I am Gok Wan’s alter ego. If his utterly stupendous fashion sense is North I am South. Where he burns I freeze. Thus, without M&S I guess I would have to resort to wrapping myself in a refuse sack. I am also tight. Vouchercloud is my primary App and my wallet bursts with store discount cards. I have a digital M&S Sparks card on my mobile as I am sure a significant number of other 57-year-old British males have too. Wholly disassociated with my shopping habits I am white and bald. Context on this issue is important.
Black Lives Matter (BLM) as a slogan can be as wide as your imagination allows it to be. Like all pithy statements you may know what it means yet your fellow shopper in the sock aisle may have a different take. Hence, when this is associated with really important stuff like death the variance in opinions can present a toxic bowl of confusion, emotion, indifference, and inappropriate comparison. All pretty inflammatory and potentially ugly.
People have often accused me of having a big ego. I find this intriguing as I don’t think that it’s necessarily accurate. Although wouldn’t all big heads say that? I will admit that I do have an opinion that I like to share, and more importantly, to have it tested. For the people that really do understand me I like to be proved wrong since that is where the learning is.
I like to learn. Learning is also fun. As I studied for my qualifying law degree I would use my newfound knowledge to frustrate the kids. For example, asking them to carry out a household errand in return for cash only to claim immunity by virtue of the case Balfour v. Balfour [1919] 2 KB 571 that presumes that all contracts of a domestic nature are unenforceable. I think that my son in particular became frustrated by this use of knowledge as he is now a Barrister. Furthermore, I always keep M’Naghten rules in the back of my mind should I need to rely on the defence of insanity.
The death of George Floyd in Minneapolis on 25th May 2020 had a profound effect on me. This was by no means the only occasion that I had been appalled. Far from it. Yet this time the events spoke directly to me. I was immediately deafened. As an ex-cop what I saw in the arrest of George Floyd was a criminal act. I acknowledge that reasonable force may occasionally engage with justifiable homicide. Yet here the situation had been neutralised. The threat of escape or injury to the police had ceased to exist. What that police officer thought when he knelt on the neck of George Floyd only he will ever know. We can all draw our own inferences but nevertheless the application of that degree of force was unnecessary, unjust, and inhumane. At that moment, my interpretation of the BLM message became instantly clear to me: I saw context in the relationship between the State and black people.
As a white male I am unlikely ever to be subject of State discrimination. I have never been racially profiled. Never been measured against any scale by virtue of the colour of my skin. Never been racially abused. Never been called ‘White Ian’ in mixed company. I have always taken my skin colour for granted. In this privileged position is it any wonder that such a notion is totally alien to me. As it would be even if I tried to foolishly imagine being any other colour. I can’t fathom that my consciousness would even allow it.
The State sets the general narrative that the masses often follow. The powerbase and its emanations including the police, local government and many other public institutions shape the way society works. No wonder that white people get confused when normal behaviour is benchmarked against the State led view of the World that often promotes their values and judgements above all others.
Having proclaimed that I have an ego I guess it shouldn’t be that surprising that I have an opinion on BLM. Indeed, this article demonstrates that fact. Curiously, many white friends have engaged in conversation with me about this topic. Subsequently, my opinion has been shared with others and guess what? They have opinions too. I have collected a few along the way which I list below and take a brief moment to explore:
“I have many black friends!” Seriously have you ever had to place that tag in a sentence about your white friends?
“These BLM riots won’t change a thing!” When I joined the Police in 1982 it was an offence punishable by imprisonment to have a homosexual relationship with another man unless both consented, were at least 21 and the act was conducted in private. Today we celebrate same sex marriages. In my opinion they are usually the best too. Change takes time, courage, and determination.
“Removing statues? There is modern-day slavery too!” And aren’t you utterly ashamed of that also?
“They want to ban the monkey on Coco Pops! What next?!” This may be a totally innocent albeit clumsy marketing pitch. I still remember the incessant monkey chants directed at my Notts County heroes the late Pedro Richards, Tristan Benjamin, John Chiedozie, the late Justin Fashanu, et al. Not to mention the throwing of bananas onto the pitch.
Overt racism is easy to call out and recognise. Unconscious bias is more difficult as it’s hidden beneath a mountain of ignorance, misunderstanding and the tendency to simply look away or compare, if you occupy my skin colour, with a simple check and balance against your own rather more privileged circumstances. Yet the latter analysis is very often prohibited by the very nature of unconscious bias.
Unconscious bias is all consuming. Unless it is challenged. Sit at a table and draw out on a piece of A4 paper a large number six. That is truthfully and unequivocally a number 6! Then invite someone else to sit directly opposite you and ask them to describe the same figure. Truth often depends on where you are sitting and if you aren’t prepared to move then you won’t learn, and neither will you grow.
But don’t take my word for it. Resist the temptation to make simplistic characterisations, often typified by crude memes on social media, and do your research. Easier still talk to a victim.
Why the fuck any of you would ask a white bald guy is totally beyond me!
© Ian Kirke 2020
Photo by Vince Fleming on Unsplash