Posted: June 4th, 2015

engender debate about the role of whiteness in American society and encourage white Americans to become fully vested participants in the ongoing debate about the role of race in American society

During class on Friday May 22nd and on Wednesday May 27th, we watched interviews with people profiled in The Whiteness Project (https://www.whitenessproject.org). As it says on the project website, “The Whiteness Project is a multi-platform media project that examines both the concept of whiteness itself and how those who identify as “white” process their ethnic identity. The project’s goal is to engender debate about the role of whiteness in American society and encourage white Americans to become fully vested participants in the ongoing debate about the role of race in American society.”

Your task during the next week is to dialogue (much like we did with the credit card assignment) with two different people who are profiled on The Whiteness Project website. You must choose two of the following four people:

1. The white man wearing blue hospital scrubs;

2. The white woman wearing Purple Blouse w/silver chain and medallion;

3. The white woman with long blonde hair and wearing black shirt with white vertical stripes;

4. The white woman with short brown hair, nose ring, and glasses.

You can agree with what they say. You can disagree. You can strongly object. You can get into a heated argument. That decision is entirely yours.

To aid your efforts, please read (and reference in your essays) the attached readings: (1) Bonilla Silva, “Rethinking Racism” (2) Desmond and Emirbayer, “To Imagine and Pursue Racial Justice.”

Write 450-500 words for each of the two people that you choose. That means the total length of your essay should be between 900-1000 words. Submit your essays to EEE before June 5th, 9am.