identity politics: a thread

ive seen a lot of chat, mostly from white people, about identity politics and its corrosive nature.

statement like "why do you always bring race into everything?" and "idpol causes class disunity"

1/x

these things are ususally said by people that don't understand what identity politics is to begin with., and operate from a class first perspective (when theyre said in good faith).

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this stems from the fact that white people, especially cis het white people, and even more especially cis het white dudes, literally never have to grapple with how their identity informs their existence and the with which they can navigate the world.

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marginalized comrades however have to constantly think about this. "is that store employee following me because i'm Black, or is it just a coincidence" as an example. there are countless of these examples. they exist every day.

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identity politics is the tool white people need to use to understand how identity informs beliefs and actions. they are inseparable.

white people find this deeply uncomfortable because this mental muscle is completely atrophied.

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this isn't to excuse it by any means. it is incumbent on white people to flex this muscle at every opportunity.

we absolutely must view our beliefs through this frame and seek to understand why our different comrades might feel different from us.

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the entire point of radical politics is liberation for all. white people do not know what it takes to liberate Black people because we don't see the full dimensions of their oppression. same with men over women, straight over queer, cis over trans.

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we can't have liberation without intersectionality.

class without identity breeds oppression. identity without class breeds division.

revolution and liberation require unity. intersectionality creates unity.



8/8