Race as Karma

July 29, 2009 | arun

Over on Drums of Dharma, GK Sandoval discusses topical issues from the perspective of karma.

From a Dharma perspective, it has nothing to do with race or anything else. It all has to do with seeds of karma ripening in this lifetime.

Reading these words, I remember a certain article by David Loy…

The other problem is that karma has long been used to rationalize racism, caste, economic oppression, birth handicaps, and so forth. Taken literally, karma justifies both the authority of political elites, who therefore must deserve their wealth and power, and the subordination of those who have neither. It provides the perfect theodicy: if there is an infallible cause-and-effect relationship between one’s actions and one’s fate, there is no need to work toward social justice, because it’s already built into the moral fabric of the universe. In fact, if there is no undeserved suffering, there is really no evil that we need to struggle against. You were born crippled, or to a poor family? Well, who but you is responsible for that?

But I doubt that Loy’s rhetoric conveys the precise sentiments that GK is trying to promote. A topic worth more discussion, but I’m trying to keep these posts short.

More on Race, Privilege and Prejudice

July 28, 2009 | arun

I really wanted to wait till the end of the week to post a new timeline, but the bloggers are on a roll!

White privilege and homophobia « My Buddha is pink (Sunday, July 26, 2009) “Perhaps unsurprisingly, I have observed a similar reaction within the Buddhist community, based on cultural and ethnic differences, with reaction to homosexuality and a temple’s gay members.”
Sanctuary « Resist Racism (Sunday, July 26, 2009) “Awareness of privilege is stepping back and taking a look first.”
The Larger Context of the Professor Gates Racial Profiling Incident « Asian Nation (Monday, July 27, 2009) “What strikes me the most about not just this particular incident involving Professor Gates, but the reaction of Americans from different racial backgrounds around the country is this: I find it ironic that in general, many (as in a large number but certainly not all) Whites feel unaccustomed and therefore uncomfortable talking about racial issues (this recent article published by the American Psychological Associationsummarizes this tendency among Whites to avoid talking about race very well).”
introduction to this week’s topic « the buddha is my dj (Monday, July 27, 2009) “Over the next couple of days, I’ll be posting a long, three-part piece on white privilege, the homogenization of Buddhism, why you might care about these issues, and what we can do about it.”
part one: white privilege « the buddha is my dj (Monday, July 27, 2009) “So before we can even begin to unpack white privilege, we need to understand how race and whiteness work in our culture.”
Being a Buddhist Convert in Rural America « Progressive Buddhism(Monday, July 27, 2009) “These can certainly be difficult times to be a Buddhist convert in rural America.”
On race and Buddhism « Resist Racism (Tuesday, July 28, 2009) “Go here.”
part two: the homogenization of buddhism « the buddha is my dj(Tuesday, July 28, 2009) “But perhaps the best way to understand this is to take a step back away from Buddhism, and even a step back from race, and examine a different homogenization of culture.”
White Privilege and Buddhism « Sweet the dust, Push the dirt(Tuesday, July 28, 2009) “I can’t say that I agree with everything brought up in various postings but I can say that majority of commentaries provide readers (white or not) with information that is both valuable and relevant to this issue.”
Some of my background and realizations « The Drums of Dharma(Tuesday, June 28, 2009) “In equanimity, there are no Native Americans, Asians or Caucasians–the enlightenment mind shines on all just like the sun.”
part three: work to be done « the buddha is my dj (Tuesday, July 28, 2009) “If you’re going to claim an interest in social justice issues and then blindly look the other way when your own, fellow American Buddhists of different colors, genders, or sexual orientations are crying out, are suffering, then you need to question your own motives, your own beliefs, before yelling at me for doing nothing more than pointing out the obvious suffering of others.”

You can check out the previous two timelines here and here.

Our Continuing Racial Cut and Thrust

July 25, 2009 | arun

I previously posted a timeline of blog posts on C.N. Le’s controversial Asian Nation post, Reflections on a Multiracial Buddhist Retreat. The list goes on. As before, I’ve included the last sentence of each piece.

A White Buddhist and Privilege « Dharma Folk (Tuesday, July 21, 2009) “Until then, there’s always the Angry Asian Buddhist.”
Dharma, Race, and White Privilege « Dangerous Harvests(Wednesday, July 22, 2009) “I have more to say about all this, but instead, I want to invite you to reflect on the conversation above, as well as those in the other blogs, and those in your own lives.”
The Surface of Buddhism: Introduction « Racialicious (Thursday, July 23, 2009) “Let me know when you’re ready to start listening.”
Exegesis of a White-Privileged Notion « Dharma Folk (Friday, July 24, 2009) “If there’s any conclusion to this ramble, it’s imperative that we question our own assumptions and the conclusions they lead us to, especially on a topic as sticky as race.”
Privileged, Persnickety Buddhists « Sweep the dust, Push the dirt(Saturday, July 25, 2009) “That is what we are – one big-assed, struggling, North American sangha.”

Let me know if you’ve read other posts on this topic.

What Do You Really Think of Asian Americans?

July 24, 2009 | arun

I just took the Asian Implicit Association Test. It turns out that a whopping 60 percent of the test takers associate European American with “American” and Asian American with “Foreigner.” And you might wonder where Asian American resentment comes from. This test is relevant because many of the bloggers in the recent back-and-forth on race seem to have very solid notions of their egalitarian attitudes. I highly doubt it. If the cultural hegemons want to have an honest dialogue on race in American Buddhism, they will have to acknowledge the possibility that they hold distasteful implicit biases. I would strongly suggest visiting Harvard’s Project Implicitand taking the Asian IAT. First write down what you think your biases are, take the test and then see how they match up. Find out what you really think of Asian Americans. I can tell you that I was surprised.

The Neutral Man’s Burden

July 21, 2009 | arun

I couldn’t help myself. Somewhat related to the post on Dharma Folk.

[Archivist’s Note: the original post contained an embedded video of a “The Word” segment from The Colbert Report. The video was embedded via Flash which is no longer supported by the Internet.]

My favorite lines:

In America, white is neutral.
Now for years, band-aids only came in only one color…white person. It’s standard “person” color. In fact it is so standard, that when I was a kid, in crayola boxes, it was the color called “flesh.” Now most Americans accept this [points at his own hand] as “neutral” without thinking about it.
And that is why the decisions made by all those white justices were not affected by their experiences; because their life experiences were “neutral.” That led to “neutral” decisions.
For instance, take the Dredd Scott Case. Those justice’s life experience, being white men in pre-Civil War America, some of whom owned slaves, in no way influenced their decision that black people were property. And the personal backgrounds had nothing to do with the all neutral court’s decision that it was legal to send Japanese-Americans to internment camps in 1942. Imagine how the life experience of an Asian judge would have sullied that neutrality!

Not to mention, in our “post-racial” society, a Harvard professor can be arrested for getting upset when police ask him to prove that he entered his own house. What a day.

Reflections on Racially Excited Buddhists

July 20, 2009 | arun

Plenty of excitement in the Buddhist blogosphere touching on our racialized society and discussions of white privilege. Here’s a timeline with the last sentence of each post provided.

Reflections on a Multiracial Buddhist Retreat « Asian Nation(Wednesday, July 15, 2009) “These two incidents go to show that even at an event that shows us the peace, harmony, and mindfulness that exists in American society and among people from all kinds of backgrounds, in many ways, American society is still quite racialized, even if most of us may be completely oblivious to such dynamics.”
Race and Retreats « Barbara’s Buddhism blog (Thursday, July 16, 2009) “I suspect both of these examples were dharma teaching opportunities that were missed.”
Annoying Asians and White Privilege « Angry Asian Buddhist(Friday, July 17, 2009) “It’s worth reading the whole piece and Barbara O’Brien’s post too.”
Privileged White Buddhists? « Progressive Buddhism (Sunday, July 19, 2009) “I would like to hear everyone’s opinion on this.”
Filthy Filthy White Buddhists « Sweep the dust, Push the dirt(Sunday, July 19, 2009) “If I was half white and half Asian, does that mean I am only half privileged and half lazy?”

If you know of other posts on this thread, please feel free to drop a comment below.

Annoying Asians and White Privilege

July 17, 2009 | arun

Barbara’s Buddhism blog pointed me to an Asian Nation blog post by C. N. Le on a retreat at Deer Park Monastery, incorporating disruptive Asian foreigners, ambivalent Asian Americans and privileged white Buddhists who didn’t want to take out the trash.

As it turned out, of the 15 or so people who stayed to help clean up, all but one was a person of color — there was just one White person who helped in the cleanup … In particular, I took notice of one young White couple who came to the morning activities (apparently on the last day of the retreat, the monastery invites those from the surrounding community to come in and participate in a group walk and lunch). During lunch, this couple actually raised their hands when the monks asked for volunteers to stay and clean up, but for whatever reasons, just walked away and left once they finished their lunch.

But that quote’s just the part on white privilege. It’s worth reading the whole piece and Barbara O’Brien’s post too.