You cannot apologize your way out of racism. Like nearly every single white person in America, I was raised by “nice people” who also happened to be racists. I was raised to be a “nice person” & also a racist. I did not magically stop being a racist on the day I realized it. /1

I did not magically stop being a racist the first time I acknowledged & apologized for making a racist comment. Every single day for the last 32 years, I have worked to deprogram myself from that racist upbringing. Racism is a mindset & a culture. There is no on/off switch. /2

The only way to stop being a racist is to work at it. Pay attention & listen to the people on the receiving end of racism. Shine a bright light your racist programming & knee-jerk reactions. Query how that programming is designed to maintain a racist system. Correct yourself. /3

Am I “cured” now? I doubt it. Just as my child brain absorbed my family’s other teachings, it absorbed the racist jokes & the hateful stereotypes. They pop up in unexpected places. Like dirt in the corner of a room you just swept. I keep sweeping. We have to keep sweeping. /4

Any person who tries to deny their racism while apologizing for committing an act of blatant racism, they’re the most pernicious racists. The “nice” ones. They’re standing ankle deep in mud in their front room, telling you they just swept & making empty apology noises. /5