Smithsonian: You Are Racist If...

[Sparko]

You don't have different explicit rights. You have different opportunities and implicit rights that are determined by your race and by the society into which you were born.

Surely you understand that a person born into poverty has fewer opportunities in life than a person born into wealth? Better education, better home, more access to special training, even to good food. That changes the outcome statistically. Sure, a few overcome the disadvantages - but most don't. Doesn't matter if you are white or black. But statistically more white people are on the positive end of that, and more black people are on the negative end of that. And that is 'built in' to our society and culture.

And what do I mean by implicit rights(or opportunities)? Keep in mind these are statistical in nature:

The right not to be arbitrarily stopped by police when driving at night.

The right to be given a warning instead of a citation

The right to not be prosecuted for a mistake

The right to be shown the best houses and neighborhoods by your realtor.

The right to a nice brand new and clean school with good teachers.

The right to be hired for a really good job

The right not to have the police called on you for 'loitering'

And so on.

Heck I don't have any of those rights! I wish I had a right to be hired for a really good job. I could use that one right now.

I was stopped arbitrarily by police before, in broad daylight. I was given a citation instead of a warning at least 3 times out of 5 stops.
And most realtors will show you whatever homes you ask for in whatever area you ask for or you find another realtor. And I have been in a few really crappy schools (government run no less, Army brat) and I was once chased of a bridge for loitering as a teen along with all of my white friends.

[Sparko]

Sure thing snowflake.

You are so precious.

[DivineOb]

You are so precious.

sparko_sparks.jpg

[Leonhard]

The slave holding states demanded that their slaves be counted in the general population when it came to Congressional representation (which is allotted by population size). The states without slaves (or very few) didn't think that was fair in that, among several reasons -- they were slaves who were denied any voice and were being used to increase the number of representatives slave holding states received (thereby increasing their power and allowing slavery to have spread far further than it was allowed during the 18th cent.).

It was one of the major grounds of contention during the crafting of the Constitution - and the result is the result of one of the biggest compromises and is known, appropriately IMHO, the Three-Fifths Compromise.

Slaves were never considered 3/5 of a person themselves, but rather only when allotting Congressional representation to the states, then, only 3/5 of the total number of slaves could be counted.

Why were any compromises made at all that allowed for slavery? The slave-holding states, especially Virginia and the Carolinas, were essential for the successful formation of a nation. It was a deal that would later result in a sea of blood being spilled during the Civil War roughly 70 years later.

If they were not free to vote the way they wanted then there was indeed a much deeper problem at play. Then, even though it explains this compromise, it is even worse.

[Sparko]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]46801[/ATTACH]

So that's why you go all OCD when someone points out your mistakes and you can't just admit them and say "sorry?"

[oxmixmudd]

Heck I don't have any of those rights! I wish I had a right to be hired for a really good job. I could use that one right now.

I was stopped arbitrarily by police before, in broad daylight. I was given a citation instead of a warning at least 3 times out of 5 stops.
And most realtors will show you whatever homes you ask for in whatever area you ask for or you find another realtor. And I have been in a few really crappy schools (government run no less, Army brat) and I was once chased of a bridge for loitering as a teen along with all of my white friends.

Statistical Sparko, statistical. Read more carefully.

And whether you realize it or not, the fact you are white has made you getting to where you are easier than if you had been born black, all other things being equal.

[DivineOb]

So that's why you go all OCD when someone points out your mistakes and you can't just admit them and say "sorry?"

Only when I didn't actually make a mistake. I pointed you to the tweet I saw and you can verify that it predates my post.

[Catholicity]

No - that is ridiculous. But that misconception is why most of you are up in arms about it.

And no, the racism in our society crosses all party and ideological lines. But a large proportion of those that are overtly racist align themselves much more closely with conservative politics (Republican or in some cases Libertarian) and are equally hostile to 'liberal' politics (Democrat) as you or many of those posting here.

You know, I am open to liberalism, especially from social standpoint. However there is a time when one has to realize that it's at an extreme. I can break down the chart one by one. It's also true that whites can be victims of reverse prejudice. And it's quite nasty when it does happen. I've seen black kids and heard black kids use just as many racial slurs if not more. Have you walked the halls of a public school in the last 10 years. Slurs are everywhere.

[oxmixmudd]

You know, I am open to liberalism, especially from social standpoint. However there is a time when one has to realize that it's at an extreme. I can break down the chart one by one. It's also true that whites can be victims of reverse prejudice. And it's quite nasty when it does happen. I've seen black kids and heard black kids use just as many racial slurs if not more. Have you walked the halls of a public school in the last 10 years. Slurs are everywhere.

Nothing wrong with what you say here. Hatred, racial prejudice crosses all lines. The difference wrt this thread is that the issue being addressed is the general social construct that keeps there from being actual equality across the board. Black people are just at a disadvantage overall in our society. And it owes its origin to slavery and racism in the past up to and including the present. This can and often does create resentment and hatred of white people by black people. White people are sometimes raised to hate black people, much more so especially in the past. Sometimes white people are just afraid of black people because there IS more crime in black neighborhoods and parts of town.

WE are all victims of it one way or another. Especially those of us that would really like it to be different, that would like everyone in the world to be completely color blind and for our society as a whole to realize MLK's dream where our whole society sees not a white person or a black person but just 'a person'.

As for 'liberalism' or 'conservatism', I'm both or neither. It just depends one what the topic is and who the audience is. When it comes to racism and AGW, I appear liberal on this website. When it comes to sexual morality I'd appear very conservative. When it comes to finances I'd also appear fairly conservative. I go with what I see as right, doesn't matter what the label for that is.

[rogue06]

If they were not free to vote the way they wanted then there was indeed a much deeper problem at play. Then, even though it explains this compromise, it is even worse.

Yes. It was called slavery.

And it was effectively a devil's bargain. But because of it and the efforts of many of those who signed the Declaration of Independence and/or the Constitution, slavery was largely kept from spreading into the Midwest. Without it I fear abolition would have been much tougher than it was.

[seanD]

Statistical Sparko, statistical. Read more carefully.

And whether you realize it or not, the fact you are white has made you getting to where you are easier than if you had been born black, all other things being equal.

Once again, translation: "It's easier for you because you're white, and whites are superior to blacks, thus it's harder for blacks." This is how you think, ox, you just don't want to admit it. You pretend like society puts blacks at a disadvantage, but that's just not true and easy to prove false. In fact, there are even more advantages and benefits that minorities have in higher education, for example, than whites. That's just one example that falsifies what you claim. You believe deep in your heart minorities are inferior, just as the creators of that chart do, you just hide behind the false liberal mantra of "societal disadvantages."

[Cerebrum123]

You conflating several different definitions of the term C123. It is a specific definition of Racism that is being used when talking about cultural and systemic racism we have in the US. Racism has several definitions:

Source: webster

1: a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race
2a: a doctrine or political program based on the assumption of racism and designed to execute its principles
b: a political or social system founded on racism
3: racial prejudice or discrimination

© Copyright Original Source

The website and chart that has sparked this thread is talking about 2b.

No, I'm not conflating the definitions, I'm saying the way you have defined it is problematic at minimum. Not only that but definition 2b as you have underlined requires that the system in place is using the other forms of racism from either definition 1 or 3 as the foundation of said political system. You and the website are engaged in a redefinition of racism in a way that will only lead to ruin for everyone involved. It will put those who are a minority forever in a state of victimhood, and will foment racism towards those who happen to be in the majority at any given time. It is a definition of racism that will encourage the very thing it's proponents claim to hate so much.

[seer]

Black Power Naps Is Addressing Systemic Racism in Sleep

The pair behind Black Power Naps explain how systemic racism impacts sleep.

Studies have shown that, for a host of reasons, Black people get less sleep, and less deep sleep, than white people. Sleep loss can cause higher levels of cortisol, as Acosta noted, and can lead to many health problems including early death. But there's something deeper going on — Acosta explained that sleep deprivation was used as a means of control over enslaved people, meaning Black people haven't been getting the sleep they need for generations.

“We’re dealing with an inheritance of sleep deprivation. Sleep deprivation was a…deliberate tactic of slave owners to basically make the mind feeble,” he said. “That same tactic has only evolved.”

https://www.teenvogue.com/story/blac...acism-in-sleep

[oxmixmudd]

Once again, translation: "It's easier for you because you're white, and whites are superior to blacks, thus it's harder for blacks." This is how you think, ox, you just don't want to admit it. You pretend like society puts blacks at a disadvantage, but that's just not true and easy to prove false. In fact, there are even more advantages and benefits that minorities have in higher education, for example, than whites. That's just one example that falsifies what you claim. You believe deep in your heart minorities are inferior, just as the creators of that chart do, you just hide behind the false liberal mantra of "societal disadvantages."

How in the world do you go from 'it was likely easier for you if you are white' to 'whites are superior'? I'm talking about priviledge, circumstances outside the person, not who they are internally.

Your accusations are equally absurd. I believe we are all equal. That means that - on average - the reasons for the statistical disparity are external to the individuals themselves, not related (as a group) to their physical characteristics or mental capacity.

[mossrose]

Black Power Naps Is Addressing Systemic Racism in Sleep

The pair behind Black Power Naps explain how systemic racism impacts sleep.

Studies have shown that, for a host of reasons, Black people get less sleep, and less deep sleep, than white people. Sleep loss can cause higher levels of cortisol, as Acosta noted, and can lead to many health problems including early death. But there's something deeper going on — Acosta explained that sleep deprivation was used as a means of control over enslaved people, meaning Black people haven't been getting the sleep they need for generations.

“We’re dealing with an inheritance of sleep deprivation. Sleep deprivation was a…deliberate tactic of slave owners to basically make the mind feeble,” he said. “That same tactic has only evolved.”

https://www.teenvogue.com/story/blac...acism-in-sleep

I wonder what evolved in the liberal mind to make it feeble enough for generations to swallow this kind of load of poop.