Racism

[SMOKE 1,426]

I don't really feel that your question is relevant.

You're insisting on characterising the issue as one of poverty. I'm suggesting that social inequalities between whites and blacks can be perceived by looking at the difference in the experiences of black and white people. I'm not disputing that there are poor people of every colour, I'm suggesting that whites have a (generally) different experience to blacks in US society. If that weren't the case, then poverty wouldn't be so endemic amongst the black population, nor would the teen pregancy rates, high school graduation rates, life-expectancy, likelihood of jail etc. etc. show marked disparities between racial and socio-economic groups.

my question isn't irrelevant. my question puts the issue of 'white privilege' in a vacuum. everything starting equally. what advantages does the kid have?

[HAL 9000 96]

It is a relevant question.

One that perhaps demands multiple answers from multiple sources.

[The_Dude 1,142]

It is a relevant question.

One that perhaps demands multiple answers from multiple sources.

Oh where is Marc when you need someone to post a whitesnake video from youtube to address a serious issue?

[HAL 9000 96]

Oh snap

[elmcitymaven 9,712]

Oh where is Marc when you need someone to post a whitesnake video from youtube to address a serious issue?

+1

[IndigoSkies 168]

I would like to draw everyone's attention to white people suffering in Africa under black oppression. Some have likened what is Reverse Apartheid to white genocide. During the World Cup, Sud Africa went in great lengths to show it is a modern and peaceful and integrated society. But it's probably one of the remotest things from the truth, which is that whites are being robbed, raped, and increasingly murdered by blacks of South Africa. Whites are often the target of false arrests, imprisonment, and regularly occurring violence. The local police forces often refuse to protect the whites from the violence of the South African majority. Major countries and donor groups are shovelling billions upon billons in this country which the consider a shining example in a failed continent. But reality is much starker. So while you're b!tching about everyone else's rights around the world, don't for the the 450,000 whites in South Africa who live a desperate lives along with millions of poor blacks.

[_Simpson_ 250]

What you're saying is that you are not interested in the historical aspects of current problems, out of some sort of reactionism to having things "shoved down your throat since (you) were a kid".

No I am not. It would fit you good if I was that simple wouldnt it? We as a nation have bent over backwards to right our wrongs and it gets very little attention from the Jesse Jacksons of the world. White people born into poverty have a uphill battle thats just as significant as our black counterpart.

Your biggest problem is that you think we dont get how America's history has affected the black community . We do get it but there comes a time to forgive and move on.

[HAL 9000 96]

I like this statement:

We do get it but there comes a time to forgive and move on.

Well said. If only everyone involved would pay attention. And no, its not just the Jesse Jacksons et al.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

In respect to racisim it is not an american quality only but i will try to focus on here in the USA.

Yes, that's a given.

Yes there are racial comments made and attitudes between minority groups. Those comments are frowned upon but if it is a white person making any such comment it can be and most often blasted way out of proportion.

I think you're describing the opinion rather than the reasoning behind it.

Is it perhaps fair to say that certain comments are inflated by the media to create a false debate and a false impression of race-relations in the US?

It is not right for any person to use disparaging words such has (sorry Elm) "half-spick". Elm used this in a humorous way but the word itself is used as a very racist way to discribe an individual. heck this word was created tobe used as a racial slur.

I think that's quite difficult to justify because you have to take into account the origins of words and the context that they are being used in. Not all racial slurs are equal, not all are meant with sinister or malicious intent. The presence of the word in a sentence does not mean anything without some understanding of the whole.

I wish in my youth that I have never made a racial slur towards someone but unfortunately I have. Does this mean I am racist no but it does mean I had a bad temper and lost common sense back then.

Everyone has probably done that at one time or another - I think that is a given also. But presumably you wouldn't think it fair to judge you on the basis of comments made in your youth; and that if you had made a maliciously racist comment today it would be a more accurate indicator of your views.

Your correct slavery is not a memory any American of any color can remember at least in the sense we are speaking of but racial segregation is and it did oppress black people and other minorities. Laws have been passed to protect those rights but there should also be a balance to those laws such as affirmative action; imo. does that make me racist ..No.

What it means is the best person for a job should be selected based on their own merits not color.

A minority group should walk around thinking hey I was oppressed 30 years ago every white person owes me because most likely that person wasn't oppressed and grew up with equal rigths and most often advanages. (this couldbe another discussion). Does this opinion make me Racist..No.

Now do I want those laws thrown out no I do not becasue they do protect minoritiesand their rights.

The normal white guy I would think feels as I do and does not want any infrastructure built to help minorities torn down.

Again though, I don't think we can make the case for a post-racial society if by most yardsticks that is not the case. It isn't that blacks underachieve at school because they are less intelligent than whites (that would be a racist statement), it's that social and economic factors exist that mean that they don't always achieve their full potential. Of course, you could say this of anyone in poverty - but its a misconception that Affirmative Action exists solely to benefit blacks and racial minorities. Affirmative Action isn't one policy, but an umbrella term for many policies - many of which advantage other groups, such as women and military veterans.

I do have my prejudices which are biased towrds legal citizens of this country no matter what race. I believe a legal resident and citizen has more rights and should have more prvelliges than an Illegal Alien (any race). Does that make me racist..No does it make me a xenophobe...no it makes me a US citizen that is concerned about the direction my country is headed.(sorry if I went of topic)

There are racist/bigoted hateful people across all races. So to say people are racist here on VJ I do not think so but it is possible.

Quite simply, I don't understand the anger that some people here express towards racial minorities over statements by extreme individuals in the black community or pedestrian statements that have been cherry picked and presented in a calculated way to create outrage.

When someone says "its ok to be racist if you are black", it is a disparaging (yes, racist) remark against the entirety of black people. I've lost count of the number of times I've seen people write that in O/T.

Ask yourself this

AACP stands for National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. Does this mean Latin, Asian, Indian etc. they are all of colored skin. No thes minorities need their own organizations although alot of them work together.

What would happen if there was NAAWP? National Association for the Advancement of White People? I understand this is the type of questions people present trying to defend their own racial views but it is a good question what would happen or be said about it?

I've heard this kind of thing many times before and I don't buy it. I don't buy it because it ignores the reason why organizations like the NAACP exist in the first place.

It's simply trite to present white people as though they are somehow victims of some sort of "black privilege" and no white person would "Advance white people" without having some association with a Nazi group.

[elmcitymaven 9,712]

Just to say, Six, +1. Excellent post.

[HAL 9000 96]

Indeed. Well stated.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

my question isn't irrelevant. my question puts the issue of 'white privilege' in a vacuum. everything starting equally. what advantages does the kid have?

It's not relevant to me. I'm interested in the relative differences between blacks and whites, something that can be perceived by factors like the ones I mentioned earlier.

I am not interested in trying to conjure a hypothetical experience of a poor white kid Vs. a poor black kid, because it amounts to an exercise of imagination.

Poverty is poverty - anyone in poverty is clearly going to have a very difficult time. What's pertinent to me is if a person who is black is more likely than someone who is white to experience poverty. That's something which can be proven.

[HAL 9000 96]

True as well.

[_Simpson_ 250]

What was likely sensed as a shoving may have actually been exposure. Big difference there... and no, I am not singling Simpson out on that one or the following- my observation is that those most readily willing to resist the acquisition of an unbiased education based on actual historical fact are those representative of the demographics that have acted to suppress such an education in the first place.

I dont need something shoved down my throat to realize that it taste like #######. Thats exposure out of control.

I have to go, until next time.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

No I am not. It would fit you good if I was that simple wouldnt it? We as a nation have bent over backwards to right our wrongs and it gets very little attention from the Jesse Jacksons of the world. White people born into poverty have a uphill battle thats just as significant as our black counterpart.

Your biggest problem is that you think we dont get how America's history has affected the black community . We do get it but there comes a time to forgive and move on.

Is that really true though? I mean... if marked social disparities still exist within the US? It's not even an "if" - they do...

It's all very well saying that you want to "move on", but can the country really do that while those disparities still exist? If you're ignoring all that then you might as well being saying "move on" with plugs in your ears and a blindfold over your face.