Tips For Responding To Racists, With Derailing For Dummies

Hey you! Marginalized and often misunderstood, perhaps slightly maladjusted as a result, member of society! How many times have you been at a party or some other kind of gathering, trying to have an intelligent conversation, defending your dearly held beliefs based on life experiences as a member of an underrepresented or repressed portion of the population, only to have someone outside your social circle tell you one of the following:

• “You’re taking things too personally“
• “You’re just oversensitive“
• “I’m just saying what other people believe. I never said I agree“
• “Don’t you have more important things to thing about?

In the face of ridiculous rebuttals like the ones above, Derailing for Dummies offers a glimpse into the mind and counter arguments of so called Privileged People®. Presenting itself as first and foremost a “step-by-step guide to Conversing with Marginalised People™”, Derailing for Dummies also educates in the art of the “lesser-recognised tactic of Horizontal Hostility.”

In order to combat such instances of ignorance, the site also includes the oldie but goodie:

Well I know another person from your group who disagrees:

This one is fantastic to bring out if you feel at all backed into a corner. If, for example, the Marginalised Person™ is making sense and you’re beginning to get the unpleasant feeling that you were wrong about something, just whip up your friend – your black friend, or your trans friend, your friend with a mental illness, or your friend who is a sex worker, and vehemently express how they completely and stridently support your opinions on these issues… it gives you that handy progressive veneer – see, all their accusations of racism/sexism/ableism/what have you are totally groundless because you have friends who are representatives from that group which shows how open-minded and awesomely cool you really are!

Or the ever ubiquitous:

“But it’s true! Asian people DO talk funny! But it’s true! Black men are all criminals because they’re arrested more often! But it’s true! Women are irrational during their periods because of their hormones!”

So check it out, and let us know what you think, making sure to note any responses they may have forgotten. Thanks to Thurman for the tip!