Minorities

[illuminated_sin]

Please take my poll if you are so inclined.

Talking about discrimination, diversity and ethnicities.

I can't make the formatting of this stupid post work.  Sorry for the piece of sentence out of place. When I correct it, my poll vanishes. :-P

As could logically be expected, if you are offended by questions of this nature, please don't take the poll.

Poll Diversity poll - Just because I'm curious

Comments

[thalassatx]

I'm part Choctaw and Cherokee. My Dad looked like a half-blood, and I've inherited all of his features, but with lighter skin.

I'm primarily white, and identify myself as such, but y Indian heritage is something I'm very proud of.

[illuminated_sin]

I totally get that. Hubby is part Choctaw and part Seminole, and I'm a mutt with blood from a couple of tribes thrown in there too, though not as much as he has. We actually wanted to move to the reservation and work to improve conditions there, because it's such an awful place with so much despair and need, but by their rules we don't have enough blood to be allowed, so now I just donate winter things I knit, and space heaters and medical supplies and such. :(

But yeah, I'm Irish-Italian as well and that's what I look like. Hubby's got the distinctive eyes so you can tell he's Indian, but he's pale and pink from his British heritage. It's a strange combo. :)

[dragonmad]

How do you feel most of the time when interacting *in person* with people of ethnicities different than yours

interacting

[bibliofile]

It depends on the person and the way they approach you. Most of the time it's not an issue, but if they come across as angry or defensive, then yeah, I act differently around them . . .

Yes, exactly: interactions always depend on both parties involved. I'm much more likely to pick up on someone else's discomfort and then try to be extra careful around them.

Re: interacting

[illuminated_sin]

I think that's a reasonable reaction.

It's kind of sad, though, that we should ever have to be wary of anyone in that way, because it indicates an underlying mistrust in both parties and a defensiveness that I wish did not need to be there. :(

Re: interacting

[bibliofile]

With me, it's more a matter of making sure that I remain relaxed and polite and NOT AT ALL smartass. Because smartass is not going to be good for anyone.

[angiepen]

About religious discrimination, more than "once or twice" but not enough to be "frequently." I'm an atheist and I've gotten shit for it, whether people being openly hostile, or the flavor of Christian who goes, "Oh, I'm so sorry, dear! I'm sure the Good Lord will come into your heart if you open it to him! I'll pray for you, you poor thing!" at which point I want to punch him/her in the face because that's damned offensive.

About the second to last question, yes, LJ has quite a lot of diversity, but there's not always a lot of mixing. The white privilege is pretty rank in a lot of places, specifically a lot of popular places around fandom, and if a person of color tries to point it out and suggests that a few people might want to think about what they're saying or doing, they tend to get dogpiled and flamed to a crisp. Racefail09 went on for, what, five months? And spilled over to a number of online sites outside of LJ? Stuff like that doesn't happen without a lot of righteous indignation and denial to go along with the

[bibliofile]

... yes, LJ has quite a lot of diversity, but there's not always a lot of mixing.

Exactly. The thing about LJ is that all interaction is opt-in and deliberate. It's very easy to see only the people and things that you see all the time anyway, while ignoring anything different.

[illuminated_sin]

But where's the adventure in that? o_O I don't get on LJ to see what I see everyday. I can stay home and offline and do that. I want to get on LJ and investigate the possibilities and discoveries and opinions that I miss while I'm isolated here, sitting on my ass in the dining room tappitytapping on a keyboard all the time. Yes, LJ can be cliquish if you let it, but I think there's a difference between preferring to include and refusing to consider. Do you get what I mean?

[illuminated_sin]

Oh, I definitely hate it when people try to "save" me. That's just aggravating, but I do understand their motivation. By their world view, they're trying to reach out and help as many people as possible. Of course, if you don't subscribe to that world view, it just looks fanatical and intrusive. :-/

[bibliofile]

Treatment based on others' assumptions: I've led a sheltered life, but some of it's been kinda fun. FYI, I'm pretty white, and I look it too

[illuminated_sin]

But that sort of stuff is destructive, too. No it's not a big gash, but those little annoying and offensive incidents that piss me off leave tiny pockmarks in my psyche that build and multiply over time until it erodes the fabric of my ability to trust others. I feel it's unfair and wrong and it makes me want to scream.

I saw a panhandler in the city a few months ago and he looked like he was really homeless, like he had recently gotten into a fight, and he was obviously drunk, but it was winter and the sleeves had been ripped off his coat. Though I never give money to panhandlers, I decided to give him $2 because I was stopped at the light right next to him and I figured he could use it. As I gave it to him I asked if he knew where the shelter was so he could get off the street, and just as the light turned green and I started to go, he said he refused to stay at the shelter because, and I quote, "I fucking hate niggers!" I wanted to rip my money out of his hand but it was already in his pocket, so I just walked around furious

[foxrafer]

I'm being very generous with the friend idea; I've been friends with most of the ethnicities you list but I drop out of people's lives so easily it's not fair to say we're still friends. But I checked them anyway. I've only not been romantically involved with someone of a different race or ethnicity because I've never been romantically involved at all. *g*

As far as how I feel when I interact with someone of a different race or ethnicity: it's a mixture of being very open to the idea that they are open-minded people who aren't bigoted but still being cautious so if/when they say or behave in a way that's troubling I'm not hurt as much as I would be if I didn't keep myself slightly emotionally distant. It's the only way to get through the day really.

[illuminated_sin]

I was not aware that you had never been romantically involved before. Learn something new about our friends everyday, don't we? :D

[foxrafer]

I hate to say it but I think since Obama was elected racists have felt it necessary to be more vocal and active in their hate. Almost like they feel if they had only been more in your face with their hatred before he wouldn't have gotten elected. It's becoming more ugly with more potential for violence (just my opinion but it's what I'm seeing).