I, Racist

[Esaias]

Originally Posted by Praxeas

What is white privilege and how do I get some?

If you printed that on a t-shirt I bet you could sell quite a few.



EDIT: Especially if it included a black-and-white photo of some poor Appalachian toddler with dirt on his face.

[citizen]

Excerpt from Article:

Just let that sink in for a minute, then ask yourself why Black people are angry when they talk about race.

The reality of America is that White people are fundamentally good, and so when a white person commits a crime, it is a sign that they, as an individual, are bad. Their actions as a person are not indicative of any broader social construct. Even the fact that America has a growing number of violent hate groups, populated mostly by white men, and that nearly *all* serial killers are white men can not shadow the fundamental truth of white male goodness. In fact, we like White serial killers so much, we make mini-series about them.

White people are good as a whole, and only act badly as individuals.

People of color, especially Black people (but boy we can talk about “The Mexicans” in this community), are seen as fundamentally bad. There might be a good one- and we are always quick to point them out to our friends, show them off as our Academy Award for “Best Non-Racist in a White Role”- but when we see a bad one, it’s just proof that the rest are, as a rule, bad.

This, all of this, expectation, treatment, thought, the underlying social system that puts White in the position of Normal and good, and Black in the position of “other” and “bad,” all of this, is racism.

And White people, every single one of you, are complicit in this racism because you benefit directly from it.

This is why I don’t like the story of the good samaritan. Everyone likes to think of themselves as the person who sees someone beaten and bloodied and helps him out.

That’s too easy.

If I could re-write that story, I’d rewrite it from the perspective of Black America. What if the person wasn’t beaten and bloody? What if it wasn’t so obvious? What if they were just systematically challenged in a thousand small ways that actually made it easier for you to succeed in life?

Would you be so quick to help then, or would you, like most White people, stay silent and let it happen.

Here’s what I want to say to you: Racism is so deeply embedded in this country not because of the racist right-wing radicals who practice it openly, it exists because of the silence and hurt feelings of liberal America...

[Fionn mac Cumh]

Originally Posted by Esaias

No. Do you feel guilt for being white?

Do you feel a white person who does not feel "white guilt" is racist?

Do you believe there is "Japanese privilege" in Japan, or "black privilege" in Congo?

No. I feel no guilt for being white. The article wasnt about guilt. Read it or get out of the thread.

[Esaias]

Originally Posted by Fionn mac Cumh

No. I feel no guilt for being white. The article wasnt about guilt. Read it or get out of the thread.

The article is ALL about white guilt. I read the article. I'll leave the thread when I feel like it.

Stop micro-aggressing me.

[Originalist]

Originally Posted by Fionn mac Cumh

No. I feel no guilt for being white. The article wasnt about guilt. Read it or get out of the thread.

So, even if the premise of the article was accurate, what can white people do about any of this outside of denying ourselves equality under the law for an extended period of time?

[StillStanding]

The more I think about racism in our country, the more I agree it's about bigotry of low expectations. Lower income children are not expected to achieve at the highest level or to respect authority as much as higher income kids. Lower income kids are praised when they achieve something mediocre, while the same achievement in better schools would be shamed as not good enough.

The goal of lower income children (mostly) is to graduate from High School and find a job. College is something that can be a dream. In higher income families, going to college is not even an option. In many Asian families, not being in the top 5% of their class is a shame!

The reason higher income children succeed more in life is because they were given very high expectations from parents and their school system all their life. Are they smarter than lower income children? NO! It's just that expectations from low income families and their school system are low. This is the bigotry of low expectations!

Case in point: Remember when Oakland schools tried to introduce Ebonics as a viable alternate in the inner city schools? Bigotry at it's worst!

[Originalist]

Originally Posted by citizen

Excerpt from Article:

Just let that sink in for a minute, then ask yourself why Black people are angry when they talk about race.

The reality of America is that White people are fundamentally good, and so when a white person commits a crime, it is a sign that they, as an individual, are bad. Their actions as a person are not indicative of any broader social construct. Even the fact that America has a growing number of violent hate groups, populated mostly by white men, and that nearly *all* serial killers are white men can not shadow the fundamental truth of white male goodness. In fact, we like White serial killers so much, we make mini-series about them.

White people are good as a whole, and only act badly as individuals.

People of color, especially Black people (but boy we can talk about “The Mexicans” in this community), are seen as fundamentally bad. There might be a good one- and we are always quick to point them out to our friends, show them off as our Academy Award for “Best Non-Racist in a White Role”- but when we see a bad one, it’s just proof that the rest are, as a rule, bad.

This, all of this, expectation, treatment, thought, the underlying social system that puts White in the position of Normal and good, and Black in the position of “other” and “bad,” all of this, is racism.

And White people, every single one of you, are complicit in this racism because you benefit directly from it.

This is why I don’t like the story of the good samaritan. Everyone likes to think of themselves as the person who sees someone beaten and bloodied and helps him out.

That’s too easy.

If I could re-write that story, I’d rewrite it from the perspective of Black America. What if the person wasn’t beaten and bloody? What if it wasn’t so obvious? What if they were just systematically challenged in a thousand small ways that actually made it easier for you to succeed in life?

Would you be so quick to help then, or would you, like most White people, stay silent and let it happen.

Here’s what I want to say to you: Racism is so deeply embedded in this country not because of the racist right-wing radicals who practice it openly, it exists because of the silence and hurt feelings of liberal America...

The author makes the false assumption that everyone thinks whites are good and blacks are bad, generally speaking. Hogwash. Blacks are their own worst enemy. They have overall squandered the victories won by the Civil Rights struggle. They have chosen to celebrate their weaknesses instead of their strengths. The article seems to imply that they have brought not one problem on themselves.

[Originalist]

Originally Posted by Originalist

So, even if the premise of the article was accurate, what can white people do about any of this outside of denying ourselves equality under the law for an extended period of time?

Bump.