In my position I find myself being an observer of all the radio advice shows. I'm painfully aware that, even though I "bring it hard" every Sunday, my parishioners (like most parishioners) spend most of their week listening to someone other than me.
One of those people has been Dr. Laura.
Dr. Laura neatly fits the mold of "common sense therapist." She tells it to you straight without all the BS. She calls you on your crap. She let's you get away with nothing. This is Dr. Laura's world - you're just living in it and you'd better shape up.
She's got a few things going for her: She a woman and a conservative Jew. A startling number of USAmericans claim to be people of faith, but we're also disturbingly independent. So to be getting advice from a no-nonsense religious person who pushes boundaries (as a woman) makes us feel better about getting our rump handed to us. But this past week, Dr. Laura went crazy. She said the "n-word" on her national syndicated radio show. And not just once, but, like, A LOT. And it wasn't even really contextual, but said rapid fire in the same way we cussed at our parents when we were kids just to show we weren't afraid of the words were were using.
What's worse? She said it to a black woman who was calling about her husband and his friends, asking what to do when they started making racist jokes.
O. M. G... Get. Out. Of. Town.
You can find the rehash a dozen other places, so allow me to do my flyby commentating (yes, I know that's not a real world).
The problem I had when listening to reports of the call and the call itself was not that she used the "n-word." I actually found that laughable because, as I said, she reminded me of a child. What I found completely offensive was the pomposity and arrogance of a white lady thinking that she can logic her way through a discussion about racism as if it was a discussion about being offended by a neighbor who let's their dog pee in your yard. "Buck up, little camper" does not constitute good advice.
Dr. Laura is a racist. And it's not (simply) because she used inappropriate (but constitutionally protected!) language. It's because Dr. Laura does not understand the power of her privilege. The evidence of her racism comes when you listen to the way she talked down to her caller (as if that's something new), betraying the reality that the good doctor considers herself to occupy a position that allows objectivity on the subject.
Dr. Beverly Tatum defines racism as "A system of advantage based on race." We are all racist to some extent, but (in this country) white folk are "more racist" (that's my thought, not Tatum's).
Dr. Laura abused her advantage. She did not actively work to negate her privilege. Yes, I know she's really about getting ratings at the end of the day, but she's also a person of influence and as a Jew I know that she is taught that influence is to be used more wisely than that.
So I'm left again wondering were I abuse my privilege, cause I've got a lot of it. I'm a young, straight, white, male who has the honor of serving my church on a national level.
Dear Jesus, please help me to not screw up and embarrass you today. Amen.
I'm not someone you'd probably like. Unless you like people like that...then you'd love me.