Controversial King Day speaker's words inspire, inflame

The best way for white people in the Puget Sound area to begin to combat racism is to admit it exists, said an outspoken anti-racism activist speaking at a Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration.

Tim Wise, a social critic, writer and speaker, talked to about 300 students at Bellevue Community College yesterday. The 35-year-old Tennessee native is working to educate people across the nation on the institutional racism he says plagues society and the denial of it in so-called progressive cities.

People are listening, partly, he says, because he is white.

It is his 16th year giving a speech for King's holiday. Wise's words both inspire and enflame. He's been called a hero by those fighting for racial equity. He's been called divisive, radical and hostile by those who think a King celebration should be about unity and setting aside differences.

"Unity is not an act of wish fulfillment, it requires justice and requires equity of opportunity and access," he said. "It cannot be achieved in a racist society."

Students were receptive, and some lined up afterward to offer thanks.

Wise says his understanding of racism comes from growing up in the South. He noticed his own privilege and saw how kids of color were treated, how their parents had no access to wealth.

Still, Wise says racism on the West Coast is covert in comparison — and therefore much worse.

"White folks in Seattle think they don't have a problem; the racism is subtle but destructive because it is masquerading as denial," he said. "That is more dangerous than the overt stuff. You have a well-intended liberal facade that is not representative of what's underneath. Ask people of color and they'll tell you this is one of the most racist places they've ever been."

Wise sees his role as interrupting racism by any means necessary. He has written books and essays, contributed to anthologies, newspapers and magazines.

He squares off on radio, TV and in debates on issues ranging from affirmative action to welfare. He also trains government agencies, companies and police on how to dismantle racism in their institutions, and serves as senior adviser to the Fisk University Race Relations Institute in Nashville, Tenn.

He cited reports that show many black children live in impoverished families and that people of color often face discrimination in housing and in attempts to get job interviews.

Among other topics yesterday, he denounced affirmative-action critics, who he says have taken King's "I Have a Dream" speech out of context.

Though King said he hoped that one day people "will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character," he also has said it might be necessary to have something akin to "discrimination in reverse" as a form of national atonement for the legacy of slavery and Jim Crow segregation.

King's views must be presented honestly, Wise said, and not used for purposes he would have found unacceptable.

Leslie Fulbright: 206-515-5637 or lfulbright@seattletimes.com