All white Americans are racist. Well, at least 95%.
That is an extreme statement: Most whites would say only a few are racist. Most blacks, on the other hand, would say it is over 50%, maybe even as high as 80%, but few would go as high as 95%.
Not all whites are equally racist and it is more than just whites: anyone who has lived in America long enough is racist. I am racist too. It is too much a part of America, like it is in the water or something.
Racism is so widespread and so much a part of America that some Asians can move there and be just as bad as everyone else in just two months. You would think that not being white they would have more sense than that since the same racism works against them too.
I have met only one white person who did not seem racist, an old Jewish man. Everyone else that I have known long enough has turned out to be racist, even those who married black.
When you say “racist” many whites think you mean joining the Klan, saying the n-word, things like that: the old Jim Crow racism. There are still whites like that, but most are not that bad. Their racism is more subtle.
Most whites are colour-blind racists. They say things like, “It does not matter what colour you are – white, black, green or purple. It is the person that counts.” Yes, unless you want to marry their daughter, live next door or work for them. Then suddenly it is no longer the “person” that counts, but one’s “background” or “values”. Suddenly.
It is the kind of racism that believes that blacks do not work hard, do not care about their neighbourhoods, are naturally violent, lack intelligence, money, education or morals.
Since these things are generally true of blacks as seen on television, they think they must be true of all blacks. So it is no longer “racism” but just being hard-headed or “realistic”. Not knowing that most of what they see on television is made by and for white people. It is white people, by and large, who pick the news stories and write the characters for shows. Television can be no less racist than its creators.
But it is more than just the stereotypes televised coast to coast. It is also the feeling that there must be something wrong with people who do not look like you. So you look down on them, you do not feel comfortable with them, you do not accept them as they are. Or even see them as they are.
This is so much a part of how white people think that they cannot step outside of it and see it. It is like refrigerator noises or like water to a fish.
And if they do not see it, then it must not be there. Who will tell them that they are wrong and be believed?
See also:
no you are incorrect.
http://www.drbilllong.com/SpellersDiary2/Ectomies.html
thats a pisiform bone.
” Pisiform means “pea-shaped” or “of small globular form” and is generally used either with the word “bone” or “iron-ore.” “
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LOL
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And if they do not see it, then it must not be there. Who will tell them that they are wrong and be believed?
I think the recent statement by david Gergen, of all people, calling the McCain campaign on its race-baiting tactics indicates the answer. White supremacist thinking is a “white” problem and must be addressed by “white people”. To those to whom much is given, much is to be expected.
Will they be believed? By some yes. By others no. However, it is harder to accuse them of making self interested arguments, the classic ad hominem that is always deployed against “non-white” critics of white supremacy.
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That is great about David Gergen. I have seen other whites say the same, but they were clear Obama partisans. It was a bit sickening how talking heads on the right could not see how sleazy he was being.
But I think you are right, it will pretty much have to come from within. Either that or a Bull Connor moment will have to be forced on them.
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A couple thoughts. You mention that Asians usually become racist within two months of arriving in the USA. As if it is something unique about America. This is incorrect. If you actually go to East Asian countries like Japan, Korea, and China, you will find that they tend to be MORE racist there than the Asians in America.
You mention that many white folks insist they are not racist (and may sincerely believe it) until a black person is going to, for example, marry their daughter, son, brother or sister, and then the hidden feelings come out. Based on my personal experience, this is absolutely true.
You mention that many white people base their negative ideas of blacks on television. I would say this is only partly true. I know of people close to me (not black) who used to sell clothes in a flea market setting in Texas and a certain demographic of people would often steal items and run off whooping and hollering. And it was virtually (or maybe literally) the same demographic of folks every time. So that is experience-based, not TV-based. Also, TV very often depicts black folks as doctors and lawyers and almost invariably avoids depicting blacks as criminals or thugs. People got to get with the times – what was true about the media in, say, the 1950’s is simply not standard practice today.
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Clearly it is more than just television. There is the stuff you hear from your parents and friends, your own experiences and so on.
Television still has plenty of black stereotypes, though whites might not notice them so much because they think that is just how black people are.
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To assume that blacks are natural-born robbers because only blacks have robbed you, that is a racist way of thinking.
The men who ran Enron were mainly white, but no one thinks whites are natural-born thieves because of it. They were just bad apples. The same goes for blacks. Just because some blacks fulfil a stereotype does not prove the stereotype true.
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Often when blacks are shown as doctors and judges and so on they are marginal characters. They are thrown in as tokens because all the main characters are white. Like that doctor in “The Simpsons”. They are not full-blooded characters but just props.
It looks progressive, but the underlying message is that whites are fully human – because all the fully developed characters are white – while blacks are kind of just there.
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Good point about Asians. From what I know about the Japanese, they have no trouble being racist without ever stepping foot in America.
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Hello,
I stumbled upon your blog from BlogCatalog and I have been reading your articles and I find them so insightful and touching. I mean they make me sad because they remind me of the racial hatred in our country. I KNOW it’s there but reading your articles hits my very core of me and of how can people be this way. I am white, 56 years old and have thought of myself as not racist. ( I don’t believe that I’m a color blind racist? ) Obviously, the term racist can be interpreted in many ways and degrees. I will never claim to be pure of heart and that I am as good as I can be… I have always said to my family and friends that I believe there are ONLY two kinds of humans… good and evil…or as I actually put it, assholes and non-assholes:-) I do not claim to be good enough to say that I am perfect, but I do claim imperfection…and I try to be aware of other’s feelings. This is what this is all about to me… respect for another’s feelings… no matter what color, features, size, small, large, fat, thin… etc. All I can say is that I try!
I just wanted to comment on how much I appreciate your articles and how much they moved me. I will continue to read.
I also am hoping and praying that Barack Obama wins this election! I have not seen any man in my lifetime with the insight, compassion and commitment that he has. I knew when I saw him speak at the 2004 DNC that this man was special! I hoped from then that he would run and become our President. The election has been a long, most unique one we have all ever seen and especially right now, it has become a 3 ring circus with the amazingly ( I don’t even have a word here to describe the lying ) … Republican campaign.
I truly believe that the Republican party is using their same tactics they have used for the last 2 times and just expect that people are stupid enough to go for it… AGAIN. That is because they really have nothing else to use..nothing, because they only have what has been and know that we want CHANGE.
This is giving them a false hope due to the media giving them the airtime and biased poll numbers. That’s OK… they will find themselves WIDE awake the morning after the election day! Even with their same tactics, they barely won the last 2 times, so this time it is all about numbers!ON election day, all of the quiet, angry people who are not in the poll databases will come out to vote as never before and then our message will be CLEAR… “ENOUGH”
Keep up the great articles and continued success!
Take care,
David
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Thank you for that comment! Sometimes I get the feeling that white people do not understand what I am saying.
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Black people actually think I care that they think I am racist? Hell black people will claim any person is racist, especially if that person does or says something black people do not like. Frankly I do not give a crap if black people think I am racist.
What is the first thing a black person will do if a white person disagrees with him on something? Whine about racism of course.
Most black people can’t debate or intelligently discuss an issue with someone that disagrees with them most of the time. All most black people can do is scream racism.
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White people actually think I care that they think I am racist? Hell white people will claim any person is racist, especially if that person does or says something white people do not like. Frankly I do not give a crap if white people think I am racist.
What is the first thing a white person will do if a black person disagrees with him on something? Whine about racism of course.
Most white people can’t debate or intelligently discuss an issue with someone that disagrees with them most of the time. All most white people can do is scream racism.
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^^ LOL
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When blacks complain about racism, they are not always right, but most times they are. Most whites are blind to racism, which is why blacks seem to be “whining”.
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I think you are right in many things, but think the number is a bit lower (95%) seems a bit high. My parents welcomed my sisters first husband (asian) and second husband (black/latin) and my brothers wife (latin) with open arms. In fact I would say it was my redheaded boyfriend (now husband of 12 years) who was 28 and I was 18 that gave them pause..
My sister and I realized that one of our closest friends from childhood was racist just recently. She started letting comments slip in about the election that made us want to slap her. I am a conservative capitalist (I use this instead of republican because I feel the party no longer represents me) and was not a support of obama. She kept saying things that had to do with his race as to why he shouldnt be elected. I kept emphazing policies he would support that I dont. the sad thing is..I dont think she even knows she is racist.
I would like to think I am not racist…but I will say I am sexist…towards my own gender. I am normally very open and friendly and assume everyone wants to be friends. I guess you could call me naive. And always my trusting nature gets me a knife right between the shoulder blades. I dont know what it is about women that makes them be nice to your face and talk trash behind your back. At least with guys you generally know where you stand. I mean yes they dont look you in the eyes but at least you know what they are thinking.
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Hello Albagond,
I’m white, and normally don’t even give that any thought. My self-awareness of my gender (female) or age (49) or job-related and family issues are usually what I think is my world-view… Notice I didn’t even bring up the fact that I’m an American citizen by birth, or an Illinois resident (all my life)… politics nor spiritual bkgd/and beliefs (presently Christian/Deist after a long journey).. and unmarried.
Yet, certainly, of course… I do think about race, and this election I became nearly consumed with the discussions, etc. about race… and still am. Which is how I found your blog.
I appreciate your candid honesty and viewpoint. From what I’ve said in first paragraph, I can easily see that you might retort… that I’m a typical white person, that I think I’m color blind, etc. And all of that is probably true.
I think somehow though, it would be a good thing, a gracious thing for all of us to cut each other some slack… what I mean by that is that we can’t nor really should we be color-blind ‘purists’ because we all *are* different… gender, age, color, attractiveness, ideologies, ubringing, etc. I think what happens is that some well-meaning people become so aware of the possibility of offense, by using the wrong word, ie. African American or Native American or Black, etc. that such persons come across as exactly what they try not to do… notice or offend, etc. etc.
Bottom line, I’d like to say “We’re all people, dammit” -let’s all move on. Though I mean that in good spirit, it in noway reflects where so many of us find ourselves today on the issue of race and racism.
I think that all people are racially aware, and I think *some* people see this in others and themselves and think that being so ‘is racist’. Not you, nor I can stop people from thinking, or believing in stereotypes or creating personal ones from experience… and you and I, as well as every person on earth has biased thinking on many issues and sees in color, etc. And I don’t think this is wrong or harmful… but human nature. In other words, I think that focusing too intensely on this aspect just keeps everybody feeling hopelessly segregated, but I would suggest that in many cases, we all should cut each other some slack. Consider, for example Joe Biden. I’m sure he means well, and he’s said some whopper of gaffes.
It seems to me you’ve found some ‘White’ sites that thrive on putting down blacks, and in-essence mirrored some of that from a black perspective… i.e., “All blacks (whites) are racists… Well 95% of them” – Maybe I say to that, that 100% of us all are racist (but not necessarily the toxic kind of racism we usually attribute to a toxic word). For instance, I don’t believe every white person has a laundry list of ‘what is wrong with Black America’… and I agree with you, that those who create such a list are extreme hypocrites… as in:
6:41 Why do you see the speck in your neighbor’s eye, but do not notice the log in your own eye?
Anyway, Albagond– thank you for your blog. I will continue to check it out.
Cassy
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Good thing you do know that you’re racist because you’re being racist against Asians.
“Asians can move there and be just as bad as everyone else in just two months”
“Good point about Asians. From what I know about the Japanese, they have no trouble being racist without ever stepping foot in America.”
Your comments exactly fit in under ‘racism’ as you nicely explained: “It is the kind of racism that believes that blacks do not work hard, do not care about their neighbourhoods, are naturally violent, lack intelligence, money, education or morals….
It is also the feeling that there must be something wrong with people who do not look like you.”
I am an Asian person who came to America several years ago and contrary to your assumption became less racist.
Honestly, as an Asian person, I’m offended by your comments. I feel vulnerable that you think that coming to this country made me “just as worse as everyone.”
You display the kind of racism, if I may imitate your syntax, that believes that Asians idolize whites and looks down on other races, that Asians are uncapable of developing their own views but try to adopt the “white” opinion on everything. What other assumptions about Asians have?
Your blog is certainly powerful. You do have the right to say all those things, and I have the right to get hurt. I just hope that away from your keyboard you’re not throwing comments like those around, because contrary to another racist assumption, Asians don’t necessarily shut up and be submissive when there is racism against them.
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Excellent comment. I changed my statement to “some Asians can…”, which is certainly true. I would expect Asians as Asians to know better than to fall in line with the country’s racism. Some of them do not, you are right, but some of them sadly do, more than you would expect.
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I’m so sick of black people like you…always playing the race card. You blame white people for everything. You blame us for not getting a job, for not finishing high school, and for being pulled over on the street. You make it seem as if white people wake up saying “How am I going to oppress blacky today?”. That doesn’t cross any white person’s mind. Your exaggerating when you say 95% of white people are racist when about 50% of whites voted for Obama. So that shatters your number right there. Also, what about all the black racists? If anything these days, blacks are more racist against whites than whites are towards blacks. Did you here of that black guy on the news that wanted all whites to be exterminated?? Or do recall Reverend Wright?? Or are you aware of rap songs that talk about beating up whitey and shit?
So please STFU when it comes to this. Your being racist by even making an assumption like this. Also, you wanna know how I’m right with what I’m saying??? Go on YouTube.com and you’ll find videos of other blacks agreeing with whites that they always play the race card. For example, one video from a black admitted that the reason black people don’t get the job position over a white person is because they sag their pants and present themselves in a ganster way.
So change you god damn racist views!
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It’s unfortunate trolls like Mike the reason why racism will never truly be eradicated.
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Kat, maybe your just an idiot or something??? See… there it goes again. I’m accused of being a racist…but he’s not. So he’s not a racist for the comment he made about Asians which offended the person above? And he’s not a racist for saying 95% of whites are racist? That’s generalizing whites as a whole.
I’m offended by the fact that he accuses 95% of whites being racist, when blacks are just as racist these days, and you know it. So shut the fuck up and please don’t say dumb comments. So I don’t have a right to be upset about the false statistics he’s making? That’s all I’m saying! But of course your one of those hardcore liberals where even saying illegal immigration should be handled is racist. Where is the line drawn??? Don’t leave another comment because you have no defense. This is like saying 9 in 10 blacks commit crimes –based on my personal experiences. But I would never say that because that is a racist claim with no proven statistics… just like his claim is based on personal experience and no statistics. You need to calm down Kat.
Oh and by the way, four of my best friends have been black. And two of my best friends now are Filipino. And I have another good friend who is Mexican. My brother is married to a black a girl, too. So you really have no argument kiddo. I don’t hate black people, only ones that are radical and use the race card for everything.
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It does not matter if you are offended. What, I am only allowed to say things that do not offend white people? We already have that. It is called television.
You got some nerve complaining about being offended when you come here and call people idiots and tell them to “shut the fuck up”.
I am amazed you used the my-best-friend-is-black argument. One of my best friends is white. Does that prove to you that I am not racist against whites? I doubt it does, nor should it. It is a lame argument.
Only 44% of whites voted for Obama. If it was up to just white people, McCain would be president now. Get your numbers straight. Blacks vote for white candidates all the time. Does that prove they are not racist? Hardly.
The 95% is purely my own opinion and, as I point out, most Americans, black or white, do not agree with it. Most white people would put it way lower, most blacks not quite so high.
I think a strong argument can be made for a number somewhere between 50% and 80%. There have been studies that show that the number is somewhere in that range.
Yes, blacks are racist. I know that. I wrote about that too:
And I am racist too. I said that in the post. According to one test I took I am a middle-of-the-road black racist. Calling me a racist does not offend me – it is merely a description of what I am.
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mike said:
You make it seem as if white people wake up saying “How am I going to oppress blacky today?”.
Where did I make it seem like that? I think you are reading that in because it is certainly not something I believe. I make the point several times on this blog that most whites are blind to their racism. White racism works more like this:
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lol..i realise there are 2 Mike/r here..one called mike and then me called miker with an R in the end..so i hope people can realise that we are 2 different guys. P.S ( i live in Scandinavia ). D.S
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I dunno about this. You say “all black are racist” and then link to your article (which seems to almost excuse blacks for being racist because “they are the most racist towards themselves”), but from my own experience and the experience of the Asians I know, we got THE MOST SHIT from blacks. Hey, guess what, if the black kids were the BIGGER ASSHOLES, sorry if I don’t feel sympathy for them. You know, it’s just a little hard to say “aw, I feel for your plight” when some black kid is being an idiot and needs to attack/denigrate Asians for being nothing other than Asian. Yeah, I KNOW not all black people are like this, but a lot of them are the most racist mo’fo’s I know, and think they can get away with it “because they’re black.” Bullshit.
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I know what you are talking about. I do not want to excuse it. I need to do a post on it – both about why that kind of stuff goes on and why it is so wrong and brainless.
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Hi, I just discovered your blog and I’m going to be checking back. This post is really interesting to me because I’m a 25 year old white girl and grew up thinking the racist rate of whites was much lower. But then I was talking to people recently about it and almost everyone who I talked to was like “well everyone is a little racist”. My mind was blown cause while I know human nature leads people to pre-judge I don’t necessarily think it leads us to racism.
But after all these talks I’ve been having I think you’re probably right and it is about 5% of whites who aren’t racist. Even my mom who constantly raised me to have friends and role models of every color said that she thinks not seeing color might lead me to get mugged on the subway. The thing is I’ve totally had bad stuff happen on the subway but it’s only been by drunk white guys.
So anyhow, its an interesting post. I think we still need to believe in that 5% though because thats the foundation for having actual change happen so that someday our world can be a little less racist.
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I am glad you like my blog and it is so nice to hear from someone white who thinks I might be right. I am so used to hearing stuff like this instead:
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How do you define racism?
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To think that one race is by nature better than another.
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OK, but not all recognition of race differences means that you think “one race is by nature better than another.” It might be one race happens to be better than another in one respect, and this might be because of history or any number of other factors. Merely recognizing race differences or not wanting to marry or date someone of another race and generally preferring that one’s own kind does well is not racism, even by your own definition. Take the “color blind” thing. I think this “color blind” ideal is a little unrealistic; people like people who are like themselves. But it’s not the same as thinking one race is better than another; it’s thinking, perhaps against the evidence, that all the races are equal or capable of being equal.
Long story short: blacks have a lot of problems in general, and whites who notice these things are not racist. Blacks, on the other hand, more often seem to have a real beef with whites and are obsessed with their race and racism. It sounds like projectio and insecurity to me.
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While blacks do have issues of their own, racism is still out there. It is not just something blacks are making up.
Whites-only proms, for example, are not a case of “projection and insecurity” on the part of blacks. Nor are suburbs with a black population of only 0.5%. Nor is blacks with university degrees being unemployed at almost twice the rate of whites with the same education. Nor is police profiling. And so on.
One time my wife applied for a job as a registered nurse. They said she did not have enough experience but if she could pass a test they might take her on. She takes the test. No luck. Two weeks later a white woman shows up with way less experience. She gets the job – no test required! Where is the “projection and insecurity” in that?
Something you hear from whites and some upper-class black people:
1. Blacks are their own worst enemy.
2. Blacks are only imagining racism.
While the first one is arguable (illegitimacy rates, etc), the second one is just plain not true.
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I love testimonials. Such useful evidence. I knew a white guy once who got beat up by a black guy who called him a cracker. It proves so much!
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My comment did not rest on that alone.
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Why are most of the people who post contrarian views here uber-conservatives who dance around the issue while making an insult here and there, then crying about how everyone they disagree with them have no facts while they do?
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Yeah, we all have original sin. Somewhere back there is a slave owner, a klansman or some other random meanie. Furthermore I am responsible for their henious actions even though they are dead already and not really able to change their behavior at this point.
I must emasculate and whip myself, o father forgive me for I have sinned, mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa…
Did that change anything? Any historical wrongs redressed, what? No?
But I was really, really guilty and I was sincere goddmamnit!
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Except I never said anything about white guilt for past wrongs. Your comment proves nothing.
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I disagree. White racism exists, but it’s nowhere near 95%. I’d put it at 30%, and possibly 50%. It’s also dying out, although it’s doing so much more slowly than we might hope.
Most white people I know have black neighbors and include them as well as anyone else. And interracial dating is fairly common in people under 30. I live in Manhattan, so perhaps my perspective’s biased, but I always get positive attention when I (white male) am out with a black woman, even from black guys.
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Thanks for the data point. I hope it is dying out.
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Loved the site read many pages.
My ancestors are from Ireland and East Coast USA . Irish and Cherokee! I am Proud of my heritage. Everyone should be proud and celebrate their own diverse cultures . After all we are descendants of our ancestors. My Cherokee family believed that our creator sent 4 men 1 yellow , 1 black , one red , one white .
Each were giving stone tablets of rules to follow. Yellow man was too dedicate his life to knowledge of all things spiritual. Black man was to dedicate his life to the awesome powers of water. Red man was to be the gardener and healer. The white man was to dedicate his life to the awesome power of fire. One day when we would come together again, as a great civilization, so then we could share our knowledge with one another.
I believe we have shared our knowledge together and currently reside in this great civilization. I’m just afraid that it will take a World Wide Disaster to wipe the racist thoughts from our list of problems. Maybe when we shake hands, and make eye contact, we should say, I am as you are.
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Grow up! For God’s sake have you nothing better to do than dwell on your white ‘racism’
You people have no understanding of black or coloured folk! Why do we need to be felt sorry for? We don’t need your ‘superior’white racism! Because that is what it is!
I am in a mixed marriage and my kids can tale care of themselves! They don’t need white retards -and arrogant white retards feeling sorry for them!
Oh diddums!
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I don’t know if this has been commented on, but it’s important to note that whites are hypersensitive to being labeled racists. This hypersensitivity prevents any real self appraisal or acknowledgment of their own racism. They deal with racism in denial, when an honest acknowledgment of it would do more to fight racism than denying it would.
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I agree:
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I have to agree that everyone is a racist. Everyone, in some way is a bigot. Everyone has a bias. Something they dislike, distrust or are wary of.
No one really gets anyone else.
It’s hard for human beings to get around the “They’re Not Like Me” mentality.
We are a people of small clans and groups originally. Xenophobia runs through our genes. Society is merely a side effect of over population, enforced rules and etiquette to maintain the peace for trade/commerce potential.
Forgetting what sort of animals we really are is hard. It will take a long time for people to see another person’s face behind the superficial differences. And it will take a long time before an accent doesn’t throw someone off, or a religious belief (Or lack thereof) offend.
To see what we must fight you must look back at where we have come from. Look far back. Just because we can create computers, fly thousands of miles country to country or create vaccines to fight deadly viruses we are still, at our core, pack animals. We came from small tribes. All of us. Europe. Asia. Africa. We just formed bigger ones over time for protection purposes or to make trade deals. Oh, and because humans are excellent at proliferating. That we do very well.
Am I terrible to say that, or just an idiot? Maybe I watch too many Discovery Channel shows or read too many books. Racism isn’t fair, no matter where it swings its ugly head. I don’t know what white men think about. I don’t know what black men think about. Hell, I don’t know what MEN are thinking about!
But then again, I have no clue what goes on in anyone’s head but my own..
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Abagond, you need to get some professional help (psychiatrist).
Something (or some events) must have happened in your life for you to feel this way.
Tell us, what bad thing (or things) happened to you?
We have all experienced racism, but life goes on.
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Dan is a sock puppet of BklynBryan.
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lol! BUSTED! 😉
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To Ludis:
I don’t know if this has been commented on, but it’s important to note that whites are hypersensitive to being labeled racists.
I think that depends entirely on context… if you are in the workplace that’s a very serious charge that could potentially lead to dismissal without any real review.
If someone calls you a racist on a blog or some other online forum… whoop de do is all I can say.
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Jeezis, BrklnBryan, grow the f$%¨up.
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“Dan is a sock puppet of BklynBryan.”
Maybe he’s got split personalities! Maybe he should call himself ‘Sybil’ instead. Have pity on him, someone has to!
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“whoop de do”
I haven’t heard that phrase in ages! Thanks Uncle Milton!
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Ill address this to whites since I am white, I wont speak for another race.
I think racism is an impulse that lurks in all white people.
There are certain sutuations that can flush it out more than others.
If you spend any time in most prisons, you will more than likely feel this racist implulse rise much more often because its a situation that presses it harder than other situations.
If you are in the trenches in a war with a black person by your side watching your back, you may feel this impulse less.
Quite a few whites have no problem of letting this impulse just flow all the time.
The way I look at it, racism is an impulse you have to be vigilant about to be able to surpress it.
Its like you have a best freind that has a wife or daughter that you are extremly attracted to. You know you have to just plain be vigilant and surpress that impulse. Lots of people dont.
And there are lots of situations where the racist impulse will break through and come to the front, sometimes with out even knowing it.
But racism in whites is an impulse that we have to be vigilant about to surpress it.
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What is white? What does it mean to be white? Can a black man describe what it means to be white, when (according to him) white people don’t recognize their whiteness?
What is the difference between a black man saying what is stereotypically white and a white man saying what is black?
By accepting the theory of “white privilege” (that says whites are at an advantage or higher up in society) , are you not saying that whites are superior?
Do you believe in white supremacy? Was America founded for “white” people or for Americans?
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Ill address this to whites since I am white, I wont speak for another race.
Snort. As if anyone could speak for any race.
I think racism is an impulse that lurks in all white people.
Agreed, kinda, but see below.
Its like you have a best freind that has a wife or daughter that you are extremly attracted to. You know you have to just plain be vigilant and surpress that impulse. Lots of people dont.
Whoah. “Daughter”?
But racism in whites is an impulse that we have to be vigilant about to surpress it.
I’m not so sure about that “suppression” thing.
First of all, I think attempts at suppression are more likely to lead to simply not discussing race AT ALL rather than getting rid of racism.
Secondly, I don’t know if I buy the “we carry racism” within us argument that Brazil’s Ministry of Racial Relations has been putting about. I think that’s a psychologization of a social fact. I’d buy the statement “we carry prejudice inside us”, but racism is properly carried by the society AROUND us.
Let’s put it this way: you or I might be fairly critical about our own racism and do a good job at rooting it out. The minute we need racism, however – say in a social conflict with a black person – society has it ready to hand and all we have to do is pick it up and employ it.
I see Brazilians doing this all the time. Brazilians who are married to people darker than themselves or who are pretty dark themselves to begin with.
I mean, how many times have you seen a Brazilian go on and on about how they’re not racist: “why my grandma was black and so’s my husband”. Then, in a fight with, say, a black doorman at a club or a bar, they’ll all of a sudden trot out this incredibly racist bullshit about how “people like that don’t know their place” and “doesn’t he know who he’s speaking to”?
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Derek asks:
Was America founded for “white” people or for Americans?
Derek, it most DEFINITELY was founded for white MEN. Historical fact.
That it hasn’t remained that way is the result of a lot of people taking racism and sexism very seriously and not simply waving these problems off as you are doing.
And please, do us all a favor and stick to one handle. It’s a mark of supreme insecurity that you feel you need to have a lot of different “yous” echoing your opinion, which should rightly stand or fall based on its own merits.
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What percentage of whites, would you say, are conscious of their racism and trying to do something about it? Or is that what you mean by the five percent?
Also–feel like I should note–I’m white and I really appreciate your blog.
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I am sorry, but I really don’t see racism as an impulse. It’s a learned thing.
Sure, we could argue if “distrust and aversion to people who are “different” than you” is universal or not, but racism like racism is a completely learned behaviour/way of thinking and seeing the world. It’s a cultural thing.
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@ Cless Alvein –
You said you always get positive attention when you’re out with a BW and you’re a White guy? Seriously???
For me, I’ve always had altercations or confrontations when I’m with a BW as a White man. “Some” Black men go out of their way to confront me when I’m out with my wife (or ex’s in past), but I have never had a White man do that.
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Oh, and by the way, even when I’m speaking Brazilian Portuguese with my wife, it happens!!!
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Ninety-five percent sounds about right, even considering that a significant number of these white racists are not intentionally malicious. I tend to think of it as a kind of “race” narcissism that disables the ability to see the world without seeing themselves at the center of it.
Never saw a comments policy on a blog. Very thoughtful work. Best wishes.
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It’s happened to me, too, CoL.
In fact, one guy did this in a bar in DC and two hours later, we saw him chatting up a blonde co-ed.
In other words, my impression when it comes to common black attitudes with regards to biracial dating is that what’s good for the goose is definitely not considered to be good for the gander.
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I’ve gotta put in that it’s not “America” that’s the problem. Many other countries are just as bad, if not worse.
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What do people here think about racism in NYC? I’m from California, and have lived in Tallahassee and Atlanta. Some of what I may see as racism, may just be the additional stress of living in such a big city? My impression, though, is that New Yorkers of all races are racist as hell. My first time living here was in Flatbush back in the 80’s and I’ve now been back here for a couple of years. I’ve had almost no problems in the neighborhoods I’ve lived in. As is the norm for my life, I’m typically the only white guy around. I’m referring more to the city as a whole.
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I wrote a post about racism in New York:
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Thanks, I read it. I’m always interested in topics specifically related to New York City.
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Hi abagond
in respond to the individual who says he doesn’t care about people who says that he is racist reminds me of Lou Dobbs people like him were born to hate and take pride in doing so One thing I have known coming from the caribbean is that white people were born to hate becareful with them
I now live in Canada and face racism everyday even the chinese and south asian makes fun of blacks saying we are stupid and their parents tells them to becareful with blacks, the teachers in the school treats us different the hardest part is when you confront them with the truth ,they inturn push the problem on you. The worst part is how white people compromise the truth for lies to be honest when I look at them I do not know what I am looking at anymore sometimes I think I am talking to demons.
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WELL ALL THIS COULD BE CLEARED UP IF THE PEOPLE STARTED RECOGNIZING OTHER NATIONS OF PEOPLE AS FREE NATIONALS NOUN PROPER PERSON NOT AS VERBS INPROPER SUCH AS BLACK NEGROS COLORED OR WHAT EVER ELSE SO CALLED BLACKS ARE CALLING THEM SELVES THIS SEASON. AFRICAN IS NOT A NATIONALITY. THAT WORD COME FROM THE CONQUEST OF THE ROMAN GENERAL SKIPPIO AFRIKANUS. SO CALLED BLACKS FREE NATIONAL TITLE IS MOOR. THE TERMS BLACK COLORED NEGRO WERE PLACED UPON THE MOORS AFTER 1492 WHEN MOORS OCCUPING SPAINED WERE BANISHED BACK TO AKUBALAN. THIS WAS CALLED DENATIONALIZATION. THE MOORS HAVE ALWAYS BEEN PRESENT IN THE AMERICAS AS WELL GOING BACK TO THE TIMES OF ATLANTIS EXAMPLE OLMECS. BLACKS HAVE BEEN HOOD WINKED INTO THINKIG THEIR BEGINING STARTED IN SLAVERY AND THE WORLD PRACTICES THIS OPPRESSIVE THINKING AS WELL. WHY ARE WE SO AFRIAD OF OUR OWN SHADOW ARE OWN GREATNESS. THERE ARE NO FLAGS OR GOVERNMENTS THAT BACK THE TERMS BLACK OR AFRICAN. ALL FREE NATIONALS IN THE WORLD KNOW THIS EXCEPT US IN AMERICA. NO MOOR EXCUSSE FOLKS THE MOORS HAD MILLIONS OF SO CALLED WHITES IN SLAVED AS WELL FOR HUNDREDES OF YEARS WERE NOT INNOCENT IN THIS THING CALLED SLAVERY WERE THE CREATORS OF NATIONS AND CIVILIZATIONS. DECLARE YOUR NATIONALITY AND RECLAIM YOUR RIGHTS TO THIS LAND CALLED AMERICA NOT JUST GRANTED PRIVLAGES THROUGH THE 14 AMENDMENTS. LETS ROOL UP ARE SLEEVES AND GET TO WORK NO MORE DEPENDING ON JESUS OR THE EUROPEANS LETS DO FOR SELF AND WE CAN CREATE STRONG COMMUNITYS AGAIN . JUST LIKE YOU HAVE KOREA TOWN OR LITTLE ITALY SO ON AND SO ON. THESE NATIONS HAVE DIF PERSONAL CREEDS BUT UNIT UNDER ONE VINE AND FIG TREE (FLAG) THE FLAG OF THERE FOR FATHERS . BLACK FOLKS ITS TIME FOR US TO STOP CHASING AFTER FORIEGN GODS AND HONOR OUR ANCESTORS (FATHERS AND MOTHERS). REMEBER WE GAVE THE WORLD RELIGION ALL COPIED OF THE WALLS OF KAMET IE EYGPT. LETS LOVE OUR SELFS AGIAN AND FOR THOSE WHO KNOW THESE TRUTHS THE OPEN YOUR TRUMPIS AND REJOICE AND HELP UP LIFT FALLEN HUMINTY. THE ONLY RAE IS THE HUMAN RACE. PEACE AND LOVE TO ALL NATIONS AND CREEDS ARE BRTOHERS IN UNITY .
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First time poster.
Abagond, I really have enjoyed this website. Its so diverse in subject matter. I first stumbled into it reading your concise and interesting take on the British Empire, teflon theory of history, etc.
I have definitely noticed a lot of your posts are about race. I am more or less white (long story) and went to a pretty rough suburban high school back in the 90s — during the days when gangsta rap went mainstream.
Anyway, long story short, I saw a lot of white racism and black racism in that high school. I truly consider myself not be racist, but lately I’m starting to hate my own kind.
I always thought the worst of the race-baiting days in politics, or the racist comments amongst ‘friends’ were a thing of the past.
Anyway, as I age I am running into more and more white racists … who are pretty overt when they think they’re amongst ‘friends.’
I don’t think its the age of Obama — I know to many lifelong Republicans who voted for Obama because they were scared of Sarah Palin.
Part of me thinks its just the total breakdown of a moderate wing of the GOP. Somehow Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Fox News, etc. are now ‘respectable,’ which is only increasing this revival of less than subtle race-baiting.
IT
PS — All that said, America’s not that bad (anymore). Another poster mentioned racism in Asia — its much worse there. I lived in Beijing for a year a decade ago, and got along fine. In fact the Chinese loved white Americans back then generally, but I know that they hated black people. It was more or less fear that they’d ‘defile’ their women.
An international college sports tournament was in town and I remember the horrible things many of my Chinese (and Korean) friends were saying about all the new African students that were coming to our campus.
Moreover, I’ve seen how terribly the Europeans — the French and Italians in particular — treat their Muslim populations. Not to mention gypsies.
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@Rachel I live in Canada too. You are so right. However, blacks in Canadian high schools don’t exactly set a shining example.
@Iron Theurge When I went to France two years ago, I encountered a few dozen gypies. Many of them are prone to deceit and theft. I know that’s not all of them, but that doesn’t set a good precedence. I guess the same bad apple thing affects blacks here.
This post is soo true. We are all racist in our own way. It’s sad, but true.
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We all should that members of ANY race can be racist. We must stop blaming others for what has been done 150 years ago. It only recruits members to the other side because they were unjustly accused. We need to fix the weak links in our own fence, before inviting our different neighbors.
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Whites are NOT racists. Those damned few who may be are just that. The only other kind are the self-loathers who carry around guilt for what other people may have done centuries ago.
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Ah… the legendary white guilt.
I would define guilt as a narcissistic wound originating from the dissonance between a traditional perception of oneself and a hypothesized course of actions and the actual true sequence of events which might actually hint toward one true nature and character’s flaws and the angst of it being known even by oneself.
Not to be mistaken with regret.
Every time i hear about white guilt, tho, i can’t help but remember about The Thinker by Rodin , which from afar looks like a man deeply lost in his thought but is only an athlete ,flexing his muscles in impossible contractions, deeply entranced by his own awesomeness.
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I don’t know what I would do without you. I am so glad you came along with your omnipotent ability to have all the answers. All this B.S. that all white ppl are racist and there is nothing you can do about. Yeah, “Racist” is just a word, but when accuse someone of being “Racist” that causes all kinds of reactions, and most are not good. I will refuse being labeled a Racist. I am a Human Being that happens to be a white man. I have my opinions and beliefs, and all that matters is how I treat others, personally and professionally. I hold no personal guilt how blacks were treated in the past, all that matters is what happens next, how things proceed. All I am accountable for is my conduct, decisions and actions. Don’t waste your time asking for an apology, for my forefathers actions. I was not there, did not assist, not guilty for any crimes, not an accessory. Of course we cannot forget, but we need to get past it.
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I am Black and I disagree with this. Most whites, and people in general, are prejudiced and not racist. There is a difference
Prejudice is natural. Human beings are genetically predisposed to categorize and generalize. In fact, this is how we learn. Racism comes in two definitions 1)The belief that one race is better than another 2)Hatred of another race. Maybe you can make the argument that the former is true of whites, implicitly speaking of course, but their really is no way to be sure.
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I think most White Americans are #1 but not #2. There are whites who hate blacks, but most do not seem to as far as I can tell.
I see white racism as an ideology, one that American society and white identity are built on. It is everywhere – in schoolbooks, on television, in jokes, etc. It comes standard. Whatever your race, it is not an easy thing to free yourself from, but for whites it is much harder:
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I’m conflicted about defining myself as a racist, for obvious reasons, but I’m working with a different understanding of race than most of you.
First of all, I don’t think that one race can be judged genetically “superior” to another. What criteria would make up that argument? There’s no practical standard. Humans in Ethiopia have been around the longest, and can almost certainly be credited as ancestors to all humans on the planet today. Han Chinese number over a billion and have subsumed the genes of many smaller groups. A relatively small group of people based in the British Isles came to control a huge proportion of the world’s resources. Any of these could be considered genetic “victories”. For all we know, the glaciers are about to return and the Inuit will outlive us all.
On the other hand, there are genetic differences between various human populations. Externally, body and facial characteristics differ, as does height. Internally, we know that metabolism of dairy and alcohol varies by race, as does the shape of red blood cells. Tibetans have proportionally larger lungs because the air is thin on the Tibetan plateau, so genes for small lungs died out. None of that is very controversial. The dangerous territory is when we start talking about differences in the brain.
I should clarify that I don’t believe in the soul, and therefore think that the entirety of a person’s thoughts and emotions are generated by the brain. I also think that the human brain was shaped by our evolution as a species, and that the history of that evolution exerts a powerful influence on our behaviour. Finally, although I am undecided on this, to me it seems likely that human populations diverged long enough ago for minor differences in the brain to develop. All it takes is one or two mutations in a member of a small colonizing group, and in a few centuries you can have a dominant trait.
That said, I doubt that any of the current racial behavioural stereotypes will prove correct. They are based in cultural assumptions, not biology. I also doubt that we will find racial differences in intelligence or propensity to violence, as both are extremely complicated mechanisms not rooted in any single genome sequence. More likely, we may discover that one population group gets a bigger adrenaline boost when threated, while another is more prone to early onset dementia; or maybe that one group has more THC receptors in the brain and therefore enjoys marijuana more; or that nose length is correlated to attraction to the colour orange (the mutation of a single genome can affect multiple developmental attributes, and they are not neccessarily related). Genome analysis is a new field, and I predict we’ll be baffled and bemused by many of the results.
So yes, I am a racist in that I believe if you raised children from different races in exactly the same way, they would grow up to behave slightly differently, in a pattern that was statistically significant after taking individual variances into account. That’s a mouthful, right? Basically, I think that genes influence both body and behaviour, so groups that are consistently different physically should also have differing behaviours. Of course, we all have the same number of teeth and bones: human physical diversity is actually quite limited. There hasn’t been time for large genetic divergence, in body or behahviour. We’re a young species.
Damn, that’s an essay. And yet someday I’ll probably see myself quote-mined down to “So yes, I am a racist”.
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@ Awryguy
I suggest that you wade through the HBD and scientific racism discussions on this blog.
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Racism of the kind Abagond was talking about is a different concept. The dislike of (and sexual attraction to) members of one race by members of another also has biological roots.
There’s much we don’t know about our ancestors (our earliest written records go back about 10,000 years, which covers less than 5% of human history). However, by observing modern hunter-gatherer groups and studying the behaviours of our nearest animal relatives, we can make an educated guess. The guess is that xenophobia is an old instinct brought on by the fact that for much of our biological history, encounters with strangers usually ended in violence, sex, or both. It made sense for the brain to produce adrenaline and testosterone when encountering members of another tribe. Brains that didn’t got bashed in, on maybe failed to make a move on that attractive male or female stranger with the nice heterogenous genes. Xenophobic brains preferentially survived for most of human history.
Unfortunately, we’re still saddled with roughly the same xenophobic instincts as our hunter-gatherer ancestors. The difference now is that those shots of adrenaline or testosterone are amplified many times over by a child’s upbringing. Racist ideas are cumulative in culture, which means that the child’s brain is fed not only by instinct, but also by the more formulated racist thoughts of its parents and society.
I’ve noticed in my own reactions:
1) An adrenaline surge when encountering groups of young men from a different race (limited to strangers).
2) An irrational tendency to identify with members of my own race when we are the minority in a crowd.
3) A tendency to be attracted to women of other races at least as much as to women of my own.
Of course, none of this is very practical in modern Toronto (and would be downright self-destructive for me here in China). I make a conscious effort to be aware of my subconscious reactions, then I try to overcome them. Self-awareness is key, you see?
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@King
Thanks for the suggestion. I checked out those discussions, but there wouldn’t be much room for me to wield my scalpel with everyone swinging sledgehammers, you know?
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So buy a sledgehammer!
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“I make a conscious effort to be aware of my subconscious reactions, then I try to overcome them. Self-awareness is key, you see?”
So man was shaped by his environment, then man began to shape his own environment, beginning with thatched huts, and ending with indoor climate control, plumbing, electric power, the internal combustion engine and the computer. So now the environment that man is evolving to is completely artificial.
Man is being shaped, not by nature, but by his own choices to subjugate nature to his whim. Therefore man is being shaped by his own whims.
Whether you are aware of it or not, you are more and more disconnected from any kind of “naturalistic” anchors.
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@King
We’re talking about a tendency to xenophobia in humans reinforced by hundreds of thousands (possibly millions) of years of evolution, likely dating back before Homo Erectus to the earlier social hominids. That’s deep brain wiring, and not something that can be totally re-written by developments in the last 400 generations.
You don’t need to be touching a tree to have instincts. Baby birds who have never left an artificial incubator are still terrified by snake puppets. Wolves born and raised in a concrete cell will still howl at the moon. Androids dream of electric sheep. Etcetera.
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Bullsh*t…
Xeno-phobia, the irrationnal fear of the stranger, has nothing to do with evolution.
There are so many parameters needed before this xenophobia could kick in, that it could probably be safely assumed that xenophobia is a contemporary affliction.
Please , don’t blame humanity’s shortfalls on Homo Erectus. kthanxbye
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@JGreyden
Could you make a little more of an effort? Aside from stating that xenophobia requires parameters (of what sort?), you provide no evidence or reason to explain why my hypothesis is “Bullsh*t”.
I think I know what you mean by parameters and I could help you get started, but I think you should do it yourself.
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I can not even gather the proper words to describe the incompetence of the author of these articles. I stumbled upon this website not to long ago, and immersed myself in it due to the authors ignorance. He/she claims that 95% of people speciically white people are racist. The author is obviously self concious and has a low selfe-steem if they are making such a perpostrous assumption. This is the type of behaviour that feeds racism, there are decent individuals (such as myself) who simply see people as people regardless of color. I happen to be a light complected mexican by the way. And it is a known fact that an individuals environment and what they were exposed to as children has long term effects on their behaviour. Simply do not understand why people always throw the racist card, perhaps you should ask yourself whether or not the individuals surrounding you are racists, or if you are the racists that is feeding racsim by making radical assumptions about other people you have yet to meet.
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If you think White Americans are not racist against Mexicans then you are a far bigger fool than I am.
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Is there really anyone who is not racist? I mean, sincerely and truly? Not even just a little bit? We’d all like to think we’re not but then we catch ourselves at least thinking judgements about a person for her / his race: such as “black people always whine about racism” or “all whites are racists”…
It all just sounds like racism to me. But we all turn back into dirt in the end. (By the way, dirt comes in as many colors as skin tones do…)
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@ heydiddlediddle
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i guess only whites are the most racists in the world.according to 90% of the responses here.no othere groups in this country is a bigot according to the 90% centil;e here.i suppose anti racism is code for anti white by 90% of the responses here.who would have guessed?
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Asian are one of the most racist people you will meet. I lived in Japan and Korea. Korean hate Japanese and other races, and the Japanese think of themselves as most white people think of themselves in the US.
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As a white person, I think that accepting that all white people are racist is a true statement is a necessary step towards decolonizing the mind and getting past one’s racism (something that can never be 100% complete, but we can make substantial progress). That does not mean that all or even most white people are bad people. I think that is one of the basic problems with our culture’s discussion of race. We tend to equate being a racist with being a bad person and tend to individualize a systemic and structural problem. If I am a racist it is because I have learned behaviors, values, and attitudes that reinforce my white privilege beyond my level of awareness. Individuals can never escape the historical and cultural contexts in which they live. The problem with the idea of color-blindness is that it is mostly promoted by white people who seek to reward “acceptable” black people (educated, middle-class, competent in the culture of the dominant white society even if not totally assimilated) without ever examining why is it that in many American cities white people (along with an assortment of middle-class minorities) live on one side of town and African-Americans live on the other under entirely different living conditions. Even if we say that the problem is class and not race, we cannot deny that those class differences are often due to a long history of coordinated government and business sponsored racism designed to uphold white privilege. Therefore race and class can never be separated in America. I think the only way to have an honest dialogue about race is for white people to honestly admit to how they have benefited from racial privilege and racialized thinking and humbly listen to the grievances and perspectives of people of color before they prematurely declare that racism is dead.
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“That does not mean that all or even most white people are bad people. I think that is one of the basic problems with our culture’s discussion of race. We tend to equate being a racist with being a bad person and tend to individualize a systemic and structural problem. If I am a racist it is because I have learned behaviors, values, and attitudes that reinforce my white privilege beyond my level of awareness. Individuals can never escape the historical and cultural contexts in which they live.”
**********************
EXCELLENT point!!!
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“I think the only way to have an honest dialogue about race is for white people to honestly admit to how they have benefited from racial privilege and racialized thinking and humbly listen to the grievances and perspectives of people of color before they prematurely declare that racism is dead.”
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Jason
If white people would just think OUTSIDE of the box.
A good question to ask is who benefits by keeping the races separated and isolated? Where, when, WHY and how did these false ideas about blacks originate? How and why are they perpetuated?
If whites are focused on and afraid of blacks, and other people of color, what/who are they NOT focused on?
What are whites not seeing??
What are they missing in the big picture??????
Who benefits/profits the MOST from this seemingly insurmountable racial divide?
Why are whites seemingly oblivious of the answers to the above questions??
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@C.A.Estrada
He/she claims that 95% of people speciically white people are racist. The author is obviously self concious and has a low selfe-steem if they are making such a perpostrous assumption. This is the type of behaviour that feeds racism,
Good Job, C.A. !! It’s nice to hear someone else with a brain here on this blog. Most of the time I feel like I just talking to myself here.
Of course, this is a preposterous assumption!! But this is what you get on this white-bashing black blog !!
Guess what C.A. The Abagondites here think WE need to learn about OUR racism!! Ha, ha. What a bunch of moroons!
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Bliff,
To you:
1.Anti-racists are anti-white.
2. White criticism by blacks is black racism against whites.
3. Whites are blameless, innocent people not responsible for any crime past or present.
4. History doesn’t matter to you if it presents white evil because that is racist.
5. History has no effect on the present.
6. Nothing’s wrong with white people.
7. Everything’s wrong with black people.
8. Anyone who agrees with you is intelligent.
9. Anyone who disagrees with you is a moron.
10. You are not racist troll. You are a race realist.
11. It is your duty to come here as a white man to educate black people on what black people are.
Am I the only one who sees this as pathologically maddening?
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Matari,
As usual, excellent questions.
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BrothaWolf,
Thanks!
I think you see where I’m going with this.
————-
You noticed how those questions went completely over a certain resident troll’s imbecilic head?
*I mean no offense to legitimate imbeciles.*
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@ brothawolf
When Bliff showed up to defile the Trayvon thread, I realized who and what he was. He affects me no more.
Bliff is a scared, impotent white man.
Need I say more?
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@matari;
Great!! Key questions to all of us!
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Great points , Matari and Brothawolf
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Refreshing. So many times I have thougth something similar. I’m not from the US, but your words make perfect sense to me. I would always hear my friends saying their not racist, and I would answer that we all are, without fail, because everybody is a racist in societies where racism is institutionalised.
Ortega i Gasset said once that ” I am me and my circumstances”. And it’s pretty obvious to me that my circumstances are racist, among many other things (the thing with my circumstances, they tend to privilege a few individuals of a very particular group).
So then it’s up to me to be aware of that and question them, the why’s, the how’s and the what for’s. And I will have to do it all the time, for the rest of my life, because, I have a racist programming in me and I am, even when I don’t want to be and try not to be, part racist.
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Some commenters (and Abagond) mentioned about how some Asians may learn about, and then adopt American style racism in a short time (given how pervasive racism is in the USA), becoming indeed more racist. But some commenters pointed out how the reverse could also happen.
People from Asia (and from anywhere else in the world for that matter) carry a lot of racist baggage with them from wherever they came from. After exposure to US style racism, they might actually formulate their racist attitudes into a completely different light, and it may actually expand their understanding of what is going on in America (and mitigate their prior racist attitudes). It might even happen to people who are moving into different parts of the country (say, someone who moved from a small town in eastern North Carolina to, say, Las Vegas, or someone from Plano, Texas moving to Hawaii or vice versa).
There is rife racism around much of Asia (and around the world for that matter), and although it does not necessarily have typical US characteristics, it can be quite racist as well. I agree that direct exposure to US society might force them to rethink their racist attitudes. They may need to adopt some of the attitudes to survive in a different society, but they may also moderate, or even eliminate many of the prior racist attitudes in an effort to understand and adapt, esp. if they get subjected to the racist attitudes from others in the USA.
It might be good to see some posts about the effect on racist attitudes from moving from one environment to another — do they get cemented further? Are they realigned to match the new environment? or does it cause them to re-evaluate their attitudes to make them less racist?
Based on evidence, it appears that most migrants to the USA do adopt USA racist ideologies within a generation, one where the concept of white American is the standard to try to attain (or at least work around). But that is the power structure of the USA. I am really curious what will happen by 2050. Will the power structure stay intact?
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By these standards isn’t everyone racist? I agree that the word has strong connotations and I think that it’s hard to have a conversation about the issue without it becoming about something combative using that word.
Everyone sees race. To most people race is a factor in their perception of someone. It depends strongly on upbringing and culture to be sure but also the natural disposition to be more comfortable with ‘like’ people. It can be extended to hobbies and musical preferences, but they have nowhere near the historical and political significance.
The biggest thing about racism isn’t ‘Are you racist?’… any answer other than yes is almost certainly a lie. The question is ‘how does your racism effect your decisions and actions?’ It might take effort to treat everyone equally, but there isn’t anything inherently wrong with that, and there may even be some nobility in admitting that part of your make-up to yourself and trying to improve upon it’s impact on your life.
I’m a white male from suburban New England. Where I lived growing up we had a huge Portuguese population and now we’re also getting a large influx of Brazilian and Indian people moving to the area. We only had like 3 black families in my town with school aged kids when I was one. I noticed their race, I noticed their culture was different than mine, but so was my best friends, he was Greek, and it didn’t seem like a big deal, and still doesn’t, but I noticed, and that makes me as much a racist as anyone else. Prejudiced, no, not in my actions, but everyone thinks about cultural, or racial, stereotypes when they meet some one, and so do I. In my experience though they are only about half true and only about half the time, and people very rarely fulfill all of them… and when they do I’m surprised and honestly find it a bit humorous. To me fulfilling a stereotype completely is weird, especially if they are generally negative; wouldn’t you try and change that?
Beyond a shadow of a doubt racism is everywhere, and it always will be… it’s the prejudice I worry about. Prejudice is so easy a trap to fall in and I don’t think it’s awful to fight against it, even within ones self. i don’t think anyone makes the conscious decision to practice prejudice but to not practice it is a decision… and more people should make it.
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Wow, I’ve spent all morning reading these comments and I think the comments section is the best discussion on race I’ve seen in a while. You did a good service, blogger.
I have a few honest thoughts though. Since this is a discussion on race, I’ll tell you I am a white male. But you probably already knew that, right? 😉
I think you’re premise is correct and I think most people agree we all have a little “racism” in us, though I agree with above poster that it’s more “prejudice”.
I can say in all honesty, that any racism that lurks inside me is very subtle. All my life I’ve strived to learn about people. I grew up in a diverse city, went mostly to schools where I was a minority and have lived around the world.
I can say in all honesty, when I meet someone for the first time, I look at that person’s eyes and judge them by the first few words or actions, not their race. Maybe sometimes their clothes. Of course, I notice if this person is black or white or Asian or homeless or whatever, but my initial reactions are judged by what that person is doing.
When I’m with my black friends (oh I hate writing that but this point is important), or Asian friends or whatever, I’m not thinking how I’m a white dude hanging with a group of Koreans or black guys or whatever. (If they are female, I am thinking how I’m a lucky guy with a group of women 🙂 It’s just natural.
But if one of them brings up something racially based, like your article, or how whites cannot understand or something like that, I do seize up a bit. Suddenly, I do realize I’m the only white guy in the room. My actions or speech are not natural. I am the OTHER.
I don’t know what that means totally — and I know it is a bit narcissistic to worry about how I’m feeling on this important subject — but I think your article did that to every one of the commenters. Some reacted with anger, some reacted with guilt, some just gave their opinion or opened themselves up. I know it doesn’t feel good though. But we have to talk about these things right?
Hmmm.. my point, yes.
Take for example, if we meet this week and I think you’re cool and we found out we are both writers and you’re like “hey, check out my blog” and then I do and I come across this article, I’m going to think “wtf. this person already pegs me as a racist. that’s kind of messed up.” Then my reactions to you may be a little stilted until I come out and say “hey, how can you pre-judge people.”
So, how can you pre-judge people like that?
In short, I really enjoyed this and I think we need to have these conversations, to understand ourselves, if anything. But I really hope if I meet you on the street, we can meet as humans and you won’t automatically think I’m a racist. I’d bet we’d have some pretty cool conversations and good times before we get to the big “r” word.
good luck! you should get published!
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ABAGOND! This one is @ Abagond! So I live in a 60% white neighborhood, 40% other, and there is a half Hispanic half white girl and everyone know she is half Mexican….However she is the most well liked person….I am the most hated. So what do you think? (If you think White Americans are not racist against Mexicans then you are a far bigger fool than I am)
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My dad is south American. White people who see him think he must be white or part white because he has green eyes. White people think they can claim everything ,only whites can have non brown eyes. They are wrong. I’d be ashamed to white. I even read on the stormfront website they believe Asians have Aryan blood, because some Asians are beautiful (only the women though, white people have a special hatred reserved for Asian men). When I see a white guy with a non white girl, it looks like he’s the master and she’s the sex slave. I run asian store and 99% asian women I talk to (about marriage) say the regret marrying a white man and that they were brain washed. Asian men suffer a de-masculinizing from white people. Ever been to Texas? There you will learn about rednecks, they are better than you, and they will make it clear. The bigger the truck, the better the person. I think most white people are ugly, outside and inside. Fat, hawk nosed and bloody cottage cheese skin is not the ultimate beauty.
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It seems to me that the author of that blog is an anti-white RACIST douchebag whose life just consists of problems and got rejected by white girls. Every race can be racist, so don’t complain about us Whites. There are more than enough racists of other colors (India is considered the most racist country that exists) and white women cannot even enter some towns in Europe because of african/arab racists who threaten them.
Still no excuse for being white! Still proud of my blond white children! You know why? Just because!
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You say “95% of whites are racist.”
Uncle Jim says “95% of blacks are uneducated.”
You and uncle Jim are on different sides of the same coin.
…and I don’t really care what either of you have to say, because of that.
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More like 98% of whites are racist
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@Crowdog3
The former CIS citizens are usually not. That makes more than 2%, just like your believes make more than just chances for events in your life.
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seems the racist bone is the 2nd joint of the index finger
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my wife is telling me i should take this opportunity to say she’s gone through mexicans, koreans, and hindus today
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i didnt want to go there but there it is
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All creatures on earth naturally prefer the company of their own kind, within their own species – so cheetahs do not mate with leopards, Indian with African elephants, White rhino with black etc. It isn’t racist for people to prefer the company of their own kind, white with white, black with black, Asian with Asian – that’s what makes a country’s ethnicity. American slavery, however, has badly damaged the natural ethnic balance by importing so many black Africans. I don’t know the answer.
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@ David
“All creatures on earth naturally prefer the company of their own kind, within their own species”
Humans all belong to the same species.
“so cheetahs do not mate with leopards, Indian with African elephants, White rhino with black etc.”
Actually, if two animals are part of the same species and are not separated geographically, they will mate with each other. Plus some animals that we think of as being separate species are still genetically close enough to have viable offspring. For instance, that’s why coydogs — a mix of coyote and domesticated dog — keep occurring in the wild.
And it isn’t limited to mating; there are many documented cases of unlikely friendships among animals of different species, both domesticated and wild.
“It isn’t racist for people to prefer the company of their own kind, white with white, black with black, Asian with Asian – that’s what makes a country’s ethnicity. American slavery, however, has badly damaged the natural ethnic balance by importing so many black Africans.”
The “natural ethnic balance” in this part of the world is Native American. If anyone has badly damaged the natural ethnic balance, it’s white Europeans.
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