Roy Exum: "White Allyship"

  • Thursday, January 28, 2021
  • Roy Exum
Roy Exum
Roy Exum

The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, a-swirl in social justice reform yet sorely lacking in common sense, may be on the brink of alienating itself from the very community that supports it.

Today the university will host a lecture and celebration focusing on ‘White Allies and Accountability’ when it is my view that such a distasteful folly will reversely reverberate within the campus and deeply erode the bearing Chancellor Steven R. Angle holds in our community. It’s pure garbage and has no place or value in our lives. To promote such vitriol is inexcusable.

In the past year, the “Black Lives Matter” movement has been proven nationwide to be a “cash grab” as well as a ruse. The protests following George Floyd’s death had nothing to do with a martyr; we watched a fatal overdose of fentanyl by a thug. The steady pushback against the empty and unfounded demands of activists have done more to harm our society than accentuate it.

Check with the FBI, the liberal Democrats, the Trump loyalists – whoever – and you will find today’s Americans ain’t buying into the filth of reverse racism, or white supremacy, or divisive louts on either side of the divide. Can we do better? You're darn right. But it’s a two-way road, not some one-way dark alley that the losers on the perimeter of life want you to believe. The whole thing is a hoax, proven no less than once a week in America’s struggle to return to civility.

President Biden has wonderfully promised to address our damaging partisanship, our disregard for one another that’s been carefully cultivated with questionable "dark money" and particularly the black-versus-white mentality. The “race card” has been so badly over-used it is no longer welcomed in any deck. I swear, I don’t see any racial idiocy that exists anywhere I go -- outside a frothing media and its quest for sensationalism/reaction tape found on “Live at 6!”

Corrine Murdock, an up-and-coming reporter for the Nashville website The Tennessee Star, just exposed today’s racially-driven exercise at UTC that has not one redeeming feature other than to create angst and discord. Think about it? Why else would anyone bring a rabble-rouser into UTC’s midst if it weren’t to create havoc? There is no valid reason. The proponents say it “makes you think,” while the sturdy who stand tall counter, “About what?”

Worse, not 16 months ago some dimwits-of-disaster got an expert to address “white privilege” within the Hamilton County Department of Education, remember? Superintendent Bryan Johnson got a guy named Robert Jackson, who claimed he played in the NFL, to bring a collection of slides that averred, “white privilege is a legacy and cause of racism” and “people of color cannot be racist because they lack the institutional power to adversely affect white lives.”

Are you kidding me? It was so preposterous it was a laugher on the national news. Newsweek pounced on the obvious fallacy and a terse statement from the Department of Education claimed the slides – while easily read and widely broadcast – had been “taken out of context.” Oh, please.

Not only was Robert Jackson not found on any alumni list in the NFL, but a badly burned Superintendent Johnson studiously avoided the irked county commissioners for months. Dr. Nakita Towns, touted as the school’s Director of Diversity or something similar, was immediately re-titled “Deputy Superintendent.” Chattanooga’s public schools are still trying to escape the damage of – hello! – a brilliant reflection of “reverse racism” in a community of 43,000 public school students that is 75 percent white and 20 percent black. I’m talking textbook dumb.

Today, the liberal elites are forcing UTC to swim-or-drown in the same divisive pond and, just like our public schools found in August of 2019, no matter the outcome it is an embarrassment to every person involved except the perpetrator who’ll go back to no-name college with a check that many will easily identify as “wasted money.” Where is the educational value in this “dumpster fire”, Chancellor Angle?

Look at what Corrine’s story read: “The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (UTC) is kicking off their spring semester focus on social justice with a discussion of 'white allyship' and accountability. The virtual session, titled, “Moving Forward Together: White Allies and Accountability,” is part of Moving Our Campus (MOC) Forward, a series of events and talks focused on equity and inclusion. Facilitators mentioned that this first session falls within the overarching theme for their 2020-2021 schedule: “Dismantling racism.”

Guess who is the expert? I have never heard of the speaker and it is not my intent to cast aspersions on anyone but … please, see if you can get your arms around the following introduction: “The event host, Dr. Beth Douthirt-Cohen, is a facilitator at the Social Justice Training Institute (SJTI) and the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Executive Director at Frederick Community College.” Frederick CC is in Frederick, Md.

So, let’s pick up on Corrine Murdock’s story from the Tennessee Star (a Nashville-based news site) over this weekend:

* * *

‘WHITE ALLIES AND ACCOUNTABILITY’ AT UTC -- “NO COMMENT”

The event host, Dr. Beth Douthirt-Cohen, is a facilitator at the Social Justice Training Institute (SJTI) and the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Executive Director at Frederick Community College.
The Tennessee Star reached out to Douthirt-Cohen to inquire about the meaning of “white ally” and the forms of accountability that would be discussed in their seminar. Douthirt-Cohen didn’t respond by press time. Spokespersons with the Diversity and Equity Inclusion Office didn’t respond to a request for comment by press time, either.

According to a variety of academia echelons, white allies are those who acknowledge the inherent privilege of their race and role within the alleged ongoing oppression against other races, especially Black people. Even if a White person doesn’t believe they are racist, they likely are guilty of “unconscious racism,” commit “microaggressions,” and harbor “implicit biases,” to name a few indiscretions. Accordingly, a true white ally engages in “anti-racism,” by advocating non-stop for racial justice, such as in policing or education, and “fighting against racism.”

These beliefs fall in line with Critical Race Theory training, banned by previous President Donald Trump and recently reversed by President Joe Biden.

The virtual seminar is scheduled for January 28th at 1:30 p.m. Future session topics from MOC Forward are titled, “A Discussion of Race and Sexuality,” and “Looking Back at UTC and Chattanooga’s Black History,” and “Doing Self Work.”

* * *

Man, I’ve got some fabulous stories about black history in Southern colleges. You can talk all you want about Alabama Governor George Wallace, and the Kennedys, but sports did more to segregate the Deep South than any politician ever born. The history includes some of the greatest success stories ever and why was the sports “railroad” so wildly acceptable in the early 1970s? Losers became winners with the inclusion of the black athletes and, whether it was Branch Rickey with Jackie Robinson or Bear Bryant with John Mitchell, teams in the South adored their new black teammates. (Mitchell, Alabama’s first to break the color barrier, was elected team captain, earned All-America status and was deeply loved by his teammates. This, too -- John was so adored that six years later the Tide had 15 black lettermen – and four became All-Americans.)

I’m just saying. Seems that when you are wanted and welcomed, there ain’t no call for the nonsense of “reverse racism” in a modern and accepting society.

royexum@aol.com

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