The myth of race and idea of difference as an inferior ethnic identity lies at the root of the conflicting cultural landscape dynamics at Santa Clara’s Pueblo in the 1990s, my former colonial Nigeria, and the recent Charlottesville’s alt-right nationalists’ rally. Every historical and current account of genocide, ethnic cleansing, and racial discrimination stems from negative views about this myth called “race” and the manipulation of our ethnic variables by power groups for their benefit.
I was crestfallen at the poisonous social ideology displayed on banners, and racist chants at the recent Unite the Right rally on August 12, 2017, by white supremacists in Charlottesville, Virginia. They spelled out their nationalist agenda – Whites are in; but Jews, Blacks, Mexicans, and Gays are out. Nationalism is always a contested space, identifying who belongs and who is excluded. Can I say that I was NOT surprised when President Trump condemned “…Violence on many/both sides…” He applied a false equivalency and failed to distinguish between activist groups of marginalized citizens like ‘Black Lives Matter’ who strive for racial equality from the privileged white nationalists who seek to mainstream or normalize their ideologies of exclusion and racial supremacy.
Other than the Native Americans, being an “American” is NOT a tribal identity but a nationalist and highly contested identity about who qualifies as one, and so this “made-up” nation tries to regulate who benefits from its cultural capital. The answer to bigots and supercilious agitators called Neo-Nazis is – man-up, spit into a test-tube, and find your tribe – then they can talk about race and ethnicity. Many will be surprised, and I bet crestfallen, to realize that their “pure” breed is another myth. Thanks to the paleoanthropologists and sociologists at the National Geo; we have this historical fact – That every living person shares a common direct maternal ancestor known as mitochondria Eve. She lived in Africa around the time of the Idaltu Skull* and had enough daughters to pass down her genetic signature through the generations. As they say, “Our mothers were her daughters.”
How many more mothers have to grieve before everyone realizes, that our biological differences are affected by natural selection, environmental survival, and genes that determine hair texture, skin color, and blood group? We bleed and pee the same. If all anyone has, is this claim to supremacy via the color of their skin, that person needs to dig deeper, get brave, and face the truth about their mitochondria. We are more complicated than our physiology and God has a great sense of humor – He made us all brothers and sisters. Anyone who seeks division is misguided and ignorant of the purpose of our collective humanity. Furthermore, the Confederacy lost the American Civil war in 1865, so any monument honoring the emblems of this nations’ torturous past, especially those on dismantled slave auction blocks should be taken down.
Many were injured and hurt not just the nineteen hospitalized but every decent and unprejudiced human being. Sadly, we also lost three lives on August 12th – Susan Bro, the late Heather Heyer’s mother, at her daughter’s memorial service quoted her daughter, saying, “If you are not outraged, you are not paying attention.” The Alt-right is wrong. Racial discrimination is abhorrent. Thank God for our DNA that proves this.
Notes:
- Homo sapiens idaltu, also called Herto Man, is the name given to some hominin fossils found in 1997 in Herto Bouri, Ethiopia. They date to around 160,000 years ago. (Wikipedia)
- My sincere condolences to the families and friends of Heather Heyer, Berke M.M. Bates, and H. Jay Cullen, as the nation mourns the untimely deaths of your loved ones.
- Interesting Article on White Nationalists reckoning with the results of their DNA tests. http://www.businessinsider.com/white-nationalists-genetic-ancestry-tests-dont-like-results-2017-8 ( A strange moment of triumph against racism)
Ama Danesi 