All together now...racism is bad.
*Sigh*. Anger is an interesting emotion. Channel it in the right way and positive changes can occur. Channel it in the wrong way, and the consequences are usually death, destruction, and mayhem on an unparalleled scale.
So when I hear a report like this: http://news.yahoo.com/page/election-2008-political-pulse-obama-race which pretty much tells me that ON AVERAGE 40% of Whites in the United States have a negative impression of Black folk, what am I supposed to do with this anger? Really, I know this exists. I feel it every time I'm walking down an upper class street and someone looks up, sees me, and crosses to the other side. I know this when little old ladies look up from their cars and immediately lock their doors. I know this when I smile at a stranger and instead of smiling back they look the other way. Those are the overt ways.
I know the covert ways, when I go in for a job interview and there's a look of surprise on the interviewer's face (expectation: Wow, she didn't sound Black on the phone). Or, when I start talking and I'm a "good communicator" or I "must be one of the good ones" because I dress professionally and sound "White." Mind you, I haven't been sneaky enough to use this to my advantage, but I know it exists: Sometimes I've received jobs that surprised me, because (my opinion here) I blew their socks off with my "good communication skills." ...Which really means, I spoke better than all the Blacks they knew, so it surprised them enough to give me a job. Or something like that.
Maybe yes, Blacks are paranoid. But when there is dishonesty in the way we're treated, when you have behind the scenes politics/reality like this that shows us how people REALLY feel, then yes. We have a right to be paranoid. If you hate me, I'd rather you say it to my face then pretend we're okaly-doakly with each other.
"But why do Blacks feel racism still exists?"
Heh.
I think some folks need to re-evaluate their definition of "racism." Racism is not just the Klan running around in sheets. Racism is also assumptions built upon perpetuated lies (aka, "stereotypes"). If before I even meet you you are going to assume I'm lazy, violent, and have fifteen million kids (and I'm on welfare), then what hope do I have to redeem myself in your eyes? You've already decided, haven't you?
If I speak with the tongues of angels...but I have not love...
There's something sad about prejudice. Mostly it's the idea that people's preconceived ideas prevent them from knowing another person in a deeply satisfying way. I have friends outside of my race - in fact, *most* of my friends are outside of my race, simply due to my environment. I don't function well in a same race neighborhood. It's lonely there. I'm possibly the epitome of multicultural living in so many ways. But I tell you what, even with my "global" experiences and my love of people across cultures, it sickens me to my core when four out of the ten people I'll see on the street today will see me with eyes of disdain, of distrust, of wariness, and perhaps downright hatred. Folks, find a way to break out of those mindsets, please. Find a way to embrace new cultures different from your own. Learn about what those cultures went through just to survive in this country we call America. Embrace those differences and let them change you. Don't be afraid of being shunned or rebuffed. If someone calls you ridiculous or silly stand up, and say it doesn't matter - you want to learn and you want the freedom to enjoy and embrace differences.
Sheesh. There really aren't any words I can say here and I know I'm preaching to the choir, for the most part. But if these results are true they're humbling to me...and it makes me wonder if we really have seen progress at all in forty years. Have we? Please convince me we have...
Please...
Pax,
--"nina."