With my recent post I was trying to ask if there are other people like me who also feel that people seem to focus more and more on skin color and ethnicity in an unhealthy and obsessive way and I thought I’d find some people agreeing with me who also feel uncomfortable and stressed out by this.
But instead the overwhelming response was people trying to justify racism instead of agreeing that it’s a bad thing and needs to end. As if they were trying to use every possible argument to bash on me and justify racism.
Why could it be the case that so many people here on Lemmy support racism? In my opinion there is no reason to discriminate someone based on their looks PERIOD!
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OP, when you’re out of your teens you’ll remember posting this and cringe, which is a good thing!
“Racism = bad” is a solid fundament. Working out the kinks is tough, though.
Keep up posting and debating, that helps. I think that we’re roughly all on the same side here.
I’m pretty sure that 100% of the people here and in the earlier thread agree that people are intrinsically equal, regardless of their skin color. It sounds like you think that because of this, anyone who supports any situation where people are treated differently based on ethnicity, skin color, etc is racist.
Let me try a metaphor.
Let’s say there was a group of people with all different skin tones. They are all going to be given money, but because the people running the organization giving out the money are racist, they give much more to people with light skin, and much less to people with dark skin. The people running the organization are replaced with people who are not racist, but it takes generations. The people with less money had to spend it all on food and shelter, and their descendants have none of it. The people who got more money spent some on food and shelter and had lots left over, which they put in a bank and got a lot of interest from it. It was given to their children, and their children’s children, and now their descendants have even more money.
It was definitely racist to originally give more money to the lighter skinned people.
Would it be racist to now give more money to the darker skinned people?
Would it be racist to now give more money to the darker skinned people?
From my perspective, yes.
The redistribution of the generational wealth should be adressed as well by politics but that should be independent of the racism discussion. Significantly unequal distribution of money due to inheritance is more and more dividing society. But I don’t care if the rich people have a lighter or darker tan.
If you target inequality with inequality in the opposite direction, you’re just feeding rightwing narratives IMO.
Previous post: https://lemmy.world/post/22763164
Skimmed through it, OP seems to say that acknowledging the way societies treat different ethnicities is racist.
That’s literally not at all what I meant. My post itself was acknowledging it (this post as well) and I was saying we need to end it to put people in boxes and treat them in this toxic/inequal way based on their skin or ethnicity! I’m saying people are racist for being racist, not for acknowledging that racism exist (cause with that logic I would be racist myself for acknowledging that racism exist). It’s a simple logic no matter how much you try to twist my words.
I’ll let people judge
Did this person for real see the cartoon with the fence and the boxes and keep arguing?
Yes that’s what they say and not me. I’m saying we need to stop racism and not trying to justify it!
You should start judging people by their face value and not by what other people say
According to that, there is no better defender of women’s rights than Donald trump, as he himself has declared.
Inadvertently or not, you’ve parroted a lot of Right Wing talking points. They usually insist thinking of race is itself racist, white people are actually the most discriminated and so on. From the Left, the refusal to see/think of race etc is a convenient way to ignore structural racism etc.
The first part of your last post comes across as a tone deaf right winger trying to say we should stop talking about race. And once people have read that first paragraph, they are unlikely to read much in depth of the next few.
This has to be one of the most ignorant comments I’ve ever seen online
This comment is literally giving you the correct answer to the question you asked.
I think centrist liberals lean on identity based politics hard so they don’t have to engage with any material analysis of our society.
And even I, reading your posts, am like 'That’s filled with more red flags then Red Square in the 60s for right wing coded talking points to justify racism.
If you use common bad faith right wing arguments, people will tune you out. If your arguments are close to those arguments and only separated by nuance, people will tune you out.
Edit: People have limited time and attention. Expecting them to interact with you the way you demand, rather than how people are won’t work well for you.
Your definition of “racism” is limited to disagreeing with you.
You can literally look up the definition on Google: [“1 : a belief that race is a fundamental determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race”
“also : behavior or attitudes that reflect and foster this belief : racial discrimination or prejudice”](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/racism)
I’m not confused about what racism is. You’re the one saying people who disagree with you are supporting racism.
I’m saying people not acknowledging unequally treating people based on their looks is bad and even trying to justify it are the cause of racism since their argumentation is based on the fundamentals of its literal definition and thereby supporting it in an ongoing cycle.
what you just wrote seems quite at odds with the definition you just posted two comments up. the google definition talks about belief in differing traits and capacity and a belief in racial superiority. your definition seems to only care about unequal treatment. it seems an equivocation meant to disparage those who might seek to counteract historical (google definition) racism with a bit of modern (your definition) racism. it strikes me as disingenuous in the extreme.
See its very paradox to say, we need to act racist because racism exists instead of trying to end it by the root. You can’t fight fire with fire, it’s as simple as that. And that’s not just my opinion. Wake up people
Is affirmative action racist in your eyes?
Is that what you are trying to say? Your points seem vague.
If so, then yeah, you’re most likely wrong.We, humans fight fire with anything that can fight fire effectively. There is a technique where wild fires are stopped by setting a controlled fire to use up he fuel for the wild fire and provide a gap in the wild fire’s path.
Affirmative action is good, as long as racism exists, to level out the differences in the material conditions and to provide empowerment to stand against racism.
Yeah, this is pretty much their bit. “Policies aimed at correcting historical trends of racial disparities are racist, actually.” It’s such a stupid argument that I can’t believe anyone makes it in good faith.
Excellent trolling, I’m having a great time reading your content
Can you elaborate here on what you mean by “supporting racism”?
Not agreeing with OP.
Never have seen racism here, hopefully never will
Apart from against Jews. Lemmy is obsessed with the Jews.
Then better don’t look into the comments of my last post
I think you need to stop responding to people and think critically about what everyone is trying to tell you.
crazy crackers makin fun of themselves isnt racist
we damn well should be able to celebrate our differences, including race. even if it melts a few snowflakes
It’s my first time seeing comments like on your previous post on Lemmy. I share your views on skin colour/looks and I think every human being is equal. We all look different and unique and we should embrace that uniqueness.
I totally see where you’re coming from and I’m wondering if there’s some misunderstanding going on. You didn’t even mention America in that post yet others judge you because you’re “obviously an outsider”. I feel like there might be two conversations going on here that don’t completely align here.
I think perhaps these people are referring to the need to put people in boxes just because many minorities are suppressed and need to be heard. So basically if you’re part of a minority and you are being mistreated you naturally feel more comfortable with other people in a similar situation and thus you’re automatically putting yourself in that box (I don’t mean voluntarily). And in order for that minority to be heard they need to stand up for that minority/group of people.
I can see why this comes across as racist and I can totally see where you’re coming from (like I said, I share the same views about equality and your looks should not matter at all).
But this leaves me with the question whether these people just didn’t understand where you were coming from? They are kind of turning you into the bad guy when in my eyes you definitely aren’t.
Great to hear that there is someone sharing my views here!
Yea maybe there is indeed some misunderstanding going on. I’m not at all against acknowledging that there are minorities being treated unfairly cause that’s literally the thing I was doing and complaining about and was saying we need to stop treating people differently based on their ethnicity or looks since that’s the cause of these people being treated unfairly.
