Traces of the Trade

Earlier this week I helped facilitate small group dialogue after a screening of Traces of the Trade.



While I think it's a well done documentary and I'm happy about the conversations it sparks...I had a little trouble with the film. On one hand, one of it's greatest strengths is how accessible it is for people who wouldn't normally think about race theory. On the other hand, whoopie!

During our large group discussion, facilitated by Harold Fields, I said that it was a little bit hard for me to see privileged white folks take a trip to learn more about slavery and applaud it at "courageous." These descendants of slave traders weren't discovering or saying anything that was new to people of color, it was only knew to small children and other privileged white folks. Whoo hoo! Kudos white people, you just repeated information that people of color have been saying for years (since we're talking about slavery, hundreds of years in fact).

Fields, himself a person of color, seemed to think that this was one of the positive attributes of the film. He seemed to embrace the reality that the information that comes out of the mouths of people of color is not always seen as valuable, especially to white people. That because the makers/subjects of the film were of the dominant (privileged) group they were in fact saying information in a new way. A way that other privileged folk we able to hear.

Peggy McIntosh's work on Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack has received the same criticism I'm now giving Traces of the Trade, yet the value of her work can't really be denied. I attended very expensive privileged academic institutions for both undergrad and law school...I'm not sure that such institutions would have been able to stomach such challenging and interesting work on privilege if it has come out of the mouth (or pen) of an African American author (who no doubt, would have been written off as angry or crazy). And who am I kidding? Even out of the mouth of an old white lady, my law school wouldn't touch this stuff with a ten foot pole. There's no denying the value of McIntosh's work, or the fact that it probably wouldn't have been as well received had it been presented by someone who didn't look like McIntosh.

I believe that we all have something to contribute in the dialogue about race in this country. All of our realities are valid and we all have something to learn from each other. I would never want to shut someone out of the conversation; but, man, given all the history it sure is a complicated interaction.

So I guess I'm saying that I see Field's point. But does accepting reality make it any less insulting? Is there a way to applaud the work done by the family in Traces of the Trade while still honoring the truths that have been told by African Americans (and other people of color) for decades (if not centuries)? Is there a way to appreciate and encourage work done by white folks while accepting that it's ok that I'm angry that the playing field is still not level?

For more info about the documentary check out the website.