Is being a racist really a big deal?

[Odyseas]

To be honest, everybody has a little bit of racism hidden in them. I don't believe that there's a single person out there who has never said (even when the other person wasn't listening) or thought of anything racist in his/her entire life. Anyway, Its not a big deal unless you make it a big deal. However, if you run around calling people stuff or if for example you choose to fire or not hire a guy/girl just because he/she is different than you are, well then yeah it is a big deal and you are an asshole.

[Loaf Lord]

I'm racist as hell. I'm also a minority. But I don't hate anyone over their race, and I certainly don't act different towards people based on color. But I will admit that if someone acts a certain way, I can say "it's because they're (race here)". It's really just an informal, shorthand version of me recognizing who someone is without going into the specifics and detail. It's a cultural, psychological, educational thing that makes people who they are, and it just so happens that often times people who have the same cultural, psychological, and educational experiences tend to be of the same color. Because most people of the same color stick around in the same environments, and thus they experience relatively the same thing. It's common sense, not racist. Racism is misunderstood, but I've given up on trying to get that idea across, so I'll just agree that sure, I'm racist.

Give this man the nobel prize!

[Odyseas]

just don't Google 'chupacabra porn'.

Damn it...

[jbombard]

Racism is a form of prejudice, which is always wrong because it both pre-judges a person based on limited information, and presumes things to be true whether they are or not.

However, STEREOTYPES are a valuable tool for quickly forming a frame of reference. There is nothing wrong with stereotyping as long as you do not let it become a prejudice. There's a difference.

However, the term 'Racism' has been so bastardized and dilluted by both sides of the political spectrum that the term no longer holds any meaning. Like the Little Boy Who Cried Wolf - people scream racism so often for such trivialities and minutea that it has become so much background static. Which is really a shame, because it makes instances of real racism and actual prejudice all that much harder to take seriously.

I think everybody is influenced by their experiences and their limited knowledge. If I were to meet 3 martians(going with something safe here) and all 3 of them tried to steal my wallet, my experiences would establish a bias towards not trusting martians. As a human being I have to go beyond that and be careful not to prejudge people based on my limited experience.

Let's also not confuse racism with statistics and biological facts. People of different races are biologically different. Japanese people have longer digestive tracts for example. Some races are more prone to certain diseases and conditions than others. We are in fact different. The thing is we need to look at each individual and judge them as an individual person based on who they are not on what the statistics or your previous limited experience may say.

[Spectral]

I admit I am culturally racist. I believe Western Civilization is superior to others and should be the paradigm towards which others aspire. So sue me.

That's not really "racist".

I agree though. We're doing it right.

[-Zait-]

I'm not saying it's genetically programmed into them (I surely hope no-one thinks that? lol) but to say blacks doesn't commit more murders than white people is ignoring facts. To say whites don't commit more pedophiliac (yea I made it up) acts is once again, ignoring the facts.

I hope you don't think I was implying if you are black you will inherently commit a murder compared to a white person. I'm simply saying statistically speaking black people commit more murders than white people, etc.

Slightly off-topic. I think its quite honestly hilarious how a black person can call another black "nigga" but if a white person did it, it's a whole different story.

I also think it's hilarious how a black person will call another black person "brotha" or "cuz". I guess it's just cultures, but still.

Man, when I read text of how I feel about these things I really am racist I guess... :-/

Yeah that's what I thought you were saying. And yeah I understand, statistically specific races do or are more prone to doing specific things, but like I said before, it's because of society, perception, and social issues.

[Wells]

That's not really "racist".

I agree though. We're doing it right.

Yeah that just judging a cultural system based on perceived merits.

its the difference between "WHITE PRIDE!" and "I believe Western Civilization's emphasis on personal liberty is the best model for a culture to be based on"

[alturic]

To be honest, everybody has a little bit of racism hidden in them. I don't believe that there's a single person out there who has never said (even when the other person wasn't listening) or thought of anything racist in his/her entire life. Anyway, Its not a big deal unless you make it a big deal. However, if you run around calling people stuff or if for example you choose to fire or not hire a guy/girl just because he/she is different than you are, well then yeah it is a big deal and you are an asshole.

The wonderful country we are in though, you get rewarded for hiring minorities. Silly, right? It's basically a form of (probably not even a word) anti-racist.

---------- Post added 2013-01-27 at 08:26 PM ----------

Yeah that's what I thought you were saying. And yeah I understand, statistically specific races do or are more prone to doing specific things, but like I said before, it's because of society, perception, and social issues.

So then realistically, you agree with me, that people who don't like their race being portrayed in a negative light have no-one to blame but their own race? Surely the white man isn't causing X race to commit murders. Surely the black man isn't cause a white man to touch little kids. See what I mean?

[Rocko9]

I'm racist as hell. I'm also a minority. But I don't hate anyone over their race, and I certainly don't act different towards people based on color. But I will admit that if someone acts a certain way, I can say "it's because they're (race here)". It's really just an informal, shorthand version of me recognizing who someone is without going into the specifics and detail. It's a cultural, psychological, educational thing that makes people who they are, and it just so happens that often times people who have the same cultural, psychological, and educational experiences tend to be of the same color. Because most people of the same color stick around in the same environments, and thus they experience relatively the same thing. It's common sense, not racist. Racism is misunderstood, but I've given up on trying to get that idea across, so I'll just agree that sure, I'm racist.

Not really racist, just stereotypical. Racist is outright saying one is greater than the other. Stereotypical is what us Mexicans refer to as being observant LOL

[Elegiac]

Yeah that just judging a cultural system based on perceived merits.

its the difference between "WHITE PRIDE!" and "I believe Western Civilization's emphasis on personal liberty is the best model for a culture to be based on"

We are sophisticated racists.

[TheSerialSniper]

I've done the forums things before on other sites and usually somewhere along the lines somebody will try to label me a racist. Over the years I've grown to accept it (dont really think I am though). I've never hurt somebody over race, hell I still hold a door open for somebody other than my race, I treat them absolutely the same irl but I am a lot more wary of some races compared to others. I guess what it stems down to is being a realist that acknowledges some races are prone to violence, drugs, and general mayhem. Don't really know what I'm trying to get out of this but I'm tired of others thinking racist people are bad. There is many degrees of racism, please don't lump all of us together and dismiss an individual so easily because he/she doesn't think like you.

What you just described is not racism, but prejudice. Being racist is terrible and alot of people do not realize the difference between the two, it is a HUGE difference.

Prejudice is unavoidable from what I have seen as most races are good at sticking towards their stereotypes thus legitimizing prejudice towards them. Prejudice does not have to be negative or positive. It is just prejudging people based on their race which I am sure most people do.

[jbombard]

The wonderful country we are in though, you get rewarded for hiring minorities. Silly, right? It's basically a form of (probably not even a word) anti-racist.

---------- Post added 2013-01-27 at 08:26 PM ----------



So then realistically, you agree with me, that people who don't like their race being portrayed in a negative light have no-one to blame but their own race? Surely the white man isn't causing X race to commit murders. Surely the black man isn't cause a white man to touch little kids. See what I mean?

It's not anti-racism, it's not reverse racism, it's racism. It exists to compensate for racism in job hiring, but if we truly desire a society where people coexist peacefully and skin color is no different than eye color or hair color, this type of thing has to go.

[oxymoronic]

I'm racist as hell. I'm also a minority. But I don't hate anyone over their race, and I certainly don't act different towards people based on color. But I will admit that if someone acts a certain way, I can say "it's because they're (race here)". It's really just an informal, shorthand version of me recognizing who someone is without going into the specifics and detail. It's a cultural, psychological, educational thing that makes people who they are, and it just so happens that often times people who have the same cultural, psychological, and educational experiences tend to be of the same color. Because most people of the same color stick around in the same environments, and thus they experience relatively the same thing. It's common sense, not racist. Racism is misunderstood, but I've given up on trying to get that idea across, so I'll just agree that sure, I'm racist.

Perfectly said. I totally understand what you mean here.

[Psilar]

I've done the forums things before on other sites and usually somewhere along the lines somebody will try to label me a racist. Over the years I've grown to accept it (dont really think I am though). I've never hurt somebody over race, hell I still hold a door open for somebody other than my race, I treat them absolutely the same irl but I am a lot more wary of some races compared to others. I guess what it stems down to is being a realist that acknowledges some races are prone to violence, drugs, and general mayhem. Don't really know what I'm trying to get out of this but I'm tired of others thinking racist people are bad. There is many degrees of racism, please don't lump all of us together and dismiss an individual so easily because he/she doesn't think like you.

I don't think you're racist. I live on the border of white suburbia and black slums. Me being wary of a black man is more a function of education, lack of good jobs, and drugs rather than the color of their skin.

It's unfortunate when a community is stricken by poverty, which often leads to poor education and higher drug use, and also predominantly one race. While I do tend to associate MY TOWN and race - I don't carry it around to other places and people I meet. This, I believe, is the difference between just knowing the town and people around you, and racism.

[Deleted]

I like whoever I want, just as I dislike whom I want to.
If people don't like what I don't like, why would I care? However I will not dislike you for disliking what I don't like.

[Psilar]

What you just described is not racism, but prejudice. Being racist is terrible and alot of people do not realize the difference between the two, it is a HUGE difference.

Prejudice is unavoidable from what I have seen as most races are good at sticking towards their stereotypes thus legitimizing prejudice towards them. Prejudice does not have to be negative or positive. It is just prejudging people based on their race which I am sure most people do.

Everyone does it. I feel our minds are actively taking what we have learned (a function of intelligence) and trying to apply it to people we meet. Having prejudice does not make you a bad person - it's the sum of what you know and it's your brain trying to apply it. It all comes down to how you treat people, mainly, kindness and respect.

[Wells]

We are sophisticated racists.

I think part of what makes something racist is if its devoid of rational merit.

"Black people are inferior" vs "Black people have a higher occurance of sickle cell"

I think if you're applying that to cultural analysis and staying out of judging cultures based on personal preference you're fine.

[Ebildays]

I'm not saying it's genetically programmed into them (I surely hope no-one thinks that? lol) but to say blacks doesn't commit more murders than white people is ignoring facts. To say whites don't commit more pedophiliac (yea I made it up) acts is once again, ignoring the facts.

I hope you don't think I was implying if you are black you will inherently commit a murder compared to a white person. I'm simply saying statistically speaking black people commit more murders than white people, etc.

Slightly off-topic. I think its quite honestly hilarious how a black person can call another black "nigga" but if a white person did it, it's a whole different story.

I also think it's hilarious how a black person will call another black person "brotha" or "cuz". I guess it's just cultures, but still.

Man, when I read text of how I feel about these things I really am racist I guess... :-/

You know that what you are saying is a statically impossible right? There are more white people than blacks and white people do murder people so therefore white people commit the most murders. In fact a white person has a higher chance of being murdered by another white person than they do a black person.

And what is with the obsession that some non-blacks have with being able to call black people "nigga". The word is not positive and just because some black use it in a positive way does not mean that all black people see it as a positive word.

[Elegiac]

I think part of what makes something racist is if its devoid of rational merit.

"Black people are inferior" vs "Black people have a higher occurance of sickle cell"

I think if you're applying that to cultural analysis and staying out of judging cultures based on personal preference you're fine.

I disagree; scientific racism. Technically speaking, you can rationalise almost anything.

[Shadowmelded]

We are sophisticated racists.

http://youtu.be/kg6CTFwOalc?t=29s

Move on up to class warfare!