Emotions of White Racism

Emotions are critical to how race is experienced and thus are integral to the process of understanding whiteness. Furthermore, emotions are linked to white people’s behaviours and are vital to the development of racial justice allies. Drawing from the interdisciplinary critical whiteness studies literature and my own empirical research, in this chapter I develop a preliminary taxonomy of the emotions of white racism and white antiracism. First, I describe the emotions of white racism, which include white fear, white rage and white guilt and shame. Then I explain how white empathy serves as a bridge emotion between white racism and white antiracism. Next, I draw from emerging research to articulate the emotions of white antiracism, which include moral outrage, joy, hope, and compassion. Finally I explain how the emotions of racism taxonomy might be used by scholars who address whiteness in their research, as well as teachers and practitioners who work directly with white individuals to enhance their cultural sensitivity.