Racism... yeah.
Sep. 18th, 2007 09:01 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jan_andreaI posted this in reply to an entry in another person's livejournal. I'm not sure whether to keep her as an LJ friend or not, because honestly, any person who could agree with what she posted, I'm not terribly comfortable having an association with. I mean, on a purely superficial, emotional level, I can see that the text might appeal, sort of, but Jesus, think about it for 30 seconds and it's clear how misguided the sentiment is. I won't link to her because I don't want to embarrass her, but if she choses to unfriend me I will do likewise. I will wait to see if she replies to me before unfriending her.
There's a great series of rebuttals here: http://message.snopes.com/showthread.php?t=5780
but I had to write my own in her journal. I was rather appalled to see that I was the lone voice of dissent in the replies. Here's what I said:
I guess I'll be the voice of dissent and say that yeah, I do find that pretty racist. I'm about as white as white gets (lots northern European ancestry) but honestly, if you're white, you have an entire history of privilege that works in your favor. Minority scholarships are there *because* of the history. It's only been 40 years since segregation ended officially (less than that, in some places), and as much as many people would love to think that 40 years is enough time for people to work their way up from the slums that white Americans stuck them in, it's really not. Not at all. Not even close.
There's no "caucasian" scholarship because honestly, white people don't need the leg up, because in this country (I assume you're in the US), we've been the ones in power, the ones oppressing other people. It's because of the oppression that ended SO recently (within a lifetime) that minority scholarships are necessary. If someone gave you a scholarship because you are a woman, would you complain? I'd be surprised. Yet the woman-only scholarships exist because until the 1970s, women weren't allowed the same educational opportunities that men had. It's the same with minorities. Until very recently, people of color were not allowed the same opportunities. Even now, schools in minority areas are almost universally inferior to those in white areas.
Is that okay with you?
Granted, I don't like racism in either direction. Racial slurs are wrong no matter who says them. "Honkey", for example, is no more acceptable, IME, than any other offensive comment. But I think it's a bit much to say that no one cares if you're called "honkey" or "cracker" or whatever. Most people -- people of color included -- find that offensive. And even if they didn't, that doesn't make racial slurs against other people less offensive.
I'm not fond of the "_____-American" designation, myself. I guess I'd be a Canadian American, since I was born in Canada, or if you want to go back a few generations, European-American. I think that's pretty silly. But in a sea of white faces, can you, perhaps, understand how minority populations might want to retain some link to what they feel is their point of origin, or rally around a common trait, because otherwise, they're just a lone brown face in a white crowd? Have you ever belonged to an organization that was based on a common trait, even if it was just the Girl Scouts? When you're in a minority, sometimes you want to be with other people who are like you... who you know are not going to automatically assume that because you're Mexican, you must be lazy, or if you're black, you're good at basketball or are promiscuous, or any of the thousands of stereotypes that white people have against other races.
This isn't about them vs. us. It's about a history of us oppressing them. What would you do if you were black in a majority white area? Or one of only a few women in your college class? It's natural for people to band together along lines of similarity.
What's racist is to claim that everyone really does get treated equally in the US. That's still not the case, and I'm guessing it won't be for another generation or two, because there's still so much hate. And messages like this don't do a damned thing to resolve it; they just stir it up more. Us vs. them. White vs. black. Doesn't make it any better.
I'm not proud to be white. And if I were black, I don't think I'd be proud to be black, either. Same if I were Chinese, Ethiopian, or any other ethnicity or regionality. I'm not proud to have brown hair, or hazel eyes, or that I wear glasses. My skin color, like all those other characteristics, is just something that *is*. It's not something I had any control over. I'm proud to be a mother of two lovely kids, proud that I built my own business, proud of my sewing, proud that I play the violin. These are things that I chose for myself and that I work hard at. These are things to be proud of. I'd be proud to be a black doctor, or a Mexican lawyer, or a female astronaught -- those are things that are harder for minorities in the US because of the appalling history of racism and oppression that "proud white men" engendered. Skin color alone, though -- not a point of pride. Just something that *is* and should be *ignored* EXCEPT when considering history and its effect on the person's ability to get somewhere in the world. Other than that, a moot point.
Proud To Be White~~Someone finally said it.
How many are actually paying attention to this?
There are African Americans, Mexican Americans, Asian Americans, Arab Americans, Native Americans, etc. And then there are just Americans.
You pass me on the street and sneer in my direction. You Call me "White boy," "Cracker," "Honkey," "Whitey," "Caveman" .. And that's OK.
But when I call you Nigger, Kike, Towel head, Sand-nigger, Camel Jockey, Beaner, Gook, or Chink ... You call me a racist.
You say that whites commit a lot of violence against you, so why are the ghettos the most dangerous places to live?
You have the United Negro College Fund. You have Martin Luther King Day. You have Black History Month. You have Cesar Chavez Day. You Have Yom Hashoah You have Ma'uled Al-Nabi You have the NAACP. You have BET.
If we had WET (White Entertainment Television) . We'd be racists.
If we had a White Pride Day .. You would call us racists. If we had White History Month We'd be racists.
If we had any organization for only whites to "advance" OUR lives ..We'd be racists.
We have a Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, a Black Chamber of Commerce, and then we just have the plain Chamber of Commerce. Wonder who pays for that?
If we had a college fund that only gave white students scholarships ... You know we'd be racists. There are over 60 openly proclaimed Black Colleges in the US , yet if there were "White colleges" THAT would be a racist college.
In the Million Man March, you believed that you were marching for your race and rights. If we marched for our race and rights, you would call us racists.
You are proud to be black, brown, yellow and orange, and you're not afraid to announce it. But when we announce our white pride ... You call us racists.
You rob us, car jack us, and shoot at us. But, when a white police officer shoots a black gang member or beats up a black drug-dealer running from the law and posing a threat to society ... You call him a racist.
I am proud. But, you call me a racist. Why is it that only whites can be racists?
There is nothing improper about this e-mail. Let's see which of you are proud enough to send it on.
There's a great series of rebuttals here: http://message.snopes.com/showthread.php?t=5780
but I had to write my own in her journal. I was rather appalled to see that I was the lone voice of dissent in the replies. Here's what I said:
I guess I'll be the voice of dissent and say that yeah, I do find that pretty racist. I'm about as white as white gets (lots northern European ancestry) but honestly, if you're white, you have an entire history of privilege that works in your favor. Minority scholarships are there *because* of the history. It's only been 40 years since segregation ended officially (less than that, in some places), and as much as many people would love to think that 40 years is enough time for people to work their way up from the slums that white Americans stuck them in, it's really not. Not at all. Not even close.
There's no "caucasian" scholarship because honestly, white people don't need the leg up, because in this country (I assume you're in the US), we've been the ones in power, the ones oppressing other people. It's because of the oppression that ended SO recently (within a lifetime) that minority scholarships are necessary. If someone gave you a scholarship because you are a woman, would you complain? I'd be surprised. Yet the woman-only scholarships exist because until the 1970s, women weren't allowed the same educational opportunities that men had. It's the same with minorities. Until very recently, people of color were not allowed the same opportunities. Even now, schools in minority areas are almost universally inferior to those in white areas.
Is that okay with you?
Granted, I don't like racism in either direction. Racial slurs are wrong no matter who says them. "Honkey", for example, is no more acceptable, IME, than any other offensive comment. But I think it's a bit much to say that no one cares if you're called "honkey" or "cracker" or whatever. Most people -- people of color included -- find that offensive. And even if they didn't, that doesn't make racial slurs against other people less offensive.
I'm not fond of the "_____-American" designation, myself. I guess I'd be a Canadian American, since I was born in Canada, or if you want to go back a few generations, European-American. I think that's pretty silly. But in a sea of white faces, can you, perhaps, understand how minority populations might want to retain some link to what they feel is their point of origin, or rally around a common trait, because otherwise, they're just a lone brown face in a white crowd? Have you ever belonged to an organization that was based on a common trait, even if it was just the Girl Scouts? When you're in a minority, sometimes you want to be with other people who are like you... who you know are not going to automatically assume that because you're Mexican, you must be lazy, or if you're black, you're good at basketball or are promiscuous, or any of the thousands of stereotypes that white people have against other races.
This isn't about them vs. us. It's about a history of us oppressing them. What would you do if you were black in a majority white area? Or one of only a few women in your college class? It's natural for people to band together along lines of similarity.
What's racist is to claim that everyone really does get treated equally in the US. That's still not the case, and I'm guessing it won't be for another generation or two, because there's still so much hate. And messages like this don't do a damned thing to resolve it; they just stir it up more. Us vs. them. White vs. black. Doesn't make it any better.
I'm not proud to be white. And if I were black, I don't think I'd be proud to be black, either. Same if I were Chinese, Ethiopian, or any other ethnicity or regionality. I'm not proud to have brown hair, or hazel eyes, or that I wear glasses. My skin color, like all those other characteristics, is just something that *is*. It's not something I had any control over. I'm proud to be a mother of two lovely kids, proud that I built my own business, proud of my sewing, proud that I play the violin. These are things that I chose for myself and that I work hard at. These are things to be proud of. I'd be proud to be a black doctor, or a Mexican lawyer, or a female astronaught -- those are things that are harder for minorities in the US because of the appalling history of racism and oppression that "proud white men" engendered. Skin color alone, though -- not a point of pride. Just something that *is* and should be *ignored* EXCEPT when considering history and its effect on the person's ability to get somewhere in the world. Other than that, a moot point.
