White Tears, Explained.

[sufrommich]

Yesterday, I wrote a short piece celebrating Serena Williams’s 2514th consecutive victory over Maria Sharapova; a win that took her to the Wimbledon final. Titled “Serena Williams Drinks, Bathes In, And Makes Lemonade With White Tears“, it acknowledged and made light of how Williams’s success grinds the gears of certain types of people upset that she — a woman so unambiguously Black — dominates a sport traditionally dominated by Whites. The reference to “White Tears,” however, upset quite a few people. Who, in turn, expressed their feelings in the VSB comments, on our Facebook fan page, and on Twitter.

Of course, those familiar with the term know using “White Tears” in this context is not a reference to all White people. Or even the White people who aren’t fans of Serena Williams. Instead, it addresses (again) the type of person upset that Williams is stomping her entire Black-ass foot on the couch of a place traditionally ruled by Whites. But, to clear up any confusion, I’ve decided to interview an expert on the subject (Me) to provide some clarity.

“White Tears” is phrase to describe what happens when certain types of White people either complain about a nonexistent racial injustice or are upset by a non-White person’s success at the expense of a White person. It encompasses (and makes fun of) the performative struggle to acknowledge the existence of White privilege, and the reality that it aint always gonna go unchecked.

A nationally prominent example of this is Fisher v. University of Texas, a court case that basically boils down to a slightly above average White woman upset her slightly above-averageness aint granting her the birthright privileges she believes she deserves. Instead of banging a gavel, the judge presiding over this case should just shake a Dasani bottle full of Abigail Fisher’s tears.
Again, this doesn’t apply to all White people. Just the type who’d be frustrated that a person like Serena is dominating tennis.




http://verysmartbrothas.com/white-tears-explained-for-white-people-who-dont-get-it/

[MADem]

1. I knew what it meant, and I also bet, to myself, that there would be some

explaining happening to people (ironically, really, in the big picture) crying about it.

[Cleita]

2. I had never heard the term before you posted, but I got

right away what you meant. I'm not offended by it because it's true of a certain demographic of white people.

[tularetom]

3. I can admire Williams skills and the hard work and dedication it took to get where she is

and at the same time, be appalled at some of her outbursts and poor sportsmanship on the court and her treatment of judges, volunteers, and particularly the young ball boys and girls who work at all tournaments.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1213164/Furious-Serena-Williams-dumped-U-S-Open-told-official-If-I-Id-ball-shove-throat.html

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/845098-serena-williams-classless-antics-at-us-open-an-embarrassment-for-tennis

http://www.sportsworldnews.com/articles/40258/20150601/french-open-news-serena-williams-lack-of-sportsmanship-vs-victoria-azarenka-videos.htm

I could show you a dozen more examples of her actions which displayed a lack of grace, class or dignity.

John McEnroe (a white man btw) was rightly condemned for acting like an ass on the court. Why should Williams get a pass for acting the same way, simply because of her color?

[Electric Monk]

4. It's still race baiting. "Racists tears" would be a much better term, imho. Addresses the behavior.

nt

[fishwax]

5. the context made it pretty clear, I thought

[chervilant]

6. I'm an aging Caucasian female,

and I find the derision, condescension and racism directed at Serena Williams tiresome. I cannot imagine the courage, dignity and sheer energy she has to expend every single day dealing with this disrespect.

I'm confident she knows the ugliness spewed about her says everything about the spewers and nothing about her.

Serena is awesome, hardworking, and beautiful. Anyone who thinks otherwise would do well to keep their hateful bigotry to themselves.

[Warpy]

7. I might have said "bigot tears," but I knew what you meant

and I knew a bunch of knee jerk jerks wouldn't get it.

You have to explain everything to a knee jerk jerk.

[LanternWaste]

8. I'd bet the vast majority of people who claimed not to understand it and its context...

I'd bet the vast majority of people who claimed not to understand it and its context were simply looking for another vapid reason to pretend to be oppressed themselves.

[sufrommich]

10. Yep. nt

[Quayblue]

15. succinctly put nt

[The2ndWheel]

24. The same way someone using a simplified phrase

knows they just want a reaction of some kind. One they probably wouldn't get if their title was more accurate to what they were talking about. If the title was along the lines of "Serena Williams bathes in the tears of certain white racists who don't like her for whatever dumbass reasons", nobody is going to care about reading that. It's like talking about economics. Get into the small details of it, and people fall asleep quickly. Say "99% vs. 1%", and now you'll get a reaction.

The vast majority get the context, and the person writing the headline knows what words to use or not use to get people to look. Nobody is an innocent little snowflake whose world has been turned upside down.

[cstanleytech]

39. What if Williams had lost, thrown a tantrum and then someone wrote a similar post with the title of

"Garbiñe Muguruza Drinks, Bathes In, And Makes Lemonade With Black Tears" and then claimed they wrote it because of her tantrum? Would that have been acceptable? Personally I would have been extremely offended how about you?

[CANDO]

44. What's that I hear?

Crickets chirping? As expected. You're not playing along with the program. They NEED to call white people racists. Makes their day better. Like who the fuck even cares about tennis.

[cstanleytech]

46. I would be lying if I said I shocked that they are ignoring it but hypocrisy isnt something recently

discovered but I am done with them and their continued race baiting trolling that when they are called out for they they claim isnt, they just arent worth the energy that it takes to post.

[Prism]

9. Use of adult language would sidestep the issue

The English language has a vast vocabulary, and it's very simple to articulate what is intended. Racist's tears, bigot's tears, hater's tears.

"'"White tears' but I don't mean all white people!" Then use the words describing the people you mean.

There, problem solved, yeah?

Unless the point was to troll. Which, of course, it was. And trolling is totally fine! It's part of the internet. It can be funny, thought-provoking, get a point across in a cutting, efficient way.

But don't troll and then deny trolling. That's asinine. Just own what you're doing. It's totally ok, promise.

[LanternWaste]

16. No doubt the author intended rational minds to grasp both context and intent without the need...

No doubt the author intended rational minds to grasp both context and intent without the need to hold the hands of the sub-literate reader; the same sub-literate reader who maintains the pretense of fault or offense because no held their hands and walked them through it metaphor-by-metaphor.

[Prism]

18. Let's not pretend childish insults are sophisticated literature

That's condescending and patronizing.

It's a little adolescent needling. That's fine. Trying to wrap it up in anything more is pseudo-intellectualism at its worst. Fine for a college freshman. Cringeworthy from supposedly educated adults.

[LittleBlue]

17. That is how bloggers and journalists get hits nowadays

Write the most trollish headline possible. The British papers do it all the time. Their most trollish headlines get the most hits. Salon does it too.

The internet age has marked the return of yellow journalism.

[Prism]

19. Of course

The phrase doesn't really bother me. It's this whole, "No, my attempts at trolling are really a sophisticated commentary on society and the power imbalance of oppression!"

Jesus. No. Just no. It's really not. Read a damn book or something.

[Nye Bevan]

20. +1 (nt)

[Solly Mack]

11. The very fact that had to be explained speaks volumes.

First we had an article born of the anger, and expressed with humor, over the centuries of racism, and the specific racism leveled at an incredible athlete. Anger, expressed with humor - what an outrageous and offensive concept! Unheard of!

Then we had an article about how hard it is talk to white people about racism because they can be so defensive about talking about it. The article talks about having to be careful with white people lest they get their feelings hurt and how you can't just be honest, or express yourself in the same way you would talk to another black person about it - because white people might take offense; even the white people who express outrage over racism. How white people want a discussion of racism dressed up in comfortable clothing and shoes - well cushioned shoes - because white folks tend to get all nervous and defensive when the anger seeps through. The article talked about how white people want to be seen as individuals, and free from judgment as a group, but white people talk about black people as the "black community", and have no problem judging black people as a group.


Now, maybe it's just me - but I thought the latter article (Fragile White people) was a prime example of what was happening in the thread about Serena Williams (White Tears).

And I will confess to laughing. People in the Fragile article thread were still defending their offense of the White Tears article - and I got the impression that the majority didn't read the Fragile article, or if they did, they dismissed its contents so they could express more of their ah..grievances...about the White tears article.


There's an almost finger in the ears, tongue wagging, "lalalalalala...I can't hear you" reaction by white people when the angry truth is expressed by a black person. White people just stop listening, even the best intentioned white person, when they make the anger being expressed about them, instead of trying to understand the anger and where it is coming from.


Here's a dose of reality for white people, and I do mean ALL white people.


If you think your black friends would never express themselves in terms of white fragility and white tears to you - you're right. They probably wouldn't. But it's not because you are a friend and they respect you. It's because you're white, and experience has already taught black people that white people, even your white friends, get defensive when the ugly truth is expressed without the soothing protective words and phrases that allow you, as a white individual, to distance yourself from the collective/white community benefits of being born white - benefits that institutionalized racism guaranteed, and still protect.

[sufrommich]

12. So very well said.

[Solly Mack]

13. I'm sure some will think I could have been nicer.

[gollygee]

35. Very well put!!

I particularly love your last paragraph.

[Solly Mack]

43. I thought the article (White tear lemonade) hilarious

and I thought the other article (Fragile) gave an opening for better understanding.

Confronting your own biases and prejudices begins by becoming aware of them, and that does mean listening without getting defensive.

POC do not owe white people the comfort of soft words to explain the experiences of living with racism.

Because if you're white and expect to be able to talk to POC about how racism affects their life without feeling any discomfort, then you're not wanting to talk about living with racism, not really. You want to talk about how you, as a white person, see racism in terms of how it reflects on you (Not me!), and not the very real day to day toll it takes on POC, who are on the receiving end of racism, both from individuals and society at large. (institutional racism)

[Starry Messenger]

38. This.

[malaise]

14. I needeed no explanation

I got it immediately

[cwydro]

21. Sorry, but this phrase just cracked me up:

"stomping her entire Black-ass foot..

That is a collection of verb, nouns, and adjectives that I could not have imagined putting all together into a phrase.

[awoke_in_2003]

25. It made me think

of the Rick James episode of the Chapelle Show. "Fuck your couch"

[Eleanors38]

22. I thought White Tears was a bathing product when I first saw it. Thanks for the explanation.

[MellowDem]

23. I got it....

But there are plenty of people, white or not, who won't get that humor without having it explained to them. Part of it is generational.

I don't really mind those types of sneering, snarky articles, I don't think they're actually conducive to persuasion or discussion, but lots of articles aren't. They're cathartic for their intended audience.

If discussion and persuasion is what they're going for, though, then they're doing it wrong IMHO. More like click-bait titles to draw in those not familiar with this type of humor. Heck, I remember the South Park episode that revolved around drinking tears.

[awoke_in_2003]

26. I am surprised at the amount

of white butt hurt this has caused. I would expect it from the idiots I am surrounded with down here in DFW, but not DU.

[randys1]

27. 17 Deplorable Examples Of White Privilege - #6

6. You can wear and act however you’d like without being labeled a thug, low life, gangster, etc.

[ProudToBeBlueInRhody]

30. Yeah, you are so right

Justin Beiber is universally loved and respected.

[randys1]

31. You are doing my job for me. Thanks

[ProudToBeBlueInRhody]

33. Right

Down is up, up is down, Bizarro.

[cstanleytech]

42. If you have a net worth over 200 million you can wear or not wear whatever you want usually. nt

[CANDO]

45. Deplorable example of racism....

Calling a person racist because they're white. No other reason...but because they are white and don't obey the narrative. Vast, vast, VAST majority of white people don't give a tiny little shit about what tennis tournament a given black person has won.....and yet we are told we do and that we're racists to boot.

[Calista241]

28. Who cares about tennis anyway?

Tennis doesn't strike me as a good ole boy, white pride sport.

[Number23]

29. Anyone surprised by the reactions and the posters who had those reactions hasn't been here very long

Props to everyone who tried, including this OP.

[randys1]

32. Yes, I did two threads today, one about white privilege and one about discomfort about white

privilege

I was hoping some of them would catch on

[Solly Mack]

34. ...

[MrScorpio]

36. Of course, some people just won't get it...

Even when it's so obvious.

[gollygee]

37. There seems to be an assumption that everything should be written with white people as an

assumed audience. This does not appear to have been written for a white audience, and I think the audience knew exactly whose tears were being referenced -the racist jerks who have been horrible to the Williams sisters pretty much continually.

Also, if you aren't crying over her success, it obviously doesn't reference your tears, right? No tears, then not you.

[6000eliot]

40. Isn't whining about the use of the term "White Tears" itself an example of White Tears?

[Lancero]

41. I sure hope no one tells her what white tears is a euphemism for.