Racism and Racists

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Geezerette said:
I had a situation late last year where I liked a hair stylist’s work on me once, but the second time was a mess in many ways. It was a ticklish situation because she was the only African American working in the shop. I wouldn’t dare say anything critical or ask for a different stylist the next time because they’d think I was being racist. Very awkward. So I had to “vote with my feet” and find different shop.
I was raised in a quite diverse environment; people worked together, went to school together & got along.
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This is a good example of why the over use has become a problem ... if the stylist was white i am assuming you would have no trouble expressing your thoughts.

Happened to a neighbor recently she walks everyday ... recently as she crossed the street to return home .............a person witnessed this and thought she crossed because a half block away was a African American man,
The "witness" began a "she is racist" rumor...... until others in neighborhood pointed out walker always crosses there and ENTERS her front door......
Seriously the person starting the rumor did not even have the class to ADMIT she jumped to a bad conclusion.....
 
Sigh, race is an issue on which we will never agree. We would like to believe that we are all the same, but we are not. Darwin understood. Look at the Olympics. Blacks dominate running events which demand strength, stamina, and agility. Africans evolved in an environment in which survival, and consequently success in reproduction, depended on athleticism. Dark skin? Protection from a harsh tropical sun. But mid 19th century when Livingstone visited the area around Lake Victoria he found a brutal civilization without the wheel or a calendar. We are products of an evolution over which we had no control, and
we are not cut from the same cloth. Maybe some day technology will intervene.
 
Racism is real in this country, particularly against people of color. The seeds go so deep and is so systemic that it would take a book to detail how so. Racism also ranges from subtle to blatant. Examples of the subtle I've experienced:
~A White co-worker couldn't believe it when I showed her the house my boyfriend lived in while we were in the field. It was in a very nice area..which apparently surprised her.
~Same co-worker said she couldn't believe that "Jennifer Beals is for sure Black" !! I had to inform her that we come in all colors.
~I was talking to another co-worker about my son's then GF (who ultimately became my DIL). I was saying she had 4 sisters, one of whom was a twin, another set of twins and a middle girl. I must've said something about how hard her mom worked. She asked in a judgemental tone "Well where's the father?" as if she expected me to say I didn't know or that he was no longer around. The fact is that he was married to their mother and died of cancer when the children were young. Egg on her face!
Just so happens I liked both of these women and we got along quite well (most of the time...the latter one could be a pain).
Examples of insidious racism I encountered:
~I was surprised to discover when I did a report for college (started college when I was 37) and my research found that teachers were telling Black children that they weren't cut out for college and making them feel they were not intelligent. This was being done, not only in the south, but up here in the north.
~Black people were denied housing, usually via a lie saying the apartments were no longer available. In some cases, the person or couple had a White friend that they sent to inquire about the same apartment and the landlord told them it was available.

~When I wanted to buy an organ from the music store where I took lessons, one of the brothers (an owner) told me that I might not get the loan. He said that merchants were told to code the applications to indicate which customers were Black and those were usually rejected. I had a great rapport with both the brothers who owned the store as well as with the oldest one's wife and children. I got the loan for the instrument...maybe they didn't code the application. :unsure:
~Things we can't do that are every day normal things others do with no problem like "driving while black", looking around in a department store without being followed by security, staying at a nice Air BnB, going to an upscale gym, etc..
Examples of blatant racism:
~Denying Blacks the right to stay at hotels, even ones they were performing in.
~Denying Blacks service in a coffee shop, even men in uniform who had just returned from fighting for this country
~Cross burnings on lawns by the KKK
~Bombing a church thus killing the people in it, including children
~Publishing a newspaper with the headline containing the N word big as day (while Pres. Obama was in office).
~Police officers killing innocent Black people, including children and getting away with it for decades!
@Pecos @feywon
 
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Thank you @OneEyedDiva for bringing this topic to reality. We are coming into an era where white folks are trying to put into law that white people should not be made to feel bad about being racist. Today I was telling my son it feels as if all the gains we made 50-60 years ago are being lost. There are dangerous times ahead.
 
Paco Dennis said:
Because God is white, thus white privilege.
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Where can I order some???? Ive heard all kinds of comments about this amazing stuff.. How it makes your life so much better and easier.
My wife has been dedicated in her job field for over 20 years... has been turned down for promotions 4 times... they wanted a minority for the position....
My favorite racist story... Picture a group of folks gathering to set land speed records....
One group has a big pit set up, flags on each corner including a Confederate battle flag...
Across the way in pulls a van... a large black man gets out...
I start towards him and inform him he may want to pit someplace else, "We were hard core Racist's..."
He smiles and replies... " Your just jealous because I'm faster than you."
 
Pepper said:
Thank you @OneEyedDiva for bringing this topic to reality. We are coming into an era where white folks are trying to put into law that white people should not be made to feel bad about being racist. Today I was telling my son it feels as if all the gains we made 50-60 years ago are being lost. There are dangerous times ahead.
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You are absolutely right Pepper! In fact, I just came across this meme that addresses the hesitancy to teach the truth about the Black experience to children in school. @Pecos @feywon

271860805_10227314611191315_3714226448508184812_n.jpg
 
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Aunt Bea said:
IMO we've lost touch with the definition/meaning of racism.

The term is too often used as a convenient way to shout down or explain away what is, in reality, an individual's actions towards others.

I've been accused of being a racist here at SF and in other places, but my opinions are based solely on a person's behavior towards me and as a member of society.

IMO it's not possible to have a constructive discussion about race in America without getting bogged down by our past.

"I look to a day when people will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character." - Martin Luther King Jr
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The past is a big part of why racism exists in this country and is still perpetrated. You can't fully get rid of a tree if you leave it's roots alone. It will spring up again. So the bogging down is necessary. People flee from the history of racism because, as they say, "Truth hurts". There's a psychology behind racism. Shove it under the rug, put ones' head in the sand and it will go away. Don't bother with it because that's in the past. Well for Black people, the past keeps rearing it's ugly head, so we can't "forget it". One thing that has always amazed me and angers me at the same time...never once have I heard someone say to the Jews..."why do you keep bringing up the holocaust?" Why can't you just forget about it?" Not once!
 
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The Sydney I grew up in was, as we say over here, very "white bread". It was populated, at least where I lived, with people of anglo-celtic background and migration from UK was sponsored by government policy, hence the term "10 pound pommies". Fear of being swamped by Asians from the north was strong and the White Australia immigration policy was still in place.

During my childhood we started to see wide scale non British immigration from Europe which caused consternation because of cultural differences. Australians at that time were quite xenophobic but as they met their new neighbours and got to know them, and to taste their food, they began to appreciate them as friends. We called them New Australians.

There have been Chinese in Australia since the gold rushes but they were always kept on the fringe of Australian society. They were the reason behind the White Australia policy. After WW II Hatred of the Japanese was strong but not because they were former enemies. Other former enemies - the Turks, Italians and Germans were not reviled in the same way. It was because of the treatment of our troops who ended up as Prisoners under Nippon. My mother vowed that she would never forgive them.

Hatred of the Japanese tended to spill over to other people from Asia and when the Vietnamese refugees started to arrive there was animosity openly expressed to their faces, but now we celebrate them. Each new wave of migrants/refugees has had similar experiences, especially if they look radically different to us locals. Muslim women had a very hard time from some after 911 but others stood by them under the banner of "I'll ride with you" where people of good will were prepared to support and protect them on public transport.

Sudanese and Somalian refugees have also had a hard time because of their skin colour. If they are Muslim as well, with full face coverings for the women, easy integration is all the more difficult. However, many have found acceptance in country towns where their labour is very much needed.

I guess my point is that racism can be handed down through the generations but acceptance grows as we meet the other and find out that under the skin and beyond the cultural differences, they are really just the same as us. We need also to remember that the people we are nervous about are probably rather shocked and terrified by us. Emotional barriers begin to break down whenever were break bread together or exchange a few pleasantries.
 
Personally, I think racism is based on "Does it injure the individual or group?"

Especially in these categories:

*Jobs
*Housing (i.e. covenants, redlining)
*Financial transactions (i.e. loans)
*Access to vote
*Targeting by law enforcement

I'm not all that bothered by someone from another race calling me names, not liking me, etc. etc. Just don't stand in the way of my pursuit for Life, Liberty and Happiness.
 
OneEyedDiva said:
The past is a big part of why racism exists in this country and is still perpetrated. You can't fully get rid of a tree if you leave it's roots alone. It will spring up again. So the bogging down is necessary. People flee from the history of racism because as they say "Truth hurts". There's a psychology behind it. Shove it under the rug, put ones' head in the sand and it will go away. Don't bother with it because that's in the past. Well for Black people, the past keeps rearing it's ugly head, so we can't "forget" it. One thing that has always amazed me and angers me at the same time...never once have I heard someone say to the Jews..."why do you keep bringing up the holocaust?" Why can't you just forget about it?" Not once!
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Oh Believe me Diva they Do, ... and they do it a lot, there's an astonishing population of Holocaust deniers and anti Semitic propagandists out there , and or those who get angry at the Jewish race for raising the topic of the holocaust.. and try to stem , and quieten them, by insisting they move on and forget.

we get many documentaries on the subject on tv here... and it's raised a lot in the media also.....

Since the denial of holocaust became a criminal offence in 16 countries, mainly Europe, but including the USA and Australia,.. and in some of those countries punishable by imprisonment, but not the UK or USA or Australia, but in some countries people have been instead using the ''get over it card '' instead,... which of course is not against any laws..
... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legality_of_Holocaust_denial

Some people may be interested to know that in Spain it's not illegal to deny the holocaust but it's punishable with imprisonment of up to 20 years if anyone is to Justify the holocaust or any other type of Genocide..
 
hollydolly said:
Oh Believe me Diva they Do, ... and they do it a lot, there's a an astonishing population of Holocaust deniers and anti Semitic propagandists out there , and or those who get angry at the Jewish race for raising the topic of the holocaust.. and try to stem , and quieten them, by insisting they move on and forget.

we get many documentaries on the subject on tv here... and it's raised a lot in the media also.....

Since the denial of holocaust became a criminal offence in 16 countries, mainly Europe, but including the USA and Australia,.. and in some of those countries punishable by imprisonment, but not the UK or USA or Australia, but in some countries people have been instead using the ''get over it card '' instead,... which of course is not against any laws..
... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legality_of_Holocaust_denial

Some people may be interested to know that in Spain it's not illegal to deny the holocaust but it's punishable with imprisonment of up to 20 years if anyone is to Justify the holocaust or any other type of Genocide..
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Well, you know of it but as I stated, I personally never heard anyone say it. And I don't think anyone should. I am very aware of anti-semitism that exists in this country though. Same idiots and bigots that hate Black people. Thank you for the link, i'll check it out.
 
Nosy Bee-54 said:
Personally, I think racism is based on "Does it injure the individual or group?"

Especially in these categories:

*Jobs
*Housing (i.e. covenants, redlining)
*Financial transactions (i.e. loans)
*Access to vote
*Targeting by law enforcement

I'm not all that bothered by someone from another race calling me names, not liking me, etc. etc. Just don't stand in the way of my pursuit for Life, Liberty and Happiness.
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Agree here and I'll add ....... special considerations should not exist either.

Afirmative action, EEOC ....... etc.
 
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