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When white people compete to be the most woke

» Bashing other white people doesn’t make you better

Jessica Berget Opinions Editor

cc ite people are the worst, I swear.”

If you think of yourself as a progressive, informed individual, there’s a possibility you may have heard, thought, or uttered the above statement at one point or another—whether you're a person of colour or not.

That’s okay, I understand if you've felt that way—I know that I definitely have on more than one occasion—but I think it’s important for white people in particular to understand that verbally tearing down other white people isn’t enough in the way of support for people of colour. There’s a huge difference between recognizing harmful behaviours and simply calling things out in an attempt to “cancel” somebody. That difference is essentially action versus inaction.

There isn’t anything particularly productive about elbowing your friends of colour and sighing, “White people, right?” If you're white yourself, you're still protected and veiled by the privilege that you are calling out. It’s great that you can recognize inappropriate behaviour and address the fact that white privilege may have something to do with said behaviour, but that same white privilege allows you to feel free to call things out without

Pet peeves

genuinely feeling or understanding the implications.

If you want to be an ally and truly understand why something might be offensive, the most important thing to do is to listen to the people of colour who are trying to explain what’s unacceptable to

you. Listening might not feel like an active stand against racism, but it really is. It allows you to be all the more informed in your fight against discrimination.

>» Don't pet strangers’ dogs without asking

Jessica Berget Opinions Editor

D: are wonderful creatures. They’re cute, sweet, and loyal which makes them excellent companions. To those who don't own a dog, meeting one on the street can be an exciting and rewarding experience. However, I think more people need to get into the habit of asking owners whether or not they can pet their dog before touching them.

I notice a lot of people gleefully scream and run up to random dogs to pet them, but never say a word to or even make eye contact with the owner. Dogs are cute, yes, but that is no excuse to feel entitled to touch someone else’s pet without consulting them or even saying hello first. It’s rude, and I’m sure you were raised better than to touch things that don't belong to you—especially other living creatures.

Petting dogs without the owner’s permission is not a habit that we should be tolerating. You may think I’m overexaggerating, but there are many valid reasons not to pet strangers’ dogs without asking. For one, they may be anxious or shy and act aggressively in the presence of

strangers coming up to them and getting into their personal space. Or perhaps a dog’s owner trained it to be defensive in the presence of strangers. Dogs are protective creatures, so if they feel threatened, they may try to protect themselves and their owners and you could get bitten as a result. If you ask the owner first if petting is okay, they might tell you that their pet is shy or that it doesn't like being petted by strangers and you can avoid potentially being bitten.

What’s worse is that if you were to unintentionally spook the dog by petting it and it bites you out of self-defence, it might be considered the dog or the owner’s fault and they could get in a lot of trouble. According to a 2016 article by animal law lawyer Rebeka Breder, a proposed piece of legislation—Bill M212 or the Animal Liability Act (ALA)—would hold owners and their animals liable for all bites. This act “essentially creates a legal scheme of absolute liability,” she said. So, say you were to pet a stranger’s dog and happened to get bitten—the owner would automatically be held responsible and the dog might also be dubbed aggressive and even be seized by animal control, all because a stranger approached it and it was acting out its

Flying off the handle in an attempt to look supportive—such as exclaiming how awful white people are and how ashamed you are to be one of them— makes it harder for someone like me to have an informative conversation with you. Furthermore, you might think that saying

those kinds of things is what a person of colour wants to hear, but it could put a person of colour into an even more harmful situation if someone with a negative bias

in i

most basic instinct to protect itself and its owner. This bill hasn't been passed into law yet, but its implications are nonetheless worrying for pet owners. Still think petting dogs without asking is okay?

Finally, people shouldnt be petting strangers’ dogs because it sets a bad example of what is okay to other people and especially young kids. Think of what chaos could ensue if a small child saw

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overhears your conversation. While you're protected by the colour of your skin when you speak your mind, someone like me is automatically viewed as stereotypically hateful and resistant to accept the Western society that I “chose” to be a part of. For bigots and racists, it doesn’t matter who in a group holds which opinion; if they sense hostility then they will justify any further discrimination using that.

Instead of trying to one-up other white people to prove that because you recognize their shitty ways, you are therefore better than them, I think listening and taking in opinions and experiences of people who have truly felt racism is the first step toward being a supportive ally. Action, such as supporting your friends of colour and attending educational talks and marches, staying informed, and allowing people to check your hostility when it isn’t necessary— these are much more important than calling someone “another backwards, uninformed white person.”

If someone has enough conviction to be racist or discriminatory in any way, then they probably don’t care that youre calling them out. Save your words and insults for when they really matter, like when your friends need them during a protest or ina time of despair.

others petting strangers’ dogs, went to pet a dog without asking, and was bitten.

Unless that dog comes up to you first and the owner gives permission, don’t assume it’s all right to pet it. Petting a stranger’s dog without asking could have negative consequences for yourself or the animal, so for everyone’s safety and peace of mind, just ask before you pet.