by Jeff Hitchcock

In the long run the white anti-racist community exists not to promote itself but to attain a racially equitable and just society. In the short run, though, things get better or worse and it bears thinking about how events affect the collective fortunes of white anti-racists and allies.

With the presidential election less than a week away, speculation about the post-election climate runs amok. Here's my contribution. Some wins are far better than others, but for the first time in recent memory the white anti-racist community cannot lose.

An Obama victory has obvious benefits. In theory, Republicans might someday draft an anti-racist platform, but their practice has been dismal. The prospect of a black president is history making. A psychological realignment of white attitudes is in the making, not unlike that which took place between 1960 and 1965 when many white people moved from explicit white supremacy to colorblindness. True, we're facing claims of "post-racial" America, but the other side of that coin is that a bumper crop of inexperienced and slightly bewildered novice white anti-racist racists is in the making. Someone will need to help them find their way in the emerging multiracial reality.

And McCain. Well, we're not going to take it. I'm not calling for riots in the immediate aftermath, though immediate organizing and demonstration may indeed be warranted. No, I mean in the next four years the pent up energy of the past 30 years will continue to build, fed by a new cohort of citizens who find, many for the first time, their dreams thwarted. It's a second choice scenario, but compared to apathy, it's not one without appeal to racial justice organizers.

Get ready. It's going to get busy.

One letter since the last WACANupdate. CLICK HERE

Send comments

Pennsylvania Congressman John Murtha calls his constituents "racist," then apologizes. Maybe this is something Pennsylvanians do. Some Obama campaign workers go after the white racist vote. The world looks at how US racism plays out, while McCain and Palin stand accused of racist tactics. Did they have anything to do with this New Mexico story? McCain voters are feeling the critique.

White voters have been stubborn converts. Democratic heavyweights have reached out to traditional white enclaves. In the hinterlands of Pennsylvania and West Virginia movement takes place. Unlikely supporters emerge. A historic shift in the white electorate is taking place.

The pollsters cannot figure it out. Will Obama suffer the "Bradley" effect, or will it be the "reverse Bradley" effect? The pollsters can't even figure out what questions to ask. Post-election fears are beginning to emerge. Will white people riot? The police are prepared. While racism promises to linger, white men may become unsettled.

A white female McCain worker in Pittsburgh claimed to be attacked by a 6-foot 4-inch black man who carved a "B" on her face. The Pennsylvania McCain campaign jumped on the story, which promised to have national ramifications. It turned out to be a hoax that was strikingly familiar in the manner of past incidents, only this time the police did not succumb to the racist hysteria.

Well, now it's scientifically verified, white people avoid talking about race. Overweight white people report experiencing more discrimination, though maybe not simply because they're white. White men are killing themselves. For those who want to live, it's better to be white and insured. Who is "American" in the white imagination? Slavery impacts the health of African Americans.

White drug offenders have privileges. The Los Angeles police engage in racial profiling, professor says (Article 1, Article 2). Maryland State Police ordered to release information on profiling complaints. Law enforcement employees complain of racist denial of opportunity. The US Department of Agriculture cannot even keep track of complaints of bias. A Canadian bank refuses to lend to people who live on aboriginal reserves. A New York white man finds a prank taken seriously (Article 1, Article 2). A white Wisconsin teen appears less contrite. "Racism, what racism?" asked Republican woman who mailed out anti-Obama newsletter to chagrin of party officials. White privilege is...

The sixth annual Seattle Race conference features discussion of reparations. Washington State takes steps to address a racial gap in schools. In Minnesota a local library holds program on white privilege. A town in Alberta, Canada considers a race relations project. In Georgia, the NAACP holds counter-demonstration to KKK rally.

A government tactic in immigrant prosecutions may receive Supreme Court review. A North Carolina sheriff makes his anti-immigrant prejudices known. Massachusetts fears immigrants will be undercounted in upcoming census.

White supremacists are toning down their image. They are taking a low profile in the election. But some are active in New York, Pennsylvania, Oklahoma, and Saskatoon, Canada. One white supremacist repeatedly bites 9 year old boy. A leader is arrested for jury tampering (Article 1, Article 2). One Texas white supremacist is guilty of murder. In a separate incident, so is another.

Major US cities have levels of economic inequality on par with Africa says United Nations. In the United Kingdom, racist attacks take place against victims of color in Liverpool and London, the latter against a man for wearing an Obama t-shirt. A white English youth is victim of racist attack in Manchester. Asian student at Welsh university told accounting course not appropriate for "orientals." Did racism affect the outcome of popular British reality show? Leicestershire police ask for public input on race relations plan. White workers need help says British official. But they won't get it from a helpline in Warwick.

Ireland has a Minister of Integration but doubts exist as to the effectiveness of his office. Spain is worried racism will foil its Olympic bid.

A Harvard student critiques the university's approach to educating first year students. Campuses in Winona, MN receive a visit from White Privilege Conference founder, Eddie Moore, Jr. The racial climate at the University of Illinois is calm but unsettled. A Columbia student philosophizes about social location and white privilege. Temple University holds a talk about race. An Austin Peay University student looks at fact and fiction concerning minority scholarships.

How to tell you're a racist at the ballot box.

White people should not be allowed to vote.

In defense of white racism.

AR-15 to release new album: Stand in Solidarity.

Book review: The Cost of Privilege, by Chip Smith.

Evangelical Christian speaker discusses changing racial profile of Christian worldwide community.

Segregated churches remain the norm in the US.

Tacoma area churches are invited to participate in conversations on race and white privilege.

A Catholic gathering in St. Louis features white privilege as one of four social justice topics.

"Why they hate Obama: Miscegenation and other nightmares of the racist political imagination," by Stephen Ducat. Huffington Post, October 26, 2008.

"Taking politics seriously: Looking beyond the election and beyond elections," by Robert Jensen and Pat Youngblood. Monthly Review, October 23, 2008.

"America's false ideology of white supremacy," by Seth Sandronsky. Black Agenda Report, October 22, 2008.

"Empire and white supremacy," by Corey D. B. Walker. Counterpunch, October 21, 2008.

"Middle Americans are not just white, Christian, working class folk," by Tami Winfrey Harris. Huffington Post, October 20, 2008.

"Post-Caucasian world hardly post-American world," by Thomas P. M. Barnett. ScrippsNews, October 17, 2008.

"What Congressman John Lewis was really saying: White folk getting ready to act up, y'all," by Dr. Anthony Asadullah Samad, Ph.D. The Black Commentator, October 16, 2008.

"More racism, please," by Matthew Quirk. The Atlantic Online, October 15, 2008.

"Senator McCain, you endorsed a potential white supremacist for Lieutenant Governor of Alabama. Does that make you a racist?" myTMP BLOG, October 15, 2008.