posted by Sam and Michelle
Post your 450 word (minimum) comment and 100 word (minimum) response to a classmate. You should be responding to the lecture about Stages of Racial Identity – White People: Stages 3 & 4. You can write anything you want about whatever you hear in the lecture.
She had gotten into a fight with a white girl at her school, because she asked her, “why do you have to be so ghetto all of the time?” That was the last straw for her, as she smacked the girl across her face and asked, “why do you have to be so racist and white all of the time?” It was a horrible situation that ended with the girl pretty much hating all white people and thinking that they were the same no matter what. How horrible is that? I do not think that anyone should feel guilty for being whatever race they are, no matter what the situation is.
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We are who we are and cannot change the past, where our ancestors came from, and where we have come from. We make our own decisions and either chose to be or not to be racists. They are young now, but when they get older, those little girls that sang about hate, could chose to overcome their obstacles and realize that they were brainwashed. They could one morning wake up and realize that hating everyone but whites is ridiculous and selfish. But it is their choice.
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Just like it is anyone’s decision to like someone based on the color of their skin. You can either hate it or love it. That example that Dr. Richards used on his friend’s daughter being ridiculed in school because of the color of her skin was horrible. No child, especially at the age of 4, should have to go through that. No child should be taught to fear the police. They should be taught to feel all bad people in general. But once again, this goes back to the idea that we make our own decisions, no matter how we were raised. Many just need to stop making excuses for themselves, and take responsibility of their own actions.
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Lesson 9 was an eye opener for me. I feel that not only white people are in awkward situations, however so are other races. If you are African American in a predominately white event, you feel funny yourself. Mainly because your wondering, what is everyone thinking about you. I think if all races would just be their individual self there would be no awkward feelings. Your personality has no color, to some degree. What I am trying to say is, if your an outgoing bubbly person, than be that same person when you find your self in this type of situation. If we are who we are, instead of thinking color, I don't feel awkward situations would happen as much.
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I was truly bent out of shape with the two little girls. "There weren't even that many Jews." What??? I feel sorry for them. Their parents are pouring into them their beliefs, but I wonder if the twins were ever asked what they thought. Are they given the option of exploring the world outside the racist one, their parents are having them live in. I am a firm believer, that God holds us, parents, responsible for what we instill in our children and once they become adults they are held accountable for their actions. By no means am I judging these parents, I just totally don;t agree with what I've seen. It's really sad! The whole wash cloth thing, dingy me, I thought everyone used wash cloths! lol….I am truly learning a lot from this class. But the one thing I really feel is, if people weren't so afraid to have discussions about race, we wouldn't have to wonder where comments like, white people smell like wet dogs, or blacks use wash cloths because their skin is extra dirty. We as a society should be scared to ask questions or say what's on our minds. We really shouldn't be so extra sensitive.
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itsthatguy10 Reply:
June 21st, 2010 at 12:55 am
06/20/10
Yeah the video with the two girls was really messed up. In Soc001 we watched a more in depth video about the girls and their family. In the video it showed that the girls are not completely comfortable with the ideas of their mother and the way she exploits them. They still seemed racist, but it also seemed that more and more they were being exposed to more “normal” and not racist ideas. Also their grandmother really hates what their mother is doing and has tried to help the girls see the world in a more reasonable light. If you are interested Richards could probably send you the video.
About the washcloth thing, I found it pretty funny. I went to a pretty diverse high school (especially compared to penn state) and I have heard the whole wash cloth and wet dog thing before. People didn’t make a huge deal out of, it was just something to have an innocent laugh at.
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First of all, I think the video of the two twins was appalling. Not only was what they were discussing and truly believing to be true completely inappropriate, but what their parents were perpetuating and supporting is outrageous. It seriously bothers me when people think they are inherently better than other people and because of that spread the word of ultimate egotistical thinking.
I think it’s often difficult for white people to know when It’s acceptable to refer to someone as ‘black’ because we’re so often criticized by people who are black or other races for stereotyping people for the color of their skin that it’s difficult to know when it’s appropriate to break the barrier and use that term or when it’s ok to use the term and not be looked at with that expression of ‘did you really just call me black’.
It may be important to learn the language of race, but I think it’s equally important to people to not be so easily offended by shit. I think that we’re just perpetuating our tendency to call someone ‘racist’ by assuming that when they say something based off color they mean it to be offensive. You had the example of calling a black guy ‘bro’ but there’s no reason to get offended by that if you don’t know the context of what he’s saying. Essentially there nothing offensive about the term ‘bro’ and I think this a where a lot of racists issues stem from—from people (of all races) getting immediately offended without understanding that person or the context within which they are speaking.
The color of someone’s skin often comes up in conversation because that is where our country and world is at right now. I don’t think it should necessarily be considered racist if during a story the color of one’s skin comes up. Granted there really is no reason in making it a point to state the race of the person you are discussing, but there should also not be a reason to automatically jump to the conclusion that racism is a part of the discussion
Is there such thing as absolute political correctness? Will there ever be a time when there isn’t a person somewhere in the world, or even in a group, that isn’t offended by the way someone says something? I think that inequality is almost impossible to eradicate from our society until people of all races stop becoming immediately offended by the words that others say. I think my frustration begins when people are unwilling to compromise about their way of thinking or who refuse to consider that there may be another, possibly better, way to think about race, to think about other cultural spheres. I think that having open discussions between members of the same race and members of different races will aid in the process of understanding various cultures and races and understanding what is appropriate to say without immediately offending someone.
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Easygoing96 Reply:
June 21st, 2010 at 12:57 am
6/20 I agree with your comment on the twins. But I personally find the video unnerving and a little bit scary. I don't pretend that racism doesn't exist anymore, but it is still hard for me to understand how a person can be brought up to hate someone or a group of people they never meet and really now nothing about. I guess what I'm really getting at, is that people are so easily influence by upbringing and kind of easily brainwashed into thinking a certain way, its scary. On another note, I agree with you to a point on people getting easily offended by others and taking things that weren't meant to be hurtful as a personal attack. But it's definitely not a simple task to just have all people just stop getting offended so easily. And then to what point is it ok for one person to be blunt with another? Because there are times when someone says something to be intentionally hurtful or because they are truly ignorant to another person's culture and race. For the latter, the person to which the comment was directed shouldn't get offended and should understand the other person's ignorance and educate them in a way as to not be condescending. But for the former, it's not ok for someone to disrespect another person's culture and would it be ok for that person to get offended and respond? Or should they just ignore it and let the commentator continue with their offensive opinions?
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rmb5202 Reply:
June 21st, 2010 at 1:24 am
I agree that people should not be so easily offended with stuff because sometimes I will say something not trying to offend anyone at all and would never call it offensive yet someone (of another race) would get offended just because they think they can. I could not agree more when you stated it is hard for white people to refer to someone as black because white people are criticized often so they never know what to say because they are unsure if it will hurt someone’s feelings or not. Also I agree that color is topic of conversion throughout the world. When I am talking about someone or describing them I will use their color to help describe them and I think it is definitely where our world is at today.
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6/20/10 part one
I thought the whole washcloth thing was kind of eye opening. I do know some white people that use washcloths but I had no idea about this huge racial divide. I guess that’s just a product of my whiteness and the very limited amount of black people I knew growing up. I guess the whole washcloth divide isn’t really that widely known due to the fact that most people don’t discuss their shower habits in public ha-ha. It was interesting when Sam made the comment about subconsciously feeling cleaner or dirtier. I have however started using washcloths because you need to use abrasion while bathing to fully remove the dead skin cells. I can definitely understand why most white people don’t move past the third step in racial identity. It means giving up the comforts of being white, not having to deal with what’s in our face. Since people of color don’t have white privilege they have fewer barriers when it comes to moving to the next levels in racial identify. They aren’t as blinded as most white people are when it comes to racial identity.
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cosuji Reply:
June 21st, 2010 at 2:00 pm
It’s amazing how race can be incorporated into every aspect of life. I never knew that white people didn’t use wash clothes that frequently, I thought everyone used a wash cloth. Not to say it is a good or bad thing I just was not aware that there were race related reasons for things that we use to bath. For the most part I felt like either you washed with a sponge or a washcloth I never really stopped to think otherwise. It’s actually kind of funny to me because as a black person if you say you don’t use a washcloth people will think that you’re dirty. There are so many things that you would never know about other races because you are unable to experience them.
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6/20/10 part two
I definitely feel a little of the guilt Sam was discussing, I understand that it’s part of the process and hopefully I can mature as a person and one day have a more balanced outlook, maybe even be more pro-active when it comes to race-relations. I definitely feel that Sam is right when it comes to making a “faux pas” and being called racist by someone who doesn’t understand where you’re coming from, it’s happened to me before and there is essentially nothing to do. Once that happens you can never talk your way out of it. A wall goes up and the conversation is over, it’s so deep and emotional a five minute conversation will not be able to take that wall down. Neither party will be able to understand the other person’s feelings because we aren’t able to live our whole lives in their shoes.
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6/20/10 part 3
I also agree with shame being paralyzing, that’s the entire point of shame. It’s why the Abrahamic religions have these deeply embedded feeling of guilt, shame, “original sin”. The whole reason these rules were established was to control people, to paralyze them. People weren’t going to speak out or commit crimes if they believed God would strike them down with a bolt of lightning or let something bad happen to them. It’s like trying to walk on the eggshells
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6/20/10
While watching this lecture, I was mostly impacted by the video of the twin girls and the discussion about guilt. Watching the video clip about the girls, I was shocked. It almost amazed me in the fact that girls like that really exist. They do not know better than to listen to their parents and abide by the same ideas that they have. The girls were so passionate about their beliefs and ideas at such a young age when in reality they probably do not even fully know what they are promoting. As the girls grow up and enter the real world, they will most likely face many obstacles. When the one twin said that there were probably not even that many Jews during the Holocaust, I was surprised at how serious she was. She truly did believe that which made me think, what else do these girls have a hindered view about? When Dr. Richards began speaking about guilt, I was one of those students thinking about how much guilt I feel on a daily basis. I thought about what it has been in the past week or so that I have made myself feel so guilty about. Do I really even know what true guilt is? I thought I did until Dr. Richards revealed its definition and started investigating the topic a little bit more. I know that guilt is obviously feeling bad to an extent, but I did not have an idea about its further implications. When Dr. Richards asked students in the class if they ever feel guilty for being white or feel guilt for another race, I thought back to what I brainstormed caused me guilt in the past week. I would not necessarily say that I feel bad for being white. It is true to say that through this class I have gained a better understanding of what it means to be white which has lead me to become more thankful that I am. Just because I am white and gain from the benefits of being white, does not mean that I feel bad for someone who is not. It is unfair that other races are discriminated against but I do not take that any further and begin to feel bad for them, thus I do not feel guilty for being white. I think that one can see unfairness and understand that it is in the world without having to feel guilty for other races. Moving onto white guilt, I did not even know that it had an underlying meaning. I do think that there are many people in the world who have white guilt or experience white guilt. Personally, at this point in my life I do not feel that I have truly experienced white guilt.
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6/20
When you said the first thing people learn is to not talk about race issues reminded me of a time when I was in 5th grade and my best friend at the time would always start out by saying involving my race as Bl-African American, he would pause and try to say something to not offend me in any way. That always brought a chuckle out of me because I never even would pay attention to him being white, the only time I would notice is when I walked around his neighborhood, in the white part of south Philly, and practically everyone would look at me and my white friend quizzically. It’s just something that he has always been around. Those two girls singing about White Supremacy made me think of brain washing right away, and also clever editing and reporting by ABC, cutting after a certain sentence gets the point across but I can’t help but wonder what was lost, but I believe the essence of what those two girls were communicating got across. The parents are the cause of this almost the same way as they were in the movie Jesus Camp, but not much can really be said. Parents influence and control what their children think the majority of the time. I actually do know black people that want white people to “pay” for everything that they have done, but I think believing that an entire race should collectively apologize. I sometimes believe they think it’s a yearly white meeting between races where they discuss certain problems and every year agree to not apologize to every race they have offended or something. The being a bigger person idea of just walking away is what my dad tells me to do a lot, but it’s hard as hell to not actively say your views especially if they’re misconstrued because that bothers me when someone believes the wrong idea or believes what they haven’t heard. I’ve luckily never heard anyone say they need to see White people suffer for everything that they have done, because I think that is one of the stupidest ideas I’ve ever heard. I don’t want anyone to suffer anymore than they have too, and if through luck or their own lucky intuition then more power to them for eliminating suffering throughout their and their ancestors lives, I’m sure most white people have a general idea of other people’s sufferings throughout the years, and if anything it would just make people a lot more bitter. And obviously I wouldn’t expect all Asians to know Kung-Fu but I’m not going to assume otherwise. Also Dave Chappelle said in another one of his skits don’t use the wash clothes, and that they have pubic hair all over the bar of soap, and now every time I take a shower at a white friend’s house I notice those finer details.
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brumgmt Reply:
June 21st, 2010 at 3:37 am
What I also find interesting is that many people develop some of their views and stereotypes about others based on what they learn in their homes while growing up. I have heard people say that they believe things and view things in a certain way because of how they were raised. Can’t people grow up and change their views and realize that maybe the way in which they grew up was wrong? How long should people blame their behavior on their childhood and how they grew up? At some point, aren’t we all accountable for our own actions and behavior? It’s almost as if people are willing to put the blame on others instead of pointing the finger at themselves for their actions and behavior.
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6/20 “But at least we have something in common – an impossible task. And that is the bridge – because we all have to face the biases of our upbringing, the blindness of our ignorance, and the fallacies of our world views in order to make the crossing.” (Making Peace 67) I really enjoyed this quote from Laurie’s book, because I felt like it summarized a lot what she was talking about when it came to the “boxes” and traps we have put ourselves in. I definitely see these “color traps” that she is talking about. I myself have fallen into them a couple of times, and only until recently have I made any type of intentional change in thought to try and prevent this. It’s hard not to judge people from a glance. First impressions take all of 30 seconds to make, and we tend to make them about everyone that passes in and out of our lives. I used to sit at the HUB (PSU University Park) during its busiest time of day and watch people coming and going. Interacting with each other and not; and I tried to pretend what they were thinking about and what their lives were like. I noticed that a lot of the things I would come up with, in some way or another correlated to their race. I didn’t mean to do this, nor did I do it in a patronizing way; but I realize how wrong it was of me to pretend I knew anything about these people from just a glance. There have been times that people have done that to me, and I don’t enjoy it. I have had friends tell me their first impressions of me and how I turned out to be completely different from what they originally thought I would be. Like I said before, I have done this to people, I see only what on the surface sometimes. I personally don’t like saying “I don’t see colors”, because I do. But in the way that I love the differences in our cultures. I think that is what makes the world so interesting, but I don’t believe people are all that different. Humans tend to be the same in certain aspects; we all feel pain and sorrow, happiness and anger. It’s interesting how a person of color can say “I don’t see colors” and this would be taken as an invitation for a white person to feel comfortable around that person. As opposed to a white person saying that and that person being considered as ignoring or avoiding the issue of color altogether. There are all these different “rules” that only seem to divide us more. These “traps” correlate directly with the idea of “boxes” that Laurie talks about in her book. She suggests that we are born into these specific boxes, depending on our race and social class, etc; and that depending on the shape and size of our boxes we are limited in our views. Some of us can only see the sky and not the ground we sit on, while others of us can only see the other boxes that surround us and ground but not the sky. As hard as it is for us to believe it, and as much as we like to pretend, the fact is that “None of us sees the entirety” (Making Peace 72)
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The childhood of white people and black and brown people are very different when considering the topic of race. Throughout the early years of schooling, white children are continually told that all people, regardless of the color of their skin, are equal. Racism is bad. To a little kid, this can be confusing. This is the thought process going through all white children’s heads: if all people should be treated equal, and racism is treating people differently based on the color of their skin, and racism is bad, then just pretend that all people had the same color skin. This is how most white people learn at an early age to keep quiet about race. In order to avoid offending anyone and being called a racist, white people just stop talking about race all together. However, black and brown children are taught at an early age that racism exists. They are taught how to survive in a world where they are not treated equal.
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Therefore, white people grow up almost oblivious to the hardships that black and brown people face in their daily lives. For this reason, most white people refrain from saying much at the race table so as not to offend anyone or to be called a racist like Sam was. However, it is at this time, when white people begin to acknowledge their wrongs and change their beliefs, that they move into the third stage of whiteness. Unfortunately, they are usually met with contempt from black and brown people here. Instead of them seeing how hard it is for these white people to have come this far, they show no acceptance or thankfulness. It is this lack of gratitude that propels many white people into the fourth stage. This is where they digress into resenting the fact that they ever tried to change their beliefs in the first place; the people they thought they were trying to help didn’t seem to care.
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The truth is that these white people are actually helping themselves see the world through someone else’s eyes. One thing about the wash cloths. I do not think the reason for why white people do not use them has to do with them thinking that their skin is clean. I know my skin is dirty. When my parents originally taught me how to wash myself, they never showed me by using a wash cloth, since they don’t use one either. I just let the soap and the water do its magic while occasionally using my hands to help the process. I think its just an ancient behavior passed down by two different groups of people having different ways of washing themselves. I never even knew people used washed cloths like that until this lecture, let alone that it had something to do with race.
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06/20/10
So last comment I was unsure what step I believed I was at, but know we know about a few more steps. Before this class I would say that I do not feel “white guilt” by the definition I thought it meant. To me guilt means feeling bad for something that was at least partly your fault. In that sense I do not feel guilty for past racism or things like slavery well because I was not even alive. The whole idea seemed silly to me that someone would feel bad, or blame themselves, for something that was completely out of their control. But according to Richards the real definition is a little bit different then that. According to Richards white guilt is “The remorseful awareness of having been racist or having benefited from racism”. I do not believe I am racist so that leaves feeling remorse for having benefitted from racism, which I am sure I have many times whether I liked it or not. One of the definitions of remorse is compassion which I guess makes more sense for white guilt then its other definition which is “regret of wrongdoing”. If you have not actively done anything wrong then I do not think you should feel regret. But all of us white people should at the least feel compassion for other people because of how racism has hurt them and greatly benefitted us. The reason I think compassion is the one good thing about the definitions of these words is that compassion leads to action and like it says in Richards definition awareness is a part of it. Being aware leads to compassion and compassion will lead you to do things like stand up for a stranger who is being harassed because of their skin color, like the girl in that one 20/20 video. There is no sense in beating yourself up for something that is completely out of your control, but if you have awareness of the world around you and compassion for other human beings then you can have a positive effect.
So I feel that I am in line with many of the aspects of revisioning. Seeing racism and inequality and discomfort with inequality are feelings I have regularly and strongly. I have a small problem with the “anger towards white people” part of revisioning. The only white people I feel anger towards are the ones who perpetuate racism and inequality, the ones who refuse to put themselves in the shoes of other people. Blanket anger towards a whole people seems ridiculous. Maybe that is what the slide from the lecture meant but it was paraphrasing. I do not like what the points for the reversal step. They seem like they are backwards ideas and anyone with some intelligence would be able to skip over that step unless they were hurt somehow by people of another race. I could see someone who had an experience like Richards when he was accused of being racist falling into step 4.
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White people really are not comfortable talking about race and it really is funny. I never noticed it until I actually had these two lectures. I find it very interesting to learn about my own color for two lectures and force my thinking about the white race. The lecture was very interesting and quite remarkable. I found it so interesting when Mr. Richards said that white never speak of race because they are afraid of being called a racist because that statement described me to a Tee. Sadly I never want to talk about race because I am nervous someone is going to call me something I am not. I definitely agree with the fact that when white people are called racist the first thing they say is my best friend is not white but I still love them because that’s what I do or at least did. I actually just spoke about it in my last blog posting which is comical in a way. From now on I am going to take Mr. Richards advice and just stay quiet because there is nothing I can say that will change someone’s mind.
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The clip with the twins was ridiculous. It is so sad how ignorant they are but I honestly think it is their parents faults because they is how they are raise and they can’t help where they come from. I mean sure they are old enough now to reason the difference but who knows maybe in the future they will come to terms that everyone is equal and should be treated the same.
I found the wash cloths segment so interesting yet so true. I am white and do not use a wash cloth rather a sponge or even sometimes if I am in a rush my hands. I always just thought that wash cloths were annoying but my grandmother swears by them. My close friends who are not white are always using a wash cloth and when I asked my one friend why and she responded with, “Because there is nothing else that will get you as clean as a wash cloth.” I never took into consideration that black or brown people use wash cloths because they feel as though there skin is dirtier than white people. As a white person it’s not that I don’t use a wash cloth because I think my skin is clean I just don’t like the feeling of the wash cloth on my skin.
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I enjoy the concept of racial identifiers presented in the lecture. The BRO concept really stood out because I realized Sam did that a lot throughout the first couple lectures and actually thought someone would be offended. I mean I guess I figured that was just the way he was but I definitely just figured someone would get offended one way or another.
Lastly, while watching The Red House clip, I was thinking to myself why did they have to say there white, black or whatever color someone is because it doesn’t matter. There is no couch that is specifically for white or black people. I found it annoying that they had to keep saying there race when it was obvious what color they were, I understand it suppose to be comical but honestly I found it disturbing that race was such a big part of the commercial.
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So about this stage of “reversal” in white’s racial identity. Supposedly, a general discomfort leads white people to digress away from healthy race relations and begin experiencing anger towards people of color. I find it interesting that this stage comes following revisioning instead of prior to it. Where revisioning involves an awareness of inequality, white privilege, and anger directed at whites (by whites) reversal seems to be just the opposite. In our racial identity, it seems as though we experience more constructive thoughts and ideologies earlier on, and then fall backwards as we continue to progress? One would assume that these negative feelings towards people of color by whites would come earlier on. I think I’ll be able to understand it better once we discuss all six stages in class as opposed to only the first four.
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I also want to talk a little bit about white guilt, in that it’s something I struggle with regularly. I find it hard to draw the line between feeling guilty as a result of my personal action and simply as a result of the privilege which I inherently possess. I can comfortably say that my actions have not made the lives of people of color any worse. That is not to say however that my ancestors did not. So where then do I decide to differentiate between responsibility and acknowledgement?
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This “guilt” that I feel is not attributed to something I’ve done. When we think about guilt in conventional manners, the definition that would most often come to mind would result from responsibility. If I do something “wrong,” I feel bad or guilty as a result of my actions’ negative impact (be it on a person or otherwise). However, I can still feel guilt simply from witnessing something that I myself have no involvement or responsibility with. Sam discussed the idea in lecture that “guilt” was just a single step away from feeling bad about something. Surely I can feel bad about plenty that I did not cause myself, and as a result of this “guilt” move towards making it better.
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White guilt does not need to be white people accepting responsibility for the wrongs their ancestors committed. Instead, I view white guilt as an acknowledgement by whites of the fact that wrongs were committed. This acknowledgement is productive! It allows us to move constructively forward towards eliminating some of said wrongs which still exist today either concretely or abstractly. By concrete wrongs, I mean something along the line of discriminatory laws (of which there are nearly none). By abstract wrongs, I mean something along the lines of discriminatory thought. (Which undoubtedly exists pervasively in present day society) Every defeated prejudice is a step in the right direction.
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bsa5057 Reply:
June 21st, 2010 at 3:02 am
Well, first of all I am not white, and I completely agree with you on what you said about the “white guilt.” It is not your fault that some whites back then had slaves, and you were born into a white family, nor it is the black person’s fault that s/he was born to a black family. So this is why I think it is essential that blacks and whites should start from that point, and understand that if everyone will try to settle something that their ancestors did, like the two men who beat a 16-year old boy in Seattle, it will be impossible to move on, and blacks and whites will maintain the status quo, or maybe go back a little, instead of progressing
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I am not the type of person who would really care about other people’s thoughts. I think indifference is good sometimes, especially when somebody is expressing their thoughts, and these thoughts are not matching mine. I abhor all kinds of censorship and denying people their freedoms for any excuse whatever it is, but this issue of race supremacy is starting to tick me off. My issue is not with whites only. I do not know much about many cultures, but I believe in almost every culture, there are teachings given to the kids early that tell them that they are born special; hat they are better than some other group, or even worse, they are the best group. Now as I said earlier, I oppose all kinds of censorship and opinion control, but the nonsense of the universal argument that the race of somebody is better than the other is really annoying. I fail to understand what some people see in the color of their eyes. So the album was called: “Prussian Blue.” My question is, what is the big deal? Does this prove they are immune to cancer, or that they can see at night? No, and what is driving me crazy is that other cultures would have a similar attitude towards another unique physical feature, and the same people go to rallies that supports their agenda. I really fail to find excuses for the two girls for not realizing that what they are doing is ignorant. Or why would they claim they are superior over mere physical characteristics that are continuing to get worse and worse in shape as long as you age. What is the difference between a Latino or an Asian and a blond guy? I fail to find any difference other than that the obvious looks that can almost prove they are not white. I cannot understand what makes dividing the people, making enemies, and causing threats to you and others, worth it as long as you “preserve your race.”
I find it funny that I talked solely about the anger I felt when I saw that clip, because I stopped the lecture after the clip was over and wrote about what made me angry, and then as I continued watching the lecture, Professor Richards talks about how anger can be caused by increasing awareness about racism. I have had long, heated discussions with many people: family members, friends, and strangers about the issue of racism. I found myself defending white people on one day, and black people on the other, and on another day I was defending Asians. It is really frustrating when you see that racism not only common in all groups of people, but that it is embedded in the brains of people, and it will be passed on to their successors.
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While watching this week’s lecture I realized so many areas of my life are ones in which I never really stopped to think about in a whole. I think this class does a good job of forcing you to stop and think. I might feel that I am normal in certain people views but I know I am not. I also think my family has done a great job in making feel as normal as everyone else. I went to catholic school all my life and my parents have been together for 23 years and are very happy. I am also black latino since my family is not from here and speak spanish but I look just like every other black kid. I was born and raised in brooklyn and was brought up with my parents being able to provide for me. Since most of these qualities are normal as I just went through life I have never really thought about them and how they impact my viewpoint on life. It is through is class I realize how lucky I am and that these week lecture hit me right on the head. It is very strange to think about how if I was white person that it would most likely make an impact on everything I do. I sometimes think how life would be different is I have white and how much more opportunities I might have but never really truly thought it as I do now. Another topic Dr Richards brought up that I thought was interest was if you are gay you have that “light bulb moment” and how did you realize or now when you were not straight. Thoughts like that would never cross my mind, honestly I just always thought gay people knew from the beginning and was just to afraid to tell people. It is strange to think about. Well I have to say that this by far was my favorite lecture. Not only was the lecture hilarious but it was very interesting as well. The Dave Chappelle clip about white people was so funny yet so true. I am very glad he played that and was completely shocked because it is one of my favorite shows. In State College going to Penn State I realize a lot of that skit was completely true and on the money. I also believe why he was so successful was because he allowed people of all colors to see a little about themselves and their actions but in a funny way. Dave was totally right if that happened to a black person that individual would wake up swinging or come after you because they don’t tolerate that immature stupid stuff like that. I never really noticed that only white people do stupid things like that until I actually started thinking about it and seeing it for myself here at Penn State.
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6-20-2010
A couple of things from the lecture this week point out to me. One of the issues is the white nationalist movement. The video with the twin girls was pretty shocking to me. When the twins were being interviewed, they did not see Hitler as the one responsible for the killing of the Jews and the Holocaust. They’re response was that the number of Jews killed was an exaggeration and that there were not many Jews alive back then. I find this video to be disturbing because there were millions of Jewish people that were killed yet the two twins did not believe it and promoted white supremacy. I feel that at a young age, the two twin girls did not fully understand what they were promoting. It also caught my attention because when their mother was interviewed, it seemed like she did not really care and that her attitude was whatever she taught her daughters was the norm. I feel as though the daughter’s mother was promoting racism and especially in their music.
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…Also in this lecture, Sam said to treat everyone equally means to not see color. In this day and age, I think that this is a very difficult concept. Behavior of a person of any race or color is usually interpreted as the behavior of the group as whole. An example of this would be that if in a situation, one black person was loud, you would think that all black people are loud in any circumstance. I think that in any situation everyone identifies strangers, people that they do not know by their specific race or color. I think that even though it is crazy to think of it, but white people really do have a bigger privilege that people of color because white people are more seen as an individual rather than a group. I also think that anger and guilt can also play a big role in racism. There are a lot of people who are white have a very big advantage but I don’t really see how white people can be guilty. I feel that white people are just more careful to be politically correct. Most people I find are not really guilty because they rarely ever think about white race or culture.
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In today’s world, I feel that most people are trained to try to be politically correct. If people are not politically correct, it becomes a big issue. The word “nigga” is pretty controversial today. When was it okay for anyone to be saying it? I feel that today everyone uses that derogatory term. When black people say it, it makes it okay for any other race to say it. But when other races say it, black people are offended.
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I thought this lecture was very interesting. I found the video of the twin girls absolutely shocking. I know that there are crazy white supremacists out there but to hear these girls who were only teenagers speak about preserving the race was appalling. I think what struck me the most were their views on the holocaust. When asked about the 6 million Jews that were killed by Hitler’s Germany, the one twin responded by saying I doubt there were even that many Jews back then. Wow, just wow! What is even more shocking is the support that their parents, community members and political officials were giving them. I seriously doubt that their views on race will ever change.
I also got a good laugh out of the black people love us website. It was hilarious how they made fun of white people by using Sally and Johnny. I think that white people do try to do “black” things to fit because they don’t want to offend black people. However it does go back to the example Dr. Richards uses all the time about speaking Spanish at a Spanish restaurant and the waitress gets offended. Black people probably get offended when white people try to act like them saying brother or other things like that.
I don’t think it very hard to understand why white people don’t call black people “black.” There are so many times that white people just don’t understand what to say where and when to say it. Many times we are so caught up and not offending people we are stuck. I really liked the example that Dr. Richards used in class about white students not being able to designate between the TA’s by saying the black guy and the non-black guy.
I find that there are two things that need to happen in order for race relations to continue moving forward. First, people need to stop being afraid to talk about race. Mainly the people that need to stop being afraid are white people. There are times that you are going to offend someone, that is a given; however there will be more times that you wont offend someone than you will. Second, people need to stop being offended all the time. I don’t see any problem in calling someone black. It’s not racist. I’m referring to the color of your skin. Stuff like that drives me crazy. I also hate the fact that people get offended when we do something such as calling someone “bro” or speaking Spanish at a restaurant. The word “bro” is not a racist word. Its not written in stone that only certain people can call other people “bro.” So people need to stop being offended over stupid things so people can move on in the race discussion.
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6-20-10
Holy hell…The holocaust was an exaggeration? Are you kidding me? Okay I understand the fact that some people take the realization of their whiteness as a reason to possibly feel superior, but rationalizing the holocaust?!! That was something that I would have expected to hear from an older, nasty man. When I heard two young girls speaking like that, I was dumbfounded? It seems to me that white people have issues meeting in the middle. They either take one extreme or another. White people seem to either become so racist and give themselves a false sense of superiority, or they are petrified, and almost refuse to talk about any racial issues because they don’t want to cause a disturbance. It confuses me to attempt to understand these possible ways of thinking. Sam said it best, “if you hit someone in the street, does it matter what color they are?” Of course it doesn’t matter. People are people. You will get in the same amount of trouble for killing a black person as a white person, right? Everyone has a thought process, and if they know you aren’t trying to offend them, often you aren’t going to lash out at you in a rage. Put yourself in their place. If someone were to ask me “hey are you stupid because you are kind of polish?” I am not going to explode on them. I am going to explain sadly no I am not. If I were I would have so much fun poking fun at myself! I don’t think that a simple question automatically means someone is racist or being intentionally hurtful. Most people need to realize that. The red house video did explain it very well. Everyone shops for furniture right? People are people race doesn’t change the fact that people are willing to talk to one another with out arguing about race. I feel that a lot of people who think they are in stage 3 actually are not. I know white people who will say they understand inequalities and white privledges, but truly they do not. They make excuses for discrimination, and say that most of it is just in peoples heads. I notice this in my home town. When I talk about things such as this class to people here, they say things like “oh, I get it, I know how those things are, but most of it is nonsense.” That’s not understanding, that’s lying to everyone, including yourself. Until you realize that these things are real, and that they do have impacts, you aren’t truly in stage 3. It is ignorance that blinds us. Even though there are laws and regulations now, there are always loop holes. I can tell that I am possibly in stage three. I become angered at people and find myself arguing with them when they speak stupidly. This class seems to work well as ammo when engaging in these arguments. It is amazing how many people I never realized really are ignorant. I do feel that I will not feel guilt for being white. It was how I was born and I could never control it. What our ancestors have done to one another is in no way how I feel things should be. The only way to move forward is discuss these things with one another and let one another know that these feelings are not more. People are people, and thats how the world needs to see things.
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6/20/10
As a white person, I learned growing up not to talk about race. I wasn’t taught by my parents or family members, I just kind of learned it growing up. I learned that you don’t want to say the wrong thing, so to avoid that say nothing at all. When Dr. Richards talked about white people talking about race we are accused of only seeing the person’s skin color; I have to say I agree. I was raised to treat everyone as you want to be treated. I guess this could translate into treat everyone equally. My parents never specifically said treat everyone who is white, brown, and black all the same color, but I guess they were trying to avoid the race talk.
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At the beginning of lecture we were shown a video about two young white girls who sang about white power. I have seen them before, but even watching it now I am still shocked that they are making albums and playing events. I can’t believe that people listen to their music and would pay money to hear them. I agree that you always have some part of you that will remain the way your parents raised you, as their mother said. I really think that their parents have a large influence over their life. I wonder that if and when the girls move out on to their own, will they still believe what they do now? I’m sure they will because they are making a living off of it and it has been imbedded into their brains. I’m sure if they have children they will influence their views as well. Will the cycle ever end?
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I thought the part of the lecture about racial identifiers was really interesting. The commercial for the furniture store was really funny. I really never thought that anyone would ever consider using race as the theme of a furniture commercial but I guess it could work. I travel to North Carolina a lot (where the commercial was made) and there is so much more diversity than where I live. When I travel to Wal-Mart I hear English and Spanish being spoken. I love being there.
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I feel that right now I am between awakening and revisioning stages. I am definitely more aware of the racial inequality issues that have gone on and are still continuing in the world today. I am starting to feel anger as well. After hearing about the inequalities Native Americans faced I was and still am very angry. I think about it all the time. I talk to and tell anyone I can what is going on. I feel like I need to do something to help. I have looked up several possibilities that I can partake in and I will help as much as I can. The thing that I am still kind of confused on is the guilt. I understand everything that was said in lecture but I guess I’m still trying to process it all. I do feel guilt. I have felt guilt many times. And I do have remorseful awareness. This is something I am going to keep thinking about and trying to understand. Once again, I loved this lecture. I am always going to refer back to the racial identity stages. Oh and by the way, I am white and I use a washcloth.
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As I was viewing this lecture, one thing that came to my mind was how people make disclaimers before or after they are about to talk about something that involved race. Is there a reason for this? For example, I have had people say things to me right before they are about to discuss something about someone of a particular race. Usually, this happens when someone is a different race than me and is about to say something about someone who is Black. They may say, “Don’t take offense to this” or “I’m not being racial.” All I want to say to them is to continue on with the story. I really don’t need people to give me any background into their personal views on race. Maybe a reason for this is that people don’t want to seem to be racial or want to be viewed as having racial tolerance for all people? Who knows?
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(cont'd) Another thing that is interesting is when someone is accused of being a racist and then they offer defenses as to why allegations of them being racist are false. Have you ever heard someone claim that they are not racist because they have Black friends or because they date White or Asian girls? Does one really have anything to do with the other? Can’t someone have Black friends and still be racist? Can’t a manager or supervisor within an organization have Hispanic subordinates who he or she gets along with yet still be considered a racist? On the flip side, isn’t it possible for someone to not be racist yet not have any friends who are minorities? The other thing that comes to mind is why are people concerned about others’ views of them, or why do people feel the need to defend themselves against personal allegations. If someone knows that he or she is not a racist or that he or she does not fit into a particular category or label that someone affixes to that individual, who cares what other people say?
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(cont'd) I think many people are too sensitive and want to be liked and accepted by everyone else. When you think about it, how can someone feel bad or feel a certain way about him or herself based on what others say? In my opinion, you can only feel a certain about yourself if you allow yourself to feel that way. I don’t care what someone says about me especially if it’s not true. I don’t take those kinds of things to heart. People are going to believe what they believe anyway. So why waste time trying to explain yourself to another person? Obviously, if you are in a court of law and need to defend yourself, that is different. Otherwise, why can’t people have a thicker-skin about things and disregard personal attacks that others make about them?
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I couldn’t believe the white supremacist twins! Its 2010 who still proudly raises their kids to be racists? Not even just racist, but white supremacist pop singers. I wanted to ask the mother what she would do if she had another child and the eyes weren’t blue, would she discriminate against her own child? I actually felt very bad for those two girls because they are being raised by ignorant people, and it’s going to be a very rude awakening when they are separated from their extremely sheltered lives that they are living right now. I could never fully understand how people can be racist. I must admit that I have probably said some prejudice things or maybe something that could even be considered racist, but I do not personally hate or believe that someone is inferior to me because of their race. It’s actually very sad that people can be that misguided by extremely old and false beliefs about different people. There is enough evidenced in this world for us to understand that the differences we see are because of outside factors, not because of the color of someone’s skin or the color of their eyes. The part of the lecture where the professor talks about why it is important to leave out unnecessary things like white person, Asian woman, female, gay guy, any of those unnecessary things, because if we continue to pay attention to those very important details then we will continue to always look at color or sexual orientation, or any of those things that we use as descriptors of people that are not needed. We also should be comfortable enough to bring up ones race in a conversation if needed, like with the TA example, we should easily be able to say the black TA or the white TA easily, because that’s what they are. This is the point where the political correctness comes into places, because people do not want to be the person to seriously offend someone or be called a racist, but stating a fact does not make someone a racist. When the professor talks about how black people are always playing white people when it comes to making them feel bad about something that they didn’t really care about, is actually funny to me because this really does happen. I can say that there have been times where I have made a joke with my friends saying things like if this person doesn’t do a certain thing I’ll just call them a racist and they probably will, and they usually do. I do not think that white people should have this blanket of guilt covering them for something that they do not have a direct connection with. You are the person who controls how you act and live your life not your ancestors, and if a person black or brown makes you feel like it is your fault for events that happened centuries ago than they are the ones who are ignorant.
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I smell like a dog when I am wet? Really? That comment is probably the thing that will stick with me the most from this lecture. This was a very interesting lecture, but that one really got me. Now, to go back to the beginning of the lecture. I would have to agree that white people are either taught or learn not to talk about race. Speaking about race, in and of itself, can be perceived to be racist. We are taught to treat everyone equally.
The video clip of the two white Nationalist girls was very sad. These two beautiful young ladies are being taught to hate and that their race is superior. As the old saying goes, “You can pick your friends, but you can’t pick your family.” These two girls will be entrenched in a life of hatred simply because of who their parents are.
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While discussing the awakening stage the issue of thinking about or talking about race in situations when you shouldn’t be thinking or talking about it. I believe that this happens a lot. Just like the example of a car crash. “This black guy pulled out in front of me!” This type of situation occurs quite frequently. I really don’t think that in most situations this statement is racially motivated, but is an interesting issue to look at. It is almost “natural” for some people to identify someone’s race, when the race of the individual isn’t or shouldn’t be a factor.
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We then moved on to Stage 3 which is Revisioning. In this stage, one begins to see racial inequality, white privilege and racism; may not see a problem with Political Correctness; may reach out to people of color; this increased awareness leads to anger towards whites; and growing discomfort with inequality can lead to guilt. Dr. Richard then asked the class, “Who feels guilty for being white?” This really made me think. Why should a white person feel guilty for being white? Just as a person of color should not feel bad about being a person of color. You have no control of what your ethnic background is and thus you shouldn’t feel bad about it.
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It was interesting to discuss how people of color can keep white people at this stage by: dismissing white concern or white guilt; keep white people on edge with anger; talk about the past and inequality; and feeling good (secretly) when a white person struggles.
In stage 4 – Reversal, discomfort can cause white people to fall back into old patterns. Reversal can bring out anger toward people of color.
Finally!! The beads!! I have been wondering during all of these lectures what the story of the beads was.
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Is it really true that white people are taught to not see color from early on? That this makes them assured that they are not racists? I find this such a difficult concept, or truth, to grasp. I hate the whole idea of political correctness, especially coming from white people because I feel that it is often just based in avoidance or excuse tactics. It drives me crazy. I would much rather that someone comes out and speaks their opinion blatantly like a white supremacist (however ignorant), as opposed to those who hide under a cover of innocent ignorance. An example of this would be the one that Professor Richards brought up a few lectures ago pertaining to racism from white people in the North as opposed to the South. Yes, it can be difficult to deal with the turbulence that you encounter along the path of awakening whether you are black or white when dealing with these topics amongst one’s own people, but can be ten times more difficult for one is in the presence of a majority of the other group. So it can at times be understandable when let’s say a white person in a room full of black people grapples with finding the courage to speak their minds racially, but I think that it is so necessary. And even more important can be to have patience and understanding coming from the black group’s perspective. I also think that black people or even other minorities are not given the opportunity to prove their willingness to be fair and productive in these conversations. As expressed in regards to the stage of revisioning, yes anger often comes into play. Anger, however, is not always the first response by people of color in discussions =surrounding race. As a matter of fact, many times an honest conversation would be so welcomed that we would often probably offer up a lot of “passes” not necessarily warranted! Even when people say ignorant and dismissive things like “get over it already & move on!’ Oh, the frustration! At the end of the day it’s not about assigning guilt, or perpetually victimizing minorities. It’s mostly about recognizing and stating that one realizes there is a problem that exists, in order to evoke a genuine emotion of concern and responsibility to contribute to a better way forward. I know that it can be difficult because sometimes we don’t move past the guilt, but this is a necessary hurdle to cross and move past to get to a solution. Until now I couldn’t really identify with white guilt the way that I do know after having learned more about the plight of the Native Americans, and subsequently how my inaction contributes to their continued plight.
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