Deep within my culture there is a framework that has been hidden from me. It is as hidden as the bones that make up my skeleton. And like my skeleton, it is essential to providing structure, support and shape to my culture. Knowing it is there, now helps me to understand the otherwise incomprehensible resistance I see daily to reasonable things like getting vaccinated and wearing masks.
I just finished reading “Caste” by Isabel Wilkerson. I think I can better understand the deep and hidden energy source behind many people who are so strongly anti-vaccine and anti-mask in the midst of this pandemic. What seemed wildly unreasonable to me, now is a lot easier for me to understand. There is a deeply engrained and hidden force behind the resistance.
While not specifically about race, resistance has been made a hallmark of belonging to a certain caste that many white people are desperately trying to preserve. Many white people are trying to keep their position of privilege, even if it is only imagined. They want to maintain the caste system that racial injustice has supported for hundreds of years. It is the hidden agenda behind a wide assortment of cultural dynamics, and it is providing the energy that resists masks and vaccines.
The attempt to “make us great again” is deep and powerful. At its roots, the structural caste system is quite hidden. The manifestations, however, are very visible. Not wearing a mask or not being vaccinated has been made one of the symbols of belonging to a once-privileged caste. It has been made part of the culture of the caste. Caste identity gives the resistance energy.
I recognize that the issue of resistance to masks and vaccines is complicated, and the generalization about caste structure doesn’t always fit all individuals and specific situations. However, uncovering the hidden nature of caste and its role in our white culture has helped me make sense of what seems like wildly unreasonable resistance.
I don’t want to miss or underestimate the power of this deep and hidden caste system and how attached to it many people are. I also want to be aware how it affects decisions I make. I recognize that I have been born into the privileged caste by having white parents. It is the hidden structure underneath my white culture.