A broad and insidious appeal: Unpacking the reasons for endorsing racial color blindness

In this chapter, we examine the many interpretations and motivations behind the ideology of racial color blindness. Color blindness as a racial ideology is one of the dominant approaches to race relations in the contemporary United States (Apfelbaum, Norton, & Sommers, 2012; Firebaugh & Davis, 1988; Plaut, 2010). The basic concept underlying colorblindness is that all people are fundamentally the same, and thus we should ignore racial differences and treat everyone as an individual. The implication is that acknowledging the existence of racial groups is inherently problematic because it is as a result of categorization that prejudice and discrimination occur (Brewer & Miller, 1984; Tajfel & Turner, 1979; Wolsko, Park, Judd, & Wittenbrink, 2000). Avoiding or ignoring racial categories in interpersonal interactions and barring them from consideration in institutional decisions would, according to this reasoning, decrease racism and potentially lead to increased equality (for reviews, see Apfelbaum et al., 2012; Markus, Steele, & Steele, 2000; Peery, 2011; Rattan & Ambady, 2013).

However, the practice of ignoring race may obscure the real impact of inherited and ongoing inequality, leading the proponents of racial color blindness to claim or believe they are behaving fairly while they are actually reifying injustice (Hirsch, 1996; Markus et al., 2000; Sleeter, 1991). Thus, the question that we address in this chapter is as follows: Why do so many people (primarily racial majority group members) endorse racial color blindness as an approach to diversity?

We propose that racial color blindness is a malleable ideology that appeals to people across a spectrum of motivations and perspectives: Some individuals may truly believe that not discussing race advances racial harmony and equality by preventing people from being judged by their race (Goff, Jackson, Nichols, & Di Leone, 2013). For others, racial color blindness may be a way to ignore racial inequalities and thus preserve the status quo to their own benefit (Saguy, Dovidio, & Pratto, 2008). It might appeal to these individuals because they see other groups’ progress as a loss for their own racial group (Norton & Sommers, 2011). Some may avoid any mention of race to ensure that they do not inadvertently say something offensive and risk being labeled a racist (Apfelbaum, Sommers, & Norton, 2008). Racial color blindness may be a response among White people to feeling excluded in situations where ethnic diversity is valued; they might believe their identity as racial majority group a broad and insidious appeal leaves them unable to contribute in these contexts (Plaut, Garnett, Buffardi, & Sanchez-Burks, 2011). Racial color blindness may also simply be a default approach, picked up through social norms but not consciously chosen or carefully examined (Apfelbaum, Pauker, Sommers, & Ambady, 2010). Finally, although many of the reasons already listed apply primarily to White people or members of a racial majority, racial minority group members may have their own reasons to endorse color blindness—for example, to avoid conflict in daily interactions with White people (Rattan & Ambady, 2013).

Thus, racial color blindness functions across racial boundaries and motivations, becoming a default panacea for the tensions of a diverse but not yet harmonious society. Indeed, it may appeal to some for a combination of the reasons just cited. In this chapter, we explore all of these reasons and review the associated literature. Full text published in Neville, Helen A., Gallardo, Miguel E., and Sue, Derald Wing (Eds.), (2015). The myth of racial color blindness: Manifestations, dynamics, and impact, (pp. 53-68). Washington, DC, US: American Psychological Association. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/14754-004