Voices: Oppression in an eyeroll?

It’s an eyeroll. It’s a knowing glance across the table. You’ve seen it happen. You’ve probably done it. Casual racism is insidious.

It could be as seemingly innocent as touching a little girl’s hair in the supermarket (do not touch a stranger’s hair) or asking someone where they’re from (they’re probably Canadian, and anyway it’s no one’s business) or mentioning, oh-so-awkwardly, how they understand because they have a friend from Beijing, too.

For Stephen Quinn from The Globe and Mail, it was a combination eyeroll+”figures.” Tap here to read his account.

It’s tempting to just let it go. It’s hard to stand up to Uncle John and Auntie Mabel at Christmas dinner. But if you’re not an ally, you’re an oppressor.

Here are a few ways you can get started, with a hat-tip to “So you say you’ve got white privilege. Now what?”