The Phrase "All Lives Matter" Is Racist, Too.

Well, Rudy Giuliani went and did it. He said that the phrase "black lives matter" is inherently racist, thus sparking a firestorm of controversy from both sides of the political aisle.

This being the place where sacred cows get kicked over, let me begin by acknowledging that he's a little bit right. "Black lives matter" is a phrase that targets a specific ethnicity (I won't use the word "race") for special treatment. But the reason that's necessary is it has to counteract the oppression that black people feel every day. It's literally fighting fire with fire. A phrase clearly supporting Afro-centric racism is used to highlight and counter the severity of contra-Afro racism. Or even Euro-centric racism. That's why when the counter argument, "But all lives matter!" is made, it amounts to white Americans burying their heads in the sand like an ostrich. Of course all lives matter. That goes without saying.

Which is why you don't say it!

We don't need reminding that all lives matter. We need reminding that black lives matter. Because right now, let's be honest, they don't. Actions speak louder than our words, and when a person's words say "all lives matter" while his actions say, "fuck black people if the cops shoot them," then such a person is a racist wearing an egalitarian disguise, whether consciously or unconsciously.

The phrase, "all lives matter" is racist, too.

And cue the soundtrack to "Avenue Q" where the puppets sing, "Everyone's a little bit racist."

Look, I don't have a good solution as to how to keep cops from shooting innocent people (although the iPhone is starting to do one hell of a job with that!). And maybe fighting fire with fire means we all get burned. But I do know that we will never achieve a post-racial America until we stop pretending that "black" or "white" is somehow a racial label.

You want an accurate designation of race? Try human!

Canine (dog) vs. feline (cat), that's a difference in race.
Bovine (cow) vs. Equine (horse), that's a difference in race.
Sus (pig) vs. Gallus (chicken), that's a difference in race.

But a human whose ancestors hailed from Africa is the same race as one whose ancestors hailed from Europe. Or Asia. Or some mixture of any number of geographies. Because we can all interbreed, and often do.

So fuck racism, fuck the phrase "all lives matter," but most importantly, fuck the word "race!" It's time we stopped using that word.

It's lower than the word "nigger."

(Except black people shouldn't use it in rap music, either. See? Even I can be a little bit racist, too!)


Eric

*