Racism and America

[Bond]

Well, I suppose it depends upon how you are forming your own view on racism. If you are basing your opinion on mainstream national news, I would agree that race is still a prominent issue in our society. If you are basing your opinion on first hand experience of living in different parts of the country, then I think you might draw a different conclusion.

We will obviously never completely move beyond racism, but I do believe our generation is, more or less, beyond racism. Not beyond classism. And perhaps not beyond sexism.

I've lived in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Wisconsin throughout my life. I have also traveled fairly extensively throughout the South. I have not traveled or lived for an extended period of time in the West or Mountain region of our country, but from my experience living in the Northeast, Midwest, and South, I do believe we have moved, or at least moving beyond racism. There will always be pockets, there will always be more racism in the South due to extenuating circumstances, but I believe we've made much progress.

What can I say? I'm an optimist.

[Happydude]

Originally Posted by Bond

Well, I suppose it depends upon how you are forming your own view on racism. If you are basing your opinion on mainstream national news, I would agree that race is still a prominent issue in our society. If you are basing your opinion on first hand experience of living in different parts of the country, then I think you might draw a different conclusion.

We will obviously never completely move beyond racism, but I do believe our generation is, more or less, beyond racism. Not beyond classism. And perhaps not beyond sexism.

I've lived in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Wisconsin throughout my life. I have also traveled fairly extensively throughout the South. I have not traveled or lived for an extended period of time in the West or Mountain region of our country, but from my experience living in the Northeast, Midwest, and South, I do believe we have moved, or at least moving beyond racism. There will always be pockets, there will always be more racism in the South due to extenuating circumstances, but I believe we've made much progress.

What can I say? I'm an optimist.

I would have to agree with Bond here...i think our generation as compared to past generations has improved greatly when it comes to racial matters. I believe (or would like to believe) that future generations will eventually fade out racism completely if this issue continues to advance at the rate it is now. I mean only decades ago were black people (not just african-americans, but rather ALL black people) were being used as slaves for generations. So the progress is staggering now as compared to before, and i would like it to proceed at the same rate, or faster even.

I would say the same could be said about sexism. Classism, however, is a completely different story and will never change. It existed 10,000 years ago, 2000 years ago, exists today, and will continue to exist in the future as it is human nature to classify people from poor to rich. Now, the same point - human nature - could be argued about racism and sexism, but the fact that those two 'isms' have actually changed, drastically mind you, within the past 75 years would, IMO, invalidate that argument.

just my $0.02

[BreakABone]

I guess it depends on how you see racism I guess.

While I would say it is not as outwardly shown in this day and age, you still find people who are distrustful of a certain race or group of people.

I can still go in a store in this day and age and get followed around because it is expected of us to steal or something.

I still know people fear me when wear a hood even if it is just to cover my head from the cold.

And well working where I work, I find that Jewish people are still untrusting of a lot of people. I don't want to make a generalization on all of them. But I flat out once had a resident tell me she was disgusted that she had to eat off of plates and forks that non-Jews used.

[Teuthida]

Originally Posted by BreakABone

And well working where I work, I find that Jewish people are still untrusting of a lot of people. I don't want to make a generalization on all of them. But I flat out once had a resident tell me she was disgusted that she had to eat off of plates and forks that non-Jews used.

I could see that. Dunno about the folks where you work but the really religious ones go to yeshivahs where all they come in contact with are other Jewish kids. Segregation sucks. Although an orthodox friend of my mother's daughter did drop out of school, dye her hair blue, then shave it, got a tattoo (which is forbidden) and gave up her dreams of being a vetenarian to work in a bike shop...so there's hope yet for some.

I live in one of the most diverse areas of NYC...according to wikipedia...and a lot of the time I'm the only white guy around. Sometimes I get weird looks...but that might just be because according to my girlfriend I dress like a mugger.

When I was younger (and not as pale as I am now) I usually got mistaken for being Hispanic. My first girlfriend who was Filipino seemed geniunely disappointed to learn I wasn't Puerto Rican like she originally thought I was.

I do have a Chinese friend who I'm sad to say is a bit racist towards non white and non Asian folks...well, towards less Americanized Asian people too.

My roommate from college was extremely self-conscious about people thinking of him as a terrorist for how he looked.

So yeah, racism isn't gone.

EDIT: Just remembered another. I was in LA about three years ago and while driving around three mosques were pointed out that were vandalized with broken windows and racist graffiti. So racism isn't tucked away in a few pockets of America. It's everywhere, even where folks are suppose to be the most liberal.

[Professor S]

I think we need to be realistic and look at racism through the prism of history.

Is racism gone? Of course not, but it never will be. Ever. Our brains cannot process every individual we meet or face we see separately, and it must group individuals by categories to allow for cognitive thought. They are called "social schemas". That doesn't mean that we are all destined to be clansmen, it just means that we will always group people together who look or act similarly, and we will always prefer to be around people like ourselves. Just look around at a high school lunchroom if you don;t believe me.

The key is that we have come a long way as a world culture in rejecting malicious racism; the habit of lumping all of the worlds ills on one group or another. is it gone? No, but the fact that a black man is about to win the Presidency says a lot about how our group mind has changed.

I think America has changed enough that racism across the world has become the true issue. Anti-semitism is rampant throughout europe and the middle east, and entire ethnic groups have almost been wiped out in Africa and Eastern Europe in just the past decade or so. Several nations still allow slavery.

America is not the home of racism anymore, and quite honestly, it never was the sole source as you might have been made to believe.