No, not all white men are 'insufferable.' But all white supremacy is
Someone asked in the comments of yesterday’s story—describing how comedian Jimmy Kimmel stole the spotlight from Abbott Elementary writer Quinta Brunson—about my intent in quoting another writer’s critique that “white men really are insufferable." I thought it was a fair question.
Due to a prolonged comedy skit introducing Brunson, the second Black woman in history to win an Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series, Brunson had to step over Kimmel’s white body to accept what was her first Emmy Award on Monday. She later explained that, in actuality, Kimmel had been anything but a barrier to her success. But that didn’t stop Black Twitter users from sharing their offense online. I found their critiques insightful and chose to highlight them here.
That said, I don’t believe all white men are “insufferable,” or even that all the white men I’ve personally encountered are insufferable. I have some lovely colleagues, former editors, and old friends who have and continue to go to bat for me, challenge me, and fight against some of the very issues I’ve dedicated my career to. For example, I didn’t understand that words like “stupid” and “lame” were common manifestations of ableism until Christopher Reeves, a white man and Daily Kos colleague, put them on my radar. He certainly is not insufferable.
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