White supremacy culture – still here
Year: 2021
Type: report
Abstract: “White Supremacy Culture – Still Here” (2021) by Tema Okun reframes white supremacy not only as an overt ideology but as a pervasive cultural system embedded in everyday norms, values, and institutional practices that shape how people think, behave, and relate to one another. The article identifies a set of interrelated characteristics—such as fear, perfectionism, individualism, defensiveness, binary thinking, power hoarding, and urgency—that function to maintain racial hierarchies and reinforce broader systems of oppression like capitalism, patriarchy, and ableism. Okun emphasizes that these cultural patterns are socially constructed, internalized by everyone regardless of identity (though in unequal ways), and ultimately harmful to all, particularly Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. The work pairs each characteristic with “antidotes” that promote relationality, accountability, emotional awareness, collective action, and equity, urging readers to recognize these dynamics within themselves and institutions while resisting the weaponization of the framework. Overall, the text positions dismantling white supremacy culture as a process of collective decolonization and cultural transformation grounded in interdependence, justice, and shared humanity.
Author: Okun, Tema
Language: English
Subfield: Sociology and Political Science
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
SDG: Reduced inequalities
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7162939000