How NOT to be insane when accused of racism

[sarahmichigan]

I got pointed at this blog entry from my body_impolitic feed:

http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2005/12/02/how-not-to-be-insane-when-accused-of-racism/

Short version: Don't make it a whacking huge deal if you say something racist, or something others perceive as racist. Apologize, move on, and consider the criticism seriously so that you can improve your thinking, if need be.

Comments

[pstscrpt.livejournal.com]

Or are you saying something about it being OK to be offended by the accusation of racism.
Yes, basically. The article doesn't seem to consider that unfounded accusations are offensive, themselves.

[sarahmichigan.livejournal.com]

I didn't take the blog entry as an authoritative guide to "how to react to accusations of racism" but I did think it was food for thought.

I wouldn't get offended if someone pointed out that something I *said* sounded racist, but might if they accused *me* of being racist. Though, I think in this country especially, none of is is completely free of racial/ethnic biases, so I'm always open to the idea that I have racist ideas/attitudes I'm not aware of.