4 ms·

Thanks! I don't disagree with anything you said. I guess that, in my mind, it just seems that we'll never move forward as a society until we stop sorting people

Thanks! I don't disagree with anything you said. I guess that, in my mind, it just seems that we'll never move forward as a society until we stop sorting people into boxes, especially boxes defined by arbitrary things like skin color. That is not the only variable. Why don't we focus on all the causes of disenfranchisement? There's clearly a macro-scale correlation between racial background/history and one's opportunities in society, but at the micro-scale the picture is so much more complex than that. A hyperfocus on race oversimplifies the problem, contributes to division, and hinders progress toward real solutions. I think we owe it to future generations to raise them with a broader understanding of these matters. Maybe I'm overreacting here. If so, my apologies -- perhaps it's because of the sociopolitical milieu where I live. Anyway, I mean no offense to anyone. Like many others, I'm just trying to work through these issues as honestly as I can -- because dishonesty doesn't help anyone. :-)

haihaibye 9y ago
The boxes aren't determined by color, they are by ancestral continent of origin where groups had been somewhat separated genetically for tens of thousands of years.
supreme_sublime 9y ago
I do think that there are people who actively try to divide the country on racial lines because it personally benefits them. Most notably, Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson. David Duke gets media attention every time there is a national election because for some reason his opinion means something. I think there is currently a hysteria about a racism epidemic in the US that doesn't really hold true. A lot of what was said in parent comments is true and I agree with. Though I don't think it really reflects today. At least not where I'm from. Perhaps there is more of that on the East coast, but I think as you go to the midwest and west coast you get less of that kind of division. There are definitely racists, but there are a lot more who live with a "live and let live", or attempt to adopt a "colorblind" (which is now racist apparently), worldview. I think most whites in the US feel like they are the scapegoats for some other groups misfortunes. When no one alive had much to do with past injustices. Can you really blame past injustices for decisions of people today? In 1965 the out of wedlock birth rate was 25% and now it is almost 75%. Single parent homes come with a host of problems and much higher rates of crime, drug abuse, and lack of education. So the likes of Jesse Jackson and Sharpton look at things like police shooting statistics (which is misleading in how they characterize them) and act like that is the biggest problem facing black people in the US. People feel enraged by what is perceived to be "unjust" police violence, sometimes rightly. Jackson and Sharpton raise their own profiles, and essentially run a "don't get called racist" money laundering operation through foundations they run. The real problems don't get addressed and those who attempt to are called "racists" or "uncle toms" and the cycle continues. It is disgusting and sad.

haihaibye 9y ago

The boxes aren't determined by color, they are by ancestral continent of origin where groups had been somewhat separated genetically for tens of thousands of years.

supreme_sublime 9y ago

I do think that there are people who actively try to divide the country on racial lines because it personally benefits them. Most notably, Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson. David Duke gets media attention every time there is a national election because for some reason his opinion means something. I think there is currently a hysteria about a racism epidemic in the US that doesn't really hold true. A lot of what was said in parent comments is true and I agree with. Though I don't think it really reflects today. At least not where I'm from. Perhaps there is more of that on the East coast, but I think as you go to the midwest and west coast you get less of that kind of division. There are definitely racists, but there are a lot more who live with a "live and let live", or attempt to adopt a "colorblind" (which is now racist apparently), worldview. I think most whites in the US feel like they are the scapegoats for some other groups misfortunes. When no one alive had much to do with past injustices. Can you really blame past injustices for decisions of people today? In 1965 the out of wedlock birth rate was 25% and now it is almost 75%. Single parent homes come with a host of problems and much higher rates of crime, drug abuse, and lack of education. So the likes of Jesse Jackson and Sharpton look at things like police shooting statistics (which is misleading in how they characterize them) and act like that is the biggest problem facing black people in the US. People feel enraged by what is perceived to be "unjust" police violence, sometimes rightly. Jackson and Sharpton raise their own profiles, and essentially run a "don't get called racist" money laundering operation through foundations they run. The real problems don't get addressed and those who attempt to are called "racists" or "uncle toms" and the cycle continues. It is disgusting and sad.