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I don’t agree with this at all. He never spoke against Black people, diminished our plight, or diminished our ancestor’s struggles so how is it off code?I’m not feeling the ”I hardly ever talk about skin color, I wanna make it irrelevant as quickly as I possibly can”. That’s not on code language. His reasoning for trying to change the perception of black people is very sound but he ends with saying he’s not comfortable in the interview (with another black man) talking about being black. This is only a short clip so I won’t vilify him plus he clearly shows an understanding of oppression but it sounds like he’s using his expertise in astrophysics as freedom papers. “I’m an astrophysicist, treat me better!” I draw this conclusion because every time he says talks about being black, he follows that up with not wanting to get invited to speak on black topics. That’s fine by itself but it’s like his main concern is how he is viewed by white people. He’s in an interview with another brother, so why does it matter?
Im pretty sure the full interview gives a better context but from this short clip I’m not feeling this take. I’m a black man, I’m proud to be black, I’m proud of our history; I could give a damn about how white people look at me, for better or worse.
He is not comfortable with the conversation being about his Blackness because society will then typecast him as the “guy to talk to about Black people in physics”.
He is not doing that to appease White people, he’s doing it to make White people respect him for his skill set and expertise.
He said “I will turn down your offer if you try to make me the guy to talk about Black stuff” that is on code as hell.
He is not running from Blackness, he is saying, I’m an expert in Astrophysics and I will be not reduced down to White people’s perception of Black people.