Question about racism in Minnesota.... (Dalton, Marietta: upper-class, low crime, restaurants)

[glitteringtears]

Race is not an issue in the cities or the burbs. The only areas you will have issues living are in the rural areas because the people are so secluded. It is honestly not based on race here, its based off of life style...

[junkyjje]

I think your asking a loaded question. Why ask that. Its stupid. Who told you minnesota is raciest. You wont tell where your comming from. why? I have never herd " people from minnesota are raisest ". I know the truth. People are raciest everywear, black and white. But I also know lots of black people from the south who came to minnesote and found that they could fit in with "white folks". This is what they said, not me. A black man who acts like a man and treats everybody he meets with the respect that he would want in return, he will be accepted. Black culture is the only culture to be allowed to be polliticaly correct in their racism, brorock should step down. Your misguides accuasiton of minnesota fits in with the general theme of racism today.I feel sorry for you. You will be accepted if you derserve to be.

[Cooliner]

As you may know, Minnesota is a scandinavian state and, in fact, there are very few black people there... However, when I went there for the first time in 1998 everytime I strike up a convo with some black person, they would look me with a surprise face, like It was something unusual...(I'm a white-man originally from Rio de Janeiro, where 80% of the pop. is black & mulattos, and in Rio, we talk freely to anyone at the drop of a hat...There's no segregation of any kind at all... So for me, that was pretty natural)
But
although they seemed surprised at first, when I told them I was from Rio de Janeiro, they used to change their tunes...
actually they became interested in learning more about the World famous Carnival of Rio and stuff...and
they treated me very well.... But
I could figure, there is a strong prejudice in the air going on there in MN...
I also felt the White people there did not approve my talking to Black folks anyway...No one said a word about it, but they hinted it...which made me very disappointed...as
for us, cariocas, this is something completely out of the picture...
I had heard a lot about USA being a racist country but
I assumed it would be only in the South...

[pirate_lafitte]

Originally Posted by Cooliner

As you may know, Minnesota is a scandinavian state and, in fact, there are very few black people there... However, when I went there for the first time in 1998 everytime I strike up a convo with some black person, they would look me with a surprise face, like It was something unusual...(I'm a white-man originally from Rio de Janeiro, where 80% of the pop. is black & mulattos, and in Rio, we talk freely to anyone at the drop of a hat...There's no segregation of any kind at all... So for me, that was pretty natural)
But
although they seemed surprised at first, when I told them I was from Rio de Janeiro, they used to change their tunes...
actually they became interested in learning more about the World famous Carnival of Rio and stuff...and
they treated me very well.... But
I could figure, there is a strong prejudice in the air going on there in MN...
I also felt the White people there did not approve my talking to Black folks anyway...No one said a word about it, but they hinted it...which made me very disappointed...as
for us, cariocas, this is something completely out of the picture...
I had heard a lot about USA being a racist country but
I assumed it would be only in the South...

That is not just the South. That's in alot of places all over the USA. I think part of the reason race relations are still unstable in some instances dates back to the Civil War. The Civil War was mainly about states rights and the right to secede, but slavery was in the mix. Abraham Lincoln was not in favor of changing the Southern way of life, which included slavery. In the South, slavery was how the South got rich, or better yet, the nation. Slaves picked the cotton and the cotton supplied mills all over the nation(or what was the nation during that time.). Abraham Lincoln may have opposed slavery, but he didn't intend on changing. He just wanted to keep the Union together. What happened? He signed the Emancipation Proclamation. If the Southern states in rebellion against the USA didn't agree to quit fighting, then the slaves in those territories in rebellion would be free. The South kept fighting and the slaves were freed, by law at least. The newly freed slaves went to go fight for the northern states with the Union army. The Union won and the South had to surrender. What does this have to do with race relations? The South had a hierachy(a ridiculous one at that) that only the white people could be in the upper class and that the blacks were to be slaves and be on the bottom, just like in most places where there was slavery. There was a racial hierarchy and when the slaves were freed, there was no one to pick the cotton, and furthermore, many of the cotton plantations were destroyed. This left bitter feelings on both sides. Alot of blacks had long-lasting anger towards whites due to the fact that they were enslaved by whites. Alot of whites had anger towards whites because of the fact that their way of life was destroyed. They felt that their so-called property(and that is what the slaves were considered "property") was taken away from them as well as their livelihood, no matter how cruel, away from their. The Civil War also left bitter feelings between the South and the North. The South was plunged into economic depression for many years and remained very poor until the 1940's. Race relations aren't so crazed in Canada because it got rid of slavery without a fight. Great Britain may have some strained race relations, but they aren't like that of the USA. Great Britain bought up the slaves and set them free. Brazil, though it didn't do so until 1888, got rid of slavery without a war. The USA is the only nation I know of that had to have a bloody war to get rid of slavery. No doubt it needed to get rid of slavery and I'm happy it did because as a black man, I quite like being free. NO doubt it needed to be done away with. It is a very cruel thing. With that said, it took a war to get rid of that. Whenever it takes war to make things right, you know the parties in question will have bad feelings towards each other. MOst of the reason slavery ended in most parts of the world had to do with the Industrial Revolution. Wherever you had it, slavery would end. No wars needed. Race relations were never that good before the civil war, but they got worse after because of anger towards both parties. Slavery needed to stop. In fact it should have never happened. Something needed to be done, and sadly, because the South held on so tightly to it, it took action to get rid of it. That is only part of the problem. That is the South problem. The northern problem was simple. Whites(American and foreign-born) and blacks had to compete for jobs in the North and bad feelings resulted.

[junkyjje]

Originally Posted by pirate_lafitte

That is not just the South. That's in alot of places all over the USA. I think part of the reason race relations are still unstable in some instances dates back to the Civil War. The Civil War was mainly about states rights and the right to secede, but slavery was in the mix. Abraham Lincoln was not in favor of changing the Southern way of life, which included slavery. In the South, slavery was how the South got rich, or better yet, the nation. Slaves picked the cotton and the cotton supplied mills all over the nation(or what was the nation during that time.). Abraham Lincoln may have opposed slavery, but he didn't intend on changing. He just wanted to keep the Union together. What happened? He signed the Emancipation Proclamation. If the Southern states in rebellion against the USA didn't agree to quit fighting, then the slaves in those territories in rebellion would be free. The South kept fighting and the slaves were freed, by law at least. The newly freed slaves went to go fight for the northern states with the Union army. The Union won and the South had to surrender. What does this have to do with race relations? The South had a hierachy(a ridiculous one at that) that only the white people could be in the upper class and that the blacks were to be slaves and be on the bottom, just like in most places where there was slavery. There was a racial hierarchy and when the slaves were freed, there was no one to pick the cotton, and furthermore, many of the cotton plantations were destroyed. This left bitter feelings on both sides. Alot of blacks had long-lasting anger towards whites due to the fact that they were enslaved by whites. Alot of whites had anger towards whites because of the fact that their way of life was destroyed. They felt that their so-called property(and that is what the slaves were considered "property") was taken away from them as well as their livelihood, no matter how cruel, away from their. The Civil War also left bitter feelings between the South and the North. The South was plunged into economic depression for many years and remained very poor until the 1940's. Race relations aren't so crazed in Canada because it got rid of slavery without a fight. Great Britain may have some strained race relations, but they aren't like that of the USA. Great Britain bought up the slaves and set them free. Brazil, though it didn't do so until 1888, got rid of slavery without a war. The USA is the only nation I know of that had to have a bloody war to get rid of slavery. No doubt it needed to get rid of slavery and I'm happy it did because as a black man, I quite like being free. NO doubt it needed to be done away with. It is a very cruel thing. With that said, it took a war to get rid of that. Whenever it takes war to make things right, you know the parties in question will have bad feelings towards each other. MOst of the reason slavery ended in most parts of the world had to do with the Industrial Revolution. Wherever you had it, slavery would end. No wars needed. Race relations were never that good before the civil war, but they got worse after because of anger towards both parties. Slavery needed to stop. In fact it should have never happened. Something needed to be done, and sadly, because the South held on so tightly to it, it took action to get rid of it. That is only part of the problem. That is the South problem. The northern problem was simple. Whites(American and foreign-born) and blacks had to compete for jobs in the North and bad feelings resulted.

Thats the stupidest thing i have ever herd. Their is racism in the united states because of the civil war ??????

[Cooliner]

Originally Posted by pirate_lafitte

That is not just the South. That's in alot of places all over the USA. I think part of the reason race relations are still unstable in some instances dates back to the Civil War. The Civil War was mainly about states rights and the right to secede, but slavery was in the mix. Abraham Lincoln was not in favor of changing the Southern way of life, which included slavery. In the South, slavery was how the South got rich, or better yet, the nation. Slaves picked the cotton and the cotton supplied mills all over the nation(or what was the nation during that time.). Abraham Lincoln may have opposed slavery, but he didn't intend on changing. Don't blame him for that...Neither Princess Isabel did...In Brazil, when She signed a law giving freedom to the slaves, they simply did it because she was compelled to by the Great Britain, which wanted to enlarge their consumers...


He just wanted to keep the Union together. What happened? He signed the Emancipation Proclamation. If the Southern states in rebellion against the USA didn't agree to quit fighting, then the slaves in those territories in rebellion would be free. The South kept fighting and the slaves were freed, by law at least. The newly freed slaves went to go fight for the northern states with the Union army. The Union won and the South had to surrender. What does this have to do with race relations? The South had a hierachy(a ridiculous one at that) that only the white people could be in the upper class and that the blacks were to be slaves and be on the bottom, just like in most places where there was slavery. There was a racial hierarchy and when the slaves were freed, there was no one to pick the cotton, and furthermore, many of the cotton plantations were destroyed.
The same happened in Brazil, and the solution found at the time was to open Brazil's frontiers to receive immigrants in the second half of century XIX. They came from Europe to work in Brazilian fields replacing the labor of the slaves in the plantations of a new burgeoning economical cycle in Brazil: the Coffee Cycle...
They were mainly Italians, German, Polish, a few flocks of French and later on also the Japanese...
They were promised to be given a piece of land
where they could grow their own subsistence...however...they weren't given a fair shake and were cheated by the landowners (the same who owned the slaves) as they were forced to sign an agreement where they were obligued to pay for the tools and all the other utilities on the farm...at much higher prices... As a result, they got in debt and became dependant of the landowners...in their cases, they were free, however financially prisoners.
Only in century XX when some Brazilians laws were passed,the agreements were canceled and they were free from the debt...
it took a long time for this to happen, but they eventually started their own business in commerce and other sections and with hard work, they became forthcoming...
the freed black slaves were, then, in the same conditions as the white immigrants... so, there were not much distinction in terms of chances and
advantages...They all started basically from the bottom. In fact, there was an upper class in Brazil,which was formed exclusively by the Portuguese , who were the settlers of Brazil... The rest was basically poor explored people, brought here to grind...whether back or white...who might have become wealthy due to their hard work and competence...
I guess that's why in Brazil, especially in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, you don't see that kind of mindset like
I witnessed in USA...
This left bitter feelings on both sides. Alot of blacks had long-lasting anger towards whites due to the fact that they were enslaved by whites. Alot of whites had anger towards whites because of the fact that their way of life was destroyed. They felt that their so-called property(and that is what the slaves were considered "property") was taken away from them as well as their livelihood, no matter how cruel, away from their. The Civil War also left bitter feelings between the South and the North. The South was plunged into economic depression for many years and remained very poor until the 1940's. Race relations aren't so crazed in Canada because it got rid of slavery without a fight. Great Britain may have some strained race relations, but they aren't like that of the USA. Great Britain bought up the slaves and set them free. Brazil, though it didn't do so until 1888, got rid of slavery without a war. The USA is the only nation I know of that had to have a bloody war to get rid of slavery. No doubt it needed to get rid of slavery and I'm happy it did because as a black man, I quite like being free. NO doubt it needed to be done away with. It is a very cruel thing. With that said, it took a war to get rid of that. Whenever it takes war to make things right, you know the parties in question will have bad feelings towards each other. Yes, you're right... rivalry is something sometimes inevitable...in Brazil we could notice it more clearly between Italians and German in the past, who had to divide their land in the South. The German took the valleys by the rivers while the Italians had to restrain with the hills (more difficult part)... As a results they never got along well... and the families didnot mix with each other...
Even today the German in the South still have an in for the Italians...but it's not so bad as in the past...
MOst of the reason slavery ended in most parts of the world had to do with the Industrial Revolution. As I told you...the same for BRazil.
Wherever you had it, slavery would end. No wars needed. Race relations were never that good before the civil war, but they got worse after because of anger towards both parties. Slavery needed to stop. In fact it should have never happened. Something needed to be done, and sadly, because the South held on so tightly to it, it took action to get rid of it. That is only part of the problem. That is the South problem. The northern problem was simple. Whites(American and foreign-born) and blacks had to compete for jobs in the North and bad feelings resulted.

If, indeed, it was just a matter of competition, I supposed they should have the same attitude towards Latin Americans...though, so far I remember I didnt meet any Latin American in Minneapolis either...

[pirate_lafitte]

Originally Posted by junkyjje

Thats the stupidest thing i have ever herd. Their is racism in the united states because of the civil war ??????

I said part of why race relations have been so sour has something to do with bad feelings from the civil war. Not everything had to do with the civil war, it just exasperrated things.

[pirate_lafitte]

Originally Posted by Cooliner

If, indeed, it was just a matter of competition, I supposed they should have the same attitude towards Latin Americans...though, so far I remember I didnt meet any Latin American in Minneapolis either...

The problems with race relations go really deep and not just with slavery either. You have a point. Brazil felt compelled to get rid of slavery. It got rid of it with and I never heard of any war happening in Brazil because of it. The South was forced to give it up. The Industrial Revolution would have made slavery obsolete, but still, slavery needed to be done away with.

[pirate_lafitte]

Back to racism in MN. It is not a MN problem, but an everywhere problem. I think with MN it never got a reputation for it so it tends to shock people.

[Cooliner]

yes, you're right, in MN it tends to shock more! But hey Pirate_lafitte, I saw your profile and you're from Georgia, right? In 1996, before this internet stuff became popular in Brazil I receive a letter from a 18 teen girl from Georgia, who was seeking for a pen friend in Rio and wanted to know more about Rio de Janeiro... I was not going to answer it, but as she prepared a neat letter in a colorful envelope I decided to reply to her telling what she wanted to know... I remember it was during the Olympic games and she told me a lot about Georgia...and made me curious...(I used to have a wrong impression of Georgia caused by the movie "Deliverance"...) She was from a small town in the northwest named Dalton, near Chatanooga. Have you ever passed near there??? I'd definetely have visited Georgia if she had kept in touch for longer...
Anyway, my next trip to USA I intend to visit Blairstown, NJ and LongIsland! Have you ever considered spending your vacation in Brazil??? What's the reputation of Brazil out there in Georgia?