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18 Things White People Should Know/Do Before Discussing Racism

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18 Things White People Should Know/Do Before Discussing Racism
Dealing With Racism
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Megan's guide to dealing with casual racism. Read More »
Discussions about racism should be all-inclusive and open to people of all skin colors. However, to put it simply, sometimes White people lack the experience or education that can provide a rudimentary foundation from which a productive conversation can be built. This is not necessarily the fault of the individual, but pervasive myths and misinformation have dominated mainstream racial discourse and often times, the important issues are never highlighted. For that reason, The Frisky has decided to publish this handy list that has some basic rules and information to better prepare anyone for a worthwhile discussion about racism.
1. It is uncomfortable to talk about racism. It is more uncomfortable to live it.
2. “Colorblindness” is a cop-out. The statements “but I don’t see color” or “I never care about color” do not help to build a case against systemic racism. Try being the only White person in an environment. You will notice color then.
3. Oprah’s success does not mean the end of racism. The singular success of a Black man or woman (i.e. Oprah, or Tiger Woods, or President Obama) is never a valid argument against the existence of racism. By this logic, the success of Frederick Douglass or Amanda America Dickson during the 19th century would be grounds for disproving slavery.
4. Reverse racism is BS, but prejudice is not. Until people of color colonize, dominate and enslave the populations of the planet in the name of “superiority,” create standards of beauty based on their own colored definition, enact a system where only people of color benefit on a large-scale, and finally pretend like said system no longer exists, there is no such thing as reverse racism. Prejudice is in all of us, but prejudice employed as a governing structure is something different.
5. America has not “gotten over” its race-related problems. In American History class you learned about slavery and Jim Crow, but sadly you were taught that figures like Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks eradicated an entire 200-year history of oppression, discrimination and segregation. Your history teachers and books tried close the race chapter on a high note, however the ongoing history of America’s systemic racism cannot be simply wrapped up and decorated with a “now we all are equal” bow.
6. Google is your best friend. Search: Black/White wealth gap, redlining, “White flight,” subprime mortgages and black families,  discriminatory sentencing practices, occupational overcrowding, workplace discrimination, employment discrimination, mandatory minimum sentences and in-school segregation to start. Here are some highlights:
7. Then read some more. Google: Black Wall Street, Sundown towns, eugenics and forced sterilization, and Black voting prohibition.
8. Buy and read a book from a Black author. Some recommendations: W.E.B Dubois, James Baldwin, Frederick Douglass, Maya Angelou, Toni Morrison, Ralph Ellison, Alice Walker and Zora Neale Hurston would be a great start.
9. Realize that segregation is still rampant. Step outside and take a look around your neighborhood. Lacking people of color much? That is called segregation. It is not by chance, though sometimes by choice. (Refer to “redlining” Google search.)
  • About your neighborhood again: Displacing people of color much? That is called gentrification.
  • Think about the schools you went to and the classes you had. Not too many minorities in either? (Refer to school segregation/in-school segregation.)
10. Programs or initiatives that target systemic racism are not “charity.” We do not refer to the 200 years of free labor provided by enslaved Blacks as charity. Or the Black property stolen by Whites during the decades of state-supported terrorism? Or, say, the unfair banking practices that have completely decimated the Black middle class through foreclosures (refer to subprime mortgages and Black families google search)?
11. Black on Black crime does not exist. There are countless White people committing crimes against White people, but “White-on-White crime” is strangely absent from the rhetoric reporting everything from elementary school shootings to world wars. Why should crimes committed by and against people of color be labelled any differently?
12. White people will not become the minority in America in the next 20 years. “Whites” were originally Anglo-Saxon Protestants (WASPs). The definition of “White,” as a racial classification, has evolved to include “Whiter-skinned” minority groups who were historically discriminated against, barred from “Whiteness” and thus had little access to opportunity. Some examples: Italians and the Irish (who were frequently referred to as n***ers in the 1800’s), Jewish people and more recently Hispanic (George Zimmerman) and Armenian minority groups. Such evolutions, however, always exclude Blacks.
13. Hip-hop culture is no more dysfunctional than Wall Street culture. At its worst, commercial “Black culture” is a raw reflection of broader society. The caricatured imagery of drugs, money, and women are headlined most prominently by Wall Street, politicians, and media moguls but this reality never comes to reflect on White people. America spends more on weaponry than the most of the rest of the world combined but somehow it is the “violence” of hip-hop that is an exclusive pathology.
14. Black people are angry about racism, and they have every right to be. Anger is a legitimate and justified response to years of injustice and invisibility.
15. There are poor White people, but racism and discrimination still exists. The plight of the poor White midwest always makes a convenient appearance to deflect any perceived accusation of privilege or to derail conversations of racism. Racist American policy was never about securing the success of all White people, but rather about legalizing the disenfranchisement of Blacks and other people of color.
16. Silence does nothing. Blank stares and silence do not further this difficult but necessary conversation.
17. White guilt is worthless, but White action isn’t. One of the most immediate responses to racial discourse is that the effort is all about making White people feel guilty. Discourse about racism is not meant to stir up feelings of guilt, it is meant to drive people to action against injustice. During the times of slavery and the era of the Civil Rights Movement, both Black and White people played and continue to play instrumental roles in Black advancement.
18. Black people are not obligated to answer the “Well, what do we do about it?” question. Though many of us do and are not heard. The call for reparations in the form of “Baby Bonds”  is a great idea. So is desegregating our classrooms  and closing the school-to-prison pipeline. These courageous voices are speaking very loudly — it is time to start listening.
Tiffanie Drayton is a freelance writer focusing in race and gender issues and a proud New School University Alumna. Follow her on twitter @draytontiffanie.
Posted Under: race, racism, Top 10
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        • blackreality > StraightTalk • 8 days ago
          1. Black Americans are the most racist and most violently racist people on the planet. White people are the ones "living it".
          If Blacks are the most racist people on the planet,simply name ONE LAW that specifically benefits Blacks and disenfranchises whites
          2. If a black person is surrounded by white people who aren't racist but is uncomfortable, it's because the black person is racist. If a white person is surrounded by racist black people and is uncomfortable, it's because the black people are racist. See number 1 above.
          So called Black "racism" is name calling..Which is not racism at all..Again,name a law that specifically benefits blacks over whites
          3. The success of Frederick Douglass (Note her spelling error.) is not comparable to the successes of Oprah, Tiger Woods, or "Osama" Obama. Frederick Douglass was a relative nobody and was probably hated by more people than respected him. Oprah is beloved by tens of millions of white people and ignored by the rest (though some find her racism distasteful). Tiger Woods is respected, admired, and in some cases even idolized by tens of millions of white people. "Osama" Obama is a good example of how black racists sometimes successfully bully white people into self-destructive behaviors for the black racists' benefit.
          Name ONE THING that Obama has giving Black people specifically..Just one
          4. Blacks are racist, and if whites are prejudiced, it's because blacks act out their racism violently. "Of the nearly 770,000 violent interracial crimes committed every year involving blacks and whites, blacks commit 85 percent and whites commit 15 percent. Blacks commit more violent crime against whites than against blacks. Forty-five percent of their victims are white, 43 percent are black, and 10 percent are Hispanic. When whites commit violent crime, only three percent of their victims are black. Blacks are an estimated 39 times more likely to commit a violent crime against a white than vice cersa, and 136 times more likely to commit robbery. Blacks are 2.25 times more likely to commit officially-designated hate crimes against whites than vice versa." ["The Color of Crime: Race, Crime, and Justice in America"]
          One of the new white supremacist tactics is to keep repeating "Blacks are racist" without providing proof of this Black racism..And Another white supremacist tactic is to quote white supremacist crime stats by stating PERCENTAGES and not raw number..RAW NUMBERS show that whites commit the most crimes in America hands down.By whites are not funneled into the prison system at the same rate. This is because of the white supremacist law enforcement/judicial system..Which proves the point of systematic white supremacy
          5. If victimhood at the hands of violent black racists is included as a race-related problem, then yes, America has more work to do. Aside from that, blacks have every advantage. They only seem disadvantaged because Democrats have broken up their families and sapped their will with "welfare".
          Again,name one ADVANTAGE that Black people have had over any white person..And the old "its the democrats fault" deflection tactic is another white supremacist scam.White supremacist try to point the finger at OTHER white supremacist as a way to deflect.."Its the liberals"..No its the conservatives"..No its the jews".. ALL of you white people benefit from systematic white supremacy and you all work together on that accord
          6. Nobody is enforcing a gap. The gap is a result of Democrats creating an environment in which blacks can live in relative luxury (with cars, flat screen TVs, gaming consoles, air conditioning, refrigerators, and smartphones) without expending effort. Whites earn their income, and what they earn is usually greater than what Democrats redistribute to blacks. Some of the phenomena, such as "white flight", have nothing to do with race but instead reflect such things as crime and insolvency statistics.
          White flight had EVERYTHING to do with race because whites were given home loans after WW2 that specifically excluded blacks.And this is now whites were able to have a "white flight..Whites had an affirmative action program called Jim Crow
          7. Democrats are the party of eugenics. They're also the party of creating and raising the minimum wage to protect white union workers from having their jobs taken by blacks. Pretty much the only white racists still in existence are Democrats.
          Another deflection tactic..By your logic,all Blacks had to do is listen to the republicans and everything would have turned out fine..Think about that logic
          8. Aside from Frederick Douglass, those authors all seem to be communists perpetuating the woes of blacks. If you want to read black authors who will teach you something and who are actually helping blacks, read Thomas Sowell, Walter E. Williams, and Shelby Steele.
          I love these Black authors like Thomas Sowell..He is smart enough to hustle lots of money out of white supremacists by parroting their racist views against Black people.He realized that whites will pay blacks to act as a shield for their white supremacist views.Thomas sowell is a genius and he is too smart to believe that rhetoric he spews around whites..He is secretly laughing at silly white people and getting their money in the process..I love a good hustler
          9. Segregation is the result of a combination of Democrats' devastating black communities and black complicity in Democrats' devastation. Thanks to racist Democrats, white people and black people tend to value different things. Whites are extremely welcoming to blacks who want to study, work, play, and peaceably fraternize with them.
          When did the republicans ever push for INTEGRATION?
          10. The labor performed by slaves was insignificant to the nation (though not to the slaveholders), but that aside, far from being blacks' due, handouts and affirmative action are harmful to the blacks who receive them. Until the sixties, blacks were closing every gap with whites, and at various times, marriage rates among blacks were higher.
          Slave labor literally built up the ENTIRE..Not half..Not some..Not a little bit..But ALL of the wealth of America...Every single people in American benefitted from free African labor,EXCEPT the people who actually performed the labor and their descendants
          11. Black on black crime does exist. Compare the number of blacks ever lynched, allegedly by whites, with the number of blacks murdered every year by other blacks. We don't talk about white on white crime because blacks commit crimes much higher rates than whites do and because Democrats, who control the media, don't care about black on white crime but use black on black crime as a pretense to attack free market advocates. If she were a competent race baiter, she would join the chorus blaming white people for black on black crime.
          White on white crime exists at the same rate but we never hear the term.Black crime in America is actually down.This is white white supremacist can only point to "Chicago" when making Black crime talking points..But in the last 2 weeks alone,there have been several white on white mass killings ALL OVER the country..Why don't you whites do something about all the mass white on white crime?
          12. I'm glad that she acknowledges that multitudes of white people were also mistreated, but she leaves out the fact that they were treated worse than slaves. Slaveholders had white indentured servants perform the hazardous tasks risking loss of limb and death. Because their slaves were property and investments, they protected their slaves by having them complete the safe tasks.
          White indentured servants received forms of payments called Freedom dues.Which was money land and weapons...Blacks slaves got nothing
          13. Single motherhood is more destructive to civilization than anything else, and hip-hop culture promotes it. It also promotes whimsical murder and idle boasting. It discourages studying or doing anything with a time horizon beyond a day. Wall Street culture promotes the responsible stewardship of wealth among other things that are conducive to civilization. The use of stimulants, largely to enhance performance, is not comparable to the purely destructive drug abuse promoted by hip-hop culture.
          There are millions of white single mother and there are white families strung out on meth..And strangely they are not funneled into the prison system like Blacks..Thats because white supremacy and the white supremacist law enforcement system targets people based on color
          14. Black people are angry because they're taught by their parents, other relatives, neighbors, and Democrats to hate and envy white people and blame them for all their problems. White people are not racist, with very few resoundingly condemned exceptions.
          You don't even believe what you typed here and now you are trolling
          15. It has nothing to do with racism. The same redistributionist policies that Democrats are using to destroy predominantly blacks in America (but also whites) are being used to the exact same effect in Britain against whites with the same results. "Welfare" is the problem, not racism.
          You are using the "its the democrats fault" deflection tactic..Not buying it
          16. This much is true. Only if people stand up to you and other race baiters with the truth will black people start taking responsility for their own plight and stop obsessing over white people. It's funny that you mention Frederick Douglass. He agreed with me.
          White created the circumstances that many Blacks have to "take responsibility" for..How about you whites stop practicing systematic white supremacy,then black won't have to take responsibility for the effects of white supremacy
          17. White people ended slavery and segregation almost without black help, which is commonsensical when one considers that blacks were a small minority and powerless. Not only did white people end such things in America, but white people, primarily the British, ended slavery worldwide, at great costs to themselves. Prior to whites ending slavery, it was a universal practice, so in fact, whites in America deserve precisely zero blame for inheriting the practice and all praise for ending it.
          White people did not end slavery..They simply re-worded it and refined it..The prison for profit industry is slavery..And what year did white people magically stop practicing racism?
          18. Yes, it's best if black people shut up about it. What blacks need to do about the plight of blacks is emulate whites. "Black culture" is mostly evil. What little of it is good, however, by all means, preserve.
          What is "white culture"?
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          • Raichu > StraightTalk • 9 days ago
            I had to stop taking you seriously at "Osama Obama".
            Jeez louise.
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              Greg > StraightTalk • 9 days ago
              While I don't agree with MUCH of this article and the approach taken, please don't place all of us blacks in a box. Not all of us have this "woe is me" attitude and have this hostility towards white people.
              I don't really agree with much of what you said either and it seemed like much of what you said was out of annoyance due to this article. I just ask that you don't place us all in a box.
              I'm not really going to discuss my point of view, because I don't know anyone on here and it's pointless, bc I know people are going to childish rebuttal. Just know what I understand your frustration and I'd be willing to e-mail you to speak my point of view about this, in a mature manner of course.
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                • Tiffanie Drayton > Greg • 3 days ago
                  Translation: Please, oh please White man! I feel your pain! Not all of us care about our community and the perpetuation of White supremacy. Matter of fact, some of us colored folks would love to help you out.
                  -_-
                  Continued: I would love to email correspond with you, even though you think I am of the most violent people in the world…………. I swear.. I've been tamed. I'm "mature" and THEY aren't.
                  Dude, you gotta work on who you choose as friends.
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                    • StraightTalk > Greg • 8 days ago
                      You know the parable about the prodigal son? Believe me, white people are thrilled whenever a black person escapes the box (also known as the Democrat Brothel or Plantation). The key to the black community's rejuvenation is for black people to hate the evil among them the way white people hate the evil among white people. By the way, if you haven't read anything by Thomas Sowell, I would highly recommend that you do.
                      Edit: When I said "white people", I should have said "white Republicans". When a black person escapes the Democrat Brothel, white Democrats accuse him of sexual harassment and try to ruin his reputation and career.
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                        • April Carter > StraightTalk • 7 days ago
                          When I said "white people", I should have said "white Republicans". When a black person escapes the Democrat Brothel, white Democrats accuse him of sexual harassment and try to ruin his reputation and career.- when you say "white people", who are you talking about? Pretty sure my husband is a very sweet Democrat that just so happens to have light colored skin, and you are saying by calling us "white people" that isn't putting us in a box. Pay attention to what you are saying, You are saying "white people", referring to our skin color as being a certain type of person. You don't know me, you don't know what I would do for someone else, you don't know who I have been around or what I stand for, yet you can say something like "white Democrats accuse him of sexual harassment..", and are using that in such a way to promote hate towards whom? I view everyone as people, light to dark, I can't take back anyone's struggle back then or their struggle right now, all I can be is a better person so that those I am around be it anyone from any other culture, race, gender or differences can see a change in their world and love the changes. We all can promote that, and yet I hear so much dissension and hate flowing in these conversations. You owe me this because your 'white", your IQ is lower because your black, etc. Yes I have light skin, in fact so light of skin that people have made fun of me and told me to get a tan. I hated it when people made fun of my pale skin. I also hate when people think I am so light I must be a snob and other bias'. I was a shy loving person most of my life. I have loved people from many different cultures and you know why? I loved them because they had a loving soul and were kind. I am sure someone is going to make fun of what I have to say, perhaps saying I am ignoring the importance of this argument, or that it's easy for me to say because of blah blah blah.. but it's not easy for me to say.. My step father was from India, died of a gunshot wound, was darker in complexion and was a nice man. He was called all sorts of names, he never mentioned race to me, ever. Do you know why? He didn't have to.. his approach to life and his love of people showed, we loved him, simple as that. He worked hard, tried to provide and lost his life to a thief. Good people are everywhere, don't discredit them in an article or in life in general. And about that reverse racism.. again note I was made fun of in a population that was predominantly darker in skin tone, and you know what, it wasn't fun.. but then I became friends with these very same people and it was never discussed again.
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                          Julian > StraightTalk • 9 days ago
                          Wtf?
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                          • inotowok • 2 days ago
                            Basically the rules are designed to preclude any response other than total agreement and submission to the ideas of whoever is speaking about racism. This runs counter to the purpose of "furthering the conversation." People who already agree will nod. Everyone else will either get defensive or tune out.
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                              • Josh McCarther > inotowok • 2 days ago
                                Thanks inotowok for commenting, but I must disagree with you here. The responses in the article above are to disempower common remarks that are intellectually lazy. The idea that the only alternative to intellectual sloth is absolute agreement is itself disingenuous. Removing red herrings is necessary to create the space required for any real conversation to be advanced. Anyone who is defensive or tunes out over their loss of a snide tactic isn't really interested in honest conversation in the first place.
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                                  • inotowok > Josh McCarther • 11 hours ago
                                    Thanks, Josh. I appreciate your comments, and I see what you mean. I find social rules a bit oppressive in general, and I've seen so many blogs spelling out rules everyone must abide by. I've also seen rules like this be used in a way that I think are harmful, and ultimately used to shut people down. I've heard people say things to the effect that "if you disagree with this, that is because you are a racist." Well -- we are in a racist society that has taught us racist thinking -- so it well may be true, but does calling someone a name serve the interests of open conversation? Racism is a real, pervasive, and detrimental thing in our world, and I am often upset that our conversations about it are more akin to warfare than heart-to-heart dialogue.
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                                    Shannon • 2 days ago
                                    My responses to your points:
                                    1. You’re right. You’re off to a good start.
                                    2. True. I think that most people probably do notice color though it matters more to some.
                                    3. You’re absolutely right. Just as the success of any white person does not guarantee the end of racism.
                                    4. Reverse racism is BS. You are right. But you missed the point. Reverse racism is BS because racism is racism whether done by a black or a white. There is no such thing as reversing it. Your justification here for prejudice makes no sense. Are you trying to claim that black people have never, ever in the history of the world exerted power over other human beings? Do some research. You’re wrong.
                                    5. Again, you’re right but completely miss the point. America hasn’t gotten over their problems in part because many black people are still holding a grudge about an awful thing that happened 200 years ago.
                                    6. Sure. Believing everything that I read on the internet is absolutely the way to go here. Here’s another fact for you: my white husband spent 4 years in prison. He did get a job afterwards. Because he worked his ASS off and was willing to take crap jobs for money. But he will always be a convicted felon, and he will always have to work harder than most. He goes to probation every month and sits in a room with a number of black felons who refuse to get jobs “that are beneath them.” It’s a whole lot easier to sponge off the government with food stamps, section 8 housing, and impregnating women so that you can get a tax break. Turns out that hard work will get you farther in life no matter what your color.
                                    7. Again: do you really believe everything that you read on the internet?
                                    8. Done. I majored in literature.
                                    9. Hmmm…. I think back to the neighborhood that I grew up in and think about the fact that I was the only white kid on the school bus and nobody would sit with me because I was white. I look around my neighborhood now and there is a white couple across the hall, a black couple next door, and an interracial couple across from me. That is just my floor. Where is the segregation that pushes blacks down? Maybe it exists but you are assuming that all white people can see it.
                                    10. Sure. When I started looking into scholarships for college, I realized very quickly that I was going to have to pay for college on my own because I am white. The scholarship world would have been open wide had I been any other race. And really? The black middle class was the only portion of the middle class that was affected by foreclosures? Again—you’re wrong.
                                    11. No response here. This doesn’t make any sense.
                                    12. How do you think the Italians, the Irish, and the Hispanics got out of poverty and into a respected status? Work!! Hard work! And not harping on and trying to profit from something that happened 200 years ago.
                                    13. You’re right. Both are dysfunctional. That doesn’t mean that either one is okay. Justifying violence in hip-hop because violence exists elsewhere is
                                    counterproductive.
                                    14. White people also have every right to be angry about racism. According to you though, they don’t and shouldn’t even be talking about it.
                                    15. So just because racism exists, the poor white people don’t matter? I think that might be rasicm right there!
                                    16. You’re right. That’s why I’m writing this.
                                    17. This basically contradicts everything else that you are saying.
                                    18. Yeah. They are actually. Like I said, I was a literature major. And you know who one of my favorite authors to study was? Booker T. Washington (who ironically was not one of the black authors that you listed in number 8). Want to know what I liked about him? He wasn’t going to let anybody hold him back because he was black, and he was not going to use his status as a black person to shame white people. He was not going to use violence to prove that he was worth it. He believed in hard work, education, and proving to the world that just because he was black did not mean that he was less of a human being. I respected him for that. W.E.B. Dubois (who you did mention in number 8) believed in violence. That was his answer for proving that he was worth it. I never respected that. I think that more people need to take their cue from Booker T. Washington. Black people are just as responsible as white people to take care of the racism problem in this country. And the truth is, that until they realize that, racism will always exist. Black people hold themselves back as much as white people push them down (this article being a prime example of that). Until both races work together for the same goal, racism will not be eliminated.
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                                      • Josh McCarther > Shannon • a day ago
                                        Welcome Shannon. Much of what you've replied has been addressed elsewhere in the comments, so just a couple points. It's worth noting slavery was 150 years ago (2 generations), not 200 (nearly 3.) From there you managed to read past everything that has happened and continues to happen post-slavery and post-Civil Rights. I can appreciate your inclusion of personal anecdotes, but the statistics tell a different story. Statistically, your husband with a felony record is still more likely to get a job over a Black male *without* a felony record and who *is* pounding the pavement.
                                        Also, there's nothing particularly ironic about not including Booker T. Washington (he shows up elsewhere in the comments.) Martin Luther King Jr. wasn't included either although both had some very strong words in support of what was written in the article. America has a long history of whitewashing what it wishes from prominent Black icons, and I would actually be interested in what Booker T. Washington would have to say about how America has handled his separatist bargain. Be sure to research Black Wall street.
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                                          nottelling • 3 days ago
                                          While I may not agree with all of this wholesale, I can see some very valid points. I've said "I don't see color," and I mean it. I don't look at people's skin color and make decisions about who they are. I know wonderful people and idiots of all races. However, put me (white girl) in a room full of any race and I will see it then. Absolutely true. I may not necessarily feel discriminated against, but I might. I'm bookmarking this article for future discussions with my kids during Black History and more. Maybe we will even do some social experiments. Glad to have had my eyes opened to some of my own ignorance.
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                                            • mitchell DAY • 3 days ago
                                              WHAT A POLITICALLY CORRECT PILE OF STEAMING B.S.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
                                              1. I'm perfectly comfortable talking about racism. Especially the anti-white clan with a tan variety!
                                              2.Color blindness is CERTAINLY a copout! Especially when law enforcement CONVENIENTLY ignores the targeting of Whites as victims of violent crimes like murder, rape, assault and armed robbery. Nine out of ten victims of interracial violent crime are....wait for it......WHITE!
                                              3. GOTCHA! By YOUR definition of racism listed in #4 all these people of color who are millionaires/billionaires IS proof that racism does not exist. Which just shows how dishonest YOU are when it comes to this issue!
                                              4. The biggest piece of B.S. here. Africans invaded, conquered, occupied, murdered, raped, pillaged and enslaved the Iberian peninsula for 700 years! The Turks invaded conquered, occupied, murdered, raped, pillaged and enslaved Greece, Bulgaria and South-Eastern Europe for 500 years AND COUNTING! The Mongols invaded, conquered, occupied, murdered, raped, pillaged and enslaved for 300 years! Do you people EVER read a book!
                                              5. MORE hypocritical double-talk see #3
                                              6. And of course People of Color have NO responsibility for ANY of this! Right? Bill Cosby was just LYING. Also see #4 for where this comes from!
                                              7.Like Wall street wasn't discriminating against poor Whites? Or that the power structure was engaging in eugenics, forced sterilization and voter prohibition against poor Whites? Especially in Appalachia!
                                              8. Buy and read a book by a White person. Of course no Person of Color has EVER LIED about racism. No.
                                              9.NO IT DOES NOT. If you don't like where you're living GET UP AND MOVE! Oh and by the way if anybody has a problem with that. Well what are lawyers or guns for?
                                              10. No their REPARATIONS. And what are the 500,000 WHITE MEN who were killed in the Civil War????????????????????????????
                                              11. BECAUSE People of Color are constantly complaining about being mistreated by WHITES! And what about Black on White crime?
                                              12.COMPLETE NONSENSE. "WHITE" was a term invented by the American Indians for Europeans! And included the British, French, Spanish and Portuguese. People that can get pretty "dark". Oh and yes you're right(there's a first time for everyone) Whites won't be a minority in the country THEY created (NO THANKS TO WALL STREET) in twenty years. More like 35 years. That makes me feel so MUCH better!
                                              13.O.k. so show me all the Wall Street aholes that are shooting each other.
                                              P.S. I hate the money changers on Wall Street too!
                                              14. White people are angry about those things too. And their not going to stand idly by while People of Color try to use a CERTAIN PORTION of the past as an excuse to murder, rape, pillage and demographically displace us!
                                              15.God you guys are REALLY EVIL! First White poverty is NOT just in the mid-west it's ALL OVER! And if the power elite (that includes Barack Obama) ALWAYS intended to oppress Whites then I guess that goes a long way towards explaining the SLAVE TRADE! The displace of White labor! Just like our current immigration policies! Also see #4!
                                              16. WHO THE HELL IS BEING SILENT?!?!?!
                                              17. If the discussion of race in America WASN'T just about making White people feel guilty then there would be a discussion, EVER, of the issues that I've raised! And WHAT INACTION?!?! In #10 you discuss the PROGRAMS!
                                              18.Why don't you just say it? White people should give everything FOREVER!
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                                                • chuckie chimpout • 3 days ago
                                                  Non sense. The author of this clearly doesn't understand anything about racism. There are many forms of racism. The notion that blacks cant be racist is a half truth at best. If, as a white person,if I get called a cracker by a black, this is CASUAL RACISM. Blacks can and most times are the most racist.
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                                                    • Keone Rivers • 3 days ago
                                                      great piece. wish the people who needed it were willing to learn.
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                                                          Dissenter • 3 days ago
                                                          IMO, this article is problematic; however researching some of the things mentioned is very good advice. Is it really logical to base something as important as institutionalized racism on the extremely narrow confines of your own life and experiences---ESPECIALLY if you pass as white?? <--- (rhetorical question, y'all.)
                                                          Also, here's another definition of my own choosing:
                                                          DICTIONARY: A BOOK FULL WORDS THAT ARE CHOSEN AND DEFINED BY A BUNCH OF OLD WHITE MEN.
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                                                            • Alohajonny • 3 days ago
                                                              OMG really, do you have oatmeal for brains...
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                                                                • Chuck Vipperman • 4 days ago
                                                                  Thanks for the advice, but I choose to continue to judge people "by the content of their character, not the color of their skin." That's worked out pretty well for me so far.
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                                                                    • Dawn Priest • 4 days ago
                                                                      This is a terrible article and only adds to the problem. I am Caucasian, so what?! I didn't personally take part in any of that stuff and I should not be blamed at all just because I happened to have been born white. I didn't choose my skin color any more than you did. This whole article was reverse racism, (and yes it is a thing), and only adds to the divide between the races. If black people want this to stop, they need to do their part too. Angrily blaming all whites only adds fuel to the fire. White people should be able to talk about racism however they want to. You can't try to control how people communicate their feelings on the issue. Talking about it at all is a step forward. You can't keep blaming us if you are not willing to meet us half way. If all you're going to do is mope about it and stew in it, then you're going to stay in that downtrodden mindset. If you really want to enact change, try opening up your heart and mind to how white people feel about the issue.
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                                                                          • Josh McCarther > Adam Jenson • 2 days ago
                                                                            Hey thanks for commenting Adam. Some fair arguments are made by Sowell here. There are a number of downsides to Affirmative Action and it is in no way a cure-all. It does have the capacity to brand people as high-risk assets in some respects, while on the other end serving as an easy way to diminish someone's accomplishments. It is a crippled solution that practically requires quotas to function which only complicates things further. Ironically enough, White females have statistically been the biggest benefactors of Affirmative Action policy. Go figure.
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                                                                            • Ron Carter • 5 days ago
                                                                              I have issues with a big chunk of this article. Tiffanie and Joshua are just stirring a pot. Most of the items listed are plain old BS. These two people who wrote this article are standing on their soapboxes and creating more segregation and preaching ethnocentric crap! They aren't bringing people together. The way to do that is to share the blame on issues that have to do with ALL races subject to ANY kind of discrimination instead of pointing the finger and trying to force everyone to believe whites are bad and blacks are good. Every person should be taken as an individual rather than as a member of a race. When we can start doing that and preaching that message, then we are getting somewhere. Meanwhile, the 2 authors can piss off!!
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                                                                              • Mindy Pfister • 6 days ago
                                                                                I am not saying that racism doesn't exist, it does. However, I think that a lot of people are over using the term "racist." This article is ridiculous, only whites can be racist? People of color aren't racist, they are prejudice? And as far as the prohibition on voting for black people, women didn't have the right to vote until 1919, white, black, Hispanic didn't matter. Not about the article, I am white, I have been accused of being racist by people who do not know me and I still am not sure why I was called racist. I am by no means racist, I love and have respect for people of all colors, this article called this a "cop out." Can that not be true? Can white people really not care about color? In my family I am the minority. My grandmother has 25 grandkids and I am the ONLY one that isn't black or Hispanic. My kids are Puerto Rican, and so is my husband. And yet all of this family that isn't white, all of these people that I care and love who aren't white, I am still called racist, why? People use the term too loosely, I am not saying that racism doesn't exist, it does, but this article targets white people as if we are all racist, we aren't.
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                                                                                • Kiki Fogg • 6 days ago
                                                                                  So, you say "reverse racism" doesn't exist because it's not systemic, not part of the power structure, but then your page image is of the dictionary definition of racism, which does not include any requirement of systemic enforcement, only of the race-based prejudicial belief itself. This is really "17 Obvious Facts & 1 Obvious Self-Contradiction White People Should Know Before Discussing Racism".
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                                                                                    • Tiffanie Drayton > Kiki Fogg • 6 days ago
                                                                                      First, you must be super human because you can see that blurry definition and come to some understanding of what it says, despite the image missing most of the words……. You should work for the FBI. (not that we should rely on stock photo images to provide us with fact-based definitions of words in the first place)
                                                                                      Secondly, I believe you may be giving many far too much credit. Read the comments below to find out just how clueless White people really are when it comes to racism.
                                                                                      But if everything mentioned in this article was obvious to YOU, you are most definitely a friend/ally of mine!
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                                                                                      J • 6 days ago
                                                                                      Regardless
                                                                                      of how it is looked at, racisim is rampant on all sides, from all races.
                                                                                      People seem to be too focused on the black population, or the mexican population
                                                                                      to understand that there are people within those groups who are just as
                                                                                      racist and apply the same tactics when dealing with other races. This
                                                                                      isn't just a black vs. white deal. This article is very tunnelvisioned.
                                                                                      To be effective it needs to look at the aspect of many other racial
                                                                                      divides.
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                                                                                      • Snezha Silver • 6 days ago
                                                                                        This article sounds like it's saying that white people do not experience
                                                                                        racism. Tell that to the Eastern-European immigrants of today, or the
                                                                                        Irish and Italian immigrants 100 years ago. I get its focus but acting
                                                                                        ignorant won't solve much.
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