Blacks in Austin???

[austinnerd]

Seems like the perfect example of folks projecting their own experiences to everyone. Certainly you'll find folks for whom racism is a significant issue. You'll also find those whose personal experience contains very little racism. So it's not shocking when you have those who feel that the level of racism expressed by some (including MSM) is "overblown". While you'll have others who might see racism in every nook and cranny of society. Stating those opinions is one thing, it would be best if we tried to avoid ad hominem attacks or the laissez faire bandying about of labels such as "oppressor" (whatever that means).

To anyone finding this thread wondering "if I'm black and I come to Austin, can I find a place that allows me to pursue my dreams, make friends and live a happy life", the answer would be yes. By the same token, if they are wondering "if I come to Austin, will I be racially isolated, find racism, and would have been better off moving to Houston or Dallas" then the answer would ALSO be yes. Both are possible, which side of the coin you find depends on many factors that can't be summarized by single statements or anecdotes esp. considering that the individual asking the question is one of the most significant variables in the equation.

[L210]

Originally Posted by Jame22

I sure haven't noticed. I'm sure it's true, but I definitely haven't noticed.

Racism has been blown WAYYY out of proportion by the media. Yes, it still exists, but it's not an epidemic like the media so desperately wants you to believe.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NVVwZVd6ZM

That is YOUR experience. That is not MY experience or the experience of black people I know. To YOU, it is blown out of proportion. To others, racism is experienced on a regular basis.

I am originally from San Antonio. In the 1990s, I went to a school that was over 85% Hispanic. I was called the n-word there.

About 10 years ago (so this is in the new millennium), I had a coworker who lived on the south side of San Antonio. His daughter was half black, half Hispanic. She was the only black child in her elementary school. The school was probably 99% Hispanic. This man was nearly in tears because his daughter came home crying every single day because her classmates would taunt her and call her the n-word every single day.

A little over 10 years ago, I was delivering newspapers in a predominantly white neighborhood, and this couple took down my license plate number and had the police sent to my apartment. How embarrassing! They told the police that I was sitting in front of someone's house for 10 minutes, and it looked like I was searching for a place to burglarize. Now, I am a nerdy black woman who went on to earn a graduate degree and have worked in the criminal justice field for many years, but that is beside the point. That couple flat out lied. I was never in front of someone's house for 10 minutes. I never spent more than a minute in front of someone's house.

About a year after that, officers from the San Antonio Police Department questioned me while I was getting my purse out of my trunk and going to work for the City of San Antonio! I had on a security uniform. I told them that I worked right next door in a city building. I had an identity badge for the city and a security license from the state. There was absolutely no reason for them to waste time questioning me when there were drunk tourists all over the area.

Several years ago, my coworkers and I would often received suspicious person calls from people calling the police on people just for being black or some other ethnicity. I am not exaggerating. One person told my coworker that the only reason why a teenager in his neighborhood was suspicious is because there were no black people in his city. That was it. All he was doing was walking with his backpack after school. I don't know if the kid lived in the neighborhood or was going to a friend's house, but you can't waste police officers' time just because someone is walking on the sidewalk in broad daylight.

A couple of years ago, my black, criminal justice professor (he obviously has a PhD and no criminal record) moved to the San Antonio metro area in a city that has very few black people. His neighbors called the police on him just because he was taking suitcases out of his car.

I have so many more stories, but I'll stop there.

[jread]

I thought we were talking about Austin here, not San Antonio.

[L210]

Originally Posted by jread

I thought we were talking about Austin here, not San Antonio.

Was the guy in the video Jame22 posted from Austin? I think not. San Antonio is much closer to Austin than where that guy is.

Anyway, the point is not that these things occurred in San Antonio. The point is that these are my experiences, period. These are the reasons why I prefer living in diverse neighborhoods. It just so happens that my experiences occurred a little over an hour away from here whereas Jame22 started talking about the media and national issues, but you said nothing about that.

[Jame22]

Originally Posted by L210

That is YOUR experience. That is not MY experience or the experience of black people I know. To YOU, it is blown out of proportion. To others, racism is experienced on a regular basis.

I am originally from San Antonio. In the 1990s, I went to a school that was over 85% Hispanic. I was called the n-word there.

About 10 years ago (so this is in the new millennium), I had a coworker who lived on the south side of San Antonio. His daughter was half black, half Hispanic. She was the only black child in her elementary school. The school was probably 99% Hispanic. This man was nearly in tears because his daughter came home crying every single day because her classmates would taunt her and call her the n-word every single day.

A little over 10 years ago, I was delivering newspapers in a predominantly white neighborhood, and this couple took down my license plate number and had the police sent to my apartment. How embarrassing! They told the police that I was sitting in front of someone's house for 10 minutes, and it looked like I was searching for a place to burglarize. Now, I am a nerdy black woman who went on to earn a graduate degree and have worked in the criminal justice field for many years, but that is beside the point. That couple flat out lied. I was never in front of someone's house for 10 minutes. I never spent more than a minute in front of someone's house.

About a year after that, officers from the San Antonio Police Department questioned me while I was getting my purse out of my trunk and going to work for the City of San Antonio! I had on a security uniform. I told them that I worked right next door in a city building. I had an identity badge for the city and a security license from the state. There was absolutely no reason for them to waste time questioning me when there were drunk tourists all over the area.

Several years ago, my coworkers and I would often received suspicious person calls from people calling the police on people just for being black or some other ethnicity. I am not exaggerating. One person told my coworker that the only reason why a teenager in his neighborhood was suspicious is because there were no black people in his city. That was it. All he was doing was walking with his backpack after school. I don't know if the kid lived in the neighborhood or was going to a friend's house, but you can't waste police officers' time just because someone is walking on the sidewalk in broad daylight.

A couple of years ago, my black, criminal justice professor (he obviously has a PhD and no criminal record) moved to the San Antonio metro area in a city that has very few black people. His neighbors called the police on him just because he was taking suitcases out of his car.

I have so many more stories, but I'll stop there.

I completely understand that people have different experiences. I'll never claim that racism doesn't exist. It does. I do have a problem when someone tries to squelch debate or devalue someone's experiences entirely based on their skin color. Doesn't matter what color you are- If you are human you have the right to discuss racism. It effects us all. I don't understand why there's so much hate & ignorance but as I said before I think a lot of it goes back to the media and soulless politicians

[L210]

Originally Posted by Jame22

I completely understand that people have different experiences. I'll never claim that racism doesn't exist. It does. I do have a problem when someone tries to squelch debate or devalue someone's experiences entirely based on their skin color. Doesn't matter what color you are- If you are human you have the right to discuss racism. It effects us all. I don't understand why there's so much hate & ignorance but as I said before I think a lot of it goes back to the media and soulless politicians

Racism is the belief that certain groups are inferior. If a politician believes this and is peddling it, then that politician likely came from the same background as other racists.

[Jame22]

Originally Posted by L210

Racism is the belief that certain groups are inferior. If a politician believes this and is peddling it, then that politician likely came from the same background as other racists.

It can also be described as a hatred or intolerance of another race or other races.

Intolerance is the key word there.

Just because you may have certain experiences doesn't mean you get to write-off the experience of others just because they have the wrong skin tone. Nothing against you, but tons of people on here do it all the time.

[L210]

Originally Posted by Jame22

It can also be described as a hatred or intolerance of another race or other races.

Intolerance is the key word there.

Just because you may have certain experiences doesn't mean you get to write-off the experience of others just because they have the wrong skin tone. Nothing against you, but tons of people on here do it all the time.

I didn't see any intolerance or hatred. I don't know what race you are; but, if you aren't black, then you don't know what it's like to be black. I don't know what it's like to be white or Hispanic and am not going to pretend to. Your post, however, did come off as writing off other people's experiences by saying that racism is overblown.

[Austinite76]

Originally Posted by RunninJT

You are both just gender-less electrons flying through wires and fiber optic cables or bouncing waves of energy heading toward satellites orbiting earth. You could both be rooted in a ocher alien amorphous blob for all we will ever know. Have a beer or a bowl and relax guys/girls/greys.

Yep. F'ing internet.

[Jame22]

Originally Posted by L210

I didn't see any intolerance or hatred. I don't know what race you are; but, if you aren't black, then you don't know what it's like to be black. I don't know what it's like to be white or Hispanic and am not going to pretend to. Your post, however, did come off as writing off other people's experiences by saying that racism is overblown.

What if someone responded to your post with a comment like "Well, you're just saying those things because you're black, as a Hispanic living in San Antonio I don't see it that way at all." It would probably make you feel pretty crappy. I can say anything I want because THAT is MY experience. No one has the right to tell me how I should or shouldn't feel based on the color of my skin. That's racist

Again, the problem here is that the person who attacked me went after my assumed race. I didn't acknowledge or even care what race they were.