Black Fragility

Black Fragility also known as black defensiveness is the actions and behaviours of black people that is the equivalent of description used to define the actions of white people (white fragility).

Unspeakable Truths about Racial Inequality in America

Glenn C. Loury, a black American intellectual, wrote an article for the Manhattan Institute titled Unspeakable Truths about Racial Inequality in America On the unspeakable infantilization of “black fragility” In his own words, he addresses the shortcomings in regards to black Americans in America and that the use of cancel culture is counterproductive to achieving equality.

I would add that there is an assumption of “black fragility,” or at least of black lack of resilience lurking behind these anti-racism arguments. Blacks are being treated like infants whom one dares not to touch. One dares not say the wrong word in front of us, to ask any question that might offend us, to demand anything from us, for fear that we will be so adversely impacted by that. The presumption is that black people cannot be disagreed with, criticized, called to account, or asked for anything. No one asks black people, “What do you owe America?” How about not just what does America owe us — reparations for slavery, for example? What do we owe America? How about duty? How about honor?

When you take agency away from people, you remove the possibility of holding them to account and the capacity to maintain judgment and standards so that you can evaluate what they do. If a youngster who happens to be black has no choice about whether or not to join a gang, pick up a gun, and become a criminal, since society has failed him by not providing adequate housing, healthcare, income support, job opportunities, etc., then it becomes impossible to discriminate effectively between the black youngsters who do and do not pick up guns and become members of a gang in those conditions and to maintain within African American society a judgment of our fellows’ behavior and to affirm expectations of right-living. Since, don’t you know, we are all the victims of anti-black racism. The end result of all of this is that we are leveled down morally by a presumed lack of control over our lives and lack of accountability for what we do.

What is more, there is a deep irony in first declaring white America to be systemically racist but then mounting a campaign to demand that whites recognize their own racism and deliver blacks from its consequences. I want to say to such advocates: “If, indeed, you are right that your oppressors are racists, why would you expect them to respond to your moral appeal? You are, in effect, putting yourself on the mercy of the court while simultaneously decrying that the court is unrelentingly biased.” The logic of such advocacy escapes me.