my first question is, what do you think of when you think racist?
and on to the article which caught my eye: Why are white people so touchy about being called racist?
The author says,
more often than not, genuinely good (white) people (are) stuck in the belief that racists are exotic monsters, who are nonetheless resentful of conceding the privilege of being able to control the public consensus on race
What do you think?
When I think of racist, I think of someone who engages in acts of discrimination against others (individuals and groups) that are minorities based on preconceived notions, ignorance, disdain, lack of knowledge, and experience or the belief that such discrimination will benefit the majority as opposed to the minority. The reason why I believe some white people get touchy about racism or being called racists is because of “white guilt” or guilt based on being part of the majority/dominating culture or group. Whether they are racist or not, it most likely does not feel good to be associated with this negativity.
I have to agree with MellowDee. I am “white” and while I remember the 50’s, now being 63, when my parents taught me that racism was bad. If anything, I too was a prisoner in a sea of racism. My 10 year old self wasn’t in a position to do anything about it either. But, I could eat at a lunch counter or go to any movie theatre and sit where I pleased. I didn’t beat myself up over it, either. But, I did feel guilt. The biggest fear I had in my teens was what I was going to DO with myself when I became an adult. I didn’t perceive myself to have any power and authority over much of anything so my interests were mainly self-serving ones. I’d like to think I treated everyone I came in contact with humanely, which was about as much as I could do, back then. Now, I am socially active in the Civil Rights issues, since I have more power and authority to do so, as an adult. You are right, if someone got into my face and called me a “honky” and a racist, I would tend to write them off as someone I cannot rationally contend with, in the present tense, and just go on. History, while it should not be ignored, is still just the prelude to the present. What I do now is what matters, lest one become a virtual prisoner of the past. My goal is to oppose that which is morally wrong and try to preserve what is morally right. My goal has no color in it unless color is used to oppress another. But, that is morally wrong. So, I would see someone oppressing me for being “white” to be morally wrong as well. Ric