What is your definition of racism?

[Tambora]

Sorry, but that's hogwash.

The impediments that dark-skinned men and women have to overcome economically and socially to gain any sort of power in this culture are far greater than those of light-skinned people. And this mantra of "personal responsibility" is just society's way of blaming the victims. We build a wall so high that only a very few people of color can manage to scale it and then we use the fact that a few do manage to scale it as an excuse for ignoring the wall we've created to keep most of them pushed to the furthest margins of society. And then we use that marginalization as an excuse to blame them for not wanting to "fit into" mainstream society.

Then we blame them when they get angry about all of this. Or when they become hopeless. Because nothing is ever "whitey's" fault. Nothing is ever "whitey's" responsibility. Even though "whitey" controls all the levers of power, and of wealth, and of cultural expression in this society.

I think your statement is hogwash.

I don't think those that are successful and accomplished should have to "hold off" or stop pushing for excellence until the rest can catch up with them just so things will appear more equal.

 

[Catholic Crusader]

Is racism really a bad thing? Seriously. If a person likes to hangout with their own race, as long as they bear no ill will towards other races, is that really so horrible? Think about that before you give me a knee-jerk angry response.

 

[musterion]

Just had a great conversation with an old Navy vet like myself. He was in around the same time I was. Said in boot he had to take a remedial swim class. Everybody sitting in the bleachers in the class was black. He truly believes this general aversion to swimming is an indication of some genetic feature of black folks.

PC says it is racist for any white person to simply observe that black people certainly can but typically don't like to swim. Is it racist?

 

[Crucible]

I think your statement is hogwash.

I don't think those that are successful and accomplished should have to "hold off" or stop pushing for excellence until the rest can catch up with them just so things will appear more equal.

If anything, such a notion is just supportive of racism. Racism is the notion that some races are better than others- so it's like they are admitting what they are against if another race has to slow down so the other can be equal :freak:



:mock: The 1st World

 

[gcthomas]

Just had a great conversation with an old Navy vet like myself. He was in around the same time I was. Said in boot he had to take a remedial swim class. Everybody sitting in the bleachers in the class was black. He truly believes this general aversion to swimming is an indication of some genetic feature of black folks.

PC says it is racist for any white person to simply observe that black people certainly can but typically don't like to swim. Is it racist?

It is more likely that since blacks are concentrated in the poorer sectors of society then either social or financial factors prevented them getting access to swimming pools. Proposing the idea of genetic causes are little more than antiscientific post-hoc justifications of their own racist feelings.

 

[Tambora]

If anything, such a notion is just supportive of racism. Racism is the notion that some races are better than others- so it's like they are admitting what they are against if another race has to slow down so the other can be equal :freak:

That's kinda what has happened.
The bar of excellence keeps being lowered.
When schools started grading on a curve, things went downhill.
All it did was give some kids straight As that really were not straight A students.

 

[MarcATL]

Is racism really a bad thing? Seriously. If a person likes to hangout with their own race, as long as they bear no ill will towards other races, is that really so horrible? Think about that before you give me a knee-jerk angry response.

WWJD?

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[MarcATL]

Lets get your definition of that, first.

See my previous posts.

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[MarcATL]

I think your statement is hogwash.

I don't think those that are successful and accomplished should have to "hold off" or stop pushing for excellence until the rest can catch up with them just so things will appear more equal.

No one mentioned or even suggested anything about "holding back" anyone that's currently successful.

How the heck you calculated that?

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[ok doser]

unfortunately, for many people, this is the face of black america:

and not this:

Spoiler

 

[MarcATL]

Just had a great conversation with an old Navy vet like myself. He was in around the same time I was. Said in boot he had to take a remedial swim class. Everybody sitting in the bleachers in the class was black. He truly believes this general aversion to swimming is an indication of some genetic feature of black folks.

PC says it is racist for any white person to simply observe that black people certainly can but typically don't like to swim. Is it racist?

What about Caribbean folks? We swim like fishes. How do you calculate that?

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[ok doser]

What about Caribbean folks? We swim like fishes. How do you calculate that?

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i was pondering that

for urban black americans, access to swimming opportunities usually means municipal swimming pools, as the rivers that flow through most cities are not fit for recreation

for those blacks who have access to clean rivers or beaches, I would suspect a higher degree of swimming ability


it would make an interesting study


do you have any idea how prevalent recreational swimming is in africa?

 

[The Berean]

Did anyone watch the video I posted?

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[The Berean]

i was pondering that

for urban black americans, access to swimming opportunities usually means municipal swimming pools, as the rivers that flow through most cities are not fit for recreation

for those blacks who have access to clean rivers or beaches, I would suspect a higher degree of swimming ability


it would make an interesting study


do you have any idea how prevalent recreational swimming is in africa?

In competitive swimming having access to elite swim clubs and coaching is crucial for success. And this is expensive. There are probably lots of black kids that have talent for swimming but can't afford joining a swim club.

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[ok doser]

Did anyone watch the video I posted?

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i did, and commented on it

in the other thread which was closed :noid:

"racism presupposes the ability to control a significant segment of the population economically, politically and socially by imposing law, covenant and restriction on their lives" I can't do any of that stuff heck, I don't even know what some of it is therefore, I'm not racist!

 

[ok doser]

In competitive swimming having access to elite swim clubs and coaching is crucial for success. And this is expensive. There are probably lots of black kids that have talent for swimming but can't afford joining a swim club.

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i was fortunate enough to spend summers on a river that was/is clean enough to drink - i spent whole summers as a kid wearing nothing but a bathing suit and a t-shirt - hated putting shoes on in the fall

 

[The Berean]

i did, and commented on it

in the other thread which was closed :noid:

"racism presupposes the ability to control a significant segment of the population economically, politically and socially by imposing law, covenant and restriction on their lives" I can't do any of that stuff heck, I don't even know what some of it is therefore, I'm not racist!

No, that video. p: The one I posted yesterday. The filmmaker asked people if racism exists everyday? Then he asks them to give an example or racism that they witnessed. Their answers were intetesting.

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[ok doser]

This is a reall interesting video. The filmmaker interviewed a group of people to ask them about the definition of "racism" and to give examples of racism they have witnessed or encountered. It's really interesting.

i may watch it later - too long for right now, i got painting to get to :wave2:


bought me one of these bad boys! :banana:

 

[The Berean]

i may watch it later - too long for right now, i got painting to get to :wave2:

It's worth watching.

bought me one of these bad boys! :banana:

Sweet! A man's tool. K:

 

[PureX]

I think your statement is hogwash.

I don't think those that are successful and accomplished should have to "hold off" or stop pushing for excellence until the rest can catch up with them just so things will appear more equal.

Clearly, you didn't understand a word of what I wrote, because it had nothing to do with waiting for anyone to catch up.

Society is like high school, with the elite clique of pretty, rich, white kids getting all the advantages, and all the accolades, and all the attention. Except for a couple of exceptional kids who were't born into this clique, but that manage to excel enough to get some of those advantages and accolades, too. While everyone else is pretty much being left out of the "success party", to make their way as best they can.

And when those pretty, rich, white kids grow up and go out into the world they will be in charge of everything, because they were given every advantage and it will have been easy for them to succeed, and make it to the levers of power. Those few very extraordinary "regular kids" will probably do well, too, because they are exceptionally able and driven to succeed. While all the rest of the kids will end up at various levels of servitude,from management down to the lowest laborer.

And when those pretty, rich, white kids become pretty, rich, white bosses they will have pretty, rich, white children, who will take their place in the special clique of the advantaged kids. And the cycle will continue on. Because this is the power and the path of privilege. This is how success is made very easy to achieve for some, while it's made very difficult for others.

In America, we like to imagine that we are not a class-conscious society. Or a color conscious society. Yet these privileged cliques are almost always made up of pretty, rich, white people, whatever their context, and by every measure of success. Because we are lying to ourselves about this. We are a class based society and a class based economy, and the stratification runs exactly along racial lines. We just don't want to see it.