The appropriation of culture is not new. It happens all the time, especially in America. The commercialization of cultural history, practice, religion, and art forms is big business. But, now what we have going on is a “new” narrative of oppression. What is beginning to happen in our current political climate is the appropriation of the very struggle for justice and equality of historically marginalized and oppressed groups such as women and people of color to now include straight white men. What? The ones who by virtue of their birth as white males have historically inherited both privilege and power in a nation that was built on stolen land with the labor of enslaved African people are now claiming to be “The Oppressed?” In a nation that created an institutional and systemic practice of unequal access and un-accessed opportunity for people who are not white, not male, not rich and not born into privilege, it is hard to wrap one’s mind around this new Tale of the Oppressed White Male. The MeToo Movement has brought into unambiguous focus the plight of women in America, while simultaneously stoking the fires of white male anger and resentment generating a false narrative of the oppressed and victimized white male.
The fight over the appointment of Justice Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court of the United States amid accusations of sexual misconduct and assault has disenfranchised many women including the historic conservative base of white women who voted for Trump by 52% of all white women who voted. Not unlike the protests that rose up after the election in 2016, women have begun to speak truth to the power and in particular, the power of the white male patriarchy and how that power marginalizes women’s voices and denies their status as truly equal citizens under the law. The government is supposed to represent the People, All people. And yet, the representative voice of women within the body politic of the United States of America is woefully deficient of women in strong leadership positions, policy-making positions, and in the halls of power as compared to men. Women are still paid less for the same work. Still silenced more than heard and still struggling to maintain autonomy over their own bodies. And to add insult to injury, when women speak openly about the trauma of sexual assault and abuse, they are the ones put on trial and required to prove “beyond a reasonable doubt” the veracity of their claim, when the male assailant can just simply deny, deny, deny and call upon his “buddies” to basically support him in that denial. He is credible and she is not.
No matter how far we have come in the struggle for equality and justice, it is not far enough. It will never be far enough until we achieve the justice and equality that we seek. The outrage that is being generated by white male angst towards the power that women are finding in solidarity with one another through the #MeToo and #TimesUp Movements is the recognition that they are going to have to share the power with the 52% of the population that are the women of this nation, and the girls that are coming up behind them.
