Racism

[Awdz]

I did not think I lived in an area where racism existed much, until I realized that it was not particularly diverse. When some immigrants who do not speak the language moved into the area, suddenly the comments and put downs were rampant. I was disgusted to hear people say some of the things that they did.

 

It is not just race that folks get put down for. Any difference, particularly economic, gets highlighted by those who like to make fun of others. I find it a sad commentary on the speaker's lack of self-esteem, that they have to put down others instead of building them up.

[Meridok]

Has anyone mentioned that other thing that goes hand-in-hand with (overt) racism in most of the Western world? Yes? No? Well, anyway, I'm just going to toss this out.

 

White privilege, and White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Backpack (PDF file, written in essay format) and Here's what white privilege sounds like: an interesting article written by one Robert W Jensen. (Oh, and here's a follow-up piece.)

 

Just thought I'd throw those out there.

*toddles back out*

 

Owait. I think I posted in this thread once before, but I'm just gonna add now that a) I'm against racism, it's truly unfortunate that it happens and race is such an arbitrary thing that it makes little sense anyway, but hoyay our society is racist so we have to deal with it. :/

[Kukilunestar]

Well, I'm not racist...but I do know racist people. The surprising thing is, they're in the same race as it were =/

 

See, my family was from an area where lighter colored black people looked down on darker colored ones. In fact, my Grandfather was advised not to marry my grandmother because she "Was a touch too dark"...yeah.

 

Also, I'm not only sick of people of my race playing the race card, but also those who accuse people of being "Oreos (black on the outside but white on the inside)" or "Acting Bourgeoisie" if they speak proper English, or go out to see plays or musicals, or even go to the museum...or just like to read instead of watching tv.

[MedievalMystic]

I worked at a restaurant long ago. I worked with a very nice, very intellegent black girl that had hopes and dreams, and was working her butt off to get her BA in college. We were all sitting at the table and she was really upset, saying that her black friends were accusing her of 'acting white' and dogging her out because of the way she talked. She was obviously articulate. I never got that. Since when is trying to get a degree and secure a future a 'white' thing? >.<

[Bee Teno]

Racism is impossible to fix but I really hate it when other groups, such as this guy in my class, think they are part of another group when they have no connection....and the ones who live up to stereotypical judgements...

 

Edit:

Now if youve seen the show The Boondocks youll know what racism is like..towards whites in that show...and self race hate...

Edited September 20, 2010 by Bee Teno

[WestWindReborn]

I worked at a restaurant long ago. I worked with a very nice, very intellegent black girl that had hopes and dreams, and was working her butt off to get her BA in college. We were all sitting at the table and she was really upset, saying that her black friends were accusing her of 'acting white' and dogging her out because of the way she talked. She was obviously articulate. I never got that. Since when is trying to get a degree and secure a future a 'white' thing? >.<

i hope she continued on her path rather than give into her "friends" behavior. rather than behave like berks they should have supported her ambitions.

[kadoatie]

Curious, question to any/everyone:

 

1) Would anyone even say they like racism? Even <x group> supremacists don't admit they're racist. They'll say that <y group> does worse in <z areas> than <x group> and sometimes that <x group> has inherent benefits or qualities that make them better. But they won't actually describe themselves as "racists".

 

2) What do you think about how the terms race card and political correctness are used? Are they used as an excuse for racist behavior or are they relevant critiques of hypersensitivity, or something in between?

 

@ Crisis: I'm betting more than a majority of the U.S. considers "African-American" a descriptor for all people descended from black Africans or even all people whose skin is dark. (The first eight definitions I get on Google all say it does not need to be people born in Africa.) It's one of those terms defined by common usage and who chooses to identify with it), which includes even the government's use.

Even if the "punk" is a disgrace to humans, he's still African-American no less than any criminal who is a disgrace to any race, any ethnicity, any gender, any other descriptor. Svcks that he happens to add to the stereotypes already existing about African-Americans, but he would only add to some other group's stereotype were he not considered one.

[TikindiDragon]

2) What do you think about how the terms race card and political correctness are used? Are they used as an excuse for racist behavior or are they relevant critiques of hypersensitivity, or something in between?

I'm not sure I can make the word 'race card' apply to the definitions you are asking about. In my mind it has always been when someone uses their race as an excuse to let them get away with bad bahviour. I saw it happen a few times when I was working at the airport. We had one guy who was frequently late in, didn't show up at all, or was found asleep on duty.... and he was never even reprimanded because he'd just threaten to scream discrimination if he was. That's playing the race card, and no I don't approve of it.

 

I don't much approve of political correctness either - mostly because I don't think it's the job of the government or the media to say we're not allowed to offend people. I believe in freedom of speech and, to my mind, political correctness kind of goes against that. For some reason it's also not politically correct to swear and, well, bugger that.

[wondersueak]

For some reason it's also not politically correct to swear and, well, bugger that.

Haha, go to my school and it would be not politically correct to not swear =P

 

I don't approve of playing the race card either.

[deanna_nightshade]

I don't much approve of political correctness either - mostly because I don't think it's the job of the government or the media to say we're not allowed to offend people. I believe in freedom of speech and, to my mind, political correctness kind of goes against that. For some reason it's also not politically correct to swear and, well, bugger that.

Interesting. I have a very different view of political correctness. I just see it as an effort to be aware of what might be hurtful or offensive, and avoid perpetuating prejudiced beliefs and language. I believe in freedom of speech, but freedom of speech doesn't mean that what we say doesn't have consequences, and I think being aware of what we say is important, as is being open-minded enough to accept that things you take for granted may not be as innocuous as you thought.

 

For example, until Shiny pointed it out, I'd never realized that "gypsy" was a slur. Now, I guess I could get defensive and say that I've never said the word with bad intentions or that I see it used a lot in pop culture, but to what aim? I don't want to be a jerk, so if someone points out that a word is hurtful, I respect that. I don't want to use language that's racist.

Edited September 21, 2010 by deanna_nightshade

[TikindiDragon]

To my mind there's a difference between being polite, and being politically correct. The one is being nice to people, and not trying to cause offence, because you know inside you that it's the right thing to do. The other is being told you aren't allowed to say something because there's a slight *possibility* that it might offend someone. I always strive to be polite and courteous to people, I very much object to the idea of the authorities telling me how I am supposed to speak.

 

Does that make sense?

 

Edited to add: politicaly correct also, to me, means that you have to (at least verbally) subscribe to current political thinking. I've been told I'm not being politically correct because of my views on education, and that men and women *do* differ at a basic level (Please note - under no circumstances do I think women are any *less* than men, but I am firmly of the opinion that brains of different genders do work differently and that if we don't take that into account we can never get the best performance out of anyone by tailoring circumstance to the way their brains work).

Edited September 21, 2010 by TikindiDragon

[deanna_nightshade]

Yeah, I see your point. And I'll also say that I think, sometimes, institutions try to do the right thing by being politically correct but miss the mark a bit. I think it's important for institutions, such as schools, to foster environments that are welcoming and non-hostile, but I think you have to be careful about deciding what other people should be offended by, especially if you're not a member of the group that's being targeted. If the only people who have a problem with something aren't the ones who are affected by it, I think that can be a problem.

 

However, usually when I see people talk about disliking political correctness, they're not talking about it in the same frame that you are. Usually, they're complaining because someone pointed out that something they said was racist, sexist, or otherwise bigoted and they're getting defensive.

[Ruins]

I'm not racist, but sometimes get accused of being so. Okay, I live in a mostly white area so I don't know how to talk to 'ethnic minorities', so sue me. I have nothing against anyone else because of their colour, and I think sometimes it's hard to talk to anyone with so much oversensitivity going on.

I hate it when people use their race to call you racist when you're not- I got yelled at by an Asian kid at my school when I insulted him, and everyone called me racist for a while. Actually, I insulted him because he's an idiot, not because he's Asian. Idiots.

[Meridok]

My opinion on the 'race card' thing is pretty much the same as Tiki's, I'd say.

 

In my mind it has always been when someone uses their race as an excuse to let them get away with bad behaviour.

 

But at the same time, I've seen it used as 'bringing up race to obfuscate matters' every now and then - usually in politics, when someone brings up race when it has little or nothing to do with the issue. Though in that instance, I think you have to be careful about shouting 'race card!' right away, but should listen a bit first to see if they might have a genuine point.

[Warp]

I don't really think that it's that bad to have a large variety of nations in their historical motherlands. Being Russian (well, that's for our American friends, for whom there's only Russian on the post-USSR space...) I am rather tolerant towards others, but well, looking at the sutuation in some parts of europe and america makes me think that in a few generations pure nations will extinct.

And nature demands variety of species!

[Coelophysis]

People are people.

Why bother caring about something like physical appearance?

[deanna_nightshade]

I'm not racist, but sometimes get accused of being so. Okay, I live in a mostly white area so I don't know how to talk to 'ethnic minorities', so sue me. I have nothing against anyone else because of their colour, and I think sometimes it's hard to talk to anyone with so much oversensitivity going on.

I hate it when people use their race to call you racist when you're not- I got yelled at by an Asian kid at my school when I insulted him, and everyone called me racist for a while. Actually, I insulted him because he's an idiot, not because he's Asian. Idiots.

Do people say why they feel you're racist? If you're accused of racism a lot, you may want to think about how you come across.

 

Also: It's possible to not be racist in that you don't dislike anyone because of their race or hold racist beliefs, but still say something that's racist. We all make mistakes sometimes.

Edited September 21, 2010 by deanna_nightshade

[potterwolf]

The trouble is that the issue of racism isn't completely black and white.

 

 

 

 

 

There are also hispanics involved.

 

*I see what you did there*

 

 

All joking aside, racism, I feel, is somewhat innate in everyone, but I think we should try hard to overcome it. It's obviously more important to look at how a person behaves than what race they are a part of.

Edited September 21, 2010 by potterwolf

[TikindiDragon]

All joking aside, racism, I feel, is somewhat innate in everyone, but I think we should try hard to overcome it. It's obviously more important to look at how a person behaves than what race they are a part of.

Not nesecarily all of us. I'm told (I don't remember) that I was 5 before it occured to me to use skin colour as an identification for people. Apparently I once went to fetch my mum to see something "the lady in the blue dress" was doing, and when mum got there said lady turned out to be the only black person in the room.

 

I honestly think that racism is something society ingrains upon us from a very early age - especially if the place we live in is predominantly mono-racial. The only real way to eradicate it is to teach children from a very, very young age that you don't 'see' the colour of a persons skin any more than you 'see' the colour of their hair.

[Kestra15]

Don't be racist. Job done.

[solaflar3]

I'm not racist, but sometimes get accused of being so. Okay, I live in a mostly white area so I don't know how to talk to 'ethnic minorities', so sue me. I have nothing against anyone else because of their colour, and I think sometimes it's hard to talk to anyone with so much oversensitivity going on.

I hate it when people use their race to call you racist when you're not- I got yelled at by an Asian kid at my school when I insulted him, and everyone called me racist for a while. Actually, I insulted him because he's an idiot, not because he's Asian. Idiots.

I'd say you talk to ethnic minorities in the same way you would talk to ethnic majorities.

 

 

[Ruins]

Do people say why they feel you're racist? If you're accused of racism a lot, you may want to think about how you come across.

 

Also: It's possible to not be racist in that you don't dislike anyone because of their race or hold racist beliefs, but still say something that's racist. We all make mistakes sometimes.

Probably because I have little or no tact...

Seriously, I have three bad habits:

a.) Saying the first thing that comes into my head.

b.) Insulting idiots.

and c.) Using long words when insulting idiots.

It's probably a mixture of disliking me so wanting to spread a rumour- if you're dubbed a racist, it's hard to prove you're not and everyone dislikes you- and honestly not knowing what the frack I'm going on about. :-)

 

I'd say you talk to ethnic minorities in the same way you would talk to ethnic majorities.

Oh, okay. Good advice.

[kinkou]

I'm sorry to say that I have always lived in little communities that have always been severely diverse. I'm in rural Oklahoma and being in the middle of ALL races in the United States (quite literally) I have seen racism at varying degrees. (I am not going into my family history with racists, thank you very much. there is still a feud in Mississippi against my family about the death of a KKK leader ^^; ) I've never understood just WHY people think there is such a difference between each other. WE all bleed the same; we all feel the same; so aren't we all the same?

 

As to speaking in politically correct terms, there is no such way to be 100% correct. One term may be offensive to a party while the same term may not to another. Like 'Half-bloods' or 'Half-breeds', several people of mixed birth do not find the term offensive (or much as I've asked around) but to the Native American populace it is a horrible slang term. So watching every word will not help you. If someone points out that they found offense; smile and offer sincere apologiges. (I'm a literal American mutt with over 16 nationalities in my blood so I can understand how most feel.)

Edited September 22, 2010 by kinkou

[Nectaris]

It sometimes amazes me how some people are blind to racism. One person in my class was mentioning how there is no racism where they are from. They went on to mention how they were surprised that there were areas in one town where certain races were not allowed to go. He later went on to mention how there were some parts of his city where you would be stupid to go to if you were white. Our teacher went on to point out that that is racism right there. If there is someplace you can't go because of your race, no matter what race you are, it is racism.

[catilena1890]

Here is a little somethin somethin I found while browsing the net that all anti-racist people will enjoy:

 

 

A black man walks into a cafe one early morning and noticed that he was the only black man there. As he sat down, he noticed a white man behind him.

The white man said, "colored people are not allowed here."

The black man turned around and stood up. He then said:

"When I was born I was black,"

"When I grew up I was black,"

"When I'm sick I'm black,"

"When I go in the sun I'm black,"

"When I'm cold I'm black,"

"When I die I'll be black."

"But you sir..."

"When you're born you're pink,"

"When you grow up you're white,"

"When you're sick, you're green,"

"When you go in the sun you turn red,"

"When you're cold you turn blue,"

"And when you die you turn purple."

"And yet you have the nerve to call me colored"

The black man then sat back down and the white man walked away...

 

-Unknown

 

It was one of those "Copy/Paste this in your sig" things.