Recent comments in /f/vermont

truckingon t1_j4ha49z wrote

Reply to comment by waitsfieldjon in If you had to pick one restaurant in the greater BTV area which would be your favorite? (Pick 1) Why is it your favorite? Is it the food, atmosphere, people? by thegateway_way

Try this: https://scholarsarchive.jwu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1984&context=mbf_collection

I only ate (and drank beer of course) there once or twice before it closed. It might be one of the few exceptions to the rule that huge menu = very mediocre food.

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LadyFenris13 t1_j4h8i7e wrote

Reply to comment by Hellrazor32 in Decentering Whiteness in Hiking and Fostering Inclusivity Outdoors by honeybeedreams

I'm so glad someone else is cringing as much as I am at these comments. For people who live in a predominantly white state and never encounter POC outdoors folk, they think nothing of it. I've lived in the South for nearly four years and am a frequent hiker, and do you know how many times I've encountered a POC in the outdoors? Never. And with how racist some people are, I don't blame POC for being uncomfortable or afraid of being in these spaces. Even as a woman who sometimes hikes alone, I feel uncomfortable, so I can't imagine how bad it is for them. The outdoors is dominated by white men, and a lot of them are blind to their privilege outside-- they generally don't get harassed out on the trail. A lot of the people commenting are getting hung up on the affordability of hiking, when in reality it's a safety issue.

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thirtythreeandme t1_j4h6und wrote

Reply to comment by ais72 in Decentering Whiteness in Hiking and Fostering Inclusivity Outdoors by honeybeedreams

I appreciate this sentiment. Maybe I’m wrong, but I don’t find that hikers are all that hostile to newcomers? All I really expect as a casual hiker is to not be subjected to any disrespectful behavior. I haven’t experienced any real gatekeeping behavior or overt exclusion (of course, I don’t hike all that regularly). It’s always nice if people are friendly and go out of their way to be helpful, but it’s a bit much to expect everyone to be in that headspace mentally. Sometimes we just don’t feel up to it.

I think anytime you enter a subculture, there’s going to be an uncomfortable phase before you feel like you fit in. That’s just the nature of trying something new. We can’t expect our hand to be held during this process. It’s nice if you have someone to do that, but mostly we just have to be adults and work through difficult things. It builds resilience!

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headgasketidiot t1_j4h5zvy wrote

Reply to comment by Sweendogoflove in Decentering Whiteness in Hiking and Fostering Inclusivity Outdoors by honeybeedreams

Most of your critique is fair enough, but I think you should reconsider this one:

> If you want the average white guy/woman to read your article, don't title it "Decentering whiteness..." That's just the jargon of your own cultural/professional circle.

I agree with you that the average white person would be more likely to read things if black writers went out of their way to speak a certain way, but I don't think that's a valid critique of the author; It's a critique of the readers.

It's true that academics, many of whom are black, have developed some jargon to discuss these kinds of issues, but it's not like it's hard to figure out what "decentering whiteness" means. People on this sub read and discuss all sorts of articles laden with economics jargon all the time--some of which is much more niche--and no one ever has that critique for those articles. It seems people are willing to learn plenty of economics jargon to participate in a discussion about economics, but are unwilling to do the same for issues of race.

Is it really productive to ask people to avoid the terminology of a 100+ year academic tradition of studying "whiteness" because the terminology isn't already familiar to a white audience?

edit: a few clarifying words

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