Hooks- Refusing to be a victim

In this excerpt, Hooks discusses feminism and racism and the important concept of refusing to be victimized. Hook explains that it is important to do this because it psychologically affects us in a negative way, and does not gain sympathy of hte opponent. " When individuel black people project a victim identity because it brings their concerns into greater visibility, they are acting in complicity with an assaultive structure of racist domination in which they invest in the absence of agency. To name oneself a victim is to deny agency. As long as white Americans have difficulty comping with the assertion of agency and self-determination by individual or collective groups of black folks, victimization will continue to be the location of visibility." What Hooks is basically saying -which is a concept that had not really occurred to me, to be honest - is that people will only realize the importance of equality if those oppressed discontinue to identify as victims. Although it is true that showing one's victimization was a way to gain sympathy of some people, they would still not necessarily going to be accepted that equal rights - that is to say, complete equal rights - were necessary. That being said, I think it is a fine line between portraying oneself as victim and working nonviolently for equality. I am unsure of the period of this book's publication, but historically it must have been difficult for black people to refuse to be a victim, considering the fact that racism was present everywhere in society during and after the civil rights movement. However I understand Hooks' point in that victimization causes generalization toward the other side (in this case, white people) and raises tension, because in many white people at the time, there must have been some guilt on the mistreatment of black people (certainly not everyone, but still a large number) and along with guilt often comes defensiveness, which causes opposition. This is not the way for anybody to achieve equality. I think this can greatly be applied to any minority group which is discriminated against by people, even if not by law - it is important for a group to show that they will not submit to discrimination. I understand that this is nearly impossible in many situations, but surely it can be practiced by a group as a whole. There is no reason for inequality in any society and I think inherently we as people want to live harmoniously - in many cases it is simply the illusion of threat that causes discrimination, and this can only be overcome by non-violence and by refusal to submit to unfair treatment.