Dixon White' and His “Racial-Healing Video-Selfie Challenge”

The nation today stands at a critical moment in history when the bitter truth of racism still stares it in the face. With the rising incidence of violence involving mostly unharmed black people – in the hands of whites, attention has also been drawn to the so-called white supremacy.

White supremacy or white supremacism is a form of racism centered upon the belief, and promotion of the belief, that white people are superior in certain characteristics, traits, and attributes to people of other racial backgrounds and that therefore whites should politically, economically and socially rule non-whites.

More about white supremacy here:

In the midst of all these heated discussions on race, racial diversity, as well as racial hatred and the like -- all the more inflamed with the recent mass killings at a historic black church in Charleston, South Carolina, by an alleged white supremacist -- people are either inclined to avoid any reference to race, or talk about how to overcome the spiral of racial violence. And among them is Dixon D. White and his viral “racial-healing video-selfie challenge.”

Who is Dixon White and What is the “Racial-Healing Video-Selfie Challenge” About?

Dixon D. White is the pseudonym of an American YouTube personality, actor, filmmaker and anti-racism activist whose videos discuss racism in the American South. 

In an interview with Root, earlier this year, when his videos first went viral, he explained his motive behind the videos and why he thinks white privilege has even helped him in going viral.

Some excerpts from this interview:

"During my childhood, I went through a lot of suffering and abuse. Even in college, there was a lot of abuse. The reason I suffered was because of prejudice. Once I understood that, it made me open to not being a product of it and not participating in it. I learned through suffering that I was going to fight against racism. I made an oath to myself and God that I would fight against racism and put it behind me."

 "I’m trying to start a movement where we can deal with racism. I want everybody to take their smartphones and simply talk about what’s in their heart racially in regards to addressing white supremacy. Some people have called it the “Dixon Challenge,” but I call it the “Racial-Healing Video-Selfie Challenge.

The response to his challenge was far-reaching. People from all over, from various backgrounds, posted their own videos, often owning up to their own prejudices about different races, discussing how they learned those ideas to begin with, and pledging their effort to be more conscious and to do better.  - Read more here:  

However, there were also reports Dixon D. White's challenge to overcome racism in the hope of attaining racial healing did not sit well with everyone. They really don’t want this guy heard. It’s not about what he is saying because he isn’t saying anything black people have been saying for years. It’s the fact that he would be heard by people black scholars could never reach. - Read more here:

Meanwhile, we invite our readers to this question: What do you think: why, how can a white relate to the blacks' experience, and vice versa?

DiversityWorking.com, the largest job board online, is a career opportunity resource and job search engine for the cultural diversity marketplace. Through DiversityWorking.com, you can optimize your veteran job search for your diversity and equal opportunity employment needs. Visit DiversityWorking.com now.