Libertroph Magazine references language and terms that we’ve learned from organizations and leaders who have inspired us. We know that language has been used to entrench racism; we strive to use language intentionally as a tool to undo racism.

Click here to see the full Libertroph Editorial Style Guide.

Anti-racist organizing

The People’s Institute for Survival and Beyond (PISAB) describes organizing as ‘bringing people together for a specific purpose or intent.’ Anti-racist organizing is about organizing with humanity and practicing the anti-racist organizing principles.

White culture

Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines culture as “a set of beliefs, practices, and symbols that are learned and shared.” When we consider white culture, we might think about wealth accumulation, individualism and reliance on the police. Kenneth Jones and Tema Okun help us see how the characteristics of this culture manifest interpersonally and organizationally through the White Supremacy Culture website. White culture is distinct from the cultural heritages white people brought from Europe; often, white culture is the set of conditions and privileges for which white people gave up our ethnic cultural traditions.

White anti-racist culture

Through the Somatic Abolitionism process, its founder Dr. Resmaa Menakem urges us to consider what embodied anti-racist culture might look and feel like in the US, particularly as white people. We understand white anti-racist culture as a vision not yet formulated, but actively being shaped by white people who have decided to consciously confront our relationships to white culture and shape new cultures that actively disrupt the violence and terror of white supremacy. Libertroph exists to highlight these efforts and make it more possible for white people to co-create white anti-racist culture that supports the safety and power of Black people, Indigenous people, Palestinian people, trans people, disabled people, and all people.

Internalized Racial Superiority

Throughout Libertroph, several contributors name Internalized Racial Superiority (or IRS for short) to refer to behaviors and patterns exhibited by white people. PISAB notes IRS as one of two forms of Internalized Racial Oppression, the other being Internalized Racial Inferiority, which is experienced by people of color. They define IRS as: “The acceptance of and acting out of a superior definition is rooted in the historical designation of one’s race. Over many generations, this process of empowerment and access expresses itself as unearned privileges, access to institutional power, and invisible advantages based upon race.” Many of the characteristics of IRS, which are detailed in the Undoing Racism® workshop, mirror the characteristics of White Supremacy Culture referenced above.