White people are lost right now because this president tells them black lives are worthless, and we should save the Sunglass Hut. That’s a fine message for the majority of white people.

With White People (uppercase), however, their whiteness becomes their most prominent quality. And not necessarily the color of their skin, but what the color of their skin means here in America.

But simply saying the words “white people” is a direct attack on that illusion. It identifies, i.e., creates (or rather, exposes) an identity, a group with shared characteristics and interests.