3 ms·

Ask HN: How is the US systemically racist, specifically? What laws are codified?

3 points by tdevito 6y ago

ultrablue 6y ago
https://www.dartmouth.edu/press-releases/losing-the-american-dream.html https://www.dartmouth.edu/press-releases/losing-the-american...
smt88 6y ago
1. If you sincerely want an answer to this, it's easy to find arguments on either side. I don't think HN is an appropriate venue for it, which is why I flagged it (not because the question upsets me or anything -- curiosity is great!) 2. Systems can be racist in the absence of laws. For example, there are still many whites-only country clubs in the US, and there's no law enforcing that. Schools punish Black children more severely for the same behaviors. Those are just small examples -- there are many. 3. You may benefit from existing discussions on this same topic, such as this one: https://www.reddit.com/r/changemyview/comments/her5hb/cmv_systemic_racism_does_not_exist_in_the_united/ https://www.reddit.com/r/changemyview/comments/her5hb/cmv_sy...
rvz 6y ago
I'm not sure if you will get a rational, unbiased answer on this orange website without flamewars or users mentioning wildly utopian ideas.
Grakel 6y ago
As Morgan Freeman says, it doesn't. https://www.businessinsider.com/morgan-freeman-race-is-excuse-for-income-inequality-2014-6 https://www.businessinsider.com/morgan-freeman-race-is-excus...
stevespang 6y ago
I rationalize that sales of hair relaxer/straightener is reverse racist - - I call for a ban on all sales of hair relaxer so that women of color can stop trying to imitate white women.
uberman 6y ago
Racism in the US like most other places is no longer based on codified law, but rather how laws are applied and personal prejudices. While there are no longer laws that say "Whites can but Blacks can't", there are clearly laws that intentionally or un-intentionally impact some people more than others.
LukeBMM 6y ago
While only covering one specific subject - local, state, and federal housing policies - _The Color of Law_ has a wealth of intentional, _de jure_ examples and their systemic, self-perpetuating, multi-generational impacts. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Color_of_Law https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Color_of_Law
LukeBMM 6y ago
It's also important to keep in mind the distinction between _law_ and _policy_. The way the question is phrased sounds a bit like you're asking someone to pull out the big dusty book of "The Law" and find you a section, page, and paragraph number. That expectation doesn't quite seem accurate or productive.
krapp 6y ago
If you want to understand the theory and premise behind systemic racism in the US, Wikipedia and Google can provide you with numerous avenues from which to begin your research.
eiji 6y ago
Anything "specific" in writing would most likely be unconstitutional. So you wont find anything in writing anywhere. Not in a law, a regulation or even a handbook printed in this century. Which is why this is a complicated topic bordering on religion or a general mindset. I would recommend to listen to the "Black Intellectual Roundtable" with Bret Weinstein to get some general ideas. It's an hour of discussion.
dang 6y ago
Your submissions like this have been breaking the HN guidelines. These are flamewar topics that the site isn't capable of discussing substantively, for the same reason one can't listen to music or play a board game in a burning house. Could you please review https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html and stick to the rules? Edit: I'm afraid this problem has been affecting your comments as well: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25070626 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25070626. We ban accounts that post like that, regardless of how wrong or how provocative other commenters were also being. I don't want to ban you, so if you would please stick within the site guidelines—including avoiding predictable ideological flamewar generally—we'd be grateful. I realize that's not always easy because these topics have a huge energy and people feel so strongly about them.

3 points by tdevito 6y ago

https://www.dartmouth.edu/press-releases/losing-the-american-dream.html https://www.dartmouth.edu/press-releases/losing-the-american...

smt88 6y ago

1. If you sincerely want an answer to this, it's easy to find arguments on either side. I don't think HN is an appropriate venue for it, which is why I flagged it (not because the question upsets me or anything -- curiosity is great!) 2. Systems can be racist in the absence of laws. For example, there are still many whites-only country clubs in the US, and there's no law enforcing that. Schools punish Black children more severely for the same behaviors. Those are just small examples -- there are many. 3. You may benefit from existing discussions on this same topic, such as this one: https://www.reddit.com/r/changemyview/comments/her5hb/cmv_systemic_racism_does_not_exist_in_the_united/ https://www.reddit.com/r/changemyview/comments/her5hb/cmv_sy...

rvz 6y ago

I'm not sure if you will get a rational, unbiased answer on this orange website without flamewars or users mentioning wildly utopian ideas.

Grakel 6y ago

As Morgan Freeman says, it doesn't. https://www.businessinsider.com/morgan-freeman-race-is-excuse-for-income-inequality-2014-6 https://www.businessinsider.com/morgan-freeman-race-is-excus...

stevespang 6y ago

I rationalize that sales of hair relaxer/straightener is reverse racist - - I call for a ban on all sales of hair relaxer so that women of color can stop trying to imitate white women.

uberman 6y ago

Racism in the US like most other places is no longer based on codified law, but rather how laws are applied and personal prejudices. While there are no longer laws that say "Whites can but Blacks can't", there are clearly laws that intentionally or un-intentionally impact some people more than others.

LukeBMM 6y ago

While only covering one specific subject - local, state, and federal housing policies - _The Color of Law_ has a wealth of intentional, _de jure_ examples and their systemic, self-perpetuating, multi-generational impacts. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Color_of_Law https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Color_of_Law

LukeBMM 6y ago

It's also important to keep in mind the distinction between _law_ and _policy_. The way the question is phrased sounds a bit like you're asking someone to pull out the big dusty book of "The Law" and find you a section, page, and paragraph number. That expectation doesn't quite seem accurate or productive.

krapp 6y ago

If you want to understand the theory and premise behind systemic racism in the US, Wikipedia and Google can provide you with numerous avenues from which to begin your research.

eiji 6y ago

Anything "specific" in writing would most likely be unconstitutional. So you wont find anything in writing anywhere. Not in a law, a regulation or even a handbook printed in this century. Which is why this is a complicated topic bordering on religion or a general mindset. I would recommend to listen to the "Black Intellectual Roundtable" with Bret Weinstein to get some general ideas. It's an hour of discussion.

dang 6y ago

Your submissions like this have been breaking the HN guidelines. These are flamewar topics that the site isn't capable of discussing substantively, for the same reason one can't listen to music or play a board game in a burning house. Could you please review https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html and stick to the rules? Edit: I'm afraid this problem has been affecting your comments as well: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25070626 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25070626. We ban accounts that post like that, regardless of how wrong or how provocative other commenters were also being. I don't want to ban you, so if you would please stick within the site guidelines—including avoiding predictable ideological flamewar generally—we'd be grateful. I realize that's not always easy because these topics have a huge energy and people feel so strongly about them.