t betrayed her. Tituba says she was only trying to do good by Betsy. Betsy replies, “You, do good? You’re a Negress, Tituba! You can only do evil. You are evil itself.” (Conde 77). Tituba is crushed, only to realize that John Indian is right. The world is against them. This fear, this hatred is taught since birth.

American society does not let anyone forget that he or she is different. Black people know that when we go outside no one sees us as an individual. They see us as a member of group, a group of black people. Whether someone goes shopping at the mall or decides to eat out for dinner we are constantly reminded that we are underprivileged. “For example, one female college student described her experiences shopping with a Puerto Rican roommate. She couldn’t help noticing how her Latina friend was followed around in stores and was asked for more identification than Whites when writing checks. She also saw how her friend’s Black boyfriend was frequently asked to show his college ID when he visited their residence hall, while young white men came and went without being questioned.” (Tatum 96). We as people of color have always had to deal with the fact that we are black. White people have never had to think about themselves in a racial context. Yet, it is necessary for them to do so in order for them recognize the racial issues in society. Unfortunately within the African Diaspora, we retain the idea of the profit economy, especially in relations between African Americans and African. We as blacks also separate ourselves from one another. African Americans are so quick to put on a dashikis, throw up fists, and put their hair in dreads. But when given the opportunity to learn about Africa we shy away. We don’t help. We instead choose to tease and criticize. Isn’t this reminiscent of how whites treat blacks in America? I don’t mean to generalize, but here is an example. A young white man will put dreads in his hair, will wear Fubu and Rocawear, buy all the hip hop music, and speak Ebonics, yet he is against social welfare programs. He doesn’t think the government should waste their money on building up urban neighborhoods. He will walk the walk and talk the talk, but when you are in need of support he will not help you, because he lacks the understanding of the situation. Africans and African Americans will glorify the pop culture ideals of one another, but these are merely ideals, not reality. Philippe Wamba speaks on his frustration when in college he could not rally African American support in changing the oppressive situation is South Africa. “I couldn’t understand why more African American students didn’t express outrage at the situation in South Africa, why more didn’t feel that their experiences and destines were closely paralleled and perhaps even linked to those of South Africans, who combated a system of racialized privilege and oppression so similar to the one that long endured in the United States” (Wamba 19). This profit economy must exist within the Diaspora. Why else would we ignore the situations in Africa, wear the attire, but at the same time act as the oppressor by teasing Africans? Does this stem from ignorance? Is this again because of fear?

Audre Lorde has brought to our attention the profit economy of America. A system which needs a superior and the only way to do that is by creating an inferior. Unfortunately this method promotes ignorance and regulates fear with those who are different than us. Only when we are able to shed this elitist social policy will be able to work towards accepting one another’s differences. When we realize that there is no “normal.” Then will we be able to say that we are all human.