IS GABRIEL THY A RACIST?

Probably, as the term is tossed around today, because I am rigged by nature to mouth out about the sticky issues, particularly those called the politics of race, since I am a southern white, and from certain reports, a southern white of heritage, and therefore, genetically predisposed to owning slaves, and mistreating those with darker skins than mine.

And according to contemporary multi-culturalist norms, as someone of lilywhite persuasion I must de facto be a racist, or as is now commonly heard around the race-baiting grapevine, priviledged. Either way, you can bet the house that I'm one of them, an italicized figure, suspect, declasse.

But let's imagine I sported just enough pigment to pass for black, and thought EXACTLY the same thoughts I now think, would I be racist, or would I simply then be a confused, self-loathing, low-life MFSOB, a traitor to my race et cetera ad nauseum, born and reared without a racist bone in my body?

Even if I were chippy with anecdotes proving one clever point or another, all aimed to justify my sorry (or perchance even exalted) existence and to myself feel good within my own skin, to feel just a wee bit savvy about myself AND all others still struggling on the exploding ticket of humanity?

Hard call, I've read stacks of books written by and for those concerned with parsing this damned race issue (black, white, brown, and uh, yellow? liberal, conservative, hardliner, mister softie, plan X, plan Y, plan Z).

I have been baptized with the "conversion conversation" til I'm black and blue in the mind (where art and politics beat each other up, and I'm still none the wiser), mingled and have even comingled among the races, preached the word of colorblindness and self-awareness, lived and won, lived and lost, once upon a time had a so-called great job, but quit, afraid I was taking a slot from some poor bastard of some oppressed race, and finally refused to accept any job at all but of fat artist, doing something anybody can do but only I can do my way, and still I know nothing about race in America except to say that America is the most multi-cultural few acres on the planet, and yes there are problems, but go to China, go to Iran, Saudi Arabia, Japan, what do you find there?

And lemme tell you true, I've been swimming in these deep icy waters of New Babylon a long time, long enough to wince the moment I hear the righteous Reverend Reggie White catches hell from the race industry every time he opens his mouth about generalized race traits and just getting along...