I don't understand the reply as I don't think I claimed it was by non-whites? But do roma people not suffer from systemic discrimination in Africa?
Can you be racist towards white people?
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Any group can suffer racism but the impact to a group that is on top of the social food chain is negligible compared to those that they hold down.
What about when the Dunkin Donuts cups don't have Santy Clause on them?
Insane is responses like this.
EDIT: It isn't racist to be attacked physically just because you are white? Verbally?
If you hate someone just because of their skin color you're racist, there is no other qualifiers in the equation.
But individual minorities can in fact have power over individual white people.
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Yeah. Racism is the prejudice against others because of a belief that their race is superior. That makes racism a very broad issue.
Melanin itself has little to do with the overall issue of race although manifest in certain cultures as the predominate factor due to obvious historical factors and a result of justification for those actions.
Historically the use of skin colour as a dividing factor is extremely recent. Standard tribalism is far more common. The classifications of race is also very recent that began with the development of the sciences and what can now be considered nonsense like phrenology.
Melanin itself has little to do with the overall issue of race although manifest in certain cultures as the predominate factor due to obvious historical factors and a result of justification for those actions.
Historically the use of skin colour as a dividing factor is extremely recent. Standard tribalism is far more common. The classifications of race is also very recent that began with the development of the sciences and what can now be considered nonsense like phrenology.
When I've encountered black people who were just plain assholes to me, I never got the sense that they were picking on me exclusively because I was white. They were just assholes, usually trying to impress their friends or get attention.
I've never been denied anything because I'm white, either.
So while I don't have the answer to this question, I've never seen it myself.
I've never been denied anything because I'm white, either.
So while I don't have the answer to this question, I've never seen it myself.
I’m not sure how that is relevant? Obama isn’t racist as far as I know, but it doesn’t really have anything to do with my post.
I just remember someone here authoritatively posting a rational wiki link to back up their opinion that you can't be as if it were the only logical conclusion, clicking it out of curiosity.. and seeing it list a half dozen reasonable issues with that position and criticize any attempt to use it as the "one" definition of racism.
Obviously history, power, etc. all play a complex role with racism and there are other terms for some examples of that, but yes I do ultimately believe it's possible to be racist towards anyone.
edit: Think this was it.
Obviously history, power, etc. all play a complex role with racism and there are other terms for some examples of that, but yes I do ultimately believe it's possible to be racist towards anyone.
edit: Think this was it.
Unless there's a country I never heard of where white people have less rights, get treated as subhuman, have laws put in place to stop them from getting access to health, education and benefits that whatever the majority is in that country have access to without question, get frisked and shot just because they're walking the street being white... then no, you can't be racist against white people.
In the modern world, white people suffer prejudice and that's it. Not racism.
Looking at people as huge swathes that are simply "white" or "black" or "Asian" is such an American oversimplification. It's just a symptom of how the huge melting pot that is the United States managed to (poorly) sort things out.
There are no shortage of "white" ethnic groups around the world that are targets of individual racism and systemic racism. Start a thread about the Roma and you'll see the knives come out. Or hell, go back less than a century and see the "inferior whites" getting it even in the US.
There are no shortage of "white" ethnic groups around the world that are targets of individual racism and systemic racism. Start a thread about the Roma and you'll see the knives come out. Or hell, go back less than a century and see the "inferior whites" getting it even in the US.
Do you know of only 3 or 4 countries? Also, systematic racism doesn't only exist if there are specific laws against minorities.
In my country of Portugal it's against the constitution to even determine someone's "race". So legally, 100%, there is absolutely no racist law, as "race" is something that doesn't exist on paper. Does this mean Portugal has solved the issue and is a racism-free country? AHAHAHAHA
But that is systematic racism, where the norm is I agree with you.
But you can very much be racist to an individual, or what would you call physical harm to a white person due to the colour of the persons skin?
I think what's happening in this thread is that people are split into two camps.
The first camp is rightfully pointing out that to be racist is to discriminate based on race, and you can hate anyone based on their skin color.
The other camp is rightfully pointing out that the racism which is the most pernicious and relevant to our society is that which is born out of power. It passes down through generations and permeates the institutions that inform peoples' social status and outlook on life.
So a better way of framing this topic is whether racism towards white people is significant enough to register on our collective radars.
The first camp is rightfully pointing out that to be racist is to discriminate based on race, and you can hate anyone based on their skin color.
The other camp is rightfully pointing out that the racism which is the most pernicious and relevant to our society is that which is born out of power. It passes down through generations and permeates the institutions that inform peoples' social status and outlook on life.
So a better way of framing this topic is whether racism towards white people is significant enough to register on our collective radars.
Yes, racial prejudice against white people is a thing that happens. But of course it's hardly comparable to the systemic oppression that ethnic minorities experience on top of the nasty personal incidents.
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So if I went out into the streets in China and pulled my eyes back into slants and started making “Ching chong chang” noises, would that be racist or no?
Yes, sure, and also other forms of prejudice. I just think it's insanely fragile when someone who's straight and white, even if they experience a lot of bigotry more than they deserve, vents about it more than someone for whom actual LAWS and the enforcement of them prevents experiencing the luxury of not having to worry about your quality of life being under attack all the time on a systemic level, a luxury/privilege which to this day you are still afforded by being white, straight, etc.
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Racism of any kind should register on our radars. Not liking someone or discriminating against someone solely because of their race should not be acceptable.
100% this.
All the ‘No’ replies in here are pretty surprising TBH.
The legacy of colonialism still left its mark on Europe. European colonialism was most certainly driven by white supremacy
My point is kind of two-fold and addresses the original power point of the person you replied to. Did Obama really wield power? Are black people in America really allowed to wield power over white people or is that more of a facade? Do you think Obama could have gotten away with 1/10th of the shit Trump is?
He was the president and supposedly wielded power but look how much racism he was a victim of. Which ultimately brings me to the point of power really isn’t a causation of racism. Racism is more of a by product or tool to keep that power. It’s a question of what really is power.
A black person could become a manager over you at the workplace, would you consider that power? Sure, maybe. If you are white and don’t like that person though you have a million ways to take that black person down in America using systematic racist tools that are ingrained here. And that black person would be powerless to do anything about it.
Yes I know it's not dependent solely on laws, it's the whole system being biased regardless of there being specific laws. I said that as an example of things that can occur to enforce the societal bias.
Still haven't heard of white people getting randomly shot, attacked or deported from any country based solely on being white in any meaningful way as to qualify as racism.
Yes they can be attacked and harmed on an individual level, not on as an entire group. That's prejudice, which is also terrible and shouldn't happen.
But ultimately it won't affect their white privilege in any way and won't affect their standing in society.
"individual racism" as in having strong prejudices towards people simply due to their skin color and potentially acting on it? Of course.
"Institutional racism' as in the whole system is rigged in favor of a specific racial or ethnic group and keeps others down? At least in the western world it's more or less impossible for white people to experience institutional racism.
"Institutional racism' as in the whole system is rigged in favor of a specific racial or ethnic group and keeps others down? At least in the western world it's more or less impossible for white people to experience institutional racism.
Racism is racism. If you’re another race and you have a disdain hatred toward white people for whatever reason, you’re still racist towards them. It’s obvious white haven’t suffered from the same type of prejudice as almost every other race, but that doesn’t mean that racism towards them is non-existent or doesn’t apply.
No it is a hate crime to attack someone physically due to colour of their skin which is racism.
Yes, we white will probably never be put under systematical or institutional racism, but individual racism sure can happen.
I am a little bit lost at this apparent "academic consensus of power hierarchy defining for racism" in relation to the term, because I have studied social sciences academically and this is absolutely not how it was explicitly defined. Definition of the term is an argument within itself, absolutely, but there is no "consensus" that I have been exposed to, though some social scientists will argue that the hierarchy is a necessity (eg: you cannot be "racist" against the ethnic group with power). Hierarchy is mostly discussed as a necessity for racism to exist, as in racism requires there to be a social hierarchy based on race, as race is a social construct. This obviously weights ideological racism towards the oppressed end of the hierarchy from the top, but they're not mutually exclusive. And in my opinion the belief that racism requires an inherent, already existing power imbalance, does a tremendous disservice to, dangerously so, the exploration and understanding of development of racist ideologies and belief systems within individuals and groups that can, if left unaddressed, propagate and develop into systemic racism via a power hierarchy.
Race is a social construct, that is an academic consensus, though we use "racism" to also include ethnic groups as well. Interchanging acts of racism with "prejudice" makes no rational sense, as it does not identify the very specific ideological context of racial superiority. "Prejudice" is an extremely broad identification of irrational belief resulting in divisiveness, and not required to be fuelled by racial or ethnic beliefs. It implies that racism as a concept cannot exist without a strict and existing power imbalance between ethnic groups, and is a term only subjected to by the lower hierarchical from the upper hierarchical within a society wherein that power imbalance exists. It prevents us from identify the unique and dangerous facets of specific racial supremacy ideology within individuals and smaller ethnic groups that can lead to power imbalances, and create and enforce exactly this racially divisive hierarchy. It also closes us off to understanding the development of racist beliefs within existing ethnic groups, and how violent acts of oppression stemming from adherence to ideological racism are often acted before an enormous power imbalance is developed, and in historically poignant examples were the very fuel of developing a power imbalance.
I understand the context within the United States is especially unique and complex, because of its history and undeniable, factual institutionalised racism and oppression that exists within a white, anglo dominant social hierarchy to the detriment of...well, everybody else. Australia has very similar issues, and as a white man living in this country I'm very well aware of our own systemic racism. But when we discuss racism we are not just talking about just the West, nor ethnic divides caused by racial supremacy where "white people" sit at the top. If people wish to have that discussion, particularly within the social framework of the United States, that would make for a very interesting topic. Some of the answers here are more appropriate if the question is framed "Is it possible to be racist to a degree of significant towards Whites in the United States of America?". Exploring how racism manifests within societies, ideologically within ethnic groups, and is then enforced as a means of oppression is an incredibly fascinating topic. But manifestations of racism as an ideology within ethnic groups and how they develop over time is sadly not unique to Western civilisation, nor the most globally dominant form of racial supremacy (aka, "Whites").
And I simply don't think it's intellectually just to prop up the systemic, institutionalised racism of the United States, or even racism as a consequence of global colonialism (which is really the root of all white supremacy driven racial divides), as exclusively the definition of racism in the face of monstrous historic tragedies of ethnic and racial cleansing, either removed from white culture (the Rwandan genocide), or within it (the entirety of World War II, from multiple belligerents).
This is, of course, all matter of debate and discussion. Social science is incredibly interesting in how we explore social stratification, particularly in relation to race (which, again, is a social construct and arguably doesn't even "exist"), alongside ethnic groups, the various institutionalised oppression that have formed at various levels within societies. Human beings are unfortunately pretty fucking horrible when committed to and driven by ethnic/racial ideological divide.
Race is a social construct, that is an academic consensus, though we use "racism" to also include ethnic groups as well. Interchanging acts of racism with "prejudice" makes no rational sense, as it does not identify the very specific ideological context of racial superiority. "Prejudice" is an extremely broad identification of irrational belief resulting in divisiveness, and not required to be fuelled by racial or ethnic beliefs. It implies that racism as a concept cannot exist without a strict and existing power imbalance between ethnic groups, and is a term only subjected to by the lower hierarchical from the upper hierarchical within a society wherein that power imbalance exists. It prevents us from identify the unique and dangerous facets of specific racial supremacy ideology within individuals and smaller ethnic groups that can lead to power imbalances, and create and enforce exactly this racially divisive hierarchy. It also closes us off to understanding the development of racist beliefs within existing ethnic groups, and how violent acts of oppression stemming from adherence to ideological racism are often acted before an enormous power imbalance is developed, and in historically poignant examples were the very fuel of developing a power imbalance.
I understand the context within the United States is especially unique and complex, because of its history and undeniable, factual institutionalised racism and oppression that exists within a white, anglo dominant social hierarchy to the detriment of...well, everybody else. Australia has very similar issues, and as a white man living in this country I'm very well aware of our own systemic racism. But when we discuss racism we are not just talking about just the West, nor ethnic divides caused by racial supremacy where "white people" sit at the top. If people wish to have that discussion, particularly within the social framework of the United States, that would make for a very interesting topic. Some of the answers here are more appropriate if the question is framed "Is it possible to be racist to a degree of significant towards Whites in the United States of America?". Exploring how racism manifests within societies, ideologically within ethnic groups, and is then enforced as a means of oppression is an incredibly fascinating topic. But manifestations of racism as an ideology within ethnic groups and how they develop over time is sadly not unique to Western civilisation, nor the most globally dominant form of racial supremacy (aka, "Whites").
And I simply don't think it's intellectually just to prop up the systemic, institutionalised racism of the United States, or even racism as a consequence of global colonialism (which is really the root of all white supremacy driven racial divides), as exclusively the definition of racism in the face of monstrous historic tragedies of ethnic and racial cleansing, either removed from white culture (the Rwandan genocide), or within it (the entirety of World War II, from multiple belligerents).
This is, of course, all matter of debate and discussion. Social science is incredibly interesting in how we explore social stratification, particularly in relation to race (which, again, is a social construct and arguably doesn't even "exist"), alongside ethnic groups, the various institutionalised oppression that have formed at various levels within societies. Human beings are unfortunately pretty fucking horrible when committed to and driven by ethnic/racial ideological divide.
Exactly. Keeping that mindset will hurt any sort of movement against systematic racism since the nationalists and racist will focus on that "it is only racist if we do it" part.
I don't know how this pertains to anything I said. But yea of course.
Some Leftists, and some people in general, are only interested in “turning power structures on their heads”. The politics of the underdog.
Meaning they’re okay with concepts like racism and are okay with Capitalism they just want it to benefit their own constituents.
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