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[Editor's Note: As if it weren't already clear how racially charged Arizona politics is getting, a State Representative is suggesting there ought to be a holiday to celebrate the achievements of Caucasians. Or was he just joking? Cecil Ash (R-Mesa) made that comment during a heated debate over the proposal to create a Latino American Day in the state, then backtracked during a interview with a local CBS television station, saying he was just trying to lighten the mood.
Well, Renee at Womanist Musings says Ash's comment is not funny and is prime example of White privilege at play. --Grace
Apparently Ash was only trying to lighten the mood, and what better way to do it than to co-opt the experiences of POC and suggest that White people need a day for representation also. His comment were a reflection of his racial privilege. Refocusing the conversation on Whiteness when a POC is attemtping to raise awareness or create opportunities for POC is not about adding levity, it's about ensuring that Whiteness is always the center of the conversation, because being the focal point allows one to control the discourse. Ash's action were an attempt to assert his power as a White man.
