Can we PLEASE talk about Racism?

Skarekrow said:
There are fucking psychos on both sides…the problem though is very one-sided.
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I think that the concept of sides is part of the problem.
 
I am simply here to say this: I refuse to engage in discussions which clearly indicate that despite many advances in technology, this species still resorts to its pathetically primitive racial instincts whenever a significant event occurs. No matter what the event may be, somebody, at least SOMEBODY will identify it as a reinforcement of racial hatred. Nowadays it is used as an excuse for very profitable reasons (Take the so-called 'Rev.' Al Sharpton as a prime example). People can be racist, but for fuck sakes, if we are ever going to end racism, we must stop identifying the division between the colours of people's skin entirely. Now, repeat after me....

I am not a white man. My friend is not a black man. I am a human. My friend is a human.

If everybody had this mindset, racism would not exist. Now let us all stop whining, stop looking for someone to blame and discuss something more relevant to what rational humans should discuss.

Usually, people that claim to be 'anti-racist' and the most 'progressive' types are usually some of the most racist and regressive people commenting on such topics. They make a living out of talking about how racism still exists, and that somebody must always be blamed for it that also happens to be somebody of an opposing colour of skin, without realising the almost racist irony in such generalizing statements. Just like religion, somebody will always find an excuse to spread their contempt and hatred based on bigoted principles. These attitudes displaying 'Us' and 'Them' IS the problem.
 
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[MENTION=13855]JJJA[/MENTION] and [MENTION=4598]hush[/MENTION] make valid points.

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There is talking about it, and then there is actually doing something about it. It starts with us.
 
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Well, I guess there is no more racism…good job.
 
Especially a good job to those who don’t live in the US and only have a half an actual picture of the real situation.
 
I’m sorry, but if you don’t think that racism is still a problem, then that’s just dandy for you and your rose-colored glasses.
This country was built on slavery, and then when that was outlawed we enslaved people in chain gangs…still slaves…now we have the MOST incarcerated country in the world, the majority of whom are black.
There are clear statistics that show blacks not only get stopped more often (though white were more likely to be carrying drugs), but then they receive longer and harsher sentences.

If you don’t believe that it exists then you live on another fucking planet.
 
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"Rose-colored glasses"? I don't think so. [MENTION=4598]hush[/MENTION] [MENTION=13855]JJJA[/MENTION] [MENTION=13729]Free2be[/MENTION] are not racist people at all. On the contrary in fact. Nor do they live on some other planet. Same planet that you live on. They actually want to change the world and instead of just blab out their asses DO something about it. What have you done other than post nasty comments when someone tries to offer a different perspective?

Look, I have dealt with this shit my entire life. I am Japanese/Peruvian married to a blacker than black man who grew up on the streets of LA. I know first-hand about racism and what it does to people, not just blacks. You are automatically putting a label on it and calling it Back against White. He and I lived through so much hate. SO MUCH. But within our own communities.

That's right... within our OWN communities. I was thankful for the police, they saved me from the thugs of our neighborhood more than once. And if you lived anywhere near Compton or Inglewood yourself, you might understand a little bit more.

People act very different when they are in the lower class or poverty level of society. And I know that's going to prompt another respose from you saying that the white man is still keeping the black man down in regards to that. Bullshit. Hubs grew up in the projects, mom on welfare, dad on crack. Siblings out the ass because they can't practice birth control (actually get more from welfare the more kids they have btw, a point I never see brought up here. No reason at all to have 6+ kids when you can't take care of yourself. No reason except to collect more on welfare.)

Guess what, hubs got himself out of the projects and educated through all the wonderful scholarships that are meant for people just like him. Poor, black, uneducated. Being in a poverty loop is not a death sentence. If you are too lazy to get yourself out of that loop then you fucking belong in it. My husband did and so did most of his siblings.
Now we live in Washington, have a beautiful home, 3 gorgeous kids who are of mixed race, and we are happy and live in a wonderful community, and guess what I see here? More white people that are at the poverty level and getting arrested. Why? Because that's the majority at the poverty level here.
That was just one black-man's story. I'll save mine for another time.

Don't tell me this country is still racist! These things you post, look where they are coming from. Look at the media who is bringing this "news" to us. THEY are the ones being racist and you are too by buying their bullshit. You constantly feeding into the media that labels what is racist and what isn't is feeding into racism itself and still fueling it! Can't you see that?! Change happens in this world through your actions and your children's actions. Through activism. You think this thread qualifies as that? Nope. DO something, don't just post and then bitch at other people just because they have a different insight at something that your're passionate about.

I understand you want things to change, so do all of us. But COME ON. Calling other forum members out because they challenged you or gave a different perspective? BULLSHIT. I know [MENTION=13729]Free2be[/MENTION] very well, she is also of mixed race, and she is actually active in her activism and not online, in the REAL WORLD. Perhaps you need to open your eyes and figure what planet you are from and decide to either be an armchair social justice warrior, or a warrior for your community.
 
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Yeah, I think my post might have been misinterpreted, a little. Of course racism still exists, not just here in the US but around the globe. What stood out to me and what I was trying to address was the comment of "both sides." It created a binary, but racism exists in many forms and against many people.

And when I hear the word "sides," in my mind I see an image of humanity standing on opposite sides of the street, divided. So, what I meant, is that if there is to be any progress, that can be a harmful thought; if there's to be any progress, we have to work together, as a community, hand in hand.

I grew up in and around Detroit, and my eyes and mind are open, of course I can see that racism exists, is a gross injustice, and devastates lives. It baffles my mind when people insist it's no longer a problem.

It's because I see it, because I know it, because every time I see it and how f*cked up it is (in all its forms, from institutionalized racism to acts of violence and hate perpetrated by an individual or individuals), that I mentioned what I did about sides. I hope that makes sense. The idea of coming together - if there is to be any hope for change.
 
Misadventure said:
Don't tell me this country is still racist! These things you post, look where they are coming from. Look at the media who is bringing this "news" to us. THEY are the ones being racist and you are too by buying their bullshit. You constantly feeding into the media that labels what is racist and what isn't is feeding into racism itself and still fueling it! Can't you see that?! Change happens in this world through your actions and your children's actions. Through activism. You think this thread qualifies as that? Nope. DO something, don't just post and then bitch at other people just because they have a different insight at something that your're passionate about.
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Agreed. The media are the ones drawing the racial lines and people buy into it. The media label things that they know will get attention. They know the sensitive areas of society and will pull on the heart strings of their viewers/ readers to ignite the public. And not necessarily in positive and productive ways. Why can't a story be about "a man who committed a crime" instead of "A black man was arrested by a white cop." Seriously. [MENTION=13723]Misadventure[/MENTION] is absolutely right in that racism affects all races, not just black and white. And not just here in the US. The more we buy into what the media pumps out and deems noteworthy, the more we victimize ourselves. I will not be a victim of society.

We, not as a society but as humans, need to stop drawing racial lines between everything. Placing people on one side or another instead of grouping people into a whole. It's senseless and I agree that it does nothing more than continue to divide us as human beings. It fuels the fires of hate. It breeds and spreads more hate. Those who claim to fight for equality are in fact guilty of further dividing us all; placing us into categories like race, social class, tax bracket, political party, etc. The choice of which category to put yourself in is a choice for the individual, not for society as a whole.

I would love to wake up to the news one day and hear, "A man was arrested last night..." Instead of "A black/white/latino man was arrested last night.." When I say it starts with us, I mean exactly that. If WE as a WHOLE choose not to draw racial lines and not to buy into the bs of those that do, it will no longer be about race.
 
I don't desire to say much on this thread, but I will say this. Growing up in the south, I've noticed some people have some racist tendencies, but not everyone here does. My grandparents would never admit it, but they have made some comments about people of minority races that my dad has privately called them out on for being racist. And it drives me crazy. I really don't wanna waste my time listening to their bullshit. For example, a lot of the musicians at my church, including the music pastor, are black and recently our music pastor got engaged to his girlfriend who is white. I personally see no problem with it. But my grandma started ranting to me about it one day and all I could really do is just sit there and wait for her to shut up and get off of her soap box. So I will say that yes, some racism still exists in our country, but from my experience I've noticed it more in older people so if the news media were to stop spreading the hate like [MENTION=13729]Free2be[/MENTION] said then over time I could see it becoming less and less of a problem in our country.
 
If you had noticed many of my previous posts in this thread were not just black vs white.

White privilege was built into the very systems that we are all subjected to.

I’m not assuming that everyone is racist and if that is how you took it then perhaps you need some soul searching.

I agree that the media blows it out of proportion in almost every case because it’s ‘good news” according to them, and that yes, they are part of the divide.

I’m not talking about Bubba Joe Bob flying his southern colors from his trailer and spouting his mouth about minorities.

I’m specifically talking about the systems that we have here, that single out minorities wrongfully targeting them (and yes of course all the police aren’t corrupt I’ve worked with many of those police officers at shootings and what not as a Paramedic).

I’m not pointing fingers at this or that group…I am posting stories that show the injustices that still exist.
And how are we going to do anything about if we don’t even know it’s going on?

I could give a fuck what people post in regards to their own opinion….just back it up with factual information and we will all be happy.
 
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@Misadventure

Through activism. You think this thread qualifies as that? Nope. DO something, don't just post and then bitch at other people just because they have a different insight at something that your're passionate about.
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If people think I don’t do actual activism IRL you don’t know me at all.
Stop making misinformed assumptions about who I am and how I think and what I do or don’t do with myself.
I grew up in a city that was 80% hispanic 10% black and 10% white and other.
Most of the time I was the minority…and I know that isn’t the same, but I see the injustices.
My SO is also mixed race.
 
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And for fucks sake…seriously? @JJJA

You honestly think that I am racist myself and this is some kind of subconscious reckoning I’m making with my soul?

Sorry, if I was too sarcastic for you and some of the others, but that is how I am.

I agree that there are people perpetrating racism on ALL sides of the issue…for many races.

This issue will not go away unless it is addressed….but then when someone addresses it then all of the sudden they are -
"people that claim to be 'anti-racist' and the most 'progressive' types are usually some of the most racist and regressive people commenting on such topics."
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That's cognitively dissonate.
That statement is your subjective opinion and not factual.

It makes no sense to start a thread discussing racism and possible solutions if I were racist.

Also I don’t appreciate the condescending “We are all humans” speech…no shit…you would be surprised if you could spend a moment in my head at just how even the playing field is.
 
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So then the catch-22 is if I discuss racism still existing then I get attacked for perpetrating the divide.
This couldn’t be further from how I feel.

Lame.
 
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I guess these are all just made up...




African-Americans comprise only 13% of the U.S. population and 14% of the monthly drug users, but are 37% of the people arrested for drug-related offenses in America.

Studies show that police are more likely to pull over and frisk blacks or Latinos than whites.

In New York City, 80% of the stops made were blacks and Latinos, and 85% of those people were frisked, compared to a mere 8% of white people stopped.

After being arrested, African-Americans are 33% more likely than whites to be detained while facing a felony trial in New York.

In 2010, the U.S. Sentencing Commission reported that African Americans receive 10% longer sentences than whites through the federal system for the same crimes.

In 2009 African-Americans are 21% more likely than whites to receive mandatory minimum sentences and 20% more likely to be sentenced to prison than white drug defendants.

In a 2009 report, 2/3 of the criminals receiving life sentences were non-whites.
In New York, it is 83%.

African Americans make up 57% of the people in state prisons for drug offenses.

The U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics concluded that an African American male born in 2001 has a 32% chance of going to jail in his lifetime, while a Latino male has a 17% chance, and a white male only has a 6% chance.

In 2012, 51% of Americans expressed anti-black sentiments in a poll; a 3% increase from 2008.

A survey in 2011 revealed that 52% of non-Hispanic whites expressed anti-Hispanic attitudes.

Reports show that nearly 50% of Americans under 18 are minorities.
The trend projects a reversal in the population where by 2030, the majority of people under 18 will be of color, and by 2042 nonwhites will be the majority of the U.S. population.


Sources



 
The statistics: White officers kill black suspects twice a week in the United States, or an average of 96 times a year.

Those are the findings of a USA Today analysis of seven years of FBI data, which claims around a quarter of the 400 annual deaths reported to federal authorities by local police departments were white-on-black shootings.

What's more, the analysis indicates that 18% of the black suspects were under the age of 21 when killed by the police, as opposed to just 8.7% of white suspects.
 
I don’t post those statistics to “whine” about the state of things.
I post them so that those who have their head in the fucking sand will wake up and make a difference IRL.
 
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