Racism one of the more nonsensical attitudes held by a great portion of the human race. Can you imagine a world in which a golden retriever hated black Labs? That is precisely how ridiculous people look when they fear and discriminate against other people for the color of their skin. Unfortunately, in spite of logic and reason, racism remains ancient of origin and persistent in to our present. So in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. I would like to say few words on racism in this country. Although I could go on for miles, I have kept it short....
Racism in America
By The Lady Rhiannon
Race is still an important factor in people's minds in this country, even though we have obviously made headway against racism. It is the same with misogyny, the feminist movement and the civil rights movement have both made great strides in this country, but there is a long, long way to go. It was not too long ago that we had segregation in this country…and, although most of us may feel divorces from it, slavery is not a part of ancient history either. The inherent disparity and institutionalized inequalities within our system remains very strong. I am reminded that racism and irrational fear and ignorance every day and I am sickened when I hear such stories as those of John Derbyshire and Robert Weissberg, who were both writers from the National Review that were fired because of their racist rants.
Derbyshire asserted that whites are smarter than black people, black people are dangerous and whites should avoid them, but to keep a couple black friends around so that no one can accuse you of being a racist. According to Derbyshire in 2003, "I am a homophobe, though a mild and tolerant one, and a racist, though an even more mild and tolerant one". Derbyshire gave a lot of advice to his readers that he reportedly taught to his kids as well, including....
1. Stay out of heavily black neighborhoods.
2. If planning a trip to a beach or amusement park at some date, find out whether it is likely to be swamped with blacks on that date (neglect of that one got me the closest I have ever gotten to death by gunshot).
3. Do not attend events likely to draw a lot of blacks.
4. If you are at some public event at which the number of blacks suddenly swells, leave as quickly as possible.
5. Do not settle in a district or municipality run by black politicians.
6. Before voting for a black politician, scrutinize his/her character much more carefully than you would a white.
7. Do not act the Good Samaritan to blacks in apparent distress, e.g., on the highway.
8. If accosted by a strange black in the street, smile and say something polite but keep moving.
~ John Derbyshire
(Huffington Post 4-6-2012)
Weissberg similarly asserted that black are simply more barbaric and stupid, and that white people should segregate themselves by creating what he described as "whitetopias". These racists are not alone; there is an array of racist rants on YouTube and white supremacist websites ranging in extremity. My state, Ohio, is leading the Midwest in the number of racist/white supremacist organizations (73 that are known about). I don't see the end of prejudice and bigotry coming anytime soon.
Many thought that Barack Obama’s election into office was the sign that racism was no longer a significant factor in our culture. From what I have seen, the opposite has proven true. I believe that many racists have been quietly dormant for a while, content in the overall homeostasis of the general status quo. The election of Obama as president has driven racists and bigots of all shapes and sizes to slither out from under their rocks and show their ugly faces once again. In many ways, the denial of racism in our culture can be seen as a new form of racism, spurred by the apathetic oblivion in which many people reside.
Education is the key to our release from this irrational delusion of racial superiority. Anyone with even a novice understanding of sociology or evolution would know how trivial and arbitrary the term 'race' really is. It is a meaningless term really, except for the meaning we give it as time and motivation suits us. We are all different, we are meant to be, and genetic variation is essential to our survival and to our continuing evolutionary development. Racists discriminate against difference in skin pigmentation which is a result of the human skin evolving to adapt to living in hot sunny places like Africa. Blond, pale skinned Arians came from the far north where there was very little sun, which is why they burn easily. Our differences make perfect sense; the hatred of those differences makes no sense at all. Unfortunately, in a world where many do not believe in evolution, there are those who resist truth and choose ignorance over fact, and hatred over understanding. Truly this is senseless, it holds us back as a species, and it needs to stop.
"He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps to perpetrate it. He who accepts evil without protesting against it is really cooperating with it."
~Martin Luther King, Jr.
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