Respectful Politics Thread (Let's Just See)

MWoO

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sure compare average american citizens to people in the 1% and U.S. presidents
But that is my point. White people do not automatically have power because they are white. My boss is black. He has power over me. Is that a better comparison for you?
 

Froggy Fool

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Your user name makes sense now because you really are a fool.
Wow, and we're jerks? *****.
You are telling me that white people automatically have power because they are white?
They automatically have an advantage due to the color of their skin, so yes.
But that is my point. White people do not automatically have power because they are white. My boss is black. He has power over me. Is that a better comparison for you?
Did you not read the link I sent you? It explains white privilege very well and shows that this struggle isn't invalidating your hard work in life, it's just explaining that your skin color isn't one of the things that is making your life harder.
 

Old Thunder

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Black people can't be racist.
So there seems to be a misconception that “racism” is a prejudice against a certain group + a history of having power over said group. It’s easy to make this mistake, but lemme break down why it’s incorrect. Let’s start with the dictionary definition of racism:

rac·ism
/ˈrāˌsizəm/

noun
  1. prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one's own race is superior.
    "a program to combat racism”
    • the belief that all members of each race possess characteristics or abilities specific to that race, especially so as to distinguish it as inferior or superior to another race or races.
    "theories of racism”​
Historical power is important to denote because it’s a big reason for why racism is still prevalent today in the US and why it’s more important to fight white racists than black ones, but saying black people can’t be racists / saying black bigots are racially prejudiced is just coming up with a new phrase to make it sound like it isn’t bad either. The fact is that anyone can be a racist and we as a society need to work together to eradicate all racism, and this starts with white bigotry because it is a more widespread problem / has more weight culturally.
 

Froggy Fool

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Also, I want to revise a statement I said earlier. I said "Black people can't be racist" which, like @D'Snowth said, is partially untrue. ANYONE can be racist, and it isn't just limited to white people. But in the United States, the overwhelming majority of racists are white, and that is BY FAR the bigger issue at hand. We really shouldn't be worrying about black racism toward whites, the fight is white racism towards blacks. And that's why BLM is so important.

EDIT: Oops, @Old Thunder beat me to it :embarrassed:
 

GoldHattedGonzo

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But that is my point. White people do not automatically have power because they are white. My boss is black. He has power over me. Is that a better comparison for you?
Have you asked your boss how people treat him outside of work? To most people, they probably see him as another black person, so it's likely they'll apply racist stigma against him.
 

D'Snowth

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I'm also going to say this, because I have seen where some white people out there (again, mainly Trumpsters, and un-educated right-wingers) are expressing this irrational fear that they have that when there comes a point in time when blacks will be the new majority in America, and whites become the new minority (and it could happen sooner than we think), the blacks will decided to seek revenge on the whites, and start oppressing them the same way whites oppressed blacks back in the Jim Crow era of segregation and such.

This is just my opinion, of course, but in all honesty, I think this is one theory as to why we've been seeing such a huge spike in hate crimes against blacks and other minorities since Trump announced he was running for Office. And don't pretend he's not emboldening and encouraging this in his base, because he is. Just yesterday, he threatened to unleash vicious dogs and omnious weapons on protestors . . . that is literally what happened to black people in the 1960s during the Civil Rights Movement . . . I may not have been there to witness it, but my parents were, because this is what was happening in their country during their generations . . . I've heard the stories countless times of how they'd watch newscasts of black people being ripped to shreds by vicious dogs, or being splattered up against the sides of buildings by fire hoses and such, all while they were fighting for their equal rights. To them, it seems like it was just yesterday, but for me, being born at the tail-end of the 1980s, it seemed like ancient history . . . but as God is my witness, I honestly never imagined I'd ever live to witness anything of the sort during my life time - I seriously thought America had moved past that; clearly, it hasn't. And just the same, Trump - even to this day - has repeatedly called black people thugs and gangsters, while calling the white people attacking them very fine people. He is part of the problem, there's no denying it. David Duke has even been praising Trump's actions and words, which is why the KKK makes up a big hunk of his base.
 

D'Snowth

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Have you asked your boss how people treat him outside of work? To most people, they probably see him as another black person, so it's likely they'll apply racist stigma against him.
Honestly, this is how I imagine the GOP would regard the likes of Kanye West and Ben Carson if they weren't constantly ***-kissing Trump all the time.

David Alan Grier even once mentioned a time where he was sitting at a red light one day, wearing a backwards ballcap, and having the music in his car cranked up - he said a car bearing a white family was sitting in the lane next to him, and he watched as the family looked at him in fear, and began rolling their windows up and locking their doors. Even he thought, "Really?"
 

fuzzygobo

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Martin Luther King had it right. Peaceful protest. And there were plenty of white people taking up the cause with him.
King did not condone the riots. Even after black churches were bombed.

Even after Medgar Evers (then head of the NAACP) was shot dead.

Even afterthe countless needless deaths and destruction in Watts, Newark, DC, Detroit.
With the riots going on now, it would be great to see black and white leaders coming together to stem the violence.

I feel bad for the black store owners who got looted, and innocent people caught in the crosshairs.
But there were some white people who showed up to egg on the police and join in the vandalism.

None of this does anything to advance the cause for Black people. None of this will bring reform to bad cops.
And none of this does anything for George Floyd’s memory, let alone Dr. King’s.
 
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