Is this racist????

[Dixon]

If this person is an idiot why do you care what he thinks?
I have never understood why people get so upset over things said by people that they don't respect.
I am only hurt or offended by comments if I care about the person making them.

[neverends]

Well, I know, I turn people off that I don't respect.  But in real world situations, I try to make things better where I can, if I have the energy to.

In this case I think Poster has some energy, and I think she's a good person.

[Burning Sands, Esq.]

I find it ironic that the posters who seem to be criticizing the individual in question for being racist resorted to the same type of thinking they are condemning.

In response to the original post, the poster Burning Sands asked the question, "Where is this dude from, the back woods?" The apparent implication of that response (to me, at least) is that people who are from the back woods are either a) "underexposed," B) ignorant, or c) racist.

I hope that Burning Sands does not believe that the mere location of one's upbringing would be a significant determining factor in whether that person is tolerant and/or accepting of cultures, races, etc. other than his or her own. Being from the back woods does not help explain why a person is a) "underexposed," B) ignorant, or c) racist any more than the color of a one's skin determines whether they are likely to be a dentist.

HIM8NC's apparently incredulous response ("That's the thing Sands...he's from a big city!!!!") to Big Sands' question appears to further the notion that unlike someone from the back woods, a person from the big city who being racist is somehow surprising.

So which is it, you two? Are you a) "underexposed," B) ignorant, or c) discriminatory of people from the back woods?   

That answer is self evident.  To give you an extreme example, compare a city like Manhattan, New York to a town like Hayes, Kansas.  If you've grown up your entire life without seeing a single minority except when you turn on the television, then YES you are underexposed and therefore ignorant of those people.  Its not your fault. You only know what you have experienced.

I went to college with a guy very similar to the one described.  He would always ask us questions about Black people, and I could tell he was really trying to learn because in his small town where he grew up, there were none. He was ignorant to any race other than his own.  He is the type of person who had never seen a Black dentist before, but he also would not feel the need to point that out or ask me is there such a thing as a black dentist.  Do you see the difference?

I'm not blaming him for his limited exposure.  I do think this guy in question is however going overboard with his statements, because of the implications behind them.

And for the record, a Black dentist sold me my 3 series BMW. He upgraded to a 7 series so he must have fixed a lot of people's teeth, both black and white. He actually is the director of his own dentist office now, in which other dentists answer to him so I imagine that there are a lot of people in that area of town who have heard of a Black dentist.



lol


the whole thing is unbelievable

[shaz]

Personally I think people are taking the wrong approach to this. I am Black and I think this person is not a racist. I think he is ignorant, but curious. I think that maybe he is just saying what he has heard at home on in his community. I think he is at an age where he is questioning what he believes.He might be questioning his prejudices.

I think that people should take the time and educate him. Tell him about black skateboarders, dentists, and lawyers. It sounds like he wants to know and is giving these women the opportunity to tell him. Though his comments and questions seem blunt and abrasive, that might just be his personality. He might just be an ass.

Although he said he never found a black woman attractive, he is probably lying. I know that if I could choose my seat in an office, I would more than likely pick the one between two women I thought were attractive.

Maybe he doesn't find Halle attractive because of her anglo features. Maybe he is really attracted to a sister that is more exotic to him i.e. ethnic. Check his CD collection, is there a lot of Macy Grey?

I wouldn't just label this person a racist. I have known people like him, most were just ignorant.  Most of them were aware of their ignorance and wanted to be educated. They just didn't know how to go about it.

Oh, and all black people don't worship the same. It depends on the church, mosque, or temple they attend. Just visit different churches and you'd understand this. 

[utlion]

But I don't think it *is* self-evident. I don't necessarily agree that being underexposed = ignorance, as you apparently do, just as I don't agree that being from a small town = underexposure or ignorance.

You gave the example of a small-town native who was underexposed and therefore ignorant of people from different races/cultures/etc. I can give you as many example as you want of people from small towns or rural areas who may not have ever seen a minority except on television that are not ignorant about Black people or Black culture. Books, magazines, music, movies, newspapers, and yes, television are just a few of the many ways people can learn about this world and the people who live in it, including the existense of or the possiblility of the existense of a black dentist.

Just because a person, either from a big city or small town, has met or knows a Black person does not *automatically* make that person more knowledgable about or accepting of Black people. Sure, it makes it more likely, but there is no causal link.   

[HBCU.EDU]

who gives a @#!*? fuckum...

[neverends]

"I would rather go to hell by choice than to stumble into heaven following the crowd."-Benjamin Elijah Mays (6th President of Morehouse College)

Sounds like vanity.

but then: who gives a @#!*? fuckum...

[utlion]

who gives a @#!*? fuckum...

HBCU.EDU,
Well, for one, I give a @#!*. I am from a small town/rural area. It is unfair for people to assume that just because I was born in a certain area, I must automatically be at best "underexposed" to, or at worst ignorant and intolerant of, different cultures. That couldn't be further from the truth. If people don't like the things the original guy in question said about Black people (as I do), then they can't in good faith dismiss their own ignorance and intolerance of people from small towns. It is discrimination any way you slice it. 

[Ladyday]

I don't believe any is saying that you personally are underexposed, actually he gave it as an extreme example. The reality is this, you can go to areas of this country and not see a single minority for hundreds of miles and then turn on your television and still not be exposed to minorities. (and yes you can go to neighborhoods and the majority of residents be minorities, but not all, and usually you can drive a good 20 min and be in a predominantly white neighborhood). So you are from a small rural community and are tolerant of other people's cultures, for whatever reason/circumstances you have been exposed to other cultures (before ug?) that's great, but this is not always the case. and I don't think anyone is saying that that is the fault of the person. and discussing the potrayal of minorities in the news/tv/media is a whole notha topic. it still tickles me when I go in for an interview or to meet someone for the first time and they know me only by name/address or through phone and their eyes bug out when they see "who I really am"

[allaboutlydia]

Well said Burning Sands.