Facing Whiteness - Incite at Columbia University

Completed Project

Facing Whiteness

Cheyenne is the capital of Wyoming, a state with one of the highest percentages of white people and the lowest total populations.

According to the 2010 Census, 77% of Americans identify as “white.” Despite this fact, white Americans generally think of race as primarily pertaining to racial and ethnic minorities.

By surveying and interviewing white participants from three parts of the country, Facing Whiteness explores the ways that a diverse group of white Americans understand their own racial and ethnic identities. A collaboration with filmmaker Whitney Dow, this interdisciplinary project between the social sciences and humanities seeks to engage in an open discussion about whiteness in America, motivated by James Baldwin's assertion that "not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced."

Facing Whiteness chose three field sites to undertake this work and conducted a mix of ethnographic observation, surveys, and interviews with more than 850 participants. The sites are Battle Creek, Michigan; Cheyenne, Wyoming; and Richmond, Virginia.

Scenes from Battle Creek, Michigan.
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A select group lived in each location for approximately one month, during which time the team participated in and observed local life: attending church services and political meetings; visiting local stores to discuss business and the community; and chatting with many, many people over coffee. Local participants became involved in Facing Whiteness through these social networks, with friends and family sharing our intake survey, which asked about one’s background, attitudes, and beliefs.

White man against white backdrop, facing the camera.
The late O B Yancey, a carpenter and general contractor from Richmond, Virginia, during his interview with Facing Whitness.

In total, more than 850 people took this survey, and the team personally interviewed 116 of these participants. For these interviewees, the team also collected data at three additional time points: surveying right before and right after interviews and three to six months after the interview, after they had had a chance to review their interview transcripts and submit photographs. We surveyed participants at multiple times to capture attitudinal changes over time.

By design, survey questions were often repeated across surveys, though additional questions asking about participant social networks and about attitudes towards race and toward the interview experience, among other areas, were also added to later surveys.

To learn more, visit the project's website.

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