DIVERSITY DICTIONARY: Reverse Racism

Reverse racism is the idea that white people are being racially oppressed, based on the perception that black, indigenous and people of colour (also known as people of the global majority - PGM) have not only gained equal rights, but that the balance has tipped the other way and that the formerly dominant group is not only being discriminated against, but being systemically oppressed. 

White people may face other forms of systemic oppression such as ableism, misogyny, classism, heterosexism or transphobia, but it’s important to say: reverse racism is a myth. 

It’s a myth usually perpetuated by white people who benefit from the white supremacist system, yet feel defensive when they are made aware of their privilege, or personally attacked when they see people of the global majority gaining access to rights and opportunities that white people have by default. 

For example, someone might claim “That’s reverse racism!” as a response to community platforms that centre and are exclusive to people from Black communities. Or workplace recruitment initiatives that seek to upskill people from racially marginalised backgrounds who have faced systemic barriers and lack of access to certain elitist industries and roles. 

In most (if not all) cases, the phrase is experienced as a microaggression, and sits in the same realm as the phrase ‘I don’t see colour’. Both these phrases erase the realities of systemic oppression that are experienced every day by people of the global majority who exist within a white supremacist society.

There’s a saying that goes ‘Equal rights for others does not mean does not mean less rights for you. It's not pie’. In other words, just because historically marginalised people are getting better access to opportunities, resources and representation, it doesn’t mean white people are getting less. 

Social equity benefits everyone. It means everyone is elevated.

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