Member-only story
Nine Problems with Identitarianism
- Identitarians claim to be the true representatives of their social identity.
Black identitarians talk as if there’s a single black identity, but Pew Research found that nearly 40% of African Americans think it’s no longer right to speak of a single black race. Feminist identitarians talk as if there’s a single female identity, but women and men are about equally divided on women’s issues — an ABC News survey found in 2013 that 56% of men and 55% of women support legal abortion, and a survey for the Paycheck Fairness Act Coalition found in 2010 that 87% of women and 81% of men support new laws to guarantee women get equal pay.
2. Identitarians impose social identities on people who reject them.
Perhaps the saddest thing about the idea of race is that for centuries, white racists decided who was white and who was black. Now the idea is policed by racists of all hues. Those who step out of line will be accused of being race traitors or insane.
“It’s up to you. As long as you think you’re white, there is no hope for you. As long as you think you’re white, I’m going to be forced to think I’m black.” — James Baldwin
3. Identitarianism limits possibilities for everyone in an identity.
“Identity is a concept of our age that should be used very carefully. All types…
