At this blog, we’ve often discussed the complexities of understanding and combatting implicit, unconscious bias. But it’s important to be aware the the totally fucking explicit kind is out there as well.
one-third of white Democrats harbor negative views toward blacks — many calling them “lazy,” “violent” or responsible for their own troubles.
The title of the post is from a man interviewed for the article, whose party affiliation is not stated.
Feminist Philosophers 
tell me something i don’t know. painful, and enlightening — hopefully, people take note and make an effort to address their personal biases. i wonder what a similar study of black people about whites would glean…
So are you demonstrating he linkage between the bias exhibited between those in power who consciously or unconsciously oppress others and the plight of the woman’s struggle? Do Patriarchal figures really still hate woman?
Is it possible for those in power to be discriminated and oppressed by those who are oppressed?
simply , can a black person discriminate and be bias against a white person?
Its all a matter of what one wants to believe. You cannot legistrate aginist prejudice. And racism is prejudice. A bigot does not neet to have facts to suport his/her bigotry. If there isnt one, they create it. Whether or not blacks are responsible for their plite, is a matter of who is writing history. Its not a simplistice issue with black/white solutions.
Hating black people is a subconscious reaction by white people, developed through generations by a history of guilt, for inhumanity perpetrated by their ancestors to the black people. In a way, blacks are constant reminders to the white of their historic injusticies, and the wealth they enjoy today directly as a result of this. Its not a nice feeling to have the guy you conned his life hanging about reminding you of what you did. You need a reason to explain his plite. Therefore “lazy” and “responsible for their own troubles” come in handy, very handy. and the guilt goes away.
Jonolan,
While not all negative comments are a sign of racism – ‘I don’t like custard’ is negative but not racist – claiming that black people are violent and responsible for their own troubles IS racist. Surely I don’t have to explain why?
Presumably, by “all negative comments” Jonolan was referring to negative comments in regard to a particular race–not all negative comments. That would be ridiculous.
Well i can see this,even the press, which enjoys the oppurtunity of calling anybody a racist, is itself racist.
The AP posted two possible stories for Katrina victims and posted “finding” for whites, and “looting” for blacks.
http://www.snopes.com/katrina/photos/looters.asp
This is the AP, not Enquirer, not the NY TImes, or even the KKK monthly (though im sure they did the same thing), but the AP!
If you actually read that Snopes article (and take it at face value), there doesn’t appear to be bias in the captions.
(Which is not to say that the media is not saturated with racism.)
If it is admissible to vote for Barack Obama because he is black, it is admissible to not vote for him because he is black.
Monkey,
The majority of homicides are committed by black people (http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/homicide/race.htm) , and don’t you think it only right that we hold them accountable for their own troubles?
Dozy – yes, I’m sure you’re right. Jonolan’s comment pissed me off so much I became pedantic.
Philosoaf – here’s some news for you. The majority of homicides are committed by poor people. An unjust society where there is a huge gap between the rich and the poor, together with entrenched racism means that a lot of poor people are black. That in itself explains the figures you have pointed to, although I’m sure there are further factors involved such as the possibility that black people are more likely to be convicted (they are certainly more likely to be hassled by the police), etc.
I’m leaving the above comments up (for now – we might change our mind), but let me just say that any other racist comments made here will be deleted. And this policy is not up for discussion. We welcome debate here, but bigotry won’t be tolerated.
Well said, Monkey. And a further point: our judgments about which comments to delete for racism are not up for discussion. You may not like this, but it’s our blog and that’s the way it’s going to be. I’m sure there are other blogs that will welcme your contributions.
“If it is admissible to vote for Barack Obama because he is black, it is admissible to not vote for him because he is black.”
I’d like to hear the argument for that, Philosoaf. After all, the scheme ‘If it’s permissible to do X to a because they’re F, it’s permissible to not do X to a because they’re F’ is surely uncontroversially not valid. ‘If it’s permissible to save a’s life because they’re human, it’s permissible to not save a’s life because they’re human’ is, e.g., false. So what’s the argument for the particular instance you give?
I’m not getting the idea of holding responsible here. Is the idea that if the majority of perpetrators are of race R, then it makes sense to hold R people responsible for the resulting problems?
That seems to lead to: the US is in a mess economically and white guys are in the vast majority of those responsible. So lets hold white people responsible for this mess. All those people hurt by the Enron collapse? Hey, don’t feel sorry for the white people??? It’s just ‘their’ problem.
There are some theories of national guilt that hold that Germans today bear responsibility for the holocaust in some way. But I think it is a good bet that what really makes the reasoning look plausible to some in the case of blacks just is racism.
Before you judge all black people you need to meet them all first
because i am a black women and im not “lazy” nor am i “violent”. I believe you came up with this website because you want to be black and you are ashamed of your own damn race point blank.
I believe that you have bad apples in every single race on earth, and I think that it is sad that I have to be placed in a category which I do not fit into. I have plenty of love for those who love me and it does not matter to me what color your skin is. Things like this make me realize that this world is full of evil, but it is not going to stop me from doing the right thing. Love and Truth.
black woman, please do know that this blog’s authors take strong stands against racism. The post is actually very negative about the reported racism.
Unfortunately, some people who commented hold objectionably racist views. We have since banned at least one of them
I do wonder what is the problem with other races? I personally do not discriminate agaisnt any type of person because I believe that God created all of us and no one is more spectacular than the other. I dont understand what the big deal is about the amount of pigmentation in one’s skin. There are many stereotypes amongst races, however it doesnt apply to everyone!
Black people in the USA commit crimes at a far higher rate than white people. The vast majority of the victims of black criminals are also black. White victims of crime are also disproportionately victimized by black criminals. Just look at the DOJ statistics. If you think these statistics are a result of a racist law enforcement infrastructure, try living in a typical black neighborhood for awhile. The vast majority of modern-day white Americans are not descended from slave owners. Even those who are generally have not reaped any direct financial benefit from the slave ownership of their ancestors. If anything, the benefit of being white is simply not being descended from a historically marginalized group. That being said, the social problems that plague the poor black communities in the USA are generally caused by those black people who embrace a culture of ignorance and criminality. Having gone to school in a predominantly black school district, I can state with confidence that a black kid at a mostly white school will be treated much better by his classmates than a white kid at a mostly black school. The same goes for white residents of mostly black neighborhoods vs. black residents of mostly white neighborhoods. Yeah, the blacks in the mostly white situations may, in the worst case, be treated a little strangely, or god forbid “looked at funny” but they aren’t nearly as likely to get beat up, robbed, or generally victimized (although this certainly was not the case in the past in many areas). If you don’t think this is the truth, than you have your head in the sand. The only white people who deny these facts are those who have never lived among ghetto blacks. Most black people acknowledge this reality as well. If they don’t, then they are probably the type who plays the perpetual victim.
All of my lifelong friends are black, and I know plenty of black Americans are kind, helpful, friendly people. I shouldn’t even have to point that out. However, there are enormous social and cultural problems with gangs, violence, family structure and lack of value placed on even the most basic education, that exist in many urban black communities that are simply much smaller (but certainly not non-existent) in predominantly white communities. It is not appropriate for white people to work toward solving these problems, because any solution perceived as coming from whites will be rejected. Only black people can solve the problems in black communities.