George,
Besides the excellent points you already made, I have a problem
with whiteness studies, and this may seem obvious (but apparently not
to academics), because “whites” have absolutely no common thread or
shared experiences except their skin color. The
experiences/traditions of white Catholics in Italy are going to be a
lot different than white Baptists in Arizona. Even taking into
consideration the experiences of whites just in the United States, the
experiences are going to be vastly different.
To study a group,
if you must do so, then at least the group in question must have some
type of common thread based on the “characteristic.” The problem
is many times the groups are far too diverse to be studied, yet there
is an assumption that conclusions really can be drawn about the whole
group based on some individuals within the group. This of
course is stereotyping, but I guess it it o.k. in academia.
Let me explain: If we researched American Indians in the 19th
century, what could we say about them? Anything we would say
would be a generalization that would be inaccurate for many American
Indians during that time. We would need to narrow it down by
time, location, and by tribe, and then maybe even further than
that. All we would learn is how those individuals at that time
and place experienced life–we wouldn’t be able to draw many more
conclusions.
To me, researching by groups can be
dangerous–it can lead to stereotypes, supported by
“scientifically-based academic research.”
