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desertvixen I've been putting this off, trying to decide what to say.
While I think racism is wrong, I have a hard time arguing about it effectively. I argue about sexism much more effectively, but that's because I'v directly experienced it. When it comes to the race question, I have privilege on my side - I'm a white woman.
However, I'm also in the Army, which has been described as one of the few places in our society where black people routinely tell white people what to do. Specifically, I am in a signal unit, which is heavily not-white. I am, myself, a military intelligence soldier, which is a fairly white field. So the contrast hits me hard at times. I think in our unit that racism isn't a problem, but it could be that I just don't see it.
There is no doubt in my mind that we still have race issues in our country, and anyone who thinks we've gotten over it is deluding themselves.
It's pretty evident to me when I sit around a table where all the officers are white and all the non-commissioned officers (except for me) are black or Latino.
Or when I turn on the TV during football season and see a sport that is largely played by black men, largely led by white men, not just the quarterbacks, but the coaches, the owners, and the people who make the big decisions.
The playing field is not level, but racism is not the only issue. The other issue is poverty, which is largely linked to race. Those children lucky enough to be born to people with educations, good jobs, and good circumstances are likely to do better, for a number of reasons. It's easier to worry about developing your baby's mind when you don't have to worry about feeding your baby.
This is getting rambly and wandering, but the bottom line has to be: It exists. Our society still needs to work on it. Pretending everything is better will not fix the problem. Trying our best every day is the most we can do.
Let's work to make this an issue that really does go away for our children's generation.
DV
While I think racism is wrong, I have a hard time arguing about it effectively. I argue about sexism much more effectively, but that's because I'v directly experienced it. When it comes to the race question, I have privilege on my side - I'm a white woman.
However, I'm also in the Army, which has been described as one of the few places in our society where black people routinely tell white people what to do. Specifically, I am in a signal unit, which is heavily not-white. I am, myself, a military intelligence soldier, which is a fairly white field. So the contrast hits me hard at times. I think in our unit that racism isn't a problem, but it could be that I just don't see it.
There is no doubt in my mind that we still have race issues in our country, and anyone who thinks we've gotten over it is deluding themselves.
It's pretty evident to me when I sit around a table where all the officers are white and all the non-commissioned officers (except for me) are black or Latino.
Or when I turn on the TV during football season and see a sport that is largely played by black men, largely led by white men, not just the quarterbacks, but the coaches, the owners, and the people who make the big decisions.
The playing field is not level, but racism is not the only issue. The other issue is poverty, which is largely linked to race. Those children lucky enough to be born to people with educations, good jobs, and good circumstances are likely to do better, for a number of reasons. It's easier to worry about developing your baby's mind when you don't have to worry about feeding your baby.
This is getting rambly and wandering, but the bottom line has to be: It exists. Our society still needs to work on it. Pretending everything is better will not fix the problem. Trying our best every day is the most we can do.
Let's work to make this an issue that really does go away for our children's generation.
DV
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no subject
Date: 2007-08-12 02:10 am (UTC)I don't get it. I really really don't get it.
no subject
Date: 2007-08-12 11:38 pm (UTC)My cousin is mixed (black and white) and she is also gorgeous.
I also don't understand.
DV
no subject
Date: 2007-08-12 11:29 pm (UTC)That was the day after Labor Day. The week of Mid-Terms -- third week of January 91 -- Lij said i was the only person that first day that was nice to him, and that several kids -- the same little altar boys and choir girls, mind you, who had been $h!tt!ing on me for THE LAST 9.5 YEARS about being a drugged out psycho freak from the Retard Room whose Daddy wasn't a manager / engineer at the IBM semi-conductor manufacturing facility that is the only game in town -- had informed Lij that he had just better not get any fancy ideas about asking me out. To this day, I don't know if he went up for football and baseball because he wanted to play, or because athletics was the doorway to popularity in our town. By senior year, there were rumors he was gay, because he hadn't asked out the two -- TWO! -- black girls in our class. Both of whom were dating white guys, justohbytheway.
Essex Junction VT High School, Class of 1993: 288 kids. Five black kids -- and three of them were biracial; two Vietnamese refugees; two Pakistani immgrants; one Indian immigrant; one Korean adoptee; one Colombian adoptee, who was hideously embarrassed when he got a C in Spanish; one Native American. The rest of us were snow white.
The (all out-of-staters) students at UVM took over one of the campus buildings to protest the lack of diversity in VT. One of my classmates was turning herself inside out to incite the rest of us to action. I told her the reason there was a lack of diversity in VT was because it was too damn cold and there were no jobs! (IBM had begun ripping the rug out from under our parents, who had given 20-25-30 years of their lives to The Company.)
According to friends who still live there, the mayor of Burlington has declared it as a 'sanctuary city' for both undocumented immigrants and Katrina refugess. This man has obviously not experienced FORTY BELOW for weeks on end.
When we moved to Denver the picture flipped abruptly. The nickname my sister's 95% black/Latino 8th grade classmates gave her after less than a month? Little White Mouse.
My niece is half-Latino, and she has a grandfather who spends 99/44/100% of his time shouting at FoxNews. I cannot wait for the first time that adorable little girl realizes "Grandpa hates Mexicans. Wait a minute, *I'm* Mexican!" I want to SEE that old fool explain himself out of that one.
Music of the Moment: Kryptonite by 3 Doors Down
no subject
Date: 2007-08-12 11:41 pm (UTC)I cannot wait for the first time that adorable little girl realizes "Grandpa hates Mexicans. Wait a minute, *I'm* Mexican!" I want to SEE that old fool explain himself out of that one.
Some of them can change.
Some of them can't.
It depends on whether they want to make the change.
DV
no subject
Date: 2007-08-13 12:03 am (UTC)But oh, if anyone tries to tell *him* how *they* think *he* ought to run *his* life, according to how *they* see fit ... !!!!!!!
Music of the Moment: Lane's Theme (instrumental) by Bill Conti, from 8 Seconds soundtrack