[BurtsBees]

Its experienced by both sides and both sides dish it out. I get my fair share of it at work and I'm white. When you see both sides mix in a public setting, you can see the un-easiness and sometimes the tension. The reason the Metro Detroit area has racism issues is because of the race boundaries of the city. The city of Detroit is 90% black, while the suburbs are 90% white. Couple that with the history of fighting between the two, and the news about whites are the only ones commiting hate crimes, etc and the fuel only gets added to the fire.

[Indentured Servant]

Let me pose this question. If one seeks true understanding should one look at a photo or a video? Can one understand a novel by simply reading the last page written? I pose these analogies because true understanding cannot be gleaned from analysis of a moment in time. If you are walking down the street minding your own business when suddenly you are violently assaulted by a stranger, resulting in your self defense reaction, if someone then comes along and takes a photo of you striking this person…. is that all to the story? Is that the story you would have told or would you want the story told from the beginning?

One cannot take a snapshot approach to understanding of race and racism in America or Michigan. The WHOLE story has to be told. History has to be told. The video has to be played. All the chapters of the book must be read. Instead, many people are simply using snapshot reasoning, like the person that says it works both ways. That may or may not be true. All actions create reactions and the reactions of some racial groups to their historical mistreatment cannot be looked upon as the moral equivalent of the unprovoked attack upon their dignity and humanity.

[pitchinrules88]

Originally Posted by Indentured Servant

Let me pose this question. If one seeks true understanding should one look at a photo or a video? Can one understand a novel by simply reading the last page written? I pose these analogies because true understanding cannot be gleaned from analysis of a moment in time. If you are walking down the street minding your own business when suddenly you are violently assaulted by a stranger, resulting in your self defense reaction, if someone then comes along and takes a photo of you striking this person…. is that all to the story? Is that the story you would have told or would you want the story told from the beginning?

One cannot take a snapshot approach to understanding of race and racism in America or Michigan. The WHOLE story has to be told. History has to be told. The video has to be played. All the chapters of the book must be read. Instead, many people are simply using snapshot reasoning, like the person that says it works both ways. That may or may not be true. All actions create reactions and the reactions of some racial groups to their historical mistreatment cannot be looked upon as the moral equivalent of the unprovoked attack upon their dignity and humanity.

Amen x 4million

[100%Michigan]

Thanks for the comments everyone, please countinue to post many more. I dislike to point people out but Indentured Servant I must say you make very good points, although some of the post you make I find it very debatable where it makes me want to write my oppinion write back. I'm not saying its for or against yours, I'm just trying to say its debatable. Dont get me wrong, everyones oppinion is debatable... but some just jump at me more.
Thanks

[Indentured Servant]

Intrinsically opinions are always debatable, otherwise the communication would not be known as opinion…. but rather facts. In communicating my opinion, I do attempt to use as much historical facts as I can, then deductively piece together a hypothesis that manifest when communicated to others as my opinion.

I welcome debate and disagreement because the best understanding is what I seek. I have learned that I can only grow with an open mind and not a closed one. At the end of every day I want to learn something that I did not know the other day and grow closer to truth. Sometimes people see things that I cannot or did not see and I grow from that knowledge.

The prime directives of life are survival and procreation. Everything that living beings do somehow ultimately funnels into fulfilling those biological directives. Nearly everything that humanity does is in some way rooted in a competition for survival and mating. Essentially survival in the modern world is an issue of economics. To the degree that one is able to survive, particularly for the male, increases the quality of mating opportunities.

When one looks at the history of racism in America, it’s not hard to see the economic and sexual undercurrent. Castrations were common during lynching and there was a seeming fixation or fear of the sexuality of male blacks in the early history of this nation. Many laws were created to keep white women from having contact with black males and a black male could be and was killed in many places of the South for simply looking at white females too long (staring).

Economically, slavery served the purpose of a means to wealth for planters. It had to be morally justified and that is when beliefs of racial inferiority manifested and made it sound as if slavery was in the best interest of inferior humans who would be exposed to civilized peoples and ways. Later immigrants to this nation resented black slaves because slavery denied those immigrants opportunities. They could not compete for jobs when slaves worked for free. This created racial hostility and ultimately laws were created to keep certain racial groups from competing for economic opportunities.

Certainly economic distress is not the sole reason these days for the presences of racism in an area. Many people are that way because that is what they learned from the parents, who learned it from their parents and so on and so forth. That’s to say that racism is cultural as socialization and acculturation is a process of emulation. Generational, racism tends to fatigue as a general rule. So the older the median age is in an area, the more racism that probably exists there. The more segregated the area is only helps to incubate the racial socialized in the home because segregated areas don’t have as much opportunity for cross interaction to dispel stereotypes. There are a lot of factors, but economics and sexual competition is a big catalyst for racism.

[Huckleberry3911948]

Originally Posted by 100%Michigan

I dont live everywhere in Michigan, so I cant really answer this question. Rather your live in Michigan or not, I still would like to hear your comment. How bad is Michigan racism... where does it exist the most or shall I say where do you find it more comman? Can you tell me a experience you witness or was a victim of racism in Michigan? If you really havent been a witness or victim of racism in Michigan, what did you hear about Michigan racism? Answering these questions will help me out alot, I hope no one gets offended by this thread or the comments/ post that will be made. ( If you so happen to get offended, I'm truley sorry.) This is to help me get a better understanding of Michigan, thats all I'm asking for.
- Thank you ( Excuse all of the faces made. )

what is michigan racisim?

[100%Michigan]

Racism that happens in the state of Michigan. I'm sure you know what racism is, dont you? :]

[and the]

I'm sure you know what racism is, dont you? :]

Actually, most people who opine on the subject really don't know what racism is. They usually confuse it with bigotry and/or prejudice. Just because a European-American leaves the city because he wants to live among other European-Americans doesn't make him a racist, for instance.

[Indentured Servant]

Originally Posted by and the

Actually, most people who opine on the subject really don't know what racism is. They usually confuse it with bigotry and/or prejudice. Just because a European-American leaves the city because he wants to live among other European-Americans doesn't make him a racist, for instance.

That is exactly right. Most people have their own working definition of racism to serve their own person. I do agree that there is a distinction and difference between racism and concepts like bigotry and prejudice. I tend to see racism as a “System” like socialism, communism, Marxism, capitalism…for example. Historically the “system” of racism was maintained via laws and cultural normative behavior. Today without the 300-year foundation in law, the system of racism is maintained culturally and essentially manifests to preserve the concept of superiority and privilege.

[MidniteBreeze]

I've told this story around here before, but it's actually a positive spin on the topic of racism in Michigan.

About 10 years ago the KKK announced that they were planning a rally in the Ironwood area. Apparently they saw this as prime "recruiting" territory as it's largely a white, rural and geographically isolated population. I was delighted to read in the Duluth paper that only a handful of people actually showed up for the KKK rally while the rest of the town had a "peace" rally at a nearby city park where families came out to picnic, etc. and just come together as a community to peacfully demonstrate that racism wasn't a part of their worldview.