Dead, white, European males

I wondered whether the emphasis in DWEM was to being dead, white, European or male. I asked around to find there was no unanimity

I ran into a unicorn a few months ago: A female in her mid-30s who reads this newspaper. Not just that. She also reads my monthly articles on books.

 “Why do you write about DWEMs,” she asked. DWEM stands for Dead White European Males.

Because, I said, despite my youthful looks I am actually very old, or at least quite old. But her question rankled.

Why was I writing about foreign writers whose creative abilities had peaked in the 1960s, plateaued in the 1970s, and begun to decline in the 1980s?

I also wondered whether the emphasis in DWEM was