Racial color-blindness, sometimes referred to as racial color-blind ideology, is utilized as a means to avoid conflict by not acknowledging racial or ethnic identity differences. It operates off the assumption that all Americans are equal, so conflict only occurs when race is acknowledged or brought into discussion. While this ideology is often well-intended, research has shown that this strategy is inherently flawed due to the fact that we do perceive race, whether we acknowledge it or not. Implementing color-blind strategies often leads to worse social interactions, overlooking instances of actual bias, and increased beliefs in the false narrative that we live in a "post-racial" society. There are two sub-types of racial color-blindness: color-evasion and power-evasion.
Color-evasion refers to instances in which someone overlooks an individual's racial or ethnic identity in favor of appearing color-blind. This subtype can be best understood by these examples: "I don't see race", "I don't see you as Black", "We are all the same"
Power-evasion refers to instances in which someone overlooks systemic and power differences between different racial and ethnic groups. This subtype can be best understood by these examples: "Everyone has an equal chance to succeed", "Racism is an issue of the past", "All Americans have the same opportunities"
Apfelbaum, E. P., Norton, M. I., & Sommers, S. R. (2012). Racial Color Blindness: Emergence, Practice, and Implications. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 21(3), 205–209. https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721411434980
Neville, H. A., Awad, G. H., Brooks, J. E., Flores, M. P., & Bluemel, J. (2013). Color-blind racial ideology: Theory, training, and measurement implications in psychology. American Psychologist , 68 (6), 455.