Blacks and whites are born with the very same hearts: the human hearts that God gave them. The same love, the same hate, the same sin, the same virtue.
I know that might seem like stretch to some. It does to me sometimes too. It does to my wife. One night years ago she argued about it with her mother and me.
My wife said that while black people are good by nature, apart from a few bad apples, white people were the opposite: evil by nature, apart from a few good apples.
Both me and her mother disagreed right away and for the same reason: the Bible says all men are sinful by nature: the fallen nature of man that comes from Adam, which makes sense of so much – even if it is not in the science books.
If you read the Bible and the Greeks you know that human nature is constant and universal. It is the same in all countries and all ages. Men act just the same now as they did in the time of Moses – or Machiavelli or Mobutu.
Another book that shaped my understanding of people, white or otherwise, is the one Thucydides wrote about the war between Athens and Sparta. It not only shows that men were the same then as now, but also how power made men blind and turned their hearts to stone.
So when my wife pointed to all the evil white men have done, all the red men they killed for their land and all the black men put in chains to work that land – and all the stuff they are still doing even now – I told her it had nothing to do with being white: it had everything to do with power.
Power makes white people the way they are. It is how they can believe their own lies: who will tell them they are wrong and be believed? It is why they do not know what it feels like to be black: they never had to walk in those shoes. Only a few of them, by accident, know what their power looks like at the other end.
If history had turned out a little differently, if Africa had been the first to have guns and ocean-going ships, then it would be black men killing red men. And the slave forts would not be in Cabinda, Mina and Quiloa but in London, Lisbon and Antwerp.
But then, my wife asked, why were all the serial killers and mass murderers white? This was when Jeffrey Dahmer was still fresh in our minds. Both me and her mother said it was just a matter of time before there would be black ones too.
And sure enough, one night two months later a black man named Colin Ferguson got on a train heading east out of New York and started shooting people dead one by one. He even came from the very same town as my wife.
See also:
I don’t think young whites hide their racism,I think it’s a matter of who raised them and their family structure.I was never taught anything about race at all by my parents it a very confusing subject for me.But I would say one thing Russia has the same problem ,there slaves were Russians it something I don’t think they have over come they were slaves to nobles and then to communist leaders.The people in power were always the same people.Lennin himself was German(imported middle class and a low level Russian noble).The Jews(many horrible things happened to them by Stalin) are still very poor and live on the western border in case of attack their communities would be first.They have many races in Russia and the same problems ethically.Japanese it’s Chinese that where racially inferior.If you look at Romans it was the Germans(denied citizens) who were inferior not Africans or Asians.History is strange but it is as you say it’s about power.However if History says anything else it’s that people are already multi-cultural and have always been moving around from continent to continent.Racism is competition.I think the real problem is stereotypes those who portray them (the media,political parties,etc,)they are especially harmful if people view themselves based on them.Americans need to use individual competition not racial ones they don’t make sense anyway.Besides equality and liberty is a long process it’s not about changing laws but about changing minds.
Sorry, but young whites do hide their racism, even from themselves. Ask any black person old enough to know:
http://abagond.wordpress.com/2008/05/31/colour-blind-racism/
Also, whatever whites might SEEM like it is quite clear they are still racist:
http://abagond.wordpress.com/2008/06/05/whites-are-still-racist/
There’s other elements that may be at work as well.
GREED and RELIGION
Look at the greatest wars and crimes.
Slavery can be traced to greed.
More people have been murdered in the name of God than for any other reason.
Greed and religion, yes. But I seriously doubt religion has killed more people than any other reason, unless you are going to seriously count all the times religion was used as a sad excuse.
i’d just like to point out that in 1324 mansa musa king of mali was the richest man in the world, he travelled to mecca and had so much gold that he crashed the egyptian economy. he did not enslave europeans. he just carried on living a harmonious life. so there.
this info is in book:
When we ruled. by robin walker.
isbn: 0-9551068-0-x
published by every generation media.
I am a Black woman and I have dated many white men and when it comes to marriage, they suddenly disappear. They have said directly to me that they would never marry a Black woman. That’s after having been intimate with them and met their families. I have been much more educated and financially better off than they, and much more attractive by any standard, but not worthy of having their children. It hurts, but it’s a reality I am trying to come to terms with. I’ll never give up.
They were scumbags with no honour since they never intended to marry you from the start. They were also racist jerks since they do not want black children. More here:
http://abagond.wordpress.com/2008/06/25/why-so-few-white-men-marry-black-women/
If you put a group of kids in a room, young kids…1 – 3. Before they are old enough to assimulate outside thought patterns…you will see they are all alike.
Sure – the kids with dark hair might think the blonde kids hair lost all its color when shampood and try to color it back in…and sure the kids with lighter skin will ask the darker kid if they got something on them.
But its from a pure heart and curiosity…discovery. this blog brings to mind the phrase – power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
I hope your wife no longer feels this why. To be judge as having an evil heart because i was born to my parents would be sad. However, It would probably enable me to feel a bit of what a black person feels when judge because of their skin color.
No, she still feels that way about white people, probably more so. The older she gets the more white people screw her over, so the more bitter she becomes.
Partly it is because she is seeing it in a racist way: the people who have screwed her over the most are black, but she does not see them as “black”. They are just people.
On the other hand, some of what whites have done to her has been clearly racist and not just people being their natural jerkface selves.
My husband has been screwed over alot by people in his life as well. SO much so that he trusts basically only me. Thats the problem with living in an evil and sinful world. I wish people could look beyound the racism or sexism or greed and see the root cause. Sin.
“Lennin himself was German(imported middle class and a low level Russian noble).The Jews(many horrible things happened to them by Stalin)”
according to some sources Lenin was mixed of jewish, mongol, german, swedish.
Many of the highest ranked men in Stalins Communist regime was a jewish origin and are responsible for the murders of millions of innocent people.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3342999,00.html
Even so, Stalinist Russia was hardly a nice place to be a Jew.
Reading this post I am reminded of Shakespheres MacBeth – Lady MacBeth going mad with the knowledge that she had done says
“Fie, my lord, fie! A soldier, and afeard? What need we fear who knows it, when none can call our power to account?
—Yet who would have thought the
old man to have had so much blood in him. “
what’s wrong with hanging out with your own kind.do we have to mix.God created the many races and separated them.do blacks ever quit complaining. david
david ringo sr Says:
what’s wrong with hanging out with your own kind.
Nothing wrong with that.
david ringo sr Says:
do we have to mix.
Nope, we don’t
david ringo sr Says:
God created the many races and separated them.
Man talk about ignorance.
david ringo sr Says:
do blacks ever quit complaining.
Ironic, a guy cpmplaining about others complaning. I pretty sure that all races complain. Get over it.
why is that ignorant!remember the tower of babel,or are you ignorant of scripture too.
After reading some comments about racism, I am confident to say that racism is very strong in the USA. As an educated black male,there are hurdles prepaired for the black male in all walks of life. The job is one example. However, to express my beliefs about this issue, theses people are hypocrites of religion. All people are created in the image of God we may be different shapes and sizes but we are all the same. The problem in our society is the so called christians have let the devil creep into their hearts and it has taken effect to the brain.
Hatred and other sinful act are the gifts of the Devil and who ever eats from the table thereof shall become the sons and daughters of the devil. God has made many variations on earth of different color animals, plants and rocks on earth. This was design for us to enjoy a variation of things for our pleasure. He has also place a variation of colors, shapes and sizes of both male and female on earth for our satisfaction and choice. I love a beautiful white women as well as a beautiful black, asian, brizilian and other cultural women and vice versa for women with men. This color variation was no an accident it was place there for a reason. All God’s females are beautiful to me even if they are of other race. What would happen when we pass onto the next life and the race you dispise would turn out to be the race of the God you honor and love.
Racism, drugs and other forms of sinful devices were set in place as a test. If you can pass these test than you shall be fit for the kingdom. Fools God has planted Satan to test you. For when you purchase things you test them to see if its a worthy product if it is not you disregard it and get a better product. Life is built of the way God has set things up. I too have areas that need improvement, but not in the area of hatred toward people. I love all God’s creation and thank him for all races of women and men.
By the way, whites sold whites into slavery. Black sold blacks into slavery. Every race, cree, ethnicity has participated in slavery. It is NOT a lie. Slavery is as old as Humanity. Slavery is wrong and (as I have said before) aside from genocide, the GREATEST CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY.
I’m going to ask you a question. Do you want to help combat ignorance and racism in society today, or not?
Liora – don’t know if you’re still around on this blog or not. Perhaps you set up a notification for when a response is added to this thread.
As for dealing with “white men”: I feel for you and hope that you have a healthy and happily fulfilled relationship. Regardless of whether the man may be “Black or White”, your health and happiness must come first. There are “men” that will always treat women as “less than” or subject them to cruelties. Theses are the less desireables, regardless of skin color. Be true to yourself. Shine in this world as brightly as you can through your good spirit. You will know your way.
Peace & Love….
Good and Evil? God and Satan? Sin?
These concepts are worse than worthless in explaining human behavior.
Every human being on earth has legitimate material interests he/she has a responsibility (not right, another worthless concept) to look after as best they can.
Individuals universally attach themselves to collectivities in order to better see to their own interests. This collectivization, obviously, can take many forms.
Race is a reasonable principle on which to collectivise interests because it is a based on something real: genetic relatedness.
Much destruction springs from the fact that individuals in conflict equate “Us” with “Good” and “Them” with “Evil.”
Most conflicts are really better explained as a clashes of interests and could be more easily resolved as such without the inflamatory rhetoric of “good and evil.”
Amen!
Ooooo
“By the way, whites sold whites into slavery. Black sold blacks into slavery. Every race, cree, ethnicity has participated in slavery. It is NOT a lie.”
This statement is deliberately vague & misleading, as you aren’t discussing the different forms of slavery and how they where conducted.
The above sounds like the “white apologist” misinformation, yes blacks at times had slaves. However the enslavement of other blacks took the form of “indentured servitude”, which is similar to how whites treated the other whites they enslaved. An indentured servant was released after a set period of time & was able to marry & even to own land.
This was in no way comparable to “chattel slavery” which was the form slavery imposed onto blacks by whites, which meant you where owned till death as too where your off-spring. This saw blacks completely dehumanised & treated as live stock, to compare the two shows you obviously don’t know history.
“Do you want to help combat ignorance and racism in society today, or not?”
You certainly can’t combat ignorance by repeating misinformation such as crude comparisons between different forms of slavery, and you can’t solve the problem of racism by passing blame onto every race for the misdeeds of the European peoples. It’s never a defence under the law to say you can be absolved from a crime because somebody else did it also, yet this is what that argument seeks to do. Ultimately the moral choice is to accept responsibility for ill, and to dedicate to fixing the far reaching results of these past transgressions. Yet all we get is constant excuses & blame heaped onto blacks for the issues they are enduring after being held in a racist system of white supremacy for 300 years.
Nor is it the responsibility of non-white peoples to combat RACISM as it was invented by the white European & upheld as a method to condone persecution of others, and is still upheld because it brings social advantage to whites. Even whites who don’t overtly practise it, still gain un-fair social status and access; so why would they give that up? I get tired of guilt ridden black folks giving in and accepting RESPONSIBILITY for the abuse they suffer living amongst whites, especially when they start resighting apologist myths so as to gain broader acceptance. It ultimately never works, because you can & never will be white. Even Barrack Obama who has achieved the highest rank possible in white society, is still disliked by the majority of white folks.