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>sees every interaction through a racial lens As opposed to all those non-racial interactions you have as a minority in the workplace, or life in general? It's
by ivanbakel 9y ago
>sees every interaction through a racial lens
As opposed to all those non-racial interactions you have as a minority in the workplace, or life in general? It's easy to suggest that there exists this social state where race isn't important and everyone is equal, but the material reality, of peoples preconceptions and sub/conscious assumptions is different. As a minority, your experiences are defined and informed by your race - how are you meant to have interactions without a racial aspect?
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- komali2 9y agoI don't remember where I heard it, but it went along the lines of >As a black dude, racism can make you crazy. You have a white guy walk in the room, and he says hello to everyone, but not to you. Did he just not see you cause you were kinda tucked in the corner, or is he racist? The girl at the coffee shop shoots you a funky look, is it because she's racist, or did she just have something in her eye? Maybe your haircut is just weird. It adds up, day after day after day, it makes you crazy.
- newsbinator 9y agoI've got some experience being an immediately visible minority, and once you start to go down the "because she's racist" rabbit hole, there are no brakes. There's a ton of negative interactions that we all experience in any given week. If you start seeing every interaction through a racial lens, it does indeed make you crazy. You go from "she's having a bad day so the way she treated me is about her" to "she's racist so the way she treated me is about me".
- owebmaster 9y ago> If you start seeing every interaction through a racial lens, it does indeed make you crazy. This usually happens when you "start" interact with the world with a racial black skin color.
- newsbinator 9y agoBlack skin color is not the only visible minority in the world. Your experiences are not exclusive.
- owebmaster 9y agoSo what? What prevents you from reading this thread with the "I'm white but I suffer racism too" lens?
- newsbinator 9y agoWhat prevents me from seeing all my interactions through a racial lens and reading all posts through a racial lens is the understanding that skin color is one of the least interesting things about a person. Will your path cross racists? Of course. But it's not a big deal, relative to all the other challenges in a given day. This author makes it the be-all and end-all, and can't seem to experience the world of work any other way.
- owebmaster 9y ago> Will your path cross racists? Of course. > But it's not a big deal, relative to all the other challenges in a given day. We need a clarification here. Are you black? Because if you aren't, you have no reference to say how many racists a black person crosses daily neither the impacts of these interactions. You are just saying your BS and hoping that people will see logic in it.
- newsbinator 9y agoI don't feel I have anything to prove to you, one way or the other. Either HN readers will see the validity of what I'm saying or they won't. When someone goes into every interaction with a chip on their shoulder, there's no satisfying them.