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I was once called racist because I was surprised that someone I had only talked to via irc was black. I come from Scotland, there was maybe 10 black people in m
by that_guy_iain 6y ago
I was once called racist because I was surprised that someone I had only talked to via irc was black. I come from Scotland, there was maybe 10 black people in my town of 30,000 people. In the IT security scene most people are white. A few years later, I met a woman at one of the meetups she laughed about how everyone was surprised she was female because she aware everyone just assumes you're a guy.
Honestly, I think some people just want to be a victim in some way. Gives them an excuse as to why things aren't going there way.
- dx034 6y agoThat you were surprised just shows that there's something wrong with the system (education, social or whatever) that so few black people end up in well paying tech jobs. Being surprised to encounter one isn't racist as long as you're not negatively surprised. It's the same as being surprised that the CEO of a large company is a woman. That in itself is not sexist but shows that something's wrong with society.
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- zpeti 6y agoHe just said he’s from a town of 30k people with 10 blacks. How exactly is assuming someone you talk to is from the 99.9% majority not normal? Of course this is the perfect example of our society today, where if you try and see racism sexism everywhere, you’ll see it. Even if it’s not actually there
- marcus_holmes 6y agoOr that black people are uncommon in the region that they were in and therefore not encountered often. Having "10 black people in my town of 30,000 people" is not a failure of any system.
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- that_guy_iain 6y agoYea, Scotland is something like 98% white. I literally never met a black person until I was 17. We had lots of Asians and Indians but not black people.
- marcus_holmes 6y agoI grew up around Bristol, but didn't meet a black person until 6th-form college. She was a classmate and we hung out a bit. I bothered her with sooo many questions. I think today it would probably be unacceptable, but this was the 80's so a different age. And I was so curious about what being black was like (and no internet to satisfy that curiosity without asking an actual black person).
- simias 6y agoI don't think that being surprised by the physical appearance of somebody that you only interacted with online says anything about you but I assume that if you were called racist it means that you remarked on it? If so that's at the very least a bit gauche. That the type of stuff I'd keep to myself to avoid making people uncomfortable. Keep in mind that the 10 black people in a city of 30k are probably tired of having interactions and remarks centering on their skin color, even if they're not negative.
- that_guy_iain 6y ago> but I assume that if you were called racist it means that you remarked on it Well, it was via a telephone call and they made a point of bring it up. So I was "Oh, you're black." literally just shocked. I commented on the conference because I was at a conference and he was meant to be there but couldn't be so we chatted on the phone.
- matthewmacleod 6y agoIronic here that you just want to be the victim, isn't it?
- that_guy_iain 6y agoHonestly, I didn't think him thinking I was racist because of his frame of mind made me the victim of anything. If anything it makes him the victim. I've been called many things in my life and normally I don't care because I don't specifically care about what that person thinks.