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Sun 24 Sep, 2006 11:28 pm
I have seen a number of instances where people talk about "reverse racism".
I know what they mean but it does not make sense.
Racism is discrimination or prejudice based on race. Reverse that and it is... well just rubbish!
People who use the phrase "reverse racism" must automatically assume racism is Whites against Coloureds and never vice versa.
You'd be right if that's really what racism was. But that's just the definition.
They cannot tell you the real definitions for words like racism and discrimination because they are hypocritical.
Instead, there are politically correct definitions for politically correct actions.
I agree with you...
I think whites against blacks/asians is more popular though.
In my experience, blacks are mainly racist, when whites enter their sacred family.
They are quite relaxed towards strangers or 'just' friends.
I was living with my black boyfriend for six years, and his brother never made a secret that he did not approve of the 'white' addition to the family.
Zoofer, I agree with you. I'm freshly off a weekend course on multi-cultural education. Racism is not defined as whites degrading people of color. It is defined, more or less, as zoofer indicates. You can and do have bias going between all groups and sometimes within groups. Reverse racism would be non-biased attitudes to groups different to one's own.
Holding a belief that clumps a whole group of people in negative light (and then labeling one person with those traits) is racism/bias. But, acting on that racism is discrimination. Whites hold a ridiculous propertion of the power in the US, discrimination from us to others is much more devestating, deeper and wider, than discrimination by other groups aimed at us. But, discrimination hurts individuals the same no matter who is doing it.
I believe it is correct to state that the term "reverse racism" has been created in the United States, that it is largely used by conservative commentators, and that it refers to what is alleged to be discrimination against white folks, and which is allegely motivated by race.
I know how to work on black time. It's my favorite way to express my inner blackness.
As part of my new graduate student "training" I was mandated to attend some seminars on discrimination recently.
I found it humorously hypocritical how they so nobly stated that discrimination was impartial treatment based on race, sex, color, mental disability, etc...
...and that only students who are registered with a mental disability qualify for additional help and special treatment!!
This reminds me of the political catch phrase "affordable housing". Everything is affordable if you have enough money.