DISCUSSION RECAP
Content: Bigotry, language, racism Our June discussion was all about "dog whistles". What they are, resources to help us identify them, and how context often plays a huge role in recognizing a dog whistle. As a quick recap, according to Merriam-Webster, a dog whistle is a "coded message communicated through words or phrases commonly understood by a particular group of people, but not by others." Many groups can use dog whistles to communicate, including hate-groups. During our meeting, we discussed the following questions: 1. What dog whistles are you aware of? 2. What dog whistles surprise you? Confuse you? 3. Looking back to calling in vs calling out, how might you approach a situation involving a dog whistle? Online? In-person? 4. Are dog whistles protected by free speech? 5. How would you handle hearing/seeing/finding a dog whistle in the library? 6. What is the importance of context in regard to dog whistles? How can we educate ourselves to understand the context? What are dead giveaways for a dog whistle? Jewitches, the Anti-Defamation League, Rainbow Cafe and a few other resources (now listed on our website Resources page) were referred to to discuss specific dog whistles, especially those that were antisemitic in nature. Many folks in this month's discussion were unfamiliar with many of the dog whistles presented in these resources, however we also discussed the fact that groups will often switch over to a new set of dog whistles once a common dog whistle is identified. This allows the coded messages to continue to be coded, which can make it difficult to keep track of current circulating dog whistles, especially online. Context also plays a huge role because some groups use the same or similar symbols/iconography. For example, the punk scene shares many fashion aesthetics as Neo-Nazi groups, some religious/spiritual iconography (ex. Thor's hammer) has also been co-opted by Neo-Nazi groups. Even the Thai flag emoji has been turned into an antisemitic dog whistle by hate groups. A major take-away from this discussion was that it is a luxury and a privilege to be surprised and appalled by dog whistles (and other forms of bigotry and racism). Groups on the receiving end of this must not only remain constantly vigilant of dog whistles and other hate speech for their own safety, but potentially have the added emotional and mental burden of our surprise, disgust, and learning process (ex. asking questions, recounting experiences that are potentially traumatic for the marginalized person/group). We wanted to acknowledge that that is likely an exhausting experience for marginalized groups. We also wanted to note that dog whistles are often used as a way to "test the waters" in interactions with white folks specifically. Most attendees had stories of being approached, presented with a dog whistle, then gauged to see how we would respond. Dog whistles are used to identify other members of a certain group and if we don't recognize those dog whistles and respond to them appropriately, we may be inadvertently supporting the beliefs of those groups through our own inaction. White silence is dangerous. Next month's discussion will be on dealing with fear when calling in and calling out. See you in July!
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