AS
AS A
AS A COUNTRY WE'VE TALKED A LOT ABOUT RACISM SINCE THE KILLING
OF GEORGE FLOYD IN MINNEAPOLIS
LAST YEAR.
KING 5 LAUNCHED AN ORIGINAL
SERIES LOOKING AT RACE AND
INEQUITIES IN WESTERN
WASHINGTON AFTER OUR FIRST
EPISODE OF FACING RACE, A WHITE
MAN FROM
EMAILED
EMAILED US SAYING THAT HE NEEDED ADVICE EVEN SOME HELP.
TONIGHT CHRISTIAN AIRS BEGINS A
SERIES OF REPORTS ABOUT HIS
PERSONAL RECKONING WITH RACISM
.
HIS NAME IS STEVE RAYMI, A 60
YEAR OLD WHITE WESTERN
WASHINGTON MAN, A HUSBAND, A
FATHER.
AND THERE'S ONE MORE THING YOU
SHOULD KNOW ABOUT STEVE .
I KNOW THAT THAT I'M RACIST AND
I DON'T WANT TO BE I DON'T MEAN
TO BE.
I'M TRYING NOT TO BE LATE LAST
YEAR ON AN EPISODE OF KING'S
FACING RACE BROADCAST, HE
ADMITTED I SEE A GROUP OF WHITE
KIDS AND I SEE A GROUP OF BLACK
KIDS.
I'M GOING TO BE MORE ON GUARD
WITH THE BLACK KIDS BECAUSE
OF THE WAY THAT I WAS TRAINED,
THE WAY I WAS RAISED NOT WHAT
YOU'D EXPECT FROM A MAN WHOSE
STEPDAUGHTER KAITLYN NOBLE IS
BIRACIAL.
STEVE MARRIED CAITLIN'S MOTHER
ALEX AND HAS RAISED KAITLIN
SINCE SHE WAS A TODDLER.
YEAH, IT IS ALL I KNOW AS A
FATHER FIGURE MOUNTING UNREST
OVER A NATIONWIDE FIGHT FOR
RACIAL JUSTICE HAS OPENED A
CHASM BETWEEN CAITLIN AND HER
PARENTS.
HONESTLY RIGHT NOW I DON'T
REALLY FEEL VERY CONNECTED BUT
THEY'VE STOPPED TALKING AND
THAT'S WHERE RACE EDUCATOR
KARINA HOOKS COMES.
SO WHAT DID YOU MAKE UP ABOUT
YOURSELF HAVING DIFFERENT SKIN
COLOR THAN THE REST OF YOUR
FAMILY OVER THE NEXT FEW DAYS
WE'RE TAKING YOU INSIDE A
FAMILY'S FIGHT TO DO THE HARD
WORK OF FACING RACE.
I WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT IF
YOU'RE NOT FEELING THIS LIKE
ANGER, FRUSTRATION, SADNESS,
GUILT, SHAME, ALL OF THAT WE'RE
NOT DOING GOOD WORK.
I THINK ABOUT THE EPISODE THAT
I WATCHED AND THE PART THAT
STILL RINGS THROUGH MY EARS IS
I'M A RACIST AND I WANT TO
CHANGE.
WHAT MAKES YOU NOT THE NORM IS
THAT YOU'RE MITTING THAT YOU'RE
A RACIST AND THAT YOU WANT TO
CHANGE.
THAT'S DIFFERENT.
IT'S VERY RARE.
I DON'T KNOW IF I'VE IN MY 20
PLUS YEARS OF DOING THIS WORK
I'VE EVER HEARD A WHITE PERSON
SAY THOSE WORDS EXACTLY.
MY DEFINITELY FEEL SHAME WHEN I
SAY IT, YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN?
AND I'M NOT WHO I WANT TO BE
FOR CAITLYN CAITLYN AS SHE'S
GROWN UP IN RENTON LARGELY
WITHOUT HER BLACK BIOLOGICAL
FATHER.
AT WHAT POINT DID YOU REALIZE
THAT YOU WERE DIFFERENT IN YOUR
FAMILY?
I WOULD GO UP TO MY MOM OR MY
AUNT AND I'D LIKE TO BE LIKE
WHY AM I NOT THIS COLOR?
WHY CAN'T I BE YOUR COLOR LIKE
I WISH I WAS YOUR GUIDANCE
COLOR AND DID YOU INTERNALIZE
THAT LIKE IT WAS SOMETHING
WRONG WITH YOU VERSUS SOMETHING
WRONG WITH THEM?
YEAH, I ALWAYS HAD ISSUES WITH
MY OWN BEAUTY LIKE HAVING
SELF-LOVE.
WHAT DO YOU THINK'S WRONG WITH
YOU TO JUST BE WITH IT?
YOU'RE NOT GOOD ENOUGH
ACCORDING TO WHO I'VE GOT YOU
TO THE WHITE MAN CAITLYN
STRUGGLE MADE HARDER BY HER
FATHER'S RACISM.
HE MAKES JOKES THAT ARE NOT
FUNNY BUT HE THINKS ARE FUNNY.
I DO SAY RACIST STUFF STUFF
THAT I FEEL BAD ABOUT NOW LIKE
I MAKE FUN OF HER FOR LIKE
DANCING OR SOMETHING.
SHE DOESN'T HAVE TO GET A
RHYTHM I SAY BECAUSE I'D SAY
STUFF LIKE SO THAT MUST BE THE
RIGHT SIDE OF YOU.
HOW DOES IT MAKE YOU FEEL
UNCOMFORTABLE AND ANGRY MAKES
ME JUST IT SURE ENOUGH AT THE
NEXT SESSION WHILE CAITLYN
HARDLY SAYS A WORD KORINA
DOESN'T MINCE HER WORDS.
THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH
BEING FUNNY.
THE QUESTION IS AT WHOSE
EXPENSE HUMOR IS GOING TO
ALWAYS BE AT SOMEBODY'S EXPENSE
UNLESS IT'S A KNOCK KNOCK JOKE
IF JOKES ARE RACE RELATED CLASS
RELATED, GENDER RELATED THEY
SHOULD NOT HAPPEN.
WE JUST HAVE TO OWN IT LIKE I'M
ACTUALLY BEING OFFENSIVE AND I
DON'T CARE WHAT HE THINKS.
THE PERCEPTION OF HOW THE
PERSON'S TAKEN IT IF IT HAS A
HISTORY OF OPPRESSION AND HURT
IN THIS COUNTRY, I WOULD OFFER
THERE'S NOTHING FUNNY ABOUT
THIS WHEN YOU LOOK AT WHY I
THINK IT'S FUNNY.
YES.
OK.
YES. OK.
YES. OK. AND WHY IS MORE SENSE TO ME AND
WHY YOU THINK IT'S OK.
THE QUESTION OF WHY IS GOING TO
TAKE STEVE BACK IN TIME TO HIS
VERY FIRST ENCOUNTER WITH
RACISM LIKE PROBABLY
KINDERGARTEN I'M PLAYING WITH A
KID AND NOW WAS BACK AND THEY
HAD WHITE AND BLACK DRINKING
FOUNTAINS AND WE BOTH DRANK HE
GOT BEAT AND I GOT YELLED AT
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN HIM
DRINKING OUT OF THAT ME WAS THE
PUNISHMENT PART, YOU KNOW, I
MEAN HE WAS JUST HE GOT BEAT
AND I WAS TOLD THAT BLACK
PEOPLE DRINK ABOUT WHITE
DRINKING FOUNTAIN.
SO WHAT DID YOU MAKE UP THEN
ABOUT BLACK PEOPLE?
I GUESS THE JUST THE WHOLE PART
ABOUT YOU LOOK DIFFERENT SO YOU
ARE DIFFERENT.
KAARINA SAYS THAT'S WHERE IT
ALL STARTED AND EVEN NOW
STEVE'S EXPERIENCES STILL COLOR
HIS RELATIONSHIPS WITH PEOPLE
WHO ARE NOT WHITE, INCLUDING
HIS DAUGHTER.
YOU HEARD HER MENTION SEEKING
AND DESIRING SELF-LOVE AND I
WILL SAY THAT JOKES WILL NOT
SUPPORT THAT FOR HER.
IT'S KIND OF A CHEAP WAY TO GO
ANYWAY.
YOU ONLY HAVE TO THINK IT OUT.
I MEAN IT'S JUST REALLY LAZY
WAY OF GETTING LAUGHS ONE
LESSON LEARNED BUT STEVE HAS A
LONG WAY TO GO AND TOMORROW THE
BACKLASH WHY I STARTED GET
DEFENSIVE ON IT BECAUSE IT JUST
FEELS LIKE EVERYTHING IS WHITE
PEOPLE, YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN?
AND ALSO HOW LONG THAT RACE
GONNA HOLD IT AGAINST ME.
WOW.
FOR HIM TO ADMIT SO MUCH ON
TELEVISION AND BE WILLING TO
WORK TOWARD CHANGE TAKES A LOT
OF GUTS AND COURAGE.
SO KRISTEN, WHAT ARE STEPHEN
KAITLYNN ULTIMATELY TRYING TO
GET OUT OF THESE SESSIONS?
WELL, THEY KIND OF HAVE
DIFFERENT GOALS FOR CAITLYN.
SHE'S REALLY TRYING TO GET A
SENSE OF HER BLACK IDENTITY AS
A BIRACIAL WOMAN AND KIND
OF GET TO A PLACE WHERE SHE CAN
TALK FREELY AND OPENLY TO HER
PARENTS ABOUT RACE.
STEVE ON THE OTHER HAND, IS
TRYING TO CONFRONT HIS OWN
BIAS.
HE'S TRYING TO BE HONEST ABOUT
IT AND ULTIMATELY DO SOMETHING
ABOUT IT.
YOU HEARD THE RACE EDUCATOR
CARINA HOOKS TALKING ABOUT
TALKING WITH HIM AND CAITLYN
AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT SHE
HAS TOLD US IS THAT WHEN YOU'RE
LOOKING AT CONFRONTING YOUR OWN
BIAS, YOU REALLY KIND OF HAVE
TO DO WHAT YOU SAW STEVE DO IN
THAT PIECE TO BE HONEST WITH
YOURSELF ABOUT YOUR OWN BIAS.
SHE SAYS YOU CANNOT WORK ON
SOMETHING YOU CANNOT DO ADDRESS
SOMETHING LIKE RACISM UNLESS
YOU NAME IT AND THAT'S EXACTLY
WHAT HE DID IN THIS CASE JOYCE.
WOW.
KRISTEN, THANK YOU.
AND OF COURSE YOUR SERIES
CONTINUES TOMORROW.
THE CONVERSATIONS GO DEEPER.
THEY GET HARDER TO STEVE LEARNS
THAT BEING RACIST IS ABOUT MORE
THAN JUST TELLING BAD JOKES.
LOOKING FORWARD TO THAT
TOMORROW.
THANKS.
TOMORROW. THANKS. AND IF YOU HAVE A STORY IDEA
FOR FACING