Racism--It's chic again.

[jobycom]

Not that it's ever been truly out of fashion, but now one no longer has to hide behind backslap compliments like "He's an articulate man," or "She's done really well for herself."

Now you can blast your racism loud and clear! Limbaugh leads the way, calling the mayor of New Orleans "Ray Nager." (oops, wink). The MSM is right behind, videotaping black "looters" in New Orleans while ignoring white "looters" in the surrounding countryside. "Refugees" can be seen "bussed" from the cavernous Superdome to another cavernous dome, where they can be grateful at their improved living conditions, housed on bunks and fed meals of someone else's choosing. And if they become upset that just two weeks ago they were free citizens in their own homes, but are now being treated like POWs under previous administrations (not under this one, because of course we have suspended the Geneva Conventions), they are criticized for expecting, nay, demanding "entitlements."

Ah, but that's just the MSM. Check out cyberspace: Alleged doctors (debunked) are circulating emails blasting these spoiled welfare ingrates, demonstrating exactly how inhuman they've become because of social spending, and therefore how undeserving they are of our assistance. The supposed "doctor" from Mississippi (again, debunked, although the doctor does admit having forwards the racist rant) goes so far as say he'd call them "n****rs" except that term is too good for them! (Gives you an idea of the author's racist leanings before meeting the hurricane victims, eh?)

Other emails describe trashed rest stops where busloads of the victims--who had been stranded for a week without electricity, running water, air conditioning, or any human compassion they couldn't provide each other--urinated on floors and against mirrors (maybe aiming for sinks), and grabbing up food and snacks without thanking anyone or saying "yes massah." Complaints ranged from littering (they threw trash on the ground instead of the garbage cans) and more ungratefullness (they didn't say thanks for the food they were given).

These emails are obvious fakes, claiming to be written by people who deny writing them, or by people who get facts wrong (one claims the events happened at a rest stop in Wascomb, Texas, on I-20, on the route from New Orleans to Houston--that rest stop is NOT on the route to Houston). They may be compilations of isolated stories, or they may be sheer fantasy, or they may be the racist perceptions of someone who was actually there but saw something through his own preconceived notions. The point is their wide circulation. Anyone who has tried to start an Internet rumor (C'mon, we all have) knows that you're lucky if your emal reaches more than two people you don't know, and yet these emails reach thousands, probably hundreds of thousands. That requires a coordinated effort, which means someone is behind these stories. Someone not liberal, obviously. Someone who supports Bush and his agenda, almost certainly. BushCo? I wouldn't be surprised.

As a personal note, I stopped at a rest stop on the evacuation route the Friday the Superdome was being evacuated. I saw busloads of evacuees at this rest stop. I saw none of the stuff that these emails describe, nor have I heard these stories from the people I know who volunteered. What I have heard is how disorganized FEMA is, how they give mops to doctors and nurses who volunteer at hospitals while people die around them. These stories don't hit the email circuits.

And another personal observation: I was in Gulfport shortly after the hurricane. I saw a lot of ungrateful people screaming at cameras, DEMANDING that the government or Red Cross or others give them food, shelter, etc. They did seem to feel society owed it to them. They got a lot of sympathy, though--they were white.

The bigger point is the return to racism. It's back, and getting stronger. People think of racism as something that's grown since slavery, and that blatant government racism in the form of segregation was a result of slavery, until it began to be wiped out during the Civil Rights movement. We think of the end of segregation as progress that can't be overturned. But segregation came about after the Civil War. Segregation was banned in the South during Reconstruction, and southern society was well on its way to wiping it out. Until the Supreme Court ruling in Plessy v Ferguson (separate but equal). That's when segregation began.

Look at 2000, and 2004, and the number of suppresed black votes, and the pollsters who pointed out that if you excluded the black vote, Bush really did beat Gore. Interestingly, that's basically what the Supreme Court decided to do--ignore the black vote, since the districts with the most trouble counting votes were the black districts.

We can lose everything we've gained. It's happened before. It's happening now.

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

1. It never left. But point out the lingo and many here will jump all over

your ass as though asking people to THINK about the terms that they are using is "PC run amok"

You see it in the "illegals are taking our jobs" threads.
You saw it in the "those people are all stealing TV's" threads.
You see it in the "Affirmative Action is unfair to poor white boys" threads

[jobycom]

3. Completely in agreement there.

I could have made the post even longer... :-)

[SteppingRazor]

2. One quick point...

The media showed black looters in New Orleans instead of white looters in the surrounding countryside for the simple reason that the media were mainly in New Orleans.

In this sense, one could alternatively say the media was the furthest thing from racist, in attempting to capture the horror of what was happening to primarily black New Orleans, instead of sitting on the outskirts and filming suburbs while voice-overing, "look at all the poor white people!"

Not saying that's what happened, just pointing out possibilities. As for the rest of it -- yeah, racism's a bitch. And it's not going away.

[lukasahero]

5. Actually, they showed both white and black "looters"

They just happened to call the black kid a looter and the white folks residents.

[mermaid]

9. Well, Sunna-ma-bitch!!!

someone ELSE remembers exactly what I saw..and, while I was writing my story up...this guy here was actually posting the actual freaking articles!!

Lukasahero, :yourock:

[mermaid]

7. No, I Call Bullshit!!

I saw side-by-side articles in my own local newspaper, where blacks that were dragging pallets of food were shown, and the caption said that they had "looted" the food....and the other picture was of white guys, dragging pallets of food...and the caption said the white guys had "found" the food.

White guys FOUND food.
Black guys LOOTED food.

So I call bullshit, the media is every bit as racist as the fucking Bush Administration, and the entire Repugnican Party.

Semantics...but nonetheless, the choice of words indicates to me a barely-concealed racism.

[SteppingRazor]

12. Yes, yes. I saw that too... along with everyone else at DU.

My point still stands about the amounts of black looting shown on TV vs. the amount of white looting.

You can't argue that white looters were given equal time with black looters. Black looting was far more prevalent. And while the OP argues that that was a sign of racism, I'm just counterarguing that that was a sign that the media were primarily in New Orleans.
And I'm not even saying I'm right here, just offering an alternative viewpoint.

[mermaid]

19. Well, I Didn't Even See It On DU...Or In The Wire Services...

I saw it in my own freaking local newspaper, in black and white (if you'll pardon the pun!!)

[jobycom]

16. I didn't say the media was motivated only by racism

Only that they don't feel constrained anymore. They don't try to avoid obvious racism. And they let the stereotypes and biases of the conservative wave of editors and reporters run unchecked. We all saw the photos soon after the hurricane of the black man labeled a "looter" and the non-black couple described as finding supplies to try to survive. On the same wire service.

There's a reduction in standards that would not have been accepted not long ago.

[SteppingRazor]

20. Agreed, except it wasn't the same wire service --

As illustrated in a post above, it was Associated Press and Agence France Presse (AP and AFP).

As for the reduction in standards, it will continue as long as profit and business model is more important than good journalism.

[jobycom]

30. Ooops. Thanks. Faulty memory on my part. nt.

[SmokingJacket]

4. Excellent post.

To me, one of the most frightening things about the Bush years has been the social acceptance of racism. People have always been racist, but they had a sense of shame about it. Now it's out of the closet and getting worse.

Recently, I've been at gatherings of middle-class white people and have been *mortified* by the viciously racist talk. I'm in my mid-thirties, I've lived in the North, the South, the West, and in Europe, and this is the first time I've ever heard otherwise "nice," educated Middle-American people sounding like they're about go don some white sheets (though I certainly met a few in the rural south many years ago).

My point is, it's mainstream now.

[underpants]

6. "Was race an issue?" Of freakin' course it was it always is

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=103&topic_id=152276

[StellaBlue]

8. 'Articulate' - that makes me nuts, too

And I'm white.

'He's very articulate' = 'he speaks English real good for a black guy'.

:crazy:

[Iris]

10. but I use "articulate" for all colors of people.

I like that word.

[jobycom]

18. I avoid it now, especially when talking about an individual

Not because of the word, but because of the way it has become used.

I love the Rebel Flag, too, because it was a symbol of my pride in my home town and even my school. But I wouldn't wave it now, because of what it has come to mean to other people.

[Gormy Cuss]

56. Can't call an African-American "articulate" shows how screwed up it is

Like you, I have learned to avoid terms that are meant without racist intent because they are sometimes perceived as racist. I hate it. "Articulate" is a compliment, but because some racists use it with the tone of "how surprising that one of THOSE PEOPLE is articulate" it's dicey. I despise being forced to treat people differently because of others' racism.

Racism became chic again when Reagan was elected. W's just letting it grow to the next level.

[jobycom]

68. No, while Reagan was a racist bastard, society still

moved on. Racism was for the most part kept coded, so that people could be racist and not really realize they were being racist.

It's getting worse now. More obvious, less coded and subtle. Out of the closet.

[Gormy Cuss]

92. With due respect, I disagree about the level of coding under Reagan

First off, I do agree that it's getting dramatically worse now, but pre-Reagan the tolerance of racist attitudes was much less. It may have been different based on part of the country (I have a Northerner perspective) or where one was in life but unless 'those people' is subtle, I can say that I observed a dramatic shift under Reagan, especially when he was reelected. Society stopped moving forward. The backslide was slow but was present, especially among well-heeled whites. The same old racist rhetoric was used in a slightly cleaned up form. Self-correcting to 'Negro' was the code I heard most frequently, and complaining about how those people can't decide what they should be called was another---" why aren't they still called Orientals?"

IMO, the emergence of the AIDS crisis was a catalyst for the calls to rethink the liberalized society and return to the old moral standards AIDS was used directly to cut off discussions of acceptance of gays and less directly to blame women who stepped out of their traditional roles.Promiscuous behavior was the fault of women, apparently. When the HIV crisis in the African-American community became evident, the racists treated it as further evidence of their inferiority based on a lack of sexual morals. After all, their 'welfare queen' fantasy always included some reference to five kids by five different men.

The return to an acceptance of racist language grew steadily under Reagan and HW. I remember the relative lack of outrage when HW referred to Jeb's kids as the 'little brown ones.' People excused it because he was referring to his own grandchildren, as if that made it all right to say it publicly where a lot of other Latino children would hear their white president refer to them that way. W just picked up where the others left off and accelerated the pace.

[jobycom]

94. Could be regional perception. Still, I didn't say Reagan wasn't racist

I meant society made great advances despite Reagan's "welfare queen" message. The advances were more in the acceptance of individual black achievements in formerly white realms (things like Doug Williams playing quarterback and Vanessa Williams becoming Miss America or USA, whichever it was). Interracial dating became more common, to the point where even commercials and tv shows have interracial couples without objections these days. I remember watching "To Kill a Mockingbird" in the late 90s wit my niece from Mississippi. In one scene a white character calls a black character "boy." My niece, who was around twelve, asked why he called him boy when he was a man. When I was 12, I wouldn't have had to ask that.

There was an integregation of society, despite Reagan's racism.

Maybe because I grew up in the South I saw more overt racism than you did in the north, so the improvements seemed more dramatic to me.

I wouldn't defend Reagan himself. I've posted often about what an evil bastard he was, and the racism of his presidency (kicking off his campaign in Philadelphia, MS, was a telling touch.) I just saw society moving forward. Not perfectly, but moving.

Now I see it moving backwards. I've had two people who have always been aware liberals make very racist statements since Katrina, and didn't back down when I argued with them. I think the whole tone is getting worse. And I think the Republicans will tap into that racism and lead us further in the wrong direction.

Damn, we need a Democratic majority in office again.

[alarcojon]

26. Yes, but you should be aware of the disparate impact it can have

I am Latino, born and raised in Chicago, and I have a Ph.D. Occasionally I still get comments about how good my English is. Why shouldn't it be good? I was raised in the US and educated at its elite institutions.

I can tell you that the word "articulate" will sound patronizing to many (not all, of course), people of color. I am not suggesting that you mean to use it that way, only pointing out a dynamic you seem to not be aware of.

[StellaBlue]

48. Oh, yeah...

nothing wrong with that word! It's a good word.

But I have heard lots of white people say that about black people, usually men, as if to say, 'Wow! He speaks really well for a black man!'. That's what they really mean, and everyone knows it, but they wouldn't actually SAY that. Unless they are out-and-out racist bigots. Like with confederate flags flying from their pickup truck, you know?

[jmm]

74. In and of itself there's nothing wrong with

"articulate" just like there's nothing wrong with the phrase "some of my best friends are" but too often it comes across like this

http://www.blackpeopleloveus.com/

[CascadeTide]

84. I only use it as a verb

as an adjective it's been commandeered by racists to mean someone who talks like a white person and should be held up as an example because of it.

[Starbucks Anarchist]

90. Reminds me of a Chris Rock routine.

He was talking about Colin Powell (circa 1996):

"I've heard white people say Powell 'speaks so well.' 'Speaks so well' isn't a compliment! 'Speaks so well's' some shit you say about a retarded person that can talk!"

[Cleita]

11. I'm starting to become prejudiced against racist white people myself.

You white people have got to understand that the door swings both ways. People who are treated like scum will start to see you as the enemy and fight back if not out in the open, covertly.

[mermaid]

17. I Don't Blame You

But...and I am assuming you are African-American here...don't assume ALL of us white folks are the enemy, and that we are all racist.

And I do understand what you say about people who are treated like scum will start to see you as the enemy. I have my own unique life experience in this.

I am a white person....but I am also a transsexual. And I am treated like scum by most everyone who matters...employers, landlords, etc, etc, etc. I am denied my human dignity, and often, the ability to earn a living for myself...by people who choose to discriminate aginst me...even though what I did is perfectly legal and hurts no one...it is still legal, in most places, to discriminate based on gender identity.

And even in places where it's been made illegal...let's not kid ourselves, folks. Most of us are not so naive as to believe that a law is going to stop someone who really wants to discriminate!! They will just be more careful and clever in how they go about it.

And, even where itr's been made illegal, enforcement is spotty at best, and the penalties are so minor that many employers and landlords are willing to risk it.

Until we get some anti-discrimination laws with TEETH...and REAL PENALTIES...and until we who are discriminated against can get REAL JUSTICE...discrimination will continue.

As (I assume) an African-American...at least you have legal recourse, no matter where you are. Granted that discrimination is, of course, the hardest thing to prove in a court of law (again, I know this from experience....I sued a former employer, and eventually won my case, but it took me FIVE YEARS...and I acted as my own attorney, because I could not afford an attorney.)

Me, on the other hand...there are many places where I do not have legal recourse. And the government refuses to stand up for my right to equal treatment! Yet, they sure as hell expect me to pay taxes to support the very government that refuses to stand up for me...to which I call bullshit!

[Cleita]

28. I'm Hispanic, but like you, we know what it's like to be

considered not quite as human as them so we know something of what African Americans go through. I was careful to say racist, white people, not all white people, so I hope you know it isn't all white people. I was married to a very white Irishman for thirty three years. Funny, his daughter, my stepdaughter, from his first marriage also married a Hispanic. However, I can't even begin to tell you the contempt I hold for people like Rush Limbaugh, the whole Fox News channel, etc.

[mermaid]

54. Just Wanted You To Know That Not ALL White People Were The Enemy

And to let you know that I completely understand how you feel...because there are days I wake up hating the whole freaking world...and wanting to hurt the whole world...because of the hurt that has been directed at me. So I understand how you feel.

being treated like scum doesn't feel good...and it sure leads to a hell of a lot of righteous and justified anger.

[jobycom]

22. Oddly, I'm starting to become racist against white people, too

I'm not just saying that to sound cool, I really am. My first instinct in any situation involving whites and another race now is to not trust the white guy. When i see a cop pull over a black motorist, or arrest a black shoplifter I assume racism. WHen I hear about a black man being "roughed up" by cops, I assume the cops are guilty. I assume the white guy was lying, the white shopkeeper was discriminating, the white boss was discriminating.

I've gotten into big fights with various employers before over the issue. Last fight was last year with a shop manager because I thought he was firing black employees too quickly. He wanted to fire one guy he had just hired and replace him with a white cousin who was looking for a job. I jumped all over him for it (we're co-equal employees, neither of us had authority over the other) and complained to our boss about it. It turned out in that case I was wrong--the employee had lied about his experience and almost got someone killed because of his lack of experience, and had some other issues--but that was my first instinct. (I think overall I was right, though, because not all of the black employees he had fired had done things that incompetent, and he fired them for things he let white employees get away with. And for the record, his turnover rate got better after our fight).

Anyway, I'm white, and my first instinct is to not trust whites. I've lost a few friends over it, and don't get invited to many parties anymore. :-)

[alarcojon]

27. More white people need to do what you're doing.

After all, you have the privilege to do and say things which most minorities would get our asses fired (or worse) over.

:thumbsup:

[CitySky]

66. I can relate

Since I moved to Texas, whenever I meet a white person (unless said white person is shopping at Whole Foods and wearing flowing skirts or dreadlocks or something), I tend to automatically assume that person is a Republican. I trust black people -- in terms of faith, civility, shared values, etc. -- more than white people, and I'm white.

Of course, when I find out later that some of those "suspected Republicans" are actually good liberal Democrats, it's always a pleasant suprise. To one guy recently, I actually apologized for thinking he was a Republican. :D

[jobycom]

73. I can't even assume all liberal Democrats I meet get it.

I see stereotyping and profiling attitudes amongst some Dems and liberals. It's not always negative stereotyping, just stereotyping. I've met liberals who want to campaign in black neighborhoods for votes by targeting black or Hispanic churches with flyers promoting liberal candidates who will protect abortion rights and work for a "living wage" amendment. I've watched them paper Hispanic Catholic churches with these flyers, assuming that since the Hispanics in this area voted Democrat, they must be liberals who support abortion rights. At Catholic Churches.

I helped promote a political event once with some very well-meaning leftists. This event was going to have one black speaker, a lot of white liberal speakers (jim Hightower, Michael Moore type people) and some musicians, one of whom was a Tejano star. So to promote the event, these guys went to the east side of Austin (the colorful side, with a history of voting Democrat) and again targeted churches. I realized as we began that they had three different sets of flyer: for blacks, whites, and Hispanics. The white flyers highlighted the biggest names. The black flyers highlighted the one black speaker, and the Hispanic flyers highlighted the musician (for a political event!). Segregated flyers--can't tell your whole audience the same thing, mght confuse them. I kept thinking of the scenes in movies where a white guy tries to be hip by speaking "jive" to black people he happens to meet, hoping that will impress them. ("I feel you, my brother!" and stuff like that).

At the event these other volunteers were surprised that the turnout was almost exclusively white. It was just too hard to explain to them.

So I see that type of racism, too, where even liberals assume that since black voters go 90% or more Democrat, they must all be leftist liberals. While that's not as immediately harmful as the racist attitudes in these new emails, it is still a damaging racial assumption that prevents Democrats from understanding much of the problem.

[Cleita]

77. What I've seen in my area is white Democratic candidates

who tend to ignore our rather large Hispanic population here. We have a Republican assemblyman who is Mexican American. I have seen three white guys lose to him because the Democrats don't seem to understand that they need a candidate who can go into the Latino neighborhoods and relate to these people and who also can maneuver through the white constituency as well. A candidate like that would win the Democratic Mexican American base who tend to vote for this Republican because he's Mexican American and appears to be moderate. But to these three white guys, the Hispanics weren't even visible to them.

[Solon]

67. I know exactly how you feel...

I guess, in the past, I tolerated, barely, the racism of other white people, when I hung out with them. Now though, I don't like hanging out with most white people, if I were to estimate it, about 90% of white people are racists, about half of those are "hardcore" racists. Also like you, I'm white, OK, actually I'm a Mick(Potato Eater), but let's not get TOO specific. :)

[Karenina]

24. The "Stealth" racists are the worst.

What I see happening in Amurikka is the DELIBERATE fomenting of untenable racial divisions. The *Media is right out front leading the charge. Anyone born into the dominant culture in the U.S. is a racist. It is a part of the default template UNLESS one is born into a multiracial family. (And even then...;-)) Those rare individuals who, when discussing racism will say, "Yes of course I'm a racist. I grew up in Amurikka, am aware of it and continue to work on it" have my utmost respect. Tim Wise is one of those people.

http://www.progressiveindependent.com/dc/dcboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=790

[Window]

41. I ain't mad at ya.

Tell the truth and shame the devil.

Peace

[shanti]

43. many of us yts

in california know what you're talking about, because we're LIVING it. my extended family (originally all white, both sides, no intermarriage) has become a veritable united nations. we have mexican, african american, korean, jamaican, armenian relatives now, so far. we are much richer for it too.

i'm sure my father, the family patriarch, never envisioned that his family would become so mixed, but we were raised as military brats, so it was only natural. thanks dad!

if there was a "race war" ( hypothetical situation), odds are that i would take the side of my b/w biracial son, and not the yts. *shrug*

the ugly american truth is now in the open!

[Cleita]

45. I hope your family experience becomes the families of the future.n/t

[Tomee450]

49. I know exactly what you mean.

Lately, I've notice a marked changed in the attitude of some blacks towards whites. It's all negative. No trust at all. Comments such as "they are all racists." There is a lot of anger. It's a disturbing time in America.

[tamtam]

53. I hope not

I hope most black people know that not all white people are racist. I just hope we don't go back to "those days" because from what my parents say "those days" weren't good.

I'm black and I have three bi-racial children. It would be hard for me to hate white people and to think of them all as racist when my children are half white. I usually call them like I see them meaning I give you a chance to speak before I peg you. I guess I have that advantage because my family is so mixed. I just hope people will observe before they judge because America just doesn't need all that racial tension. There is enough tension and bad vibes in this country because of idiot son.

[shanti]

88. and the sad part about it

is that it doesn't take too long before a yt person will "out" themself and show their ass. i cringe when i hear wp make bigoted remarks, and they usually do so in such an offhand way. it's just ingrained.

[shanti]

87. not to be mean

but black people have always felt this way. it's katrina that has brought the ugly truth into the limelight and into yts FACES. their anger is justified.

[CascadeTide]

85. I am too and I'm white!

Kind of a joke there but like Frank Zappa said "I'm not black but there's a whole lot of times I wish I wasn't white"

[CascadeTide]

86. I am too and I'm white!

Kind of a joke there but like Frank Zappa said (paraphrased) "I'm not black but there's a whole lot of times I wish I wasn't white"

[jedicord]

13. That's what I've been saying..

It seems one person around here had the audacity to say the "n" word and didn't get a negative reaction. Then the next person said it, no negative reaction. And it spiraled from there.

I'm truly amazed at how easily the "n" word slips from people's tongues these days. And when I hear it, I jump their ass. Maybe my negative reaction will stop the flow.

I doubt it.

[underpants]

15. I think it is the wedge issue trump card

I have had the feeling for a while that THEY would get one of their people to openly use it on the air and that they would have their talking points ready to go on it. I just have had that feeling since the election and this would appear to be the perfect time to unveil it and change the discussion.

Just a feeling.

[jobycom]

29. I agree. I think that's what's happening

With Limbaugh's "Nager" and these emails about "ungrateful, nasty blacks who expect people to give them everything," I think the Republicans are trying to whip up a race war, so they can step in and pretend to take a more moderate approach. That "moderate" approach, of course, will be like Reagan's use of race to split the voters and overturn social spending, which they pretend is a race issue.

That's what I see coming, too. ANd it's scary, because it seems to be working. Even on DU I'm stunned by the level of racist attitudes, as the "looting" debate revealed, and as NSMA's post above points out. And it isn't just racism against blacks. The attitudes towards Hispanics is appalling.

[underpants]

33. One of the most telling signs (to me)

IS that in all of the implications I am seeing and hearing (see my post above with the link) is that there is no mention of hispanics. Repubs have worked hard to make inroads with Latinos so maybe it is that-maybe it is that we didn't SEE a lot of hispanics on TV (there are hispanics in that area I am sure)-maybe they will get to that next or just keep up what nsma mentions (border issues).3

I really do think that they have that in their back pocket....yes they think it is a winner for them my oh my what a sad state we are in.

[AspenRose]

25. "The Power of One Voice" ad campaign

http://www.freedomcenter.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.viewPage&page_id=37A27742-7055-44B9-B9C723F79F0DD327

If enough progressive white people had courage and said something, it'd be a start.

Edit: They have a section where you can respond to the ad campaign and voice your opinion, and I found this freepish response:

"i am sick of the poor me act of you people
04/17/05 12:14 AM
look to me race was never an issue til i work with alot of "minorities" if you can call them that. All the time i busted my chops they would set back say that the white man owed them . I do not agree but all well what do i know i am just a stupid white guy who tries to support his family degenerating back, you know i have never got a car because someone said here your white you can have this car!!!!! they have yet done that for me for a house either!!!! These "minorities are allowed ethnic schloarships but heaven forbid if there is an all white schloarship! they would be ride out on a rail!!! For your info i am not an white supremist nut i am just tired of these "minorities" (which tends to be a majority in a lot of cases) want so called equal rights when they really want special rights and that to me is what all of this stuff about. i know you guys will not post this because it is a "negative Response" but all well, you'll live! thank for your time
[e-mail]
Greenup ky"

[jeffrey_X]

47. The tolerance of racism maybe be more of a problem than...

racism itself, if that makes any sense.

It's only through zero tolerance that racism can be stopped. Unfortunately, not many people have the courage to stand up to others who are closed-minded, biggoted and ignorant.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

14. Racism? In America? Don't be silly.

We have a long history of superb race relations. Just ask the Native Americans, the African Americans, Hispanics, Japanese, Chinese, or anyone else with unfortunate skin tones.

Besides, just look at all the middle class white folks who would just love to live in a ghetto, be unemployed, undereducated, harrassed, branded as criminals, thought to be genetically inferior, just because of the color their skin.

It's not racism - it's white peoples' envy of all benefits that the "colored" people get.

[Az_lefty]

21. I agree, racism is coming out of the closet again...

these stinking neocons have thrown this country into reverse.

[misanthrope]

23. Couple of points...

...First, anyone who has worked with the public during the holiday season can attest to the nasty behaviors that can easily bubble to the surface in anyone. If that's indicative of the way middle class America handles stress and crowding, then no one has room to point any fingers.

Also, segregation was well under way in the South before Plessy v. Ferguson. Remember that it was Homer Plessy's refusal to follow the law regarding segregated seating on streetcars that led to the case anyway. It existed, it had just never been tested before the SCOTUS.

White supremacy was alive and well then.

The type racism you describe is exactly what I grew up around and have been surrounded with ever since. It's very frustrating to deal with and can be maddening on many levels.

I've also noted that many "good, God-fearin' white folk" are starting to use discrepancies in media coverage given NOLA versus the Mississippi coast as fuel for their bigotry. They tell themselves that nobody cares about the folks in Mississippi because they're poor whites and don't fit the media's liberal agenda. As a result, they're not getting the same level of help that FEMA is doling out to the poor blacks from NOLA.

[Karenina]

51. By DESIGN.

[misanthrope]

57. I'm sorry...

...but I don't quite understand. What is "by DESIGN?" Do you mean the media coverage is by design, the reaction to it is by design? Do you mean segregation by design, just what exactly?

[Karenina]

61. What I mean my dearest Misanthropikins

is that racism permeates Americans' consciousness no matter which end of the stick they're on. It is so thick, infected, unacknowledged, "getting better" und so weiter und sofort, that when a stress situation occurs, those at the reins need only throw out a few code words and images to stir the pot of enmity up real good.

Looking at the "big picture" racism is an effective tool used by the "ruling" classes to preserve their power. It is the glue that has allowed the atrocity in Iraq to continue. Should folks ever get it into their heads to realize where their connexions and power lie, the self-appointed Übermenschen would quickly find themselves in DEEP DOO-DOO, and summarily relieved of the assets and power they've stolen.

This zero-sum competition for resources is being blast faxed through poor white communities, who suddenly face an influx of brown people they never thought too well of anyways... Media amplifies the racist memes and VOILA!!! AAAARRRRGGGHHHH! :argh::argh::argh:

[jobycom]

59. Well, yes and no on Plessy v Ferguson

Plessy was the final act in a long process.


The Civil Rights Act of 1866 had ended much segregation in the South. By the 1870s, there were no laws forcing segregation, and even some southern states had laws banning segregation in public and private places, such as theaters, restuarants, streetcars, etc.

In 1871 in Kentucky the streetcars segragated white and black riders, but several black riders sat in the white sections, just as with Rosa Parks a century later. This caused an uproar, but when the dust settled, the courts had ruled that segregation was unconstitutional, and even the streetcar company that had started the rucus had stopped segregating. They even released a statement claiming that it was to difficult to fight the federal government over discrimination, and the government of Kentucky praised them and asked for all businesses to do the same.

Notice, it was not a law, but a private company policy, that had segregated the street car.

The battle was clearly moving towards complete integration, though of course there was still resistance in places. Theaters and restaurants in the north and south had mixed records. The Civil Rights Act of 1875 made it illegal for any private or public establishment to segregate or refuse service to anyone based on race, and then, most companies that still segregated stopped.

Some continued, however. Interestingly, the brother of John Wilkes Boothe owned a theater, and one of the first challenges to the CR Act of 1875 came because of this theater. A black couple was denied entry, and sued. This case, and five others, made their way to the Supreme Court, who refused to decide whether to accept any of them. Meanwhile, the US Attorney General had ruled in favor or the CR Act of 1875, and people, governments and businesses were accepting it as law. Streetcars, restaurants, theaters, and most public places were fully integrated. Black doctors, writers, lawyers and politicians sat alongside white doctors, etc. (Still a lot of class division, but not on race).

In 1883, the Supreme Court finally accepted the five cases, known as The Civil Rights Cases, and in a stunning decision, since the Court was primarily Republican (in that day the good guys), they ruled the Civil Rights Acts of 1875 and 1866 as largely invalid. They claimed (and here they did sound like Republicans) that the "war amendments" giving rights to freed slaves only prevented a return to bondage, and could not apply to "social discrimination." The "negro" must "cease to be the favorite of the law," and must "take on the rank of a mere citizen."

The dissenting opinion was written by a great, forgotten American hero, John Marshall Harlan. Harlan, a former slave owner and defender of the South, had evolved into a champion of civil rights. When he was nominated for the Supreme Court, in fact, his change was so dramatic that many civil rights supporters doubted it, and he was barely confirmed. They were wrong to worry, though, as he was the strongest voice for civil rights on the court. He wrote that the war amendments didn't give favors to blacks, they included blacks in "the people for whose welfare and happiness government is ordained."

This ruling led to a decline in rights, and subsequently to laws being passed allowing, or even requiring, segregation, until finally Plessy vs Ferguson solidified the whole concept of legal discrimination.

That's my point: we can go backwards again, as was done from the 1870s. We could wind up with a Supreme Court who rules that the Civil Rights Acts of our century went too far, or provided "special rights," or were no longer necessary. One court ruling, and the racists come out of the woodwork and close the sea of hatred over the heads of all that has been accomplished since MLK. It seems far fetched, but it would have seemed far fetched in 1875, too. We take the worst period of our nation's history in race relations, and we assume that was the way it was since the Civil War. But it wasn't always that way. Read what the racists are saying, listen to Bush talking about "the soft discrimination of lowered expectations." The attempt to turn it all back is underway.


(On edit: I've cribbed much of this summary from a fantastic essay by Alan F Westin, called "Ride-in: A century of protests begins." The summaries are mine, but the hard work of historical research is his.)

[CBGLuthier]

62. Rosa Parks did NOT sit in the white section

Sorry, but I keep seeing this stated and that is not what she did.

She was sitting at the front of the "colored" section.

A white person (man, I think) wanted her to stand or move even further back as the rule was the "colored" section would shrink to allow the "white" section to grow.

She refused to move. A very, very brave thing to do but she did not sit in the "white" section or the front of the bus.

[jobycom]

63. Well, when it became the white section, she was sitting in it.

But you're right. I wasn't writing about Rosa Parks, so I didn't elaborate.

[malaise]

76. Nice post

lots of truth there.

[GOPAgainstGW]

31. How About some '60's style Race & Anti-War Riots. Just What BushCo Needs

[DemocracyInaction]

32. Isn't that the basic definition of the "Christian Right"??

Isn't their churches and their whole movement nothing but seething racial hatred, white domination (they're the only people of Jesus , ya know), and being able to go to a place (their churches) were you don't have to put up with "n-----s"??? Yep, if you can stuff blacks, it definitely is going to improve your sorry, miserable, failure of a life, isn't it??? Just ask Rush..........

[underpants]

35. I hadn't thought of that

The "Christian Right" does represent what the Dixiecrats were (in a broad sense).

Wow they really are good at crafting their message and code words aren't they?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dixiecrat

[info being]

40. Yes, Christians and losers alike turn to racism to justify their...

miserable excuse of a life. Pathetic fucks.

[TNOE]

34. Excellent Post

Two weeks ago after Hurrican Katrina I received the most racist e-mail (one that I'm sure most of you have seen) forwarded to me by another employee - its been 2 weeks and I'm still pissed over it. I responded in kind to "all" and received some hate mail back. Why am I not surprised that everything with this administration is "divide and conquer" - religion/race/party/financial standing - you name it.

What I saw in the healing was quite another story - whites & blacks working together, helping one another - it was a beautiful thing and I hope those of us who refuse to be divided by this administration will focus on that.

[jobycom]

38. You're exactly right. There was a lot of inter-racial effort after Katrina

I saw it, too. I'm not trying to say that the racist response is the only one, and I don't believe it was the dominant one. A lot of the media coverage blasted BushCo. The issue of race and poverty has been shoved to the forefront, finally, and for every dehumanizing image of the survivors the media broadcast there were a lot that showed the genuine plight of families suffering over this storm.

And there was an interesting reaction, too. A lot of people who never really had to think about race at all in their daily lives were shown pictures of all-black groups of Americans suffering because of an uncaring government. The media couldn't seek out the one white guy in the crowd for a response (as they often do), they had to actually speak to the black Americans, and I think, as sad as this sounds, that a lot of white people were confronted by the fact that this alien-looking sea of black faces were Americans, with families and jobs and houses and cares and fears just like them. We've all seen the starving African nations portrayed in a way that makes the people seem so foreign that many Americans don't react. But here, even the most isolated, sheltered whites could connect.

One example is my neighbor, who is a flaming white separatist (not the same as a white supremacist) from Arkansas. They are Republicans, but they hate Bush, and the wife actually knows Clinton, so she likes him. Anyway, I've listened to several racist rants from this guy (I've always argued with him over it). But he was watching Katrina coverage, and heard the story of the man in Biloxi whose wife told him he couldn't save her, he had to let go for the children. This neighbor started crying, and had to leave the room. He told me later he'd never vote for a Republican again, because of what he'd seen.

It sounds banal, and it's sad that there is still this racial disconnect in America, but it's there, and I think Katrina has actually brought it to the surface in good ways as well as bad. This neighbor is a nice guy, but very uneducated, and this may be the first time he's seen a black man as a family man, as someone he could relate to.

I think a lot of the media coverage was good. At first. It's starting to turn, now, and I think these emails may even be an attempt to counter the early reporting, to dehumanize the survivors again. At the very least, it's a disgusting undercurrent that is gaining strength and losing opposition.

[melody]

36. great post, well said

[gollygee]

37. I'm suprised by how much more racist talk I've heard lately

from neighbors, people around town, even family. Even people who talk that way with people they know used to at least be careful around strangers or casual acquaintances, but that doesn't seem to be the case anymore.

[info being]

39. Indeed, we are living in a world of fools and assholes

[More Than A Feeling]

42. Yeah, I've noticed.

Right-wingers I know aren't afraid to be open about it anymore. Shaming them (on an individual and personal basis) still seems to work, but for how much longer?

[methinks2]

44. I agree, but I think it started with 9-11,

I heard racism oozing over the radio the tv at the workplace, shopping, blaming all arabs and all muslims. When no one made much of a protest over that type of hate speech . . . it's a slippery slope. Basically as a people we need to decide do we or don't we allow hate speech. If we don't allow it then we can't allow it anytime or anywhere. period,

The way to target the freepers when they start this talk is to quote bible verses at them. Since they consider themselves fine upstanding christians, it just takes the wind out of their sails. I just made this up today.
Pass this on to whoever you think deserves it.

To those who enjoy blaming the victim.;


Proverbs 14:31 "He who oppresses the poor shows
contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the
needy honors God.

Proverbs 17:5 "He who mocks the poor shows contempt
for their Maker: whoever gloats over disaster will not
go unpunished.

Deuteronomy 10:19 "And you are to love those who are
aliens, for you youselves were aliens in Egypt."

The BIG question. What would Jesus do?

Be kind to the evacuees and refugees of Katrina,
Remember, there but by the Grace of God go I and you.

[DarkTirade]

55. How about...

'Jesus wouldn't be white' to start with... what with him being from an area that at the time was populated by a mix of african and middle eastern people... :)

[meow2u3]

65. The only whites in the Middle East back then were Romans

And it was the Romans--my ancestors--who started the concept of plantation slavery. They were the ones who made slaves of everyone they conquered! Shame!

[DarkTirade]

89. And they're the ones who 'killed' Jesus too.

Go fig. You'd think maybe white christians would notice that little tidbit.

[jobycom]

93. Whitey killed Jesus!! That could be a bumper sticker! Print next to

a picture of a Jesus fitting the description in the Bible (Bronze skin, hair like lamb's wool...)

[Karenina]

95. BWHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

:rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:

[methinks2]

69. you're right, i love bringing that one up to people

Jesus was a Palestinian.

[DarkTirade]

71. Not to mention that

all the pictures of him show him as some skinny scrawny guy. Come on, he was a carpenter before they had power tools. The guy could probably bench press me.

[Tomee450]

46. I agree totally

The Republicans have been very successful in fanning the flames of racism. The racists are now coming out of the woodwork in droves. They are not ashamed of their racism. It's a bad time for this nation;I fear things will get worse. It seems like we are returning to the Jim Crow era.

[The Backlash Cometh]

50. How about, "You can't even tell she's black just by the sound of her

voice."

[Brewman_Jax]

52. It's been chic since Reagan

but the racists now don't bother with the white hoods and sheets. They don't hide like they used to. Damn scumbags!

[sniffa]

58. i'm not racist

i just hate white peopLe. ;)

nominated.

[despairing optimist]

60. Be careful about claiming that racism is in fashion again. It never went

out of fashion, only underground. And not even that. I've been hearing racist code words for 40 years. Sometimes even knowing looks without any words at all. People who would be talking casually about sports might add a comment about why there aren't many black hockey players (it's their ankles, you know--Me: HUH?), and then it's back to the barbecue food. Talk about the twilight zone.

Then there are the racist jokes. Never went out of fashion, just became limited editions for people that the tellers thought they could trust.

I think the main difference between now and the 60s and 70s is that there is a reaction against political correctness on the part of conservatives who feel that since they've won the battle for political power, they have been vindicated in the social and racial realms too. Well, now they're losing their power and are still playing the race card even as they want the rest of us to believe they're winning. I don't think so. I'd be amused by their arrogance, but it's hurtful at least and deadly at worst.

As for the MSM, don't separate the entertainment arm of MSM from its information-gathering and -disseminating arm. Both work in tandem, and when MSM thinks it's chic to promote All in the Family instead of Bill O'Reilly or Sean Hannity, we'll see an outbreak of enlightened, progressive Phil Donahues and Alan Aldas. Whatever keeps those advertising bucks flowing in, that's the main thing.

As for genuine social progress, let advertisers know what pleases you and what definitely displeases you. Maybe, just maybe, more shows exploring racism and homophobia (the last acceptable form of bigotry) will beat the knuckle-draggers back into the shadows. I'm afraid that there will always be ignorant people. Though that may be so, they need not be the ones our country calls on when it wants to put its best foot forward, especially in the Offal Office.

[jobycom]

64. Which is why I began the OP with the phrase "not that it ever went out of

fashion..."

[despairing optimist]

70. Yes, but you say it's getting stronger. That's where I disagree.

It's as strong as it ever was. Sorry if my post didn't make that point clear enough.

[jobycom]

75. It is getting stronger, but that wasn't my main point

My main point is that the gains we've made can be reversed. Civil Rights legislation has been overturned before, and can be again. Segregation was outlawed in the 1870s, but those laws were overturned by the Supreme Court in the 1880s and 90s. That can happen again. The forced politeness on society is fading (often denigrated as "PC"), and racist attitudes are more easily spoken these days.

But it is getting stronger. I've seen it in friends and relatives who I would have thought better. I've seen a lot of the "you have to admit that welfare has spoiled some blacks" comments, or the "Well, if they'd only stop having children at 16" comments from people I've known long enough to know they didn't feel that way ten years ago. Heck, look at what's happened to Bill Cosby, and look at how many people, even here on DU, who agreed with him.

It's getting stronger. Sorry if you don't agree, but it is. There was a big change from the sixties to the nineties, and now it's going backwards.

[despairing optimist]

80. We'll agree to disagee, but I certainly won't support or vote for

anyone who supports welfare "reform" that hurts poor people all the while claiming that it helps them. Or anyone who uses code words to mask a racist agenda. We'll see how Katrina and the evacuee issues play out; racism is in everyone's face again, and that's got the racists scared IMO. That's why I'm hopeful for positive change, but it's always a struggle to keep moving forward without moving backward. Don't be discouraged. It goes on like this forever, at least in my experience. I'd love it to be otherwise, but until then, I'll keep pushing back when pushed.

[jobycom]

81. That's a dangerous, possibly fatal, attitude

The old "it's always been this way" routine. Big changes were made in the 60s and 70s by figthing. We've slacked off the fight, and now the danger is growing again, and we need to fight some more. But it doesn't have to go on forever. We can beat it.

[despairing optimist]

82. I'm all in favor of an end to racism, don't get me wrong. I haven't seen

it yet, which of course doesn't mean it will never happen, but given the historical record and people's deeply ingrained beliefs and ways of thinking, it will take a long time. There's going to be a lot more back-and-forth before the battle is won once and for all, and I'd like to see it won in my lifetime. The only fatal attitude is to give up the fight, which I never suggested doing.

[CitySky]

72. important discussion, Joby - thanks

It's frustrating: so palpable and so wrong. I've heard some stuff about "those people" this week that frankly makes me want to hurl.

On the flip side, this is the first time in Lord-knows-when that discussions of racism and poverty, the intersection of the two and what it looks like in America, are getting prime time media coverage and serious discussion. It's been a fashionable problem to IGNORE. Good-hearted Americans -- and there are still many -- may be waking up with a clue. "Yes, Houston, we do, in fact, have a problem."

[Sunkiss BlueStar]

78. If DU became a City

Id move to it:loveya:

[methinks2]

79. aaawwwwww

:hug:

[ismnotwasm]

83. I've heard comments also

From people you would think know better. I've white, have been very poor and on welfare. I've lived in housing projects, and worse. I've posted this elsewhere, but when I was young, I was a very angry young woman. I am very familiar with the culture of poverty and the type of crime that goes along with it. What the racists try to do is assign a color to certain behaviors. I can guarantee from personal experience that color has nothing to do with it. This was long ago, and I worked my way out that world but I know what it is, and where it is and who is in it.
People who have sat comfortably in the middle class world tend to be gullible to subtle media presentation. There is also a sense of entitlement, although most would deny that's it's there. But you see it the the "they're taking away our jobs" comments. My answer for that is to go into any nursing home. Look at the colors of the nursing assistants who are taking care of our elderly and disabled. Now, being a nursing assistant is not the highest paying job in the world and the work is hard. But I've seen several African and other immigrants take it one step further, and through hard work and dedication, open adult family homes taking care of....yup, elderly white people.
Racism has never gone away. This has been said before, but I'll say it again; It's a disease that mutates and spreads just like cancer. And it hurts everybody

[Name removed]

91. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Ron Green]

96. Racism is just one aspect of "otherism"

...albeit a big one, the biggest one in the US, because the slaves from West Africa were our "other" for so long, and we haven't really solved many of the black/white problems in this country yet.

The Right Wing rules by fear, and fear of the Other always works, whether it's Muslims from the Middle East or poor black people on generations of welfare. The Left Wing seeks to merge with the Other by acceptance, tolerance, and inclusion, and is therefore discredited as "weak" by the fearmongers of the right.

One point: Jazz is the greatest music because it has always brought black and white folks together, our "Other" merged with the dominant culture even in the darkest days of Jim Crow.

Another point: Those (mostly on the Left) who are seeking to join and assimilate with the Other are doing the work of God, in my opinion. This is what we are on this earth to accomplish.