there was this dude who wrote some essay for black history month at my school. in it he complained about how black history month was just to try and appease the wrongs done to his poeple (his dad is a teacher at the school, white french guy from tunisia or somethin, so the dude isnt even all black) and he was ranting on and on about "white power to white people, and red power to red people, and black power to black people" and it was so fucking dumb. if everyone who was mistreated in history got their own month, why the hell is it that the jews dont get a month? the hispanics get a month, and its not like we all about abused them or anything. now, im not advocating that we equalize things out that way, i think that all the months should be gotten rid of, because as long as theyre there, its a reason for people to see race as a difference between people...anyway, thats just my little rant...

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Originally posted by Sithiee:
what i dont get is why white people have to show so much more respect than others. sure, there were white people who owned slaves, but that was a long ass time ago. not only was it white people who put an end to it (as opposed to a slave revolution), but that was almost 150 years ago that its over. why is it that were still sposed to be sorry for somethin we didnt even do?

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I don't agree with nationalism, ethnic pride, any of that crap. I think it all amounts to a bunch of territorial pissings that have caused a great deal of bloodshed throughout history. Nevertheless, I will try to argue for the other side since I can somewhat see their point, and also because there doesn't seem to be very fair representation on this issue.

To begin with, be aware that the power structure in place today still favours you, the white middle-class male. You may not have participated in the subjugation of black people but you still reap benefits from their enslavement, even 150 years later. That's the reason for their anger and hostility (logical or not); you've benefited from their misfortune and you continue to do so today.

Now try imagining yourself as a young black man. You're a visible minority and on sight, without any interaction at all, people (subconsciously or consciously) form negative opinions of you. Nearly everywhere you go people look at you with fear or hostility. If it's late at night, people cross to the other side of the street to avoid you. If you're caught walking around an affluent neighbourhood the cops will accost you, and if they don't, local residents will make sure that they do. In short, you cannot avoid the fact that you're black. Everyone else seems to think that your 'blackness' is a big deal and you don't get any say in the matter.

So how do you deal with your blackness? You can try to avoid or deny the fact of it (i.e. not deal with it). You can buy into what everybody else is telling you with their actions - that being black means you're inferior. Or you can try and get something positive out of it and assert that being black is something to be proud of. When you add it all up, you're trapped in a Catch-22. All of the choices available to you are pretty lousy. And no matter what you decide, people are going to continue treating you like a second class citizen.

Reading over some of your posts, it looks to me like some of you have oversimplified this complex social issue. With respect to that, the main thing I'd ask you to remember is that life as a visible minority never ends. The abolishment of slavery, the civil rights movement - it's true that we've made great strides towards equality in the last century and a half. But we still have a long way to go and racism is still pervasive. You may not realize it, but racism manifests itself in a thousand little ways. It's not always as blatant as a burning cross on a lawn, or a racial slur. It's also fearful glances from other passengers on the subway, a suspicious store clerk eyeing your every move, and rude service at a restaurant. In an ideal world, racism wouldn't exist and we wouldn't have 'awareness' months. But the fact of the matter is that the world is far from perfect. Life is complicated and messy, and solutions never come easy.

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Just your generic meaningless signature. Mix with 2 quarts water and stir till evenly coated.

-FFox

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"Where are all the stupid people from? And how'd they get to be so dumb?"
-NOFX

ICQ: 436346

People used to <right after slavery was abolished> hate blacks because they thought that black people were inferior.
Now, i know people that hate them because they were passed over in favor of a lesser qualified , or lower scoring black person, for a job, or a scholarship, because the hiring people or the scholarship commitee have to meet racial quotas. Like my brother: He graduated top of his class- got a scholarship to Rice University- he wanted to go to MIT tho. A black guy in his class that graduated in the top 15\% <my bro was #2> got a full scholarship there because he was the top scoring black to attemt to go there. Thats bullshit.

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Because email can be altered electronically, the integrity of this communication cannot be guaranteed.

I think that giving people special treatment, weather it be good or bad, just because they are a minority is not a good thing.

Excuse any grammatical errors, I'm kinda drunk as I write this.

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"Where are all the stupid people from? And how'd they get to be so dumb?"
-NOFX

ICQ: 436346