Dixon White, a man who describes himself as a “redneck” and admits he used to be a white supremacist, has shot to Internet stardom after posting to YouTube a video in which he issues a call for white Americans to stand up against racism by owning up to the country’s white supremacist history and stop being defensive about it.
The video titled , “I’m redneck and I love America,” posted to YouTube on April 4, 2015, has gone viral with more than 800,000 views.
Dixon White, according to the Daily Dot , is a resident of New Orleans. He delivers his message to “white America” with a thick southern drawl, sitting in the driver’s seat of his Ford pickup truck. He encourages whites to admit the fact of the country’s historic white supremacist culture and stand up to fight against racism.
“Get off your f**k**g **s and do something about it. Speak up – don’t ever ignore racism. If you hear something racist, f**k**g stand up as a white American – take some f**k**g responsibility,” he said.
He urges white Americans to stop denying the concept of “white privilege” and admit that the “country was built for white people.”
“Our nation is, our American culture is full of white supremacy. We live in a white supremacist culture that caters to white people in everything…
“This country was built for white people, and it’s time us Americans, as white Americans, came to terms with that and realize we benefit from that. We created slavery; we created a culture, a system, of white supremacy that has benefited us for 400 years.”
Although, he labels “white culture” as “supremacist,” he is careful to point out that not all white people are guilty of racism.
He attacks the culture of denial, urging whites to “take a little bit of white racial responsibility… let’s recognize that in every American institution, in education, financial, healthcare, justice… in the police departments…”
He calls out white Americans who say they don’t see color, wondering how issues of race could be addressed when people say they “don’t see color.”
“By God, you better f**k**g see color. If you don’t see color, how the f**k (are) you going to help it? How (are) you going to fix it? Our system sees color, our culture sees color. We’re indoctrinated to see color. Don’t tell me you can’t f**k**g see color.”
Rather than say they don’t see color, White urges white Americans to consider the experiences of minorities in the U.S. and be more empathetic.
“Think beyond your own experience; think beyond your own self. Imagine the privileges you have just because (of) your f**k**g skin. I ain’t saying you ain’t suffered – we all suffer… stop being defensive. What I’m saying is, we get certain privileges. We’re not harassed by the police, okay? We’re not denied a house loan or denied to live in a neighborhood.”
Dixon, who revealed in an interview with The Root that he has a white mother and a Cuban father, but was raised by his mother in rural Tennessee, confesses he was a white supremacist for many years. As a white supremacist he did not like blacks and used the N word.
He told The Root that going to college and having a black roommate helped to change his perspective. He also said that being at the receiving end of prejudice helped him to realize what minorities were facing.
“Once I understood (prejudice), it made me open to not being a product of it and not participating in it. I learned through suffering that I was going to fight against racism. I made an oath to myself and God that I would fight against racism and put it behind me.”
But Dixon says that despite his position he is still a redneck who is “overweight, eats too much pork, swears profusely, loves God and guns.”
He confesses, “I’m still a redneck. I boat, fish, hunt, whatever the f**k I want to do. I drink a beer, I eat too much pork, barbecue, you can tell looking at me. My point is yeah you can call me fat and I don’t give a damn.”
Dixon, an actor and filmmaker, according to the Huffington Post , said he began expressing his views by writing a few articles, but he soon turned to videos.
Making a call for white Americans to fight to “make things fair and equal,” he said he plans to make a contribution to a “fair and equal” America by making a movie about white supremacy.
His message is enjoying a lot of support on YouTube and Facebook.