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Ailyn Agonia
DOHA
Layla F. Saad, author of the New York Times bestseller book ‘Me and White Supremacy’, has urged white people to “pick up the baton” and take responsibility to end a global system of privilege that feeds racism and discrimination.
Saad shared her views on racism and the current issues on racial prejudice that has sparked widespread protests and calls for action during the latest edition of Qatar Foundation’s Education City Speaker Series streamed live on Wednesday.
The online event titled ‘Race and Identity in the 21st Century’ was moderated by Dr Amal Mohammed Al Malki, founding dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences at Hamad Bin Khalifa University.
Saad described white supremacy as “the belief or ideology that people who are white, look white or who identify as white are superior to people of other races and therefore they deserve to dominate over people of other races”.
Born in the UK to both parents from African countries, Saad said her life has been shaped by white supremacy.
She said, “I grew up in a culture that is not the culture of my parents. English was my first language but I grew up going to schools that were primarily white and that were also primarily Roman Catholic. I was always the only black and Muslim child in my class. I grew up often feeling different, not really understanding my identity and the ways which white supremacy has been influencing me. When you grow up and you are the only one and everything around you doesn’t look like you, you grow up believing that there is something wrong with you, you are different, you are not what is central.
“That was my upbringing. When I moved to Qatar, it was very different. There was so many cultures, so many nationalities. But that’s not to say we were free of the influence of whiteness and the influence of white supremacy from the media to schools to the workplace, everything is permeated with this idea of whiteness being superior to all other races.”
Saad said the conversations she had online with people inspired her to look at different aspects and dig deep on what they learn about white privilege and cultural appropriation and how they were personally involved in it.
The journal she made with random people through a 28-day challenge she initiated via Instagram became the blueprint for her first book described as an anti-racism workbook.
Her book has challenged its readers to recognise how they may – even unconsciously – inflict harm on Black and indigenous people and people of colour, and to change their mindsets and behaviours by understanding their own white privilege and committing to combating racism.
During the talk, she also told an international audience that, despite the wave of protests sparked by the death of George Floyd in the US, an opportunity for change may be lost unless white people take responsibility for ensuring it is acted on.
She said, “What is unique now is that we are in a time where people are no longer ignoring these conversations about race, while they felt very comfortable ignoring them before. They realise they have to say something. But one of my hesitations and fears is that people see this movement as a moment that is happening right now, and when the steam runs out of it, people will want to go back to the way things were before.
“It shouldn’t be down to black people and people of colour to keep it going by saying ‘our lives matter’; it should be the responsibility of people who have white privilege to say ‘this matters to us, and it’s our duty not to let things return to normal’. It won’t be easy, but when has it ever been easy to fight for human rights?”
Saad opined that avoiding taking action for change out of fear of stoking division will only retain the status quo.
She said, “Talking about how we are all ‘one’ just keeps those with white privilege comfortable. The divide has always been there, and closing our eyes and just talking about unity and oneness does not create change. What creates change is naming things for what they are – the harm caused, the systems of oppression – and saying ‘this is what we are going to do about it’. That is the real path of healing.
“People who have white privilege need to see it as part of their duty to say ‘we have this privilege, so it’s our responsibility not to let things go back to how they were’. As black people and people of colour, we don’t have the power to dismantle something we didn’t create and don’t benefit from.”
Saad added that the project is very close to her heart as she considers it a privilege to be able to have the conversation about race and be able to plant seed into young children to help them grow to have an anti-racist outlook and practice and a clear understanding on the influence of white supremacy in their lives.
Commenting on the book, Dr Malki described it as an “eye-opener on so many levels” and lauded the author for delving directly into the heart of the ‘problem’.
She said, “Racism is an entrenched practice that stems from, and is still fueled by, white supremacy. Layla pinpoints white supremacy as the issue, contextualises it and demonstrates how it is manifested among individuals who enjoy white privilege and interact with people of colour. This is exactly Layla’s original contribution to this important dialogue on racism and white supremacy.
“Layla’s story is similar to our own. It would be difficult to find anyone whose identity does not oscillate between at least two competing or complementary facets. And it is only when these facets interact can our identity and principles be completely understood, seen on the one hand through our own eyes, and, on the other, through the lens of socio-cultural stereotypes and attitudes.”
DOHA
Layla F. Saad, author of the New York Times bestseller book ‘Me and White Supremacy’, has urged white people to “pick up the baton” and take responsibility to end a global system of privilege that feeds racism and discrimination.
Saad shared her views on racism and the current issues on racial prejudice that has sparked widespread protests and calls for action during the latest edition of Qatar Foundation’s Education City Speaker Series streamed live on Wednesday.
The online event titled ‘Race and Identity in the 21st Century’ was moderated by Dr Amal Mohammed Al Malki, founding dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences at Hamad Bin Khalifa University.
Saad described white supremacy as “the belief or ideology that people who are white, look white or who identify as white are superior to people of other races and therefore they deserve to dominate over people of other races”.
Born in the UK to both parents from African countries, Saad said her life has been shaped by white supremacy.
She said, “I grew up in a culture that is not the culture of my parents. English was my first language but I grew up going to schools that were primarily white and that were also primarily Roman Catholic. I was always the only black and Muslim child in my class. I grew up often feeling different, not really understanding my identity and the ways which white supremacy has been influencing me. When you grow up and you are the only one and everything around you doesn’t look like you, you grow up believing that there is something wrong with you, you are different, you are not what is central.
“That was my upbringing. When I moved to Qatar, it was very different. There was so many cultures, so many nationalities. But that’s not to say we were free of the influence of whiteness and the influence of white supremacy from the media to schools to the workplace, everything is permeated with this idea of whiteness being superior to all other races.”
Saad said the conversations she had online with people inspired her to look at different aspects and dig deep on what they learn about white privilege and cultural appropriation and how they were personally involved in it.
The journal she made with random people through a 28-day challenge she initiated via Instagram became the blueprint for her first book described as an anti-racism workbook.
Her book has challenged its readers to recognise how they may – even unconsciously – inflict harm on Black and indigenous people and people of colour, and to change their mindsets and behaviours by understanding their own white privilege and committing to combating racism.
During the talk, she also told an international audience that, despite the wave of protests sparked by the death of George Floyd in the US, an opportunity for change may be lost unless white people take responsibility for ensuring it is acted on.
She said, “What is unique now is that we are in a time where people are no longer ignoring these conversations about race, while they felt very comfortable ignoring them before. They realise they have to say something. But one of my hesitations and fears is that people see this movement as a moment that is happening right now, and when the steam runs out of it, people will want to go back to the way things were before.
“It shouldn’t be down to black people and people of colour to keep it going by saying ‘our lives matter’; it should be the responsibility of people who have white privilege to say ‘this matters to us, and it’s our duty not to let things return to normal’. It won’t be easy, but when has it ever been easy to fight for human rights?”
Saad opined that avoiding taking action for change out of fear of stoking division will only retain the status quo.
She said, “Talking about how we are all ‘one’ just keeps those with white privilege comfortable. The divide has always been there, and closing our eyes and just talking about unity and oneness does not create change. What creates change is naming things for what they are – the harm caused, the systems of oppression – and saying ‘this is what we are going to do about it’. That is the real path of healing.
“People who have white privilege need to see it as part of their duty to say ‘we have this privilege, so it’s our responsibility not to let things go back to how they were’. As black people and people of colour, we don’t have the power to dismantle something we didn’t create and don’t benefit from.”
Saad added that the project is very close to her heart as she considers it a privilege to be able to have the conversation about race and be able to plant seed into young children to help them grow to have an anti-racist outlook and practice and a clear understanding on the influence of white supremacy in their lives.
Commenting on the book, Dr Malki described it as an “eye-opener on so many levels” and lauded the author for delving directly into the heart of the ‘problem’.
She said, “Racism is an entrenched practice that stems from, and is still fueled by, white supremacy. Layla pinpoints white supremacy as the issue, contextualises it and demonstrates how it is manifested among individuals who enjoy white privilege and interact with people of colour. This is exactly Layla’s original contribution to this important dialogue on racism and white supremacy.
“Layla’s story is similar to our own. It would be difficult to find anyone whose identity does not oscillate between at least two competing or complementary facets. And it is only when these facets interact can our identity and principles be completely understood, seen on the one hand through our own eyes, and, on the other, through the lens of socio-cultural stereotypes and attitudes.”
