I Was Told I "Wouldn't Understand." Maybe That's the Problem.

I Was Told I "Wouldn't Understand." Maybe That's the Problem.

I need to get this off my chest. I was talking with my best friend the other day about the toxic ways people exclude each other, which led us to a really difficult place: what happens when minority groups distrust science? We landed on the conspiracy theories around 5G, and the conversation stalled.

I tried to explain my perspective: I recognize the horrific history of scientific abuse that communities of color, particularly the Black community, have endured. Tuskegee is a stain on our history. The pattern of exploitation is undeniable. I get why the trust isn't there. I really do.

But I also know that 5G is just radio waves. It’s light. It operates on principles that are as solid as gravity. It doesn’t cause the things people fear it does, and I believe that misinformation is itself a danger.

The problem is, the moment I tried to separate the historical reasons for fear from the scientific facts of today, I was shut down. The conversation stopped being about radio frequencies and became about me. "You don't understand because you're a white man."

That line really rubs me the wrong way. Not because it’s an attack, but because it feels like a dead end. No matter what I say or how much I acknowledge the past, that single fact about my identity is used to invalidate entire point. It’s as if my ability to grasp scientific concepts and my empathy for historical injustice are mutually exclusive.

My frustration isn't about being "called out." It's about a fundamental disconnect. I don't understand people who refuse to place their confidence in logic and evidence. It feels like we can’t even agree on a shared reality to build from. How can we have a productive conversation when any attempt to introduce facts is seen as an attack on someone's lived experience?

I'm left stuck. I don’t know how to navigate a space where my empathy is acknowledged but my logic is dismissed out of hand. And in a world where we desperately need to talk to each other, that feels like a massive problem.

But I digress...