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Racial prejudice and overcoming it

L

Lucky

Lifer
im not going to retype everythign that i first had here, but the gist of it was that the first thing I thought of when I heard of the women who let her kids die in the car while getting her hair done was "I bet she's black". Didnt think much of it until today when I saw on the news that she was indeed black and I felt kinda "dirty", for lack of a better word. My way of thinking of along the lines of what fausto posted below:

I am by no means racist, but it's difficult not to allow oneself to make generalizations about a given group based on the actions of a few of their members....especially when you take media input into account.
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So, the original question was, how do you overcome this stuff?
 
Originally posted by: AShadeOfClear
I think everybody is a little racist.
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d.l. hughley said it best: "if you know how many black ppl you've had in your house you are one racist motherfodder." "ok, 1,2,3 that's it, no more, what the fvck you think this is harlem?!?!?!"

the original kings of comedy is funny as hell

 
I hate everyone equally 😀

There is a famous speech from the 1950's, and I don't remember it word for word. but the gist ot if is, those are who prejudice are afraid to stop hating because if they do the only person left to hate is themselves.
 
"if you know how many black ppl you've had in your house you are one racist motherfodder."
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One 😱 And he was only "passing."

Anyway, Lucky .. what about thsoe white women that killed their children by drowning them... Sandra Yates and the other one. That's why I would have thought it was a white woman whos kids were killed (how?) while she was getting her hair done.
 
I was raised in Michigan in a small, mostly white town so was never really exposed to racism in any way. I had friends of various races, but since race wasn't ever an issue, they were just that: my friends.

Now I live in Atlanta where EVERYTHING is a race issue and I, like you, ponder these issues. I live in a suburb of Atlanta, Clarkston, one of the most ethnically diverse communities in GA. I think it's a great place to live, especially in light of the fact that Atlanta is still largely segregated along racial lines. There are "white" areas, "black" areas, "hispanic" areas, etc but rarely do the lines ever blur. On the other hand, I, like you, have to smack myself in the head sometimes for jumping to conclusions about any given event or situation based on the race of those involved. I am by no means racist, but it's difficult not to allow oneself to make generalizations about a given group based on the actions of a few of their members....especially when you take media input into account. Rarely does a day go by that the local news doesn't run a story about a shooting/carjacking/etc followed by something along the lines of "the suspect, described as a black male in his early 20's", etc. It's like hearing this kind of stuff on a daily basis starts to taint your views after enough repetition if you aren't cogniscent of the "big picture" (ie- just because there are some dirtbags of any given race doesn't necessarily represtent the members of that race as a whole).

As far a solution, I'd have to say that the best way for any individual to overcome his/her prejudice toward a given group would be to live and work closely with member of that group on a daily basis. Once you get to know someone as a person, you suddenly become color-blind in many ways. They are no longer your "black friend", they are simply "your friend". This is part of the reason I bought a house in Clarkston; I love the fact that, other than a few growing pains here and there, everyone lives more or less in harmony. A nice change of pace from the rest of Atlanta.🙂

Fausto
 
everyone is negatively impacted by those members of a different race who are stupid. We dont stop and think, "Wow, that asian guy really is doing a great job as a coder," we say, "That stupid asian woman cant drive!" This just perpetuates the cycle.

When was the last time you called up a company to compliment them versus calling up to complain?

I know there are good and bad people of every race. I work with one of the nicest women in the world, and she is black and is a very sweet person. The woman who lives below my apartment(who is also black) is completely inconsiderate. She will play the same F'ing song for hours on end, with enough bass to slightly vibrate my floor, driving me nuts. It is my responsiblity to look at the good, rather than the bad.
 
Know what? I was thinking the exact same thing. What tipped me off the most was that it was in Detroit however.
Its hard to overcome racial prejudices. The interactions that occur around you (whether they be in real life, on tv, or whatever) are the most influential in establishing these prejudices. If you see a riced out Honda, most would probably assume an asian is driving, or if you hear some heavy metal and punk music, most would probably assume a white person is listening to it. I honestly believe that unless you experience otherwise (for instance a trend of asians beginning to listen to heavy metal and punk), deep down, you'll always have some type of racial stereotype about a certain group regardless of what you might tell yourself.

I don't consider myself racist in the sense that I believe I am superior to other people but I do have some racial stereotypes and prejudices.
 
I honestly believe that unless you experience otherwise (for instance a trend of asians beginning to listen to heavy metal and punk), deep down, you'll always have some type of racial stereotype about a certain group regardless of what you might tell yourself.
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Its hard to expose myself more liberally to blacks though in my town. The population is only about ~2% black and they stick together giving (at least me) the impression that there is an unspoken "leave me alone, and I'll leave you alone" attitude. Probably goes the other way too. Im not saying I couldnt do more to associate and be more open but damm its hard around here in southern ohio. 😱
 
Originally posted by: Lucky
I honestly believe that unless you experience otherwise (for instance a trend of asians beginning to listen to heavy metal and punk), deep down, you'll always have some type of racial stereotype about a certain group regardless of what you might tell yourself.
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Its hard to expose myself more liberally to blacks though in my town. The population is only about ~2% black and they stick together giving (at least me) the impression that there is an unspoken "leave me alone, and I'll leave you alone" attitude. Probably goes the other way too. Im not saying I couldnt do more to associate and be more open but damm its hard around here in southern ohio. 😱
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Honestly, I think just being aware of why you feel a given way about racial issues is half the battle. Most people just feel a certain way about a given group and that's about as far as the thought process goes.

Fausto
 
What people don't understand is that you can have a stereoytype of a group and NOT be racist. You are only racist f you hate a paticular group for no real reason. Stereotypes are based on the truth. When you think of hijackers, you think of Arabs, when you think of trailer trash, you think of whites, etc. etc. Its not a bad thing, its just that that paticular group usually fits the description better.
 
Originally posted by: sbastedo
What people don't understand is that you can have a stereoytype of a group and NOT be racist. You are only racist f you hate a paticular group for no real reason. Stereotypes are based on the truth. When you think of hijackers, you think of Arabs, when you think of trailer trash, you think of whites, etc. etc. Its not a bad thing, its just that that paticular group usually fits the description better.
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Yes, I agree. But until there is a rash of black ladies leaving their kids to die while they get their hair braided I dont think mine was a fair one. 😱
 
Are you certain you did not reach the conclusion the woman was black from the cues given in the story such as names and locations? If the woman had been named Bonnie Lee Smith and the kids Jamie and Ellen Smith would you have still assumed the woman was black? The fact is that probably none of us is completely free of prejudices and stereotypes. The important thing is to try and deal with people and situations we encounter on a daily basis without allowing these assumptions to come into play.
 
Originally posted by: Linflas
Are you certain you did not reach the conclusion the woman was black from the cues given in the story such as names and locations? If the woman had been named Bonnie Lee Smith and the kids Jamie and Ellen Smith would you have still assumed the woman was black? The fact is that probably none of us is completely free of prejudices and stereotypes. The important thing is to try and deal with people and situations we encounter on a daily basis without allowing these assumptions to come into play.
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well, maybe I did. I remember her one of her kids had a whacked out name "black" name so maybe that was part of it. I dunno. I didnt pay attention to where she was from.
 
Originally posted by: Lucky
Originally posted by: sbastedo
What people don't understand is that you can have a stereoytype of a group and NOT be racist. You are only racist f you hate a paticular group for no real reason. Stereotypes are based on the truth. When you think of hijackers, you think of Arabs, when you think of trailer trash, you think of whites, etc. etc. Its not a bad thing, its just that that paticular group usually fits the description better.
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Yes, I agree. But until there is a rash of black ladies leaving their kids to die while they get their hair braided I dont think mine was a fair one. 😱
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It was Detroit dude, most of the poor, uneducated people there are black. I would think that a rich, well educated person wouldn't leave their kids in the car but I could be wrong.
 
Prejudice does not imply hatred.

Prejudice:
A preconceived preference or idea
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I'll admit. I'm prejudiced to an extent, though I try not to be. If I see a lowered 83 Cadillac on the street, w/ gold Daytons, and little tiny whitewalls on it, I'm gonig to assume a hispanic guy is driving it? Is that prejudice? Sure it is. Why do I have that prejudice? Cause 99% of cars like that are owned by hipanic guys. Is this neccesarily bad? I don't think so, but maybe someone would disagree. I have similar preconceptions w/ black people. In my experience, most black people seem to fall into one of two groups: The stereotypical poor, uneducated, foul mouthed, gangster type, or they're hard-working, very respectful, w/ very good manners. I see little black kids getting fast food from people, and when they get thier food, they say "thank you, ma'am" to the fasty food girl. I never see little white kids,m or hispanic kids, or asian kids show those kinds of manners. However, I also see a group of black guys hanging outside smoking and drinking beers and talking "fvcking.. n!gger.. .hoes.... etc" and I can't even stand the way they talk, and yes I am more inclined to think that group of people may be stealing or breaking other laws. I know that it's not PC to judge people like that, ESPECIALLY if they're black, but I can't help it, cause that's the way they've shown themselves to be in the past.

Prejudice in itself, however, is NOT a bad thing. Assume for a minute that you're a woman. 5'5", 110lbs. You're walking down the street at night. You see a big guy, tatooed, angry looking, has scars, and is waering a red bandana. Do you avoid him? Well, if you're not prejudiced at all, you treat him the same as the well dressed guy in the business suit on the other side of the street. But you ARE prejudiced. You avoid the big guy. You may even cross the street and walk behind the business man jsut to feel safer. It's not a bad thing.
 
I was raised in an area of the east as well as west coast that was mostly white and racism issues rarely came up and I didn't know of anyone that was racist. Of course these were mostly white areas for a reason - because many were racist and preferred to keep the community makeup this way.

I think most people like to condescend others because it makes them feel better tho, whether its a different race, a different country, a different team, and so on, so we have so many prejudices. Getting people to appreciate others comes when people consider themselves 'in the same boat', perhaps in a work environment where people can appreciate others' contributions. Tragedies like NY are often helpful too because it brings people together in support of the victims and against the perpetrators. It increases racism against the perpetrators tho. Perhaps an alien invasion like the Independence Day movie will help join people together so we can all be prejudice against alien invaders while in support of each other. 😉
 
Originally posted by: sbastedo
Originally posted by: Lucky
Originally posted by: sbastedo
What people don't understand is that you can have a stereoytype of a group and NOT be racist. You are only racist f you hate a paticular group for no real reason. Stereotypes are based on the truth. When you think of hijackers, you think of Arabs, when you think of trailer trash, you think of whites, etc. etc. Its not a bad thing, its just that that paticular group usually fits the description better.
Click to expand...




Yes, I agree. But until there is a rash of black ladies leaving their kids to die while they get their hair braided I dont think mine was a fair one. 😱
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It was Detroit dude, most of the poor, uneducated people there are black. I would think that a rich, well educated person wouldn't leave their kids in the car but I could be wrong.
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you would be wrong.

a rich white female friend of my S.O.'s left her infant in her car while she ran into the mall. someone called the police & she had to answer to the county social services department. stupidity knows no boundaries - she couldn't imagine forgetting her child, falling & getting KO'd, someone breaking into the car & kidnapping the child, etc.
 
Lucky -

I have been looking for a way to phrase the question you posed for a long time.
It's nice to know that I'm not the only one who feels like this. I 'catch' myself being racist at times and I'm ashamed of it, but subconsciously I can't help it.

And Clarkston sounds like a walk in the park - at least they don't have to put up with the Irish. 😀
 
I think generalization is part of the way the brain works. A psychology 101 demonstration presented objects, one at a time, with participants being asked to name the complete set of items presented each time a new one was added. It was only at five or six items that classification started to kick in.

The difference between generalization and racism is the ability to differentiate between assumption and actual character trait. Yes, it may be bad to make those assumptions in the first place, but if it's impossible to be completely non-judgmental, then the best you can do is to realize when you're attributing something to nothing more than preconceived notions, and pay them no heed once you've realized that there's no factual basis for them.

It's also important to note that this sort of behavior doesn't apply exclusively to racial perceptions.
 
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