Racism Without Racists

[Strawman]

Tonight Eduardo Bonilla-Silva came in and spoke to a class I'm taking this semester. We were assigned a few chapters out of his book Racism Without Racists. I highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in this subject and hasn't already read it.

[illinoisprogressive]

1. what is racism without racists exactly?

[Strawman]

2. Few people today are open racists

It's socially taboo in the post-civil rights era. What we have now is what he calls "colorblind racism." This employs four frames to justify racial inequality: abstract liberalism (e.g. "no group ought to get special treatment"), naturalization (e.g. "segregation is natural"), cultural racism (e.g. "the problem lies with minority cultures"), and minimization of racism (e.g. "there is plenty of opportunity out there for minorities").

He also talks about the style of colorblind racist talk. This style avoids direct racial language, employs "semantic moves" to soften racial statements (e.g "I'm not a racist but..."), makes use of projection (e.g. "blacks are the real racists"), and employs dimunitives (I'm a little bit concerned about the children of interracial marriages").

There's a protean, "now you see it now you don't" quality to modern racism that I think he really nails down in this book. Obviously there are still racists, so the title is kind of intentionally ironic. Of course we still have both racism and racists.

There's a whole lot more than this, but it's getting late and my brain is not working so well right now. If you're interested in the topic, you should check it out.

[MedleyMisty]

5. That pretty much describes GD the last few days.

Maybe I should check the book out and see what I think of it.

[index555]

6. does that mean a minority can not be racist?

My answer to that would be, BULLSHIT!
sadly there IS a small number of black americans who use "you are just mad because I'm black" as an excuse for any number of bad behaviors.
while bad behavior is by no means limited to the black american population , by any stretch of the imagination.
only black americans will use the color of their skin as an excuse.
3 examples
1
I had taped off with "caution do not enter" tape an area that I was working in. in the area I was opening the lids of underground storage tanks(gas tanks) .
a black man walked into the taped off area , and lit a cigarette , I asked him to please smoke outside of the taped area( I WAS very polite) , his response was "you are just saying that because I'm black" ( HUH? WTF?!!) . "no sir I'm saying that because flammable vapors may exist in these pits ,and an explosion or fire would be bad for both of us" (my response).
his response was "you are just a racist white boy that hates black people doing what they want"( WTF!!!!!)
at this point I did fly "off the handle" and yelled "listen asshole , I don't care if you blow yourself up , I don't want to be burned just because some stupid fuck decides it's his right to smoke cigarettes in a dangerous area!" , he left the area then.
Dammit , I tried to be honest and polite , and tried to explain that the area was in fact , a hazard . It wasn't until I had act like an irrational jerk that he finally "got the message" , nothing I had to say had anything whatsoever to do with race, I was only interested in safety. But this guy wanted to make it a racial issue when it had nothing to do with race at all.

2
in this one I had closed 3 out of 4 gas Islands at a large gas station.
a black american couple drove up to the front pump ( there was a long line of cars waiting to fill up at this time)
I did not say anything at all , however a man who was filling up and had waited through the line made several (loud) comments that "it must be nice not to wait in line like everybody else" .
The (black american) woman responded "You are Not talking to me , I Know you are not talking to me" (duh . he was , and she knew it).The black male passenger was laughing,( I actually completely sympathize with him in this case .)
It is possible , due to the layout of the place that the couple simply drove up to the first available pump after eating a meal.(this was a truck stop/gas station , so if a person went inside and say ate a meal , they might not notice the long line on the opposite side of the pumps from where they were (this is why I did not say anything , I can forgive a simple misunderstanding , but if it was intentional( I don't want to wait) then it was simply extremely (and deliberately) rude.).
in the end she made noise , the other driver made noise , and the black passenger was laughing ( like I said I can sympathize if it was in fact accidental , in the passengers
place I would have thought of it as a humorous "oops" situation also).
in that situation the whole reason I did not say anything was that it could have been a truly honest mistake , I can forgive an honest mistake , no matter how dumb it MAY seem.
the only thing that irked me , is that it seemed that this woman seemed to be "hiding behind her race".

3
this happened to my neighbor , (who is also white)
He got a brake job at a local shop , when he pulled out of the shop and tried to use his brakes , the pedal went to the floor and he almost got into an accident at the driveway of the shop.
Now I know that my neighbor is an "emotional type" so he probably just screamed at the mechanic (who was black) "are you trying to kill me?!!"( I doubt it).
the mechanics answer? "you're just yelling at me because I'm black" (WTF?!!)
OK folks , I would not have reacted in such an extreme manner . (never attribute to malice , what can be attributed to incompetence or stupidity).
my own reaction (barring an accident , in which case I would have consulted a lawyer for maximum benefit). would have been something like "you seem to have forgotten something , can you please check my brakes again?"
but the reaction of the mechanic was again " you are just yelling at me because I'm black".
I am sorry folks , but your race is NOT justification for a mistake , no matter how honest of a mistake it was , just say "I am sorry for the mistake , and it won't happen again. AND FIX IT!!!".
A mistake that you learn from is a good thing , it prevents you from making the same mistake again.
The reaction of "You are just yelling because I'm black" can NOT have any other effect than make a (white) person wonder , did this guy just do this to see how high a white guy will jump?

The simple fact is neither black nor white race relations in the U.S. will allow for the concept of "shame" to enter the equation.
The biggest reason that the Asian population has established itself so successfully is the the simple fact that they understand very well what "shame" actually is.
Almost no American , regardless of race , actually understands the concept of "shame".

[whopis01]

10. What the hell did #2 have to do with race?

According to the story you told (unlike in the other two), at no time did the woman claim that she was being treated that way because she was black. At no time did she claim race was any issue at all. In fact if you didn't refer to her as a "(black american) woman", her passenger as a "black male" and the two of them as a "black american couple", there would have been no reference to race in the story at all! You are the only one that added race into it.

That story sounds to me like a woman who was either obnoxious or made a mistake and either did not realize it or did not want to admit it. It in no way sounds like someone who was "hiding behind her race". There is no evidence whatsoever that she was using "the color of her skin as an excuse".

It is clear that you are the one who made race a significant factor in that incident. I would suggest that rather than worrying about how "black americans will use the color of their skin as an excuse" that you examine your own views and prejudices towards other races.

[jthesnayke]

14. Can you help me answer thesetwo questions

I was given these two questions to answer on a small test. I made the mistake of reading the book really early in the smester and then I moved apratments and didn't realize i lost the book. I would appreciate any help

what are the frames for understanding color-blind racism? what are what is bonilla-silva's plan for ending color-blind racism?

[McHatin]

15. Very interesting, but also very wrong

What I really want to know is why so many black leaders and the author of this book want to embrace "race" as an identity and keep it around.

Another thing, cultural racism? What the hell is that? Are we now going to say you are a racist because you believe your culture is superior? Isn't there already a word for that? I believe people like this author would assign every opinion and position to racism if they could.

The problem for many black leaders today whose very living is made off of encouraging racial tension and keeping racial divisions is that racism is going away, so they are making up a lot of shit to keep their jobs.

All I really know is that pursuing policies with these views have not helped blacks in America one iota, though it has filled the pockets of peddlers of race (Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, etc.).

[Solo_in_MD]

3. Be aware that a lot of people are not buying his position

and that includes liberals and progressives. I for one agree with some of his observations, but few of his conclusions.

[Strawman]

4. Like what?

I'm curious to know since I'm still really trying to digest this book. I confess that I may be in that sort of infatuation phase that one can sometimes find him/herself in when one reads something like this, so I'd like to hear the flip side.

[index555]

7. like one very simple fact

a racist is a racist, is a racist.
It does not matter what the skin color is.

The only "race" is "homo sapiens sapiens"
The simple fact is once you peel off the skin and hair , you would have to be an expert in forensics to tell one race from another.

How many "forensic experts" are really on this board?
this is a fact , it does not matter what other so-called "experts" on "race" say.

[index555]

8. I truly believe that society should be "color blind"

I do know that this is not yet the case , I do wish for it to become so.
If somebody believes otherwise , then they can kiss my ass.
I do not care how many so called "phd's" are gathered "catering to what people want to hear" , they are still idiots.
It does not matter , anybody with a "position" can call upon an "expert" to parrot their position, no matter how idiotic that position is.
this is a simple fact that extends beyond any political boundaries.

I dare ANYBODY to prove I am wrong.

[loyalkydem]

9. See my thread

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=225x1374

I hate to say this, but we got a LONG way to go.

[one more state]

11. all one

We should strive to become one race through inter-racial procreation. This would solve 90 percent of the world problems.

[Hope springs eternal]

12. not really

I support inter-racial marriage. However, using people's affections as policy is extremely dangerous and undemocratic. Besides, 90% of all killing is intra-racial

[NOLALady]

13. That's been going on for some time now.

Someone once said, you can feed the pure (racial pure) Louisianians with a cup of rice and a pound of red beans.