So first, this doesn’t all directly relate to men’s issues but it is more something that ties into it, so bare with me

Second, this is more an observation and my own thoughts thing, so take it all with a grain of salt. I’m sure I’ll get something wrong and I bet someone else can make this argument better, but oh well.

After reading some previous posts about the men fleeing Afghanistan, I wanted to talk about something I’ve sort of been mulling over, and am hoping I can word it right.

We all probably know the idea of ID politics and oppression olympics. How certain identities are at the bottom and others are privileged. We know how this sort of gets weird and falls apart around gender, but even on the lines of race this is more complicated then presented. For example, with cultural assimilation, one could make the argument that while “white” minor cultures in a predominantly white society can more easily escape racism because they can physically assimilate, this may also further pressure assimilation and full cultural loss as they’re adopted as just part of the majority, while poc, due to physical inability to assimilate into the dominant group, may be able to maintain their cultural identity more easily (this isn’t to suggest assimilation isn’t a thing or reduce those experiences, just a possible phenomenon.) Since some also describe racism as institutional/systematic, I would question about the idea of “white trash” particularly with the Appalachian region. Again, not to suggest that poc get a ton of aid, but as it is politically fashionable to support poc, and generally okay to look down on and insult Appalachian white groups, combined with the linguistic discrimination and poverty faced in the region, would there not be the possibility that there is a racial and cultural bias against them. If you suggest something like this, it is often taken as invalidating racism against poc, however it shouldn’t be seen as contradictory to those experiences, but rather as contradictory to the current model.

Hopefully that makes sense, sorry about the ramble