Has Anti-Racism Become as Harmful as Racism? John McWhorter vs. Nikhil Singh
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Published 2018-11-30
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Is the message of anti-racism as harmful a force in American life as racism itself?
That was the resolution at a public debated hosted by the Soho Forum on November 14, 2018. It featured John McWhorter, associate professor of English at Columbia University, and Nikhil Singh, professor of social and cultural analysis and history at New York University. Soho Forum Director Gene Epstein moderated.
It was an Oxford-style debate in which the audience votes on the resolution at the beginning and end of the event, and the side that gains the most ground is victorious. In a close finish, Singh, arguing the negative, prevailed by convincing nearly 13 percent of audience members to come over to his side.
Singh is the author of Race and America's Long War (University of California Press, 2017), and Black Is a Country: Race and the Unfinished Struggle for Democracy (Harvard University Press, 2004).
McWhorter, who is a regular columnist for Time and CNN, is the author most recently of Talking Back, Talking Black: Truths About America's Lingua Franca (2017)
Comedian Dave Smith, host of the podcast Part of the Problem, opened the program.
Edited by Todd Krainin.
Music: "Voyeur," by Jingle Punks.
Photo Credit: Brett Raney
All Comments (21)
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I'm halfway through this video, and I have yet to see either debater mention fatherlessness as a causal factor in poverty, crime, teen pregnancy, delinquency, low educational attainment, violence, gang activity, substance abuse and other behavioral, social and economic maladies that disproportionately affect the black community in the US (which happens to have the highest rate of fatherlessness). Sigh.
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This was two years ago. I think the last few months have proven John’s side to be the truer.
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"white supremacist violence uptick...which we see in tweets" If you think twitter is reality, you lost the debate
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Mr. McWhorter's comparison of Anti-racists to religious fundamentalists is worth further consideration.
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John McWhorter is friggin brilliant.
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skip to 17:00 if you wanna avoid the bloviating by the "moderator" and the standup comedy routine, and get straight to the meat of it
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McWhorter masterfully veils his eloquence with this cadenced, off the cuff delivery, making his points so easily digestible that it's not only near impossible to not understand what he says, but its also extremely satisfying to hear him speak.
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"I'm well aware that disparities are not enough to demonstrate racism."- Singh....Continues to list disparities as evidence of racism.
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Singh is very unimpressive. His first piece of evidence is about Blacks AND Latinos being disproportionately poor, which destroys his entire premise. If Latinos have the same economic level as Blacks, but they WERE NOT subject to slavery or racism, then perhaps racism isn't the cause of Black poverty either.
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Tip Topp I’m a minority and can say from experience that racism HAD been on the decline. The last hiccup was Skinheads (Neo-Nazis) in the late 80s that petered our in the mid-90s. The only racism I feel today comes from those who use the term White Supremacy. It’s not just the fact that they are applying it to ALL white people. It’s also the fact that whenever I point out my experience, I am condescended to and “corrected” as not being as WOKE as I should be. I didn’t think racism was on the rise until I was “corrected” for my minority experience and opinion.
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This was a great public discourse. I personally think John McWhorter won the debate but those who were heckling Nikhil Singh are part of the problem.
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“Black supremacy is as dangerous as white supremacy, and God is not interested merely in the freedom of black men, God is interested in the freedom of the whole human race and in the creation of a society where all men can live together as brothers.” -MLK
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John McWhorter is a voice of reason from the left. I would like to hear more from him!
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Ask Brett Weinstein if there are real examples where free speech against PC creates a dangerous environment
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Here is the problem with racists and anti-racists: They both see the world through a racial lense. How does that get us further away from race being an issue?
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Fast forward to June 2020, and the answer becomes "OBVIOUSLY".
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I’m a big admirer of John McWhorter and Glenn Loury
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being woke too often just means you don't sleep too well
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Just read your article on the Atlantic Monthly on White Fragility. As an Asian American, I am grateful for your perspective on this. I find that the label and judgement of White Fragility does little more than shut down dialog and bully people into agreeing with DiAngelo or being labeled as racist. I also believe that silence does not necessarily mean enabling and supporting a racist system, it can also mean self reflection, respect, LISTENING, things that many of us could benefit from doing more of, rather than offering uninformed opinions about how things should be, and how people should behave. Thank you for your thoughtfulness and your modeling of critical thinking.
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It's amazing how much two intelligent people from supposedly opposite views actually AGREE once they start discussing the nuances. We need to stop listening to the voices that only want to "win" for their team, and have more conversation like this which focuses on common ground and solutions.
