We should never allow someone to use simple words as tools to attack us. I’m not talking about abusive words here. I’m talking about simple descriptive words like “It’s OK to be white”. Saying ‘It’s OK to be white’ does not make us white supremacists. It’s ludicrous to suggest it does. It’s using the English language to state a fact. I am and that’s OK.
Yes, I know white supremacists have picked the slogan but I say so what? They don’t have a Copy-write on its use. Even those white supremacists who use it highjacked from an anti-PC group who came up with idea as a prank. It is OK for supremacists to be white. What isn’t OK is for them to be racists, bigots and thugs but that’s got nothing to do with their colour but it has everything to do with their behaviour? It’s not OK for anyone of any colour to act as a racist, a bigot or a thug. But that behaviour isn’t colour specific.
It’s the same as #MeToo. Stating that doesn’t make people a ranting raving feminist. It’s OK to admit someone has abused you and to say it using a simple Hashtag. What isn’t OK is to lie to damage others when you haven’t been? Neither is turning the Hashtag against those who have been abused and using the words as weapons to attack and vilify them. Once again the #MeToo Hashtag is using the English language to express an opinion or fact, nothing more.
We’ve sat quietly for far too long and let words be used to vilify, attack, belittle and condemn. It’s time we stood up and said enough. The ‘It’s OK to be white’ furore following Pauline Hanson’s motion that is dominating so much media might just be the wake up call we needed.
More so when you read what she said.
Senator HANSON: I hope that the Senate does the reasonable thing today by supporting this motion. Anyone who pays attention to the news or spends any time on social media has to acknowledge that there has been a rise in anti-white racism and a rise in attacks on the very ideals of Western civilisation. I would also hope the Senate does the right thing and acknowledges that it is indeed okay to be white. Such a simple sentence should go without saying, but I suspect many members in this place would struggle to say it. People have a right to be proud of their cultural background, whether they are black, white or brindle. If we can't agree on this, I think it's safe to say anti-white racism is well and truly rife in our society.
That last sentence is a key point. It’s rare indeed for me to support Pauline Hanson but on on this I’m unequivocally in her corner.
