The fear of being seen as racist

a reply to: crostkev

Hi,

I just want to reiterate what others have said. Your concern is about child protection given the young girl's behaviour and appearance rather than racism. If you have concerns about a child you should really call the social work department and speak to the duty worker in the children and families team.
They will take a note of your concern and should act upon it. So they might contact this young woman's guidance teacher at school and check out with them how she is doing, any concerns etc. Or they may visit the shop and talk to the young woman. Or they might decide there is not enough to go on and simply file a report.
I wouldn't encourage you to start an investigation yourself, nor hand out leaflets and information to her.

But don't ever be reluctant to pass on your concerns about child protection; it's better to be proved wrong than to miss an opportunity to speak up.
There's probably nothing to worry about, but if you are concerned talk to someone.

Good luck

a reply to: crostkev

Not far from my home there is a giant apartment complex comprised almost entirely of Muslim Somalis. In front of it there is a Somali owned gas station that also sells Halal goods. This gas station is part of a very small shopping center. There is a tobacco shop, a cafe, a liquor store,a very good Chinese takeout place, and a laundromat in the back. In Minnesota there has been a MASSIVE influx of immigrants. In the 1990's there was wave after wave of Hmong families moving to the St. Paul/Minneapolis area. Then the Somalis. There is a large Hispanic community here as well as a small amount of Pakistanis.

I will admit that I am not a racist at this point in time, though I have several issues that could be construed that way. A major one for me is my daughter's elementary school. I sent her there because it is close to home,I attended this school and there are still very good teachers there. My problem:

This school is very close to the Somali apartment complex and at the beginning of her first year 30% of the students were Somali. As the Somali population rose at the school my daughter's reading, writing, and spelling grew worse and worse. Her math performance is better than excellent. As I spent more time with her studying at home to help improve her english skills I noticed that as the Somali population rose in the school, other races shrank. By the end of the last school year my daughter was the only non-Somali pupil in her entire grade(!) and still struggling with english. What has me so angry is that I KNOW if it were reversed and she were the only Somali in her grade and was falling behind she would have her own special tutor and probably the school would start a "minority encouragement" club or something of the sort---Because that was what happened at the time when Somali and Hmong children WERE the minority. I had many meetings with her teachers , most of them agreeing with me but sickeningly apathetic and there was not one that didn't point to the curriculum as the major issue, because I guess they are FORCED to teach it and it doesn't "work" with children for whom english is a second language. REALLY?? I HAD NO IDEA! I spoke with the principal as well and got nowhere. So my daughter wont be attending that school this year.


Unfortunately there is no way to deal with this issue without stepping on some toes. None of the faculty will touch it with a ten foot pole (beyond their private complaints.) Everyone is terrified of appearing racist; ironically this is what turned me into a racist when I started junior high. Every day the same kids would pull the same sh**. Breaking into lockers, stealing Starter jackets, throwing food in the lunchroom, ganging up on other kids, constantly disrupting class, even breaking into teacher's desks and stealing their purses or whatever happened to be there. Not one of the bastards were reprimanded or suspended. Unless there was a kid who got seriously beat up , nothing was said or done about the problem. And if there was a serious beating the student at fault was expelled (which meant that both the beater and the beaten were expelled because no one dare point a finger at a very obviously guilty person of color) and the faculty never discussed it. In high school it was worse and I wasn't going to take it anymore. I never bullied anyone, ever. However, I would not sit back and be called "cracka-ass bitch" "honkey mutha#a" or anything else without coming right back with the N word. I made quite a few enemies but soon other kids weren't taking it either and the teachers began to panic because they couldn't really justify suspending one group for saying "'n-word'" and not the other for their racial slurs. As soon as I left school? All of my racism disappeared. I believe it was due to not being confined in a glorified daycare center for juveniles where only the innocent suffered and the adults looked the other way or punished the innocent with the guilty. It ALL BOILS DOWN TO THE ADULTS! When I became a grownup myself I finally understood that my anger was not exactly pointed in the right direction. The immediate effects were caused by other students, but these students had been taught by adults who did not hold them accountable for their behavior, did not reprimand them or attempt to correct their behaviors, and were basically so caught up in being "politically correct" (huge buzzword in the early 90's) that it became a complete farce. It was a total joke.

I know this seems far removed from what you are talking about, but really it's not. If you can see things from a cultural
perspective instead of a race/color/religion aspect it can help a great deal. After 9/11 many Somali and other Muslim people were relentlessly harassed and it's made things so much worse. I know 9/11 was a long time ago but a lot of the Muslim community still feel the sting and do tend to keep to their own.


As for your concerns I have a few questions and a bit of info that might help. Is this a family run shop? Is the owner or manager a close relative of the girl's? I ask because it is very unusual for a young(Muslim) woman to work in the company of men unsupervised if she is not a relative or maybe a wife of another employee. What is she doing when you go there? Is she behind the counter? Unpacking boxes? Does she do any visible work? Do you have an idea of her age? Does she wear a hijab? Or does she weir a complete veil? Some families are stricter than others and some sects of Islam are stricter than others. Are you sure your presence alone isn't the problem? Have you attempted conversation with her beyond please and thank you? That may be enough to make the males uneasy.
Thank you for noticing someone who may be in trouble and for your concern.

a reply to: crostkev


I think everyone else has already done a great job answering your question , thanks again.

originally posted by: Briles1207
The word racism is banded about so freely these days by the uneducated that it has almost diluted itself.

So by screaming racism at every little thing, people are in fact doing more harm than good when it comes to real racism.

When I here the words "that guys being racist" I no longer think, my gosh that's abhorrent, I'm thinking "Hmm is he really?"

You are correct , except it has now - gone beyond words.

Very sad ...

Thank you all for your input here, I shall do my best to answer all the comments directed towards me, but alas my teenage son now demands the day, so once again thank you.
There are a lot of very sensible people here and I'm proud to call you friends.

The best way to tell if someone is racist or not is if they get offended by being called names related to their race.
For example I've been called a white maggot c### and I'll get my cousins to belt you *&^% for simply walking along going about my business, given the finger and dirty looks for no other reason than I'm unloading my groceries in my car.
You know why it doesn't offend me to called names because of the colour of my skin?
Because I'm not ashamed of it.
People who get the cranky pants on because someone curses them based on their appearance are the racist imo

Ps one of the most hilarious in hind sight things that's happened to me is being threatened to be bashed because I called my black cat Blakie. How pathetic is that. Clearly someone who is ashamed of themselves

originally posted by: crostkev

Prof Alexis Jay's harrowing report revealed the abuse of more than 1,400 children - mainly by men of Pakistani heritage

The fear of being seen as racist

I know this issue has been around the boards in one form or an other
but after reading this my first thought was for the young teenagers working in my the local corner shop
I don't by any stretch of the imagination live in a heavily muslin populated area
I have seen and felt the uneasy atmosphere when I am in for only a minuet or two
Should I say to the young woman (a lot younger 18) that she can let me know
if there are things being said to her that would be seen as unappropriated or even being groomed
Or am i acting like a racist by even thinking in this way?
There is a polish gentleman that runs the local fish and chip shop
There are teenagers working there but I don't get the same feeling
of tension that happens in the corner shop.
I have never thought of saying anything until I read this
Am I being silly or should I now start to look out for more signs
and then what!
I don't think I would feel comfortable accusing anyone
of grooming without some bloody hard evidence.
Is this inaction adding to the problem?
I ask ATS members for you're humble opinion.

Go to a forum where the majority of users are of the cultural and ethnic origin you speak of. Ask them the question. Its pointless asking here if you really want to learn.

originally posted by: Takka

You know why it doesn't offend me to called names because of the colour of my skin?
Because I'm not ashamed of it.
People who get the cranky pants on because someone curses them based on their appearance are the racist imo

Ps one of the most hilarious in hind sight things that's happened to me is being threatened to be bashed because I called my black cat Blakie. How pathetic is that. Clearly someone who is ashamed of themselves

Its a little more complicated than that.