Welcome to Post-Racial America, the Land of Pink Elephants and Sugar Plum Fairies
What an exciting week.
Not only are we being led by a dynamic, eloquent and passionate leader, but he’s black. Obama’s presidency is a testament to him, to all African Americans, and to everyone in this nation, regardless of their race.
The first black president of the United States.
Now, that we have that out of the way. Can we discuss this term “post racial America”? Because it’s starting to get on my nerves.
First, it conveys a false sense of total accomplishment. Notice I wrote “total” accomplishment. I would not be so cynical to write that President Barack Hussein Obama is not a great accomplishment in terms of American race relations. Of course, it is.
But the election of Barack Obama, my friends, has not erased racism from the American landscape. As much as I hate to be the Debbie Downer in this situation, I will do it for the sake of honesty and truth.
We do NOT live in a post-racial America.
Referring to ourselves as a post-racial America implies a sad sense of falseness and delusional mindset.
I’ve been reading a lot of blogs that are decrying individuals who continue to talk about race or racism as people who are unwilling to let go of this nation’s racist past. I read the words “get over it” a lot. Or, even better, “let’s move on.”
In all the nations that have ever existed on this planet, I challenge you to find a single instance of a people who have “gotten over it” when faced with a past of oppression, genocide, violence and rape. Victims of abuse do not “get over it.”
They may incorporate their pain into who they are. They may use that pain to accomplish more, to become better, to become stronger. The abuse that they have endured, though, becomes part of them forever. They decide whether they will make tragedy a furnace which strengthens them or an excuse for their own personal failures.
But they don’t forget. And nor should they.
“Get over it.”
No American who takes their citizenship seriously should “get over it.” In terms of “moving on,” we will never do that until we accept the full extent to which racism permeates our culture.
We are all victims in our own ways. (Part of the reason for denial, I think, stems from the fact that Americans hate being perceived as victims. We’re the heroes. The ones that save the day. Never the “sad, pathetic victims.”)
We are victimized by American racism. The descendants of a kidnapped people, the descendants of their kidnappers, the descendants of people who were not remotely wealthy enough to profit from any of this pain, the descendants of people who were not anywhere near North America when all this human suffering was happening… We are all victimized by this human tragedy, and victims should never forget.
There are two ways that racism can victimize you. The first is obvious. You’re black, brown, white, purple, so you can’t go here, say this, or do that. Pretty straightforward.
The other way that we might be victimized by racism is by pretending that it doesn’t exist. That it’s not part of the landscape anymore. That anyone who brings up racism is harping on the past and refuses to get over it.
Denial victimizes us by preventing us from being who we should be: advocates for social justice, defenders of the oppressed, and protectors of the pure ideals that form the foundation our great democracy.
Barack Obama, by himself, can’t cure cancer, fix the economy, save the whales, stop global warming or bring “Angel” and “Buffy” back to prime time. And his inauguration sure as hell didn’t “cure” racism.
Everyone scolding those of us who are willing to face the realities of this world, the one where prejudice and racism still exist, would do well to remember that.
52 Responses to Welcome to Post-Racial America, the Land of Pink Elephants and Sugar Plum Fairies
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Nigga please.
Very well said.
Anybody watching the disgusting racist comments flowing through Twitter or on the CNN Facebook feed during the inauguration will readily concur. Racism is not over. To ASSUME otherwise just because our president is black is the highest form of denial. To DECLARE otherwise just because the political arena is growing in diversity is absurd. Reality is just outside our windows. People touting “post-racist America” needs to open their blinds and look outside every once in a while.
I agree with you, for the most part. Obviously, rebel flags still fly for reasons other than “southern pride” YUCK! Which, by the way, I can’t understand what they can be proud of, hell y’all lost. Or, we lost. I am southern, but you know what I mean. Obviously, stereotypes and ignorant idiots still live among us. One day doesn’t “CHANGE” everything, but I like to think it can help to pave the way to change…. I did NOT vote for President Obama. Okay, there, I said it. I am confident that my vote had nothing to do with racism. I like the man, a lot! In fact, I watched him on Oprah, yes on Oprah, and said outloud, “Oh my God, he’s going to become President one day.” I do, however, feel as do a lot of Americans, that today is different than yesterday. Perhaps we should take the “Post-racial America” phrase and toss it…. We can call is Post-all we’ve ever had were white guys as President America. How ’bout that? Regardless, I am white and for that reason maintain that I can’t completely understand racism and it’s effects on everyone else. Honestly, I’m not quite sure where I’m going with this. I think what I’m trying to say is… try not to be such the “Debbie Downer” and give everyone a day or 2 to be proud of US as a whole… then, throw everything you’ve got at the delusional dumbasses out there!
Racism is still out there and I think it is getting worse. I made a comment to a friend – who is black about how I hope Obama doesn’t forget about us middle class. Well, he got offended saying I’m acting like Obama is dumb. I told him no, but in my eyes, the middle class is forgotten. They think of the poor first, and then the rich of course have it covered. But, me, I am in the middle class trying to pay for my house, my car note, and sending my son to college. I don’t want my son to end up with a debt right out of college that is the same amount of a car note or a house note. So, that is my take. But, racism, it will be a long time before that gets straighten out. I’m hoping Obama will keep his promises. I know it will be tough because once you step into the shoes of the position you applied for, it can be quite different.
No. Racism still exists. Prejudice in many forms which discriminates against individuals for their outward appearance or inner beliefs and ideas remains as a stumbling block for us as residents of the planet. I’ve experienced it many times before; I’m sure I’ll experience it many times in the future as well.
That being said — I think it’s crucial to notice that, in many arenas, we humans are getting better at combating racism and prejudice. We do have our low points where societies show us how ugly they can be, but I think that as a whole we’re progressing. Millenia ago men were debating if women were people; in my country that debate was taking place centuries ago about people of color. It will be interesting to know what future generations think about a time when the notion of a marriage between two members of the same sex was simply dismissed as nonsense. As we see these fallacies in our past as the dark ages — I think our descendants will think the same of our time.
When I take a look at my six year-old son’s world experiences, I see someone for whom Barack Obama is just another president. He knows that President Obama is Black. But he doesn’t have a reference point to see why this is such a milestone for a person of color to achieve this goal. Perhaps he will when he gets a bit older, but I’m guessing it won’t have the same impact as seeing the hurdles African-Americans had to go through when his father — or especially his grandfather — was growing up.
President Obama’s election didn’t “cure” racism or even “treat” racism. Time has been doing that. But the repair of our society in this manner is what has helped him become elected.
And what is this crazy talk about him not bringing back Buffy?!?
I’ve heard a ton of people express their hatred of Obama merely because of the blind faith that his followers have in him. They don’t hate the followers they hate him. Has to be some “reason” for that. Okaaay…why don’t we all give him some time to actually accomplish something (or not) before we make any judgements.
I see and hear racism every single day. And I, supposedly, live in one of the more enlightned or liberal areas of the country.
But all in all, if Prez Barack can’t bring Angel or Buffy back then I’m taking my vote back.
Well…. I re-read my post and doesn’t have anything to do with racism. I’m so goofy sometimes. LOL
cracka what?
no seriously though — you forgot the smurfs and shit.
but i agree. i don’t know of anyone presently deluding themselves into thinking race is now no longer an issue. hey all naw. i do think it conveys, perhaps, a genuine desire for a “post-racial” America. doesn’t make it so, though.
I think it’s foolish of people to say that this is “Post-Racist America” because it is far from that. Your post so eloquently said many things that have been on my mind lately.
One thing that I am truly guilty of is NOT realizing how rampant racism is in America. Unlike others who know it exists and who see it every day, I rarely do. To try to explain Orange County is hard but it’s a land full of almost all white people who truly and sincerely aren’t racist. These aren’t things that are talked about or lived through in this area at all. I’ve become embroiled in their culture so much for the last five years that I often don’t remember that other places people are still very much in the throes of such color wars.
Of course, it could just be that I was brought up to truly not see color.
I’m getting derailed…sorry. I just think this is a great post and that you are so very right. We’ve made progress yet we’ve not achieved perfection.
@Avitable: Only *you* can get away with leaving a comment like that.
@Dave2: Thank God I missed the Facebook/Twitter feeds… that would have probably sent me off into a manic rage.
@SteF: Well, shyeeeah, I said that it was an accomplishment in the beginning of the post, right? Plus I waited a whole day before saying anything. And you’ve known me for, what, 18 years now? Twenty four hours in Faiqa time before I say something is like *three hundred years* in human time.
@ADRealty: Hee hee, I think you’re right (both about the fact that the middle class gets ignored and that your comments had nothing to do with racism).
@shiny: Of course, of course, we are way better than we were before. I don’t want to diminish how we’ve evolved. But I just don’t want others to diminish how we *haven’t*. And, seriously, he’s not bringing Buffy back. Strike one.
@B.E. Earl: I wonder if I would have more respect for people who would just come right out and say, “I didn’t vote for him because he’s black” instead of the people who refuse to accept their inherent racism. Ummm. No, no, I wouldn’t.
@Crys: You know, I think a ” *desire* for a post racial America” *is* something to be proud of…
@Hilly: O.K., so I’m kind of addicted to Real Housewives of OC and the other day, after watching it for about two months, I thought, “Is EVERYONE in OC white??” Your comment answers that. I think I’m gong to move there and become everyone’s token brown friend. LOL.
GOING to move there. Not “gong.” Sheesh.
We have a large Asian population in Irvine but other than that, yes…I think everyone in South OC is white. Everyone.
Have you seen this?
http://www.mamapop.com/mamapop/2009/01/why-im-happy-wh.html
You’ll like it.
Also – I was talking with someone about this earlier today:
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard the word assassination brought up in some form or another in regards to Obama.
That’s not because of his politics. Or his fans. It’s because it’s easy for us to assume, based on our history, that someone would hate a man enough to commit murder simply because of the color of his skin.
As the video I linked to here said, we don’t “realize” the dream by pretending to be in the Promise Land or forgetting the past. It’s not a destination. It’s being OK with saying “we have work to do, and we’re willing to do it”.
There will always be work to do.
Thank you. No, the election of Obama did not magically erase racism. What it did do, or at least what I hope it did, is to make people aware that we still have a lot to do. I think it starts with discussion — kind of like what’s going on here.
Folks that are upset about the black part can suck on lemon-fact that he is also white.
Daddy from Africa, Mommy from Kansas, he’s as American as they come.
You know what? I don’t want to live in a world where people “get over” racism in the past.
Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it. We cannot forget; we simply cannot.
I totally agree with the past poster who stated that racism isn’t getting better but is getting worse….I see it every day, and I live in New York, which is supposed to be the gateway to the world. Ha…that’s a joke, especially on Long Island (an area with some of the most segregated neighborhoods in the country).
I have been that token black friend that got the dumb-ass questions, or the black friend that the friend’s family loves to death because “you’re not like them…you’re different” or “you’re west indian….your family works for a living, not like the other n-words.” In most of those cases, as soon as I did something that wasn’t up to muster, so to speak, I was promptly disowned and called the n-word. Thank god I have been blessed with friends nowadays that are not only un-racist in any way, but are willing to learn, talk about and understand racism in itself, which I can’t say for most people I come in contact with.
The thing is, if people don’t encounter it every day, it’s not a second thought to them…they don’t have to keep the “is that what I think it was?” thoughts in the back of their minds. People can say they don’t believe in it and say it’s wrong, but at the same time not react to it if they see it happening to someone else, regardless of the group affected, which to me is worse than being racist and acting on it. America needs to understand that just because the KKK isn’t marching through neighborhoods anymore firebombing churches doesn’t mean that people aren’t racist and that history can’t be repeated….people are just finding different ways to express it nowadays because it’s not PC to be non-inclusive.
Will Obama bring some enlightenment to the subject of race? I hope so. Considering that most of Obama’s voters were Caucasian, I would hope that people voted for Obama because of what he is capable of and not because of so-called “white guilt” about history. That would suck really hard.
But do I believe that racism will ever go away? Hell no. It’s institutionalized. It’s how this country was built. It will only go away if people want it to go away….and thank god, some people do.
::climbs off soapbox::
I love your posts. I feel like my IQ is higher when I leave then when I get here.
Now excuse me I have to go off and pretend to be all smart like.
The ‘sound bite’ minions were out in full force yesterday that’s for sure.
I LOVE your writing on this topic–I’m sending folks to read you sugar—everyone should
@Miss Britt: Well said. And that video? In. Love.
@Kailyn: Yeah, exactly.
@Joe: I love lemons. Let’s have them suck on something else that’s not quite as tangy and full of vitaminy goodness.
@SciFi Dad: Very well said.
@Robin: We have waaaay to much in common for our relationship to be considered remotely normal.
Just substitute “brown” for black and “Middle Eastern” for West Indian.
@Sarah: Oh, stop… and pretend to be smart? Please. I’m not even “passable” in the subjects you’re studying.
@Turnbaby: Thanks. And, did I mention that I swoon a little every time you call me sugar?
OK. I’m about to get slammed. So be it.
One of my friends is African-American (LA) and she lives in a predominantly African-American part of Gwinnett county (suburb of Atlanta). And whenever I and another friend (Toni, both of us white – obviously) visit her and eat out at a restaurant near her home, we experience prejudice because two of the three of us are white. Typically? While other tables are being served quickly? Our food lags. The service is horrible. The snide remarks fly. And this is all because everyone in the restaurant in African-American except for Toni and myself. And LA will get so steamed because we are experiencing “reverse racism.” Because Toni and I are white, when we go in restaurants or retail stores in LA’s area, we get slammed. And I’m sorry but if racism is going to end? It needs to end on ALL sides. I am absolutely tired of paying for the sins of people who weren’t even my forefathers and of being reminded everyday that I’ve crushed the hopes of many an African-American person when all I’ve done is try to treat people equally and live my life.
I am absolutely tired of hearing about racist white Southerners when I am not racist and yet I experience racism from African-Americans here in Atlanta because I’m white.
I will proudly teach my children that we’re all humans. That there is no difference between them or me or their father or anyone else, no matter their skin color, beliefs, abilities. But I’ll be damned if I sit around and allow people to ignore the fact that white-of-European-descent Americans experience racism, too.
@CMG: Come on, woman, you know me better than that. I’m not going to slam you for that. Actually, that’s exactly what I meant when I kept writing “We’re all victims.” I believe that this happens to you and it’s total crap. They don’t know that you’re a good person or that you would never treat them badly… I encounter this when I talk to people from other nations who make BS generalizations about Americans that are only true about a small part of the population. It DOES have to end on both sides. Definitely.
I’ve been working a LOT and hadn’t even heard the term yet – post racial america or assassinations.
But thank you for bringing it to my attention! I was thinking about writing a blog post along the lines of “ok, so now can affirmative action be canceled…? surely everyone got the memo now.”
I think we should A) ferret out any instance of racism that occurs with stiff penalties while B) affording each citizen what they earn and deserve. “B” requires affirmative action be removed because to continue it means to disadvantage someone just because he happens to be of a majority race.
In response to Whall, affirmative action was created out of a recognition that not everyone in this country is given equal access to things like educational opportunities. Yes, it is flawed but simply throwing out does nothing to resolve the real issue. Me? I want access to preschool for all children. I want all public schools to have access to the same level of resources — books, materials, teacher training, technology… When everyone has been given access to the same opportunities from day one is the day that I think that we will no longer need affirmative action.
It was the Obama people who first floated the idea that we are moving into “post-racial” territory.
Meritocracies are functional. Policies based on collective guilt and self-pity degenerate the person they’re intended to help and enable anyone looking for an excuse.
I should be pissed off at centuries of Russian, German and Austrian repression of my genetic line? Sorry, I’ve got better things to do. Everyone has an excuse if they look hard enough. And, actually, I think the bulk of your comments here are completely wrong. One shouldn’t think that just because they have prominent blog personas that they automatically shit gold.
Forward looking people of color are the ones saying “there are no more excuses.” It would be refreshing if the non-black elite would once in a while step into the light of the future.
I’ll wait here.
@ Whall—-You cannot legislate and/or prosecute away racism. I think the last -oh I don’t know– 120 years or so in this country proves that.
@Whall and Kailyn –I think affirmative action has been so misused that it has become an albatross.
@CMG–I think everyone–no matter their skin color— has to recognize that there are varied forms through which folks can express racist ideology and situational racism is just one of them.
Just a couple of weeks ago we ate in a restaurant in a largely black, lower income area of Memphis. The restaurant is a little hole in the wall place called Uncle Lou’s. This is a paper plate plastic fork joint that serves amazing burgers and deep fried chicken–think whole birds-no batter. We were treated like everyone else in the place even though we were the only group of white folks in there. The food was amazing btw.
@RW -
Of COURSE you shouldn’t be pissed off.
Acknowledging that racism still exists is NOT equal to using race as an excuse for sub-par performance.
I’m always amazed how quick some people are to run to the affirmative action discussion whenever the idea of racism is brought up.
Progression does not mean hand outs. Empathy and acknowledgment does not immediately mean guilt-driven free rides.
No more than you being a “conservative” means you hate all gays.
This country can’t continue to move forward if we can’t stop making these ridiculous ideological assumptions about one another.
Seriously agreed. Racism is still rampant, and that is fairly obvious when kids are named “Adolf Hitler” and some other, sickening, white “Aryan” name. (It was on the news but I don’t have a link…)
Regardless, I think kids basically need to be taught, of course, that what matters is on the inside. It’s insane that anyone judges based on skin color. But many people do – that much is a fact.
I don’t think people need to forget about it – but they can’t use it as an excuse their whole lives, either, to do nothing.
I’ll shut up now. I am too hungry to even think straight!
Interesting term — functional meritocracy. I do not believe that it truly exists at this time in the United States. Instead we have the myth of it. I think that it could exist but for that to happen means a lot of work.
Here’s something else I’d like to throw out. In my family we never use the word “victim” but instead use “survivor.” I think the difference is that it allows one to acknowledge the past without getting trapped there. It’s about trying to move forward.
Britt I’m looking for a reference to AA in my post and the closest I get is “policies based on collective guilt and self-pity degenerate the person they’re intended to help and enable anyone looking for an excuse” and I can see where you can get that, and I’ll do better. But what I’m talking about is legislating what a person thinks. You can’t do it. It should go without saying that racism exists – and it exists everywhere. But what should we do, make a thought illegal? It won’t work.
Jim Crow was real and existed and I remember seeing it. I can go up and down the list of contributors to this post and I doubt very strongly I’d find someone here besides me who was actually – in real life – jumped by white thugs in an alley for marching for civil rights in the late 60s. That’s why I agree with your sentiment that we shouldn’t pigeonhole one another in this discussion.
People have a problem with what happened to their ancestors – we need to get over it. People have a problem with bigots that exist among us even now – we need to get over it. When you “get over it” you disallow them the ability to live in your head.
Folks who talk against you, work to stop your success, or hate you blindly because they’re ignorant morons – why let them live in your head rent free?
The sentiment that we need to move on is coming from a part of the black community, not folks who want to wag their finger at the us because there are people who want to forge ahead. People who refuse to remain victims…? I’m on their side because it’s practical. I’m not a slave to a dogma, and am completely unwilling to keep black people on the plantation of “vote Democrat because of what they did to you.” The industry of victimology doesn’t belong in the 21st century. That’s the message. That’s what “post-racial” means. And I’m FOR it.
The future belongs to those who show up. The past isn’t here anymore, and the people who hate you now shouldn’t be allowed to stop you. The hell with them.
That’s what I’m talking about.
RW-
Here’s the thing.
We HAVE made progress. The civil rights movement accomplished great things. The Jim Crow laws aren’t in effect anymore. That’s a good thing.
But saying that we are “post-racial” is going too far.
That does NOT mean that I’m talking about legislation.
I’m talking about between us, between citizens. In our conversations, in the things that we still need to work on.
I know a man, a police officer in a small town in the midwest, who jokingly refers to MLK day as “snuff a nigger day”.
Legislation? Who gives a fuck about legislation! I care about continuing to talk about the fact that those jokes can still be said out loud in places where no one bats an eye. I care about working towards a better version of this country where I can be sure that my kids will never, EVER consider that to be a joke that can be repeated.
Using the term “post racial” suggests that the work is done.
It’s not.
That doesn’t take away from what HAS been done. That doesn’t take away from the fact that a black man is the president of this country.
But the bottom line is that if I accept the notion of a “post racial” country, and therefore neglect to educate my children on bigotry and prejudice, someone else will.
And it might be in the form of a “snuff a nigger” joke.
and P.S. – what the hell was the “blog personas shitting gold” reference about?
@whall:
I do think that fundamental institutional inequities exist, though. The question is how does one correct these inequities in the face of people’s general tendency to abuse the system. I have no answer to that question. Also, I think affirmative action as it is practiced today dismisses the very important issue of class and economics. I guess what I’m trying to say is that there is a good idea in there, but I think we’re missing the point about how to implement it without being unfair.
@Kailyn:
And that’s what I mean by how the ideals of affirmative action are excellent in theory. As a temporary device to rectify inequity. But, this system has serious flaws, as I’ve mentioned. For example, I had a friend who was from a rich and educated family apply to law school as an African American because he knew it would improve his chances of getting in. He was Egyptian American. The task of being fair in this situation requires meticulous and careful review, and educational institutions and corporations aren’t exactly known for that. In all honesty, it’s an issue I can’t really speak on with certainty. I know. Cop out.
@RW:
I find it interesting that you simply assumed that I advocate people being pissed off or guilty about racism. It appears that not only have you put words in my mouth, but you’ve superimposed how you cope with implications of racism onto me. This is unfair.
I’m not pissed off about British colonialism of India, nor am I guilty about the hundreds of years of Mughal rule there. That would be ridiculous. That doesn’t have much to do with me, as I wasn’t alive at the time. However, I will not dismiss the injustice of the past thinking that it will ensure peace in our times. I will not diminish the memory of people who have suffered because certain people now find these discussions to be in poor taste. And it’s not because I want to stir up anger. It is because to remember human suffering is honor those that have suffered. To honor their strength. And to honor our desire to be better next time around.
Furthermore, these discussions must continue because we must be vigilant. We cannot fool ourselves into thinking that we are evolved and perfect now. That was my point. None of it stemmed from anger or a desire to induce guilt.
As for non-black elites… well, when we stop getting kicked off of airplanes for looking Muslim and making innocuous comments about ariplane safety, then we’ll step into the beautiful world that you live in. I’m not angry. I’m just AWARE. I just know where I stand with a certain population in this country. And I’m not going to make an idiot of myself pretending that everyone loves me all of a sudden.
Respectfully, if you took my words as words of anger, it may be because anger is ringing so loudly in your ears that you are unable hear anything else.
P.S. Am I the prominent blogger that thinks they shit gold? I assure you, my shit is as stinky as the next blogger’s. Maybe even stinkier given all the spicy food served at this house.
@Turnbaby:
My husband works for Fedex. He promised me that when he goes to Memphis this year, he’ll take me. I’m excited about the food.
@Miss Britt: Yeah. That’s what I meant,
@Sybil Law:
Somebody named there kid Adolf Hitler? Seriously. People. Are. Sick. And, of course, I don’t advocate race being used as an excuse. Unless it’s like this, “Hey, I can’t help being late… I’m brown.” No. I’m kidding. Am I?
That ringing in my ears is more likely the specious mendacity of people jumping to conclusions about other people jumping to conclusions about them.
I fail to see anywhere, in any of our screeds here, anyone putting forth the idea that racism is over, except in the fallacious logic that argues against a thing by hinting something similar to the thing isn’t quite exactly the thing.
I think you guys are talking social movements and I’m talking personal attitude and application. The bigots who pepper our society – be they white, black or brown – obviously didn’t stop our President from striving and achieving. But there certainly were legions of people who told him, and wrote flat out, that it would never happen. He did what I’m talking about. He did it. Right there. Open your eyes. And so far the first two days have made me SO exceptionally proud of having voted for him I can’t express it with enough fervor to do it justice. Gitmo, lobbying ethics, the coming tax break for working families ($500 so far last I heard)… it is all marvelous to my ears.
You’re saying there are bad people in the world. I’m saying don’t let the bastards get you down. You’re saying the work isn’t over. I’m saying it’s over when you stop letting it stop you. You’re talking the social. I’m talking the mental.
We’re talking about the same issue, but coming at it from different universes. If I’m angry it’s what always angers me – the automatic approval that is everywhere I go in the blogosphere. Disagree, for Christ’s sake. That isn’t anger, that’s being awake.
I’m sorry, but I cannot disagree with a blogger.
That’s just poor manners and something that is beneath me.
(I swear to God, man – I think sometimes you disagree just to disagree. Can’t tell YOUR formative years were in the 60s or anything.
)
Well. I don’t think agreeing with another person makes a person a sheep. Sometimes, you just see someone’s point, you know? Besides, everyone didn’t agree.
*YOU* didn’t agree.
And I appreciate that you express yourself honestly here and hope that you always will. Although I would’ve rethought the use of specious and mendacity together. Just saying.
So there’s that. Heh.
I encourage people disagreeing with me over at my place. We’re mean to one another there. If you come back after I call you names then you’re OK in my book. If you sulk off and tell everybody what a rat I am you’re considered a weakling. Now I swear to God – if I wanted to post stuff to just have a long line of people happily fawn all over me I’d write about slow drivers and how upset I am because I’m having my period. I’d rather someone be honest about what they feel than saying nothing because of some sense of “manners.” I respect ideas, plus I think Faiqa does as well. Otherwise i wouldn’t keep coming back here.
p.s. – well a good-sounding falsehood is not just a plain falsehood. Like – as above – I mentioned that meritocracies are functional and someone said we don’t have one – which (if it was meant that way) doesn’t refute the concept that meritocracies are functional, only that we don’t have one.
Specious mendacity is deeper than obvious mendacity. Eh?
RW, I was the one who said that we do not have a functional meritocracy. I believe it is possible in theory but have doubts that it could actually exist in practice.
You mentioned something about social versus individual change as well. I don’t think that these are mutually exclusive. I think that there has to be some level of both for true, lasting change to happen in this country. Yes, there are some individuals who will never change. I think that most people when confronted with their prejudices and how they manifest themselves in their words and actions are capable of change. Once individuals have had to do some true self-examination, then the wider sweeping social changes just may be possible.
I hope this made sense.
Hi Faiqa, it’s me again. I read where someone made a statement, I think it was you about a friend who took advantage of the Affirmative Action by saying he was African American when he was really Egyptian. I have a question, would he have gotten in if he didn’t use Affirmative Action? I would allow my kids or anyone else that is not white to use Affirmative Action. We the minority are not asking for a hand out, we are just asking to be considered because the grades are there, the volunteering is there to help out the community. The minority is doing everything that the white applicant is doing but do not get in because they have a minority surname. I am all for Affirmative Action. Also, you never came across to me as if you were gold. WTF?? Where did RW get that from? But, anyway what does get me is this. You may not know this but I am from Houston. We were hit by Hurricane Ike. I applied for FEMA but got rejected but I guess I make too much money. WELL….. come to find out that there are people out there who received money from FEMA because they lied on their application!! NOW THAT IRKS ME!! BUT, I have a question, what about the white woman who married a Hispanic man, they may be hired because they meet the companies quota of, Yes, we have minorities in our department, which included in the list is the white woman married to the HISPANIC!! Anyone checking is not going to do a walk through that department to verify that that woman is White or Hispanic. I know I probably have some people fuming. I am not racist, I have black relatives and white relatives, there is no way I can be racist because of my loved ones. SO, anyway, my shit stinks too. LOL Sorry for the long post.
Um, apparently I need to clarify that I was being a sarcastic ass regarding the disagreeing with bloggers bit.
@Kailyn, I want to move to Berkeley. So I can stalk you.
@ADRealty: That’s what I meant, I hate that people abuse the system. It sucks.
@Britt: I was going to leave a comment that said, “I think she was being sarcastic…” but then I remembered that you don’t need anyone to defend you and you don’t like that. See how awesome I am?
Besides, five minutes of your radio show will pretty much quell any doubts as to how disagreeable you can be.
Ha! I may be too young to have taken part in the protests of the 60s but I am the child of folks who grew up in the South under Jim Crow and who eventually found themselves in Berkeley. This stuff? Normal everyday conversation in my family.
“Do you think that the world is a better place?”
“What needs to change?”
“What can I as an individual do to bring about this change?”
Faiqa, let’s get married. <3
@RW – I agree with what you are saying regarding meritocracies and/or policies based on collective guilt and self-pity. To be honest, if I found out that I was only hired for a job because I was black, I’d be pretty pissed.
But that’s where it ends.
For you to assume that non-elite blacks like myself don’t step into the light of the future leads me to believe that you really don’t know many black people, if any at all. So since that’s probably the case, you’ll be waiting an awfully long time as you won’t be seeing changes in the black community where people have just about had enough of the bullshit that goes on, not only world-wide, but within our community. Do I believe that racism is always going to be there? Absolutely. Do I hang it like a scarlet letter on my chest? Absolutely not…anyone who knows me knows that is SO not the case. I realize that you may not be a proponent of racism, but by your statements above IMO you have certainly perpetuated it. Think about it…..
@CMG – I am really sorry that the whole reverse-racism mess happened to you in Atlanta. Your black friends should have said something to alleviate the situation or suggested that you guys go somewhere else. Racism is racism and no one should have to give business to assholes who can’t treat people equally.
Prejudice exists everywhere. Generally speaking, when people are confronted with differences, there are two kinds of responses: curiosity and the desire to learn/explore (children usually rock this category) or fear/distrust of the unknown (part survival instinct, part contamination by those that came before us). Option number two has been strong for as long as humankind broke into clans.
The fear and distrust has migrated into loathing in some instances. People hate or fear what they “think” others are. We’re also far too preoccupied with borders, keeping “the others” (did you hear the echo and sinister music?) out…
We’re faced, as a species, with a difficulty in accepting differences. It’s a worldwide phenomenon. Those differences may be in relation to colour, religion, language, traditions, sexual orientation,… the list is long. Racism is but one facet.
Is the problem “worse” now or in one country over another? I can’t say. Has it been aggravated by the increasing frequency of exchanges between people from all over the globe? Possibly.
I do believe we have made some strides (or this conversation would not be possible). But we take some steps backwards every now and again. We are imperfect and we stumble. Will it ever be over? Globally? I wish I knew.
It is important to remember where we come from, but we can’t dwell on the past injustices. I can’t make anyone change. But… I can encourage. I can educate. I can show acceptance. I can move forward. I can survive. I can speak up when I see oppression. I can raise my child to do the same. I can remain aware and vigilant. I can reach out.
Forget? No. Forgive? For my sanity, yes.
I would like to defend the prospect that we are in a post-racial America. All of your points are correct, but I am not convinced that we live in a society in which race is THE primary defining category any more. I think the historical evolution of the United States–in contrast to other western nations–made race and racism ubiquitous factors in social and political developments. But I think class has now become the defining and formative characteristic, trumping race just as it did in Brazil, Mexico, and Canada. Obama’s election did not precipitate a post-racial America, it merely evidenced what was already underway. Indeed, you cannot argue that race remains THE most important defining characteristic if you accept that for over 50% of the non-black electorate, Obama was an acceptable candidate. Does this mean that race and racism cease to exist? Not at all; they will always be with us, and people will always resort of racial terminology to describe and threaten people different than themselves. And there is a strong possibility that as the second Gilded Age (1980s-2000s) fades and the chasm between the haves and have nots shrinks, that race will again become the defining structure as the wealthy and powerful seek to define themselves as different from others. (We saw examples of this in the 1980s when terms like “welfare queens” were employed by the Reaganites as code for black women.) But like the terms post-structuralism and post-modernism, post-racial does not mean the absence of race (just like the others don’t mean the absence of structure or the absence of modernism). It instead means a deconstruction of the racial assumptions that have historically framed American development. American race (and racism) has historically been a white/black paradigm. In its simplicity, that paradigm is no longer a viable framework for race, requiring all of us–academics, students, and yes, even racists–to find new ways to conceptualize race and racism. As cultural anthropologist Sandra Rocha-Lopez explained at the 2006 Humanities Conference, “The basic idea of a post-racial or post-ethnic debate is based on the degree of importance and saliency of race and ethnicity themselves within the various contexts of the society and the relations between individuals.” I would argue that those contexts and relations have shifted dramatically and very quickly, making race less relevant as a categorizing and defining factor in post-racial America.
By the way, I loved your death posting a while back. (I know I am slack!)
@Professor Death: Thank you for your comment!!
Your point about post racial not meaning the absence of race is, of course, magnificent. And one which I hadn’t considered. So, in THAT case, I accept that we do live in a post-racial America.
However, I’m apprehensive of this term as it’s understood by the general public (yes, I’m aware of how that term “general public” implies I’m a snob– I’m fine with that). My general concern lies in the possibility that people will use this term, “post racial America” in order to diminish conversation about race.
And that sentiment *is* out there. “Why are we talking about this again? Don’t we have a black president? When is it going to be enough for *you* people?”
If everyone used “post racial America” and understood it within the context you have described, I would have absolutely no problem with it.