Choosing to be Colorblind

While some people claim that being racially colorblind is a morally just way of thinking about interactions, others say it's really another form of racism.

This subject came up during the Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration at the Apollo Theater, which was hosted by Brian and Jami Floyd. The journalist, filmmaker, and immigration activist Jose Antonio Vargas said:

"Three fourths of young white Americans, according to an MTV poll, said that being colorblind is the ideal. To not want to see race. And what gets really dangerous is that they’re using MLK’s legacy, in my opinion somewhat defaming it, to fit this idea of “why can’t  people just get over it?”

So we're following up on this idea:

When is it right to acknowledge differences and when is right to ignore them? Call in and tell us what you think: 212-433-9692. And you can keep the conversation going anytime on Twitter @BrianLehrer.

@BrianLehrer can't call but: colorblind is a euphemism for white people being blind to our privilege.

— Sheila Pepe (@PepeStudioNYC) January 20, 2016

@BrianLehrer: Why be color blind? Let's embrace diversity, various cultures . We can learn so much from others! Thanks for the show! Nad.

— Nad/ Agape (@nadetnad_nad) January 20, 2016

@BrianLehrer Totally agree with this caller. #Colorblind doesn't mean ignoring diversity. It means not defining people by their color.

— Prashant Monian (@prashm07) January 20, 2016