The Weekend Edition of Race Inquiry Digest features the top stories from the two previous Digests published during the week. Click here for earlier Digests.
Editor’s Note: The Invention of Whiteness and Its Lasting Impact
The category of “white people” is a relatively recent invention, born from the era of colonization and slavery, and designed to consolidate power. By blending various European identities into one group, colonial elites created a label that served to legitimize their dominance over Africans and Indigenous peoples. Both Black and white communities live with the legacies of this invention. If the constructed nature of “white people” were fully understood, it would transform how both groups see themselves, each other, and the society they inhabit.
For those identified as white, recognizing the constructed nature of whiteness demands a new understanding of privilege. Whiteness often presents itself as neutral or the default, but seeing it as a historical invention reveals how contingent and vulnerable it truly is. Many Europeans became “white” not as a personal choice, but as the result of a bargain, accepting privilege in exchange for their place in a racial hierarchy. This realization reframes privilege not as a personal achievement, but as an outcome of a system built to exclude others. White as well as Black scholars engaged in “whiteness studies” have contributed to understanding this phenomenon.
Despite growing awareness, this reckoning is fraught with resistance. Recent calls for “white cohesion” and open appeals to white supremacy are attempts to reinforce the myths that gave rise to whiteness. These efforts threaten to reverse social progress and revive a period when white dominance went largely uncontested. The persistence of such movements highlights the effort required to maintain whiteness as a natural and permanent state. Because it is a fragile social invention, whiteness must be constantly defended, which explains the resistance to movements supporting diversity and multiculturalism. Similarly, the project of historical revisionism, undertaken by the Trump administration, in order to cast whiteness not as an oppressive construct, but as natural, innocent or even benevolent, is to secure its legitimacy in the present and future.
Ultimately, acknowledging that “white people” are an invention makes space for imagining a future in which race no longer defines social standing. However, this possibility remains uncertain as long as voices supporting white supremacy seek to restore old hierarchies. By recognizing that racial categories are human-made, both Black and white communities can begin to reimagine what it means to coexist. In this process, a more just and expansive freedom—rooted not in dominance, but in shared humanity—becomes possible.
Related: The invention of whiteness: the long history of a dangerous idea. By Robert P. Baird / The Guardian
The Week’s Top Stories
Political / Social
Charlie Kirk Didn’t Shy Away From Who He Was. We Shouldn’t Either. By Jamelle Bouie / NYT Read more
White House Plans Broad Crackdown on Liberal Groups. Katie Rogers and Zolan Kanno-Youngs / NYT Read more
Trump’s Economic Magic Trick Is Coming Undone. By Jamelle Bouie / NYT Read more
Fascism Scholar Sounds Alarm: We’re Now In ‘Next Phase’ Of Trump Authoritarian Playbook. By Lee Moran / HuffPost Read more
Education
Charlie Kirk Brought Hard-Right Politics To A New Generation. By Matt Shuham / HuffPost Read more
At Emory University, the disbanding of DEI contradicts the school’s progressive reputation. By Curtis Bunn / NBC News Read more
Trey Reed’s Death at Delta State Sparks Questions, Vigil. By Aallyhah Wright / Capital B Read more
Trump Redirects Millions to Historically Black Colleges, Charter Schools. Sarah Mervosh and Michael C. Bender / NYT Read more
World
Charlie Kirk mourned by a global right he influenced. By Susannah George / Wash Post Read more
Trump Boat Bombing Takes Darker Turn as Damning New Info Emerges. By Greg Sargent / TNR Read more
Will the US Continue to Aid, Abet, and Arm Genocide in Gaza? By Katrina Vanden Heuvel / The Nation Read more
Ethics / Morality / Religion
Charlie Kirk leaves behind a sweeping MAGA Christian network. By Jack Jenkins / RNS Read more
Virginia Pastor’s sermon on Charlie Kirk’s death sparks debate. By Katie Lusso / WUSA9 Read more and listen here
MAGA’s plan for a white Christian America is unfolding before our eyes. By Heather Digby Parton / Salon Read more
Historical / Cultural
Yes, this is who we are: America’s 250-year history of political violence. By Maurizio Valsania / The Conversation Read more
Trump Admin Orders Removal Of Notable Photo Of Formerly Enslaved Man From National Park. By Ben Glanchet / HuffPost Read more
National Center for Civil and Human Rights expands at a critical moment. By Errol Burnett / CBS News Read more
Sports
‘Revolt of the Black Athlete’ author Dr. Harry Edwards says a new equality movement is coming to sports and the nation. By Lonnae O’Neal / Andscape Read more
Charlie Kirk tributes run contrary to sports’ uniting power. By Nancy Armour / USA Today Read more
Terence ‘Bud’ Crawford makes history with upset victory over Canelo Alvarez. By AP and NBC News Read more
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