Optimistic Obfuscation

I think he's doing both. Perpetuating a stereotype and professing his ignorance, the question is whether or not he should be fired for it, or, on a deeper level, whether or not this is the "type" of racism that we consider utterly evil.

You might think that "all racism is evil." And you're probably correct, but what I'm struck by is that fact the it impossible not to make distinctions on the basis of not just color, but whether your from the south, the north, the northeast, california, Idaho, Canada, Quebec, Mexico, and on and on and on. We automatically notice a difference and make subconscious assumptions about that person...

To me the kicker is how tenaciously we cling to those things.

There are clearly things about my wife that fit "southern" stereotypes, in particular certain attitudes about manners and customs. Is it racism for me to think of those as "Southern attributes." I don't think so.

Is it racism against me that if I'm wearing a nice blue button up shirt that I'm immediately associated with white upper class affluence or something along those lines?

Heck, I dunno. The issue just seems so...difficult. I think the man's comments were propogating a "dumb" stereotype, but I'm not sure it's racism. I just don't know...

I tend to agree that we should consider all racism, on any level, to be evil. I think that through Christ those walls have been broken down and we need to live our lives reflecting that. However, I don’t think that living this way is easy.

I struggle with racism. Just because I’m married to a black women does not mean that all of my racist tendencies disappear. I have grown up in the south, in a culture that, whether it admits it or not, fosters racism. Racism is a part of my heritage. That does not make it right though, despite what the proponents of the Confederate flag think. The racism I struggle with though is not the desire to go out and burn a cross in someone’s front yard. The racism I struggle with is more subtle. It is the tendency to lock my car doors when I see a black male walking my way. It is that quick thought of “crack dealer” that I have when I see a young black man in a really nice car driving down the street.

Are those thoughts obviously harmful to those around me? Probably not. Can they be harmful to people by the way that I treat them because of those thoughts? Most definitely. Am I sinning by having these thoughts or is the fact that they might be true a justification for such racial stereotyping? Boy, that one is more difficult for me, maybe because I like to justify my sin. But if we are going to call all racism wrong/sinful we are going to have to define what racism is.

Now in this particular case the question has to be, if it is racism and therefore wrong, what is the fitting punishment for the crime? Tied up in that answer has to be another question. Is it possible to have racist tendencies against your own race? I have some thoughts on that one but I will leave it alone for a little bit and see what everyone else thinks.

Bah, yeah I've got racist tendencies against my own race. I don't call them racist, but lets just say I see patterns in white, black, asian, native american (first nations for you Canadians) cultures and so on and so forth. The grim fact is that there are patterns to any collective body of humans. Be they computer geeks, philosophy majors, people of African descent, people who grew up in the midwest, ad infinitum. Just because you recognize a pattern in a group of people does not make you racist (in the elitist sense). I've had several robbery attempts against my person through out my life, they have all been carried out by people of African descent. Does that mean I think all black people are criminals, no, of course not. But, for some reason it does make me a little more cautious when I am in similar situations, can't imagine why that would be. I've experienced prejudice plenty just for being white, in fact I find the whole "reverse racism" term to be racist itself. As if racism only applies to people of African descent. Go to Japan sometime (sorry to keep mentioning the place), I go there and get to have a showdown with just about every other guy because they've got to prove that Japanese guys are just as good as Americans just because I was dating a Japanese girl. *sigh* But I seem to rant and rave and not get to the point. There is racism, which I would define as a malicious categorization of any group, be it of ethnic, geographical or ideological background. Hence, someone who believes that "all southerners are stupid" is racist. Just because I see a lot of Indians (the kind that are Hindu) in Computer Science doesn't make me racist for pointing out that fact. Neither is it wrong to notice that there are a lot of black people in sports. Reason? They seem to be pretty gosh darn good at it. Only sport that they don't seem to dominate still is Soccer/Football (though it is balanced) and Hockey (where it isn't so balanced). Feel free to recognize group behavior, just don't make sweeping generalizations, I'd say that would keep you safe most of the time.

I agree with most of what you said, Matt. I agree that it is possible to have racist tendencies against your own race. I agree that in any big group there are going to be patterns that present themselves and that really do exist. I agree that “racism” can extend beyond just a categorization along the lines of race. In that sense I think that we should use a more descriptive word, perhaps “classism.” But that is a different debate. I also agree that racism is extended in our (by that I mean Caucasian) direction as well. I understand that in certain situations we can be discriminated against as well. I also agree that there are some classifications along the lines of race that are at best helpful and at worst neutral. Your example of blacks in sports might be a good one in this sense, though it could be extended to a harmful stereotype as well. (If you were to intimate that blacks need to stick to sports because that is what they are good and that they ought not to venture into the world of business or academia. I know this is not what you are doing because I know you.)

I want to steer a little bit away from what you are saying and perhaps introduce something else to this discussion though. I think in this country the term “reverse racism” can have meaning, though it is wrought with unhelpful connotations. In this country, and in others as well, there is a real direction to the majority of racism because there is a history behind it. There is a history of power that one race wields over another, and for that reason there is a definite direction to the racism. Whites have held a position of dominance of blacks dating all the way back to the horrors of slavery. In many ways that power is still wielded, though praise the Lord, some of that is changing. I think for this reason racism coming from a black person in the direction of a white person can be considered “reverse racism” and is in some ways more acceptable to our culture than is racism in the other direction. Do I think this is right? No, I think that racism, no matter what direction, is sinful. Do I understand why it is a little more acceptable? Absolutely. It is still a matter of power. Those that are in the minority are not able to wield their racism as a club as well as those that are in the majority. The racism of the majority is able to oppress the minority even further.

I guess I have a problem with rambling as well. I didn’t really mention Dusty Baker at all, but that's ok. Maybe next time.