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All the White People in the House Say "Yeah"

Why you should clear your calendar for the Anti-Racism workshop on June 4th

"White Supremacy is our problem as white people. We benefit from it and are therefore obligated to challenge it." - Chris Dixon

"Our aims: to eliminate racism. . ." - nlgsf.org

As white people in the United States, we enjoy race privilege. Furthermore, as law students, legal workers and lawyers, we are active members of a racist system; not only does the US legal system disproportionately target People of Color, but also People of Color are grossly and increasingly underrepresented in our profession, particularly among attorneys. (In 2000, only 10% of lawyers were non-white[1].) In my five years with the Guild, it has been openly lamented that we are a predominantly white organization that isn't attractive or comfortable for People of Color. Now, the demographics of the Guild are not the problem itself, but an indicator of the problem; and while changing the demographics will probably make the Guild a more friendly home for People of Color, that is not the solution.

The problem is white supremacy within the Guild as well as without. So how do we address this problem of unconscious, unintentional, but very real racism? How do we achieve the ambitious goal of eliminating racism? We struggle. Together. We, the white members of the Guild, have to talk about it and think about it and challenge ourselves and each other. We have to check ourselves to make sure that our priorites and actions and those of our organization are truly anti-racist. And we have to dodge the paralysis of white guilt.

The Challenging White Supremacy workshop is an excelent jumping-off point for this. I have participated in the workshop three times with radically different groups and I urge all white members of the Guild to prioritize attending on June 4th. I think the workshop is valuable, fun and very effective. They strike a good balance of maintaining a safe space while challenging participants, and of letting groups explore their unique issues while keeping the larger context in sight.

We're lucky to have the Guild; we're lucky that CWS and the Catayst Project are based in our backyard; we're lucky that we can build on the orgnanizing and direction of The United People of Color Caucus (If you haven't read their Alabama Manifesto[2], do so). It is imperative that we take advantage of our good fortune.

Finally, all rhetoric aside, I think the reason white people should to attend this workshop is this: People of Color in the Guild asked us to and if we're serious about taking leadership from them, it starts here.

• Footnote1: Bar None: Report to the President of the United States on the Status of People of Color and Pro Bono Services in the Legal Profession. http://www.lfoa.org/barnone/
• Footnote2: http://www.nlg.org/students/studentresources/TUPOCCmission.pdf