Cordial discussion on the experience of racism

Well in my area any race of people can live peacfully.While young.
But behind the backs of the few in the minority, people talk, and joke about the race of the other few people. But then certain people that do the talking can be the freinds of the people in the minority, it makes no sence to me at all. to me it seems that they are sort of "secret Racists".

And i have noticed that people will just go along with a racist individual and no-one stands up to the individual and says that what they are saying is wrong.

However there has been one event that was very racist in my city.
Where i live they where going to make a mosque, but, a group of racists individuals got together and damaged the site of where the mosque was going to built by way of arson.

Its horrible to think what lengths some people go to just to get rid of a certain minority when there is no need because we are all the same.

-Crap

First, thank you NRA (do you mind the truncation of your screenname?) for this thread, and your gentle guidance of the OP.

I am fortunate enough to live in an area where the "color lines" are blurred to the point of being pointless. People here will characterize others as white, brown, black or their nation of origin. I used to be a caucasian, and now I'm merely dark beige. ha!

I'm uncomfortable with generalizations being made upon a country-of-origin basis; I hear things like this all the time, and have been known to be a real pain-inne-adz about challenging such statements:

Jamaicans are _________

Horduranians are _________

Philipinos are _________

There doesn't seem to be much emphasis placed upon actual skin color, and I think that's great. There is a frequent use of the N-word, which here is apparently used as an endearment and not necessarily in a reflection of skin tone. I'm uncomfortable with that, as I grew up believing it to be wrong to use it, and I choose not to accept it into my lexicon, even knowing how it is used here by a small segment of the population. There are so many other words, better words, you know?

When I lived in the U.S., I intentionally avoided less affluent, heavy-density areas of either latinos or blacks. It was my experience that those areas had a higher probability of confrontation [for me] than others areas. To me, this was just being sensible, much as I would avoid any hazard, however it always made me think -- made me question my motives, question my analysis of the situations, examine my prejuidices.