The Many Hands Played By Race – A Multitude of Opinions & Thoughts

Originally posted by Thescripter
Personally, my first impression of someone is how they dress. Let me explain - If I walk into a gas station and there is a group of people of any color with their pants sagging down and a sideways hat, I automatically make assumptions about them, it's just natural for me to do so. If that same group were dressed with proper fitting clothes I would have an entirely different feeling about them. Generally from my experience my first impression of people seems to be spot on. If I hear people shouting at each other across a store as a standard way of communication for them, I can usually assume how they dress and act and most of the time it is correct. As a matter of fact I have some new neighbors on my street that were placed here from government housing that are all white, none of the 7 of them have jobs and they dress with their pants down right above their knees, play gangsta rap out of a old crappy car in their driveway as loud as they can at all hours of the night and are constantly walking up and down the street on cell phones making drug deals loudly, and are out in the street all night yelling and screaming. The traffic in and out of the house is constant. Now what would you think of this? Would that be stereotyping or common sense? I know I have went off topic here, but I would like a few opinions on this.

Yet there is a difference between an "impression" and an "observation." If you see and hear an individual in an act of crime (as you describe), you don't "suspect" they are a criminal, you know they are. Of course the extension of that observation - as a rule of identification - to others is a risk you alone take.

I do feel sorry for the day you miss an opportunity to meet a genuine good person, because you reject them by their looks. The loss will be yours. Or worse yet, the day someone refuses to help you, because you look like a person, or people, who they have had bad experiences with; will be the turn of the wheel to which you yourself adhere.

As for the assumptions you make.. they are yours and yours alone. The people you look down upon did not engender that bias in you. It is baggage you carry of your own accord.

Don't get me wrong... you are in no way "incorrect" in how you feel... because how you feel is your domain. But you may someday realize that that all of the ill feeling, the poor expectations, and the 'approach' you take with people like this ... it's all on you. Perhaps if by some magic means you could categorize the "impression" with less finality, and less weight of certainty, you may find that how a person behaves is often a function of how they have to live - and with whom.

I believe that what we do defines us socially. But who we are socially is not the definition of who we are... convenient contemporary case in point - politicians. Are we truly expected to believe that we "know" any of them at all?

"Stereotypes" are product of repeated and reinforced observations.... "First impressions" are essentially "fantasy" that we create to cope with not knowing one way or the other.

Should they care what you think? Should you care what they think? .... Probably not.... unless you meet.

reply to post by Maxmars


I agree with you, thanks for replying. I appreciate your thread, definitely gave me a lot to think about. My neighborhood is almost completely older retired people and very quiet - and they are actually afraid to call the police on these new people. The sad part of the problematic neighbors would be the two young children that live there, roughly age 8 and 14 being exposed to this. Now I can't even take my child outside to play in our yard without having to listen to extremely loud obscene "music" and the loud cussing and threatening language at anyone who looks their way. I have called quiet a few times over noise complaints at 2am and as soon the officer arrives they all vanish like roaches in light, until the officer clears out and right back where we started. I don't want to get involved in this for fear of retaliation on my family so we are planning on moving by next year if we can get our house sold by then, which is tough to do with at least 3 other families doing the same. Again sorry for going off topic, but I needed to vent a bit.

reply to post by bigfatfurrytexan


"Human" is a Species (Homo Sapiens)
"Human Race" is a made up term.
"Race" is a physical classification of bone structure (not skin color). It's a biological term that defines genetic classification within a specific species (there are different races of flowers for instance, or most honey bees are actually different races and not different species.

In Humans it's defined by hone structure, or Phenotype Characteristic (observable). There is very, very little genetic differences between races, it's simply physical makeup. But all Humans can be classified into three distinct physical families, Caucasian, African and Asian.

Then you have subraces called Ethnicity that through isolated human interbreeding create distinct physical characteristics (though they all share familiarity with their "race")

Now.... if you want to say "race doesn't matter" and "there's really no difference between the races" that's all fine and dandy. But you cannot say that race doesn't exist .. because it does.

Celebrate our differences. Don't stick your head in the sand and pretend we're all shades of grey.

Well constructed thread OP

As you said, we must look inside ourselves rather than outside. This is where the true and meaningful answers about us lie. This is a topic that is connected to my ongoing thread and a topic which we need to keep fresh here on ATS. It must be a continuous ongoing discussion. People need to pay attention, listen in the truest meaning of the word and practice a healthy thought process to break free of the programming that all of us have endured. We cannot further humanity without each individual in practice.

Also I would like to add that I am grateful of ATS as it provides the platform for great information sharing on every topic under the sun and this site is full of thoughtful, kind people.

Originally posted by Rockpuck
reply to post by bigfatfurrytexan

 

"Human" is a Species (Homo Sapiens)
"Human Race" is a made up term.
"Race" is a physical classification of bone structure (not skin color). It's a biological term that defines genetic classification within a specific species (there are different races of flowers for instance, or most honey bees are actually different races and not different species.

In Humans it's defined by hone structure, or Phenotype Characteristic (observable). There is very, very little genetic differences between races, it's simply physical makeup. But all Humans can be classified into three distinct physical families, Caucasian, African and Asian.

Then you have subraces called Ethnicity that through isolated human interbreeding create distinct physical characteristics (though they all share familiarity with their "race")

Now.... if you want to say "race doesn't matter" and "there's really no difference between the races" that's all fine and dandy. But you cannot say that race doesn't exist .. because it does.

Celebrate our differences. Don't stick your head in the sand and pretend we're all shades of grey.

Great response. I definitely recognize differences. I just don't consider them much beyond recognizing. Not because I am some self important schmuck, but mostly because my family is so interracial that the only time we take notice is when we are razzing each other. We find a lot to laugh at in the common stereotypes. Especially those of us in the family that dance like "white folks".

Originally posted by bigfatfurrytexan
reply to post by blueorder

 

What I would find with a 6 month stay in Compton, most likely, is that the denizens of Compton are very racist. I would be singled out as a white person that didn't belong. Nothing in my behavior is of a "black culture", and I would not fit in at all. I would suspect that bullying would eventually end up happening.

If i lived in Malibu, as I am now, nothing would happen. I have spent the last several years working around some folks with money, and understand the silly and shallow viewpoints they have. I would blend in far, far better. However, were I to be your regular Compton resident, and then move over to Malibu, i would expect the same thing as above: the racism of the people living in that neighborhood would likely make it very uncomfortable for me. I would expect the Malibu folks would, instead of using direct physical threats, instead use the police as a tool to bully me with.

People tend to segregate themselves. When you choose to go live "with your own kind", that is something that could be racist. Eschewing another race simply because of skin color is called "prejudice".

BTW, prejudice comes from "prejudge". Yes, prejudice is reality based most often, but all too often it is not.

sorry no
The price of real estate you mention had nothing to do with your perception of racism, but rather the actual reality of life in those areas, people will pay to live in "better" areas, hence they will pay more in some areas more than others- sometimes race mirrors those "better" areas............

nevermind

Indeed the racist card is thrown around far too often, with the throwers of the card hoping it will stick, anywhere, somewhere.

I think that what the multi-culturalists are blind to, is the fact that humans, in general, want to be amongst people like themselves.

For example, here in Michigan, we have the city of Dearborn, with one of the highest concentration of Muslims in the US. Minneapolis, not far from here has the highest concentration of Somalis in the US. We have Chinatowns and Little Italys in major cities across the US. You have Polish and Russian enclaves in major cities.

People tend to want to live with people like themselves. And I don't see a problem with that.

reply to post by Darkrunner


Good points. Personally I don't believe segregation OR diversity should be promoted by government. All we need is equal rights under the law. You gave an example of Polish and Russian enclaves, many would not be able to tell the difference between the two groups or consider them to be two diverse groups. That goes to show how subjective this all is.

I am a racist.
I don't treat people equally.
Discrimination comes naturally to me.
I am not a Saint, i am a human.
Everyone should be free to like or dislike someone for whatever reasons.

Originally posted by deepankarm
I am a racist.
I don't treat people equally.
Discrimination comes naturally to me.
I am not a Saint, i am a human.
Everyone should be free to like or dislike someone for whatever reasons.

You openly admit to treating people differently because of their skin color?

Racist:a person with a prejudiced belief that one race is superior to others

You believe that one skin color is superior to another, and you are OK with this idea?

Wow..

That's amazing.

~Tenth

reply to post by tothetenthpower


I would suspect it is more of a mischaracterization of what is going on to create some shock value in the reply by appearing to be "edgy" and bluntly honest.

As has been mentioned, we all have prejudices. But a prejudice is not being racist (although the inverse is true).

reply to post by bigfatfurrytexan


I would hope that's all it is.

Dicrimination isn't inherently bad, it's simply the word we use to dicern differences among each other. And yes those differences exist, but you should not use them to judge a person's merit as a human being.

This is fundementally why in my mind, race does not exist, because you can't effectively use it to judge anybody, on any level that makes sense.

~Tenth

reply to post by tothetenthpower

..

Originally posted by tothetenthpower
reply to post by bigfatfurrytexan

 

I would hope that's all it is.

Dicrimination isn't inherently bad, it's simply the word we use to dicern differences among each other. And yes those differences exist, but you should not use them to judge a person's merit as a human being.

This is fundementally why in my mind, race does not exist, because you can't effectively use it to judge anybody, on any level that makes sense.

~Tenth

Prejudice is important. It is how you know not to grab that hot pan on the stove again. You learn from experience, and apply those lessons going forward.

But predeterminism, that is another thing entirely. That is where you are prejudice, yet will refuse to change your initial misgivings. Like choosing to never touch another pot again, just because you got burned 1 time in the past.

reply to post by tothetenthpower





SORRY about the previous post's but i think my pc has developed a life of it's own





I go along with 'bigfatfurrytexan' on this one! We all have likes and dislikes we're

only human after all. I don't think there is anyone here who, for what ever reason hasn't

at some time taken an instant dislike to someone, at sometime and for what ever reason...

I know i have...

So...if i were to dislike two people and one happened to be black and the other one was

white i would be disliking two people wouldn't I? and NOT be being racialy predjudiced?


When i read about a 'rogue' policeman assaulting a man in the line of duty, it is

invariably reported as an assault but if the man is black it gets reported as a 'racial' attack!