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A White Person Asks Other White People About Race. Their Answers Are Astounding.

Has anyone ever asked you this question?

Why would a filmmaker ask white people in Buffalo, New York, how they feel about being white?

Filmmaker Whitney Dow created The Whiteness Project because, he says, white people don't have a lot of experience talking about whiteness. And that's a first step for white people to begin to understand their privilege and place in the world.

People who were really open and honest with him. Some of what they say isn't easy to hear. But I think he's on to something really, really useful.

A lot of us don't have much to say about being white:


I don't think I've ever come across anything that has made me aware of my race. I really don't...I'm an American before I'm anybody else or any group or type of person.

A major reason may be that most white people don't interact with people of color at all:

"Where I work, there is one black man, of prominence, in the department of I'd say 50 or so. I think about that a lot. ... I'd say every job I've worked at has been primarily white. ... It troubles me."

Some people do think about their race a lot and how their experience is different because they are white:

I live with an African American, we do the same things, we live the same life, but I guess inherently there's never going to be a time where a person with lighter skin understands what a person with darker skin might go through on a daily basis...

Other people Whitney Dow spoke with were struggling with feeling disenfranchised:

"They took the same test I did and didn't score as well but ...I got bypassed because of minority requirements."

Others expressed prejudice and fear:

"I'm just being friendly. ... They take that as an opening to approach, and ... it's just not comfortable. So, do I call it prejudice that I don't like that? I guess it is, in a way. I don't like that — I'm afraid."

This last interview is one of the shocking ones (though given recent events maybe it shouldn't be). If you take in all the interviews and all the accompanying stats gathered by Dow, you begin to understand something about what's going on with white people.

And I think that's Whitney Dow's genius here. It's good for people to say that they feel cheated, or scared, or uncertain. It may not be pretty, but it's like putting a pin on the map. It helps you figure out where you are, and, even better, where other people are at. It's just about the most important conversation us white people need to have.

Go to the site to see all the interviews!

[vimeo_embed https://player.vimeo.com/video/104396865?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0&color=aaaaaa expand=1]
Pop Culture

Brendan Fraser showed up at a screening of 'The Mummy' completely decked out in costume

The audience went wild.

The Prince Charles Cinema/Youtube

Brendan Fraser dressed as Rick O'Connell.

Brendan Fraser might be making the greatest career comeback ever, racking up accolades and award nominations for his dramatic, transformative role in “The Whale." But the OG Fraser fans (the ones who watch “Doom Patrol” solely to hear his voice and proudly pronounce his last name as Fray-zure, for this is the proper pronunciation) have known of his remarkable talent since the 90s, when he embodied the ultimate charming, dashing—and slightly goofball—Hollywood action lead.

Let us not forget his arguably most well known and beloved 90s character—Rick O’Connell from the “Mummy” franchise. Between his quippy one-liners, Indiana Jones-like adventuring skills and fabulous hair, what’s not to like?

During a double feature of “The Mummy” and “The Mummy Returns” in London, moviegoers got the ultimate surprise when who should walk in but Brendan Fraser himself, completely decked out in Rick O’Connell attire. The brown leather jacket. The scarf. Everything.

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You may not know Gladys West, but her calculations revolutionized navigation.

She couldn't have imagined how much her calculations would affect the world.

US Air Force/Wikimedia Commons.

Dr. Gladys West is inducted into the Air Force Space and Missile Pioneers Hall of Fame, 2018.

This article originally appeared on 02.08.18


If you've never driven your car into a lake, thank Gladys West.

She is one of the mathematicians responsible for developing the global positioning system, better known as GPS.

Like many of the black women responsible for American achievements in math and science, West isn't exactly a household name. But after she mentioned her contribution in a biography she wrote for a sorority function, her community turned their attention to this local "hidden figure."

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Woman without an internal monologue explains what it's like inside her head

“She's broken my mind. I don't even understand what I'm not understanding."

PA Struggles/Youtube

An estimated 50-70% of the population doesn't have an internal monologue.

The notion of living without an internal monologue is a fairly new one. Until psychologist Russell Hurlburt’s studies started coming out in the late 90s, it was widely accepted that everyone had a little voice narrating in their head. Now Hurlburt, who has been studying people's "inner experience" for 40 years, estimates that only 30-50% of the population frequently think this way.

So what about the other 50-70%? What exactly goes on inside their heads from day to day?

In a video interview originally posted in 2020, a woman named Kirsten Carlson gave some insight into this question, sharing how not having an inner dialogue affected her reading and writing, her interactions with others and how she navigates mental challenges like anxiety and depression. It was eye-opening and mind-blowing.
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Finding the perfect job just got a whole lot easier

Bluecrew uses technology to give workers more control over their job search.

Via Unsplash

Finding a job is never easy. But finding a flexible, shift-based, or part-time job that actually fits your life, pays fair wages, and offers competitive benefits? That can feel downright impossible, especially when you use employment tools and staffing resources designed with only the employer’s needs in mind.

Want to make it easier to find a job that meets your needs? Then you need to check out Bluecrew, a modern staffing solution that helps workers find the flexible employment opportunities they deserve.


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Pop Culture

Violinist performs a duet with her washing machine and it's actually a banger

When your spin cycle is set to classical.

@boglarkagyorgy/Instagram

"The Trout," performed by Samsung.

One might expect to hear Franz Schubert’s "Die Forelle," more widely known as "The Trout," at the philharmonic orchestra. However, Boglarka Gyorgy noticed her washing machine playing the catchy classical tune. Apparently, this is a feature for a particular Samsung line of washing machines.

Being a professional musician herself, she couldn’t resist the urge to grab her violin and perform an impromptu duet with her appliance—and then post it to Instagram, of course. The result was a hilarious, impressive and viral hit.
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Democracy

Surprising Australian interview from 1974 shows just how weird it was for women to be in a bar

“You think women are going to be shocked by your language—that’s why you don’t want them in here?"

www.youtube.com

Surprising interview from 1974 shows how weird it was for women to be in a bar.

Once upon a time, things were weird. This is sure to be a sentiment that children of the future will share about the rules and customs of today, but knowing that fact doesn't stop things from the past from seeming a bit strange. In a rediscovered video clip of an Australian *gasp* female reporter in a bar in 1974, it's clear pretty quickly that she's out of place.

It's almost as if she's describing her movements like Steve Irwin would do when approaching a wild animal in its natural habitat. Her tone is even and hushed as she makes her way into the bar telling viewers how she's going to make her way to the barkeep, who also looks to be a woman. So I guess women were allowed to work in bars but not drink in them?

Honestly, that part was a little confusing for me but seemed the norm by the reporter's reaction. But what was not normal was a woman squeezing between men and ordering a drink and the men letting the reporter know that the bar was no place for a woman...unless you're the bartender. Who knows? 1974 was a wild year apparently.

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women's history