The Machinery of Whiteness: Studies in the Structure of Racialization

by Steve Martinot

In this follow up to his book, The Rule of Racialization—which considered the way class structure is formed in the United States—Steve Martinot examines how the structures of racialization reside at the core of all social, cultural, and political institutions in the United States. In The Machinery of Whiteness, Martinot examines how race and racism are produced in the United States, analyzing the politics of racialization and the racial segregation and racial deprivation that have kept the United States a white-dominated society throughout its history. Martinot dedicates this work to expunging white supremacy from the earth.

The Machinery of Whiteness investigates how "whiteness" came to be foundational to the process that then produced the modern concept of race. Martinot addresses the instrumentalization of women as a necessary step in the formation of the concept, furthering the debates regarding the relationships of race and gender. He also addresses U.S. international interventionism, the anti-immigrant movements, and white racist populism to describe the political forms that white supremacy takes.

Martinot brings together these ideas to analyze the underlying cultural structures of racialization that have driven and conditioned the resurgence of white supremacy and white entitlement in the wake of the civil rights movements. This book is a call to transform the cultural structures of the United States to make justice and democracy—which depend on inclusion and not segregation—possible.

Genres: Race, History, Academic

232 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2010

Reviews

[Kathleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love what Steve Martinot is doing with this book. I love that he comes out and says (and shows) the way that white supremacy is a fundamental organizing principle of US political and cultural institutions. His argument is (briefly) that impunity, paranoia, and white purity are key components to white racial identity and ideology. He illustrates the development of white racial identity and ideology through careful attention to law in the colonial era and into the present. His book is powerful.

One thing that really irks me about it, though, is his employment of political science terms in atypical ways when there are other terms that he could use for the same purpose. As a political philosopher, he should understand why this is unacceptable. For example, sovereignty is something states have, not individuals. It would be perfectly appropriate for him to say autonomy or agency as opposed to sovereignty. However, he chooses to use the word sovereignty instead. I think this is problematic because of the confusion that it could cause for students. If there were good reasons for using terms in atypical way, and if he explained clearly why he chose to use them atypically, then it wouldn't bother me so much. However, he doesn't do that. And playing fast and loose with terms can lead to conceptual confusion that's unnecessary. But really, that's my only problem with this book. If I were going to teach this book, I would just have to be extra careful with my students to point out the language choices he made.

[A YOGAM · Rating 4 out of 5]

In „The Machinery of Whiteness“ unternimmt Steve Martinot eine philosophische Archäologie des Weißseins. Er behandelt "Rasse" nicht als eine bloße soziale Konstruktion oder ein Vorurteil, sondern als eine aktiv produzierende Struktur – eine „Maschinerie“. Ausgehend von der provokanten These einer "Erfindung der Rasse" (Kap. 1), die an Mutterschaft und Genealogie geknüpft ist, legt Martinot die ontologischen Fundamente des Rassismus frei. Es geht ihm nicht um die Phänomenologie des "Andersseins", sondern um die Genealogie der Norm selbst: Wie wurde "Weißsein" als unsichtbare, aber dominante Seinskategorie etabliert?
Das Buch analysiert, wie diese Maschinerie in der politischen Realität operiert. Martinot argumentiert, dass der Staat selbst "rassifiziert" ist (Kap. 2) und einen "dualen Charakter" (Kap. 6) besitzt – er schafft und verwaltet systematisch zwei unterschiedliche Modi der Existenz. "Weißsein" ist hierbei weniger eine Identität als vielmehr eine politische Kultur (Kap. 4) und eine Form der Governance, die durch Grenzziehungen und Immigrationspolitik (Kap. 5) definiert, wer vollwertiges Subjekt ist und wer bloßes Objekt der Verwaltung bleibt. Martinot legt die "Strukturen der Rassifizierung" (Kap. 7) als ein System offen, das aktiv Ungleichheit produziert, anstatt sie nur passiv widerzuspiegeln.
Philosophisch gelesen, beschreibt Martinot das "Weißsein" damit als eine Art Schwarzes Loch im sozialen Universum. Es ist selbst unsichtbar, ein normativer Nullpunkt, dessen immense Gravitationskraft jedoch die "Strukturen der Rassifizierung" (Kap. 7) erst erzeugt und die soziale Realität (Klasse, Recht, Identität) um sich herum krümmt. Die sichtbaren Rassenkategorien sind demnach nur die Phänomene am Ereignishorizont. Martinots intellektuelles Projekt ist der Versuch, diese Maschinerie sichtbar zu machen, ihre Energiequelle zu kappen und sie so zu einem Weißen Zwerg kollabieren zu lassen – einem dichten, aber sterbenden Überrest einer vergangenen Struktur.
AN

[Mills College Library]

305.8 M3864 2010