Another racial issues discussion-looking for input *especially* from fellow blacks. (racist, high school)
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The question I would have is how is white American culture and black American culture all that different anyway? The differences don't see THAT significant. You want different cultures, talk to someone from India. If you're in 1 state in India and visit another state, they are genuinely dealing with a completely different culture.
The question I would have is how is white American culture and black American culture all that different anyway? The differences don't see THAT significant. You want different cultures, talk to someone from India. If you're in 1 state in India and visit another state, they are genuinely dealing with a completely different culture.
This is what I'm getting at also, people get confused with culture and socio-economic status. What's Black culture vs White culture in America? It's certainly not music or food cause I see more white kids at a hip-hop concert than Blacks, food?-We all eat the same junk, I just don't get it, It's American culture.
This is what I'm getting at also, people get confused with culture and socio-economic status. What's Black culture vs White culture in America? It's certainly not music or food cause I see more white kids at a hip-hop concert than Blacks, food?-We all eat the same junk, I just don't get it, It's American culture.
We're all Americans here. Shouldn't we treat each other as such? I thought the days of Jim Crow were over.
This is what I'm getting at also, people get confused with culture and socio-economic status. What's Black culture vs White culture in America? It's certainly not music or food cause I see more white kids at a hip-hop concert than Blacks, food?-We all eat the same junk, I just don't get it, It's American culture.
You have affluent blacks and you have non-affluent whites. You have blacks who don't like rap and whites who can't stand rock.
You have affluent blacks and you have non-affluent whites. You have blacks who don't like rap and whites who can't stand rock.
Well, that's my point! The poster that post the below stated Whites lose their identity when Blacks move in. I'd like to know what he means by culture, people like what they like, I don't see anyone forcing a certain culture on anyone. People who live in affluent areas behave the same way as their neighbors no matter the race.
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Originally Posted by nickerman
As a white male I would like to respond to this thread. I am not racists in the sense of disliking blacks for their(your) color or culture of anything like that. What I resent is that when blacks and whites live in the same areas of the same community whites lose our identity as whites.
European Americans can only be culturally and socially what we are when we live amongst our own kind with our own neighborhoods in our own areas of town or in our own towns. So if it happens that I resent blacks it isn't because I don't like blacks per se it is because of their intrusion into white towns and white neighborhoods. But blacks could take that as racism without knowing the reason behind my feelings. At the same time I can appreciate much about blacks like their music beat and their down to earth approach as I perceive it. But I can appreciate those things when blacks live in their own areas and whites live in our own areas.
This thread, I wanted to start mainly to get input from other blacks life myself regarding where they stand regarding the racial climate that we are facing right now. Do you feel discriminated against on a regular basis? Do you feel you do relatively well for the most part in life?
No I don't feel discriminated against at all.
I feel I have a great life and have done well in my life thus far.
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I also want to know, how do you as a black person feel about these black conscious movements, SJWs, and black nationalists/separatists movements?
I think they have always been around and that they have always and remain to be fringe groups in regards to black America. I think the internet has served to make more people aware of these groups. black nationalists/separatists in particular have been around for over 100 years.
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How do you feel about the cultural appropriation issue?
I think it is not something important and that it is only an issue due to people on the internet making it an issue. However, since it has become a "thing" on the internet I can see how some people get upset about it. But FWIW, many people do get upset and want to dialogue with me online in regards to the fact that black Americans heavily "appropriate" various African cultural attributes, especially in regards to fashion.
Also, I do not consider blackface to be cultural appropriation. I consider it a throwback to racism and something that created negative stereotypes of black people. I also feel that most younger white people (and even a lot of black people) do not know about the history of blackface.
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BLM?
I do not 100% agree with everything they do because I feel they are not focused as a group. I think anyone can "join" BLM online and due to that it is not a real organization. I think it is a fad that will fade or morph into a real organization, with a different name. They are trying to do too much IMO and need to focus on one thing at a time and get more focused on police reform and not other issues like LGBTQ issues and others that many of the groups associated with them seem to focus on.
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The reason, I'm asking is because it seems like a lot of people are showing their true colors and in response to that, it seems we have many blacks counteracting to the racism being received. I do feel that the issue needs to be discussed but there are so many online black groups and forms that I just don't relate to. As a black person, I find that many of them are only cool with you when you are agreeing with them full stop. The minute you express a thought that deviates from the mindset of that particular form, blogger, or movement, the name calling (i.e. coon, uncle tom, jigaboo, boot licker) starts.
On the bold, I think this is the case for many types of groups both black and non-black, political and not political.
In regards to black groups in particular, I agree with the bold in that they are okay if you agree with them but too many people today, including many black people cannot intelligently discuss differences or seek to understand or consider an opposing view to their own. I personally have never been called a coon or uncle tom or jigaboo or anythiing like that, but I have been looked at with a "stankface" and asked if I am a "Black Republican" lol. I am older, but was always the youngest of a specific group of professionals I both worked and volunteered with and we did used to speak of politics and socio-economic issues regarding "the black community." And for the new members, when I would state something that went against a more convention "black people" view, the older members would comment "Yeah, she's a Black Republican, but it's okay cause she's "for the people." LOL. I'm not a Republican, I'm an independent.
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Now my question to other blacks-Where do you fit in at?
I am a middle class black American woman who is married with children. I don't talk a lot offline about racial or political issues except with my spouse who gets mad because he is more of the black nationalist type of person.
I feel I get along fine with most black people from various types of backgrounds. I grew up poor, my mom was a teenage mother to 2 kids before she was 18. We were on welfare until she went back to school. We were a workinig/middle class family by the time I was 12. I got scholarships for college. I went to an HBCU. I usually live in the inner city because I grew up in the inner city and IMO it has more of a neighborly/community feel than suburban communities. So the black people I know and knew in the past run the gamut of what you can call "the black experience." I have no problems getting along with practically all black people from the most hood of hood folks to the most bourgeoisie of the black bourgeoisie.
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Do you discuss racial issues with your friends? Are you met with any disagreements? When you find that one disagrees with you, do you educate them? Refer them to Google? Does the conversation go anywhere at all?
I don't really discuss racial things with friends outside of Facebook or other social media sites. I frequently, when I engage in discussions either in person or online cause a lot of disagreements lol. The most recent was about how black people who act like they are "conscious" yet they are fine with collecting welfare/foodstamps and how those people really aren't "for" the improvement of the black demographic - they just want to act like they are.
Usually in all my conversations, I drop a lot of knowledge. I am the resident family "know-it-all" on black history in particular because I do a lot of family history research and became fascinated with black history and culture (FYI I saw the earlier post of someone mentioning "which black culture" and it took a lot not to speak on that lol). I give people books to read. I suggest specific authors and not websites. Most of the stuff I suggest are by renown black authors especially economists, sociologists, and historians. I feel that black people should take more seriously information that comes from black intellectuals versus non-black intellectuals, especially in regards to works online or prior to 1980 because racial bias was too pervasive in our society to get a true objective view from non-black people. Also because, I'm sure since you are black, you are aware that we are way more critical of each other than non-black people are of us. And so I am confident that when I suggest someone read Carter G. Woodson or WEB DuBois' work that they will get a much more objective and factual view of black history and culture than a non-black author.
My conversations always end with me encouraging the person of whom I am discussing (usually it is a young family member if it is in person or some of the younger people I mentor in their teens/20s) to always be skeptical of what people tell them. Even me and for them to educate themselves about our culture and about politics and economics and to make their own conclusions. I always do my best to end the conversations on a positive, good note with no hard feelings.
They fascinate me. That kind of mentality is something I usually associate with older people that went through trauma growing up during jim crow, my grandparents generation. It amazes me that people younger than me are into those kinds of things. What caused them to lose their mind? What happened to them?
Nonsense. Culture doesn't belong to anybody. I once saw a choir of Scandinavian people sing black american gospel music and was glad to see it. I see that as cultural appreciation. They say that imitation is the most sincere form of flattery. I don't have a problem w/ imitation generally speaking. The only time I take issue is when I hear non blacks say that a hairstyle (e.g. dreadlocks, cornrows) looks ghetto but then will try to replicate that style and it be considered innovative. Other than that, I'm generally like "do you".
Huge waste of time. Incidents of police misconduct and/or brutality should be dealt with on a case by case basis. We dont need a movement. The culture of marching and protesting is not productive. People need to get their minds out of the civil rights era.
I also dont believe that black people are behind black lives matter. BLM is manufactured. Who's funding it? Where do they get those podiums from? How does Shaun King pay his bills? Now this is interesting.
I dont normally discuss racial issues. It bores me, and its never a productive conversation. We can have opinions about things other than race relations.
I'm a sociology major and discussions on racial issues interest me though they can be exhausting when there's no real dialogue (e.g. discussing racism with a person who is just stuck in their ways).
How do Whites lose their identity when Blacks move in? I live in a mix community and have never imposed my culture on any of my White neighbors so I'm not understanding this at all.
I'd like to know this as well? How do whites lose their culture when a black moves in? Are you really that easily influenced?
As a white male I would like to respond to this thread. I am not racists in the sense of disliking blacks for their(your) color or culture of anything like that. What I resent is that when blacks and whites live in the same areas of the same community whites lose our identity as whites. European Americans can only be culturally and socially what we are when we live amongst our own kind with our own neighborhoods in our own areas of town or in our own towns. So if it happens that I resent blacks it isn't because I don't like blacks per se it is because of their intrusion into white towns and white neighborhoods. But blacks could take that as racism without knowing the reason behind my feelings. At the same time I can appreciate much about blacks like their music beat and their down to earth approach as I perceive it. But I can appreciate those things when blacks live in their own areas and whites live in our own areas.
Wanted to note that the bold is ridiculous.
I grew up in a very integrated city. I currently, as stated above live in the "inner city." I have white neighbors and always did growing up poor and black.
In my experience, white people who grow up in smaller cities, in the "inner city" usually are not all that much "into" stereotyping black people unless they were a severe minority in a black neighborhood.
I had a lot of white friends, hispanic friends and even Asian friends growing up who lived within a mile of my house. I currently have white neighbors in the inner city and Hispanic neighbors.
My mom lives in a traditionally "Polish" neighborhood and I grew up around a lot of people who were the children or grandchildren of Polish immigrants and they, to this day, in the inner city have retained their Polish roots. Black people here (including many of my neighbors) love the Polish festivals and culture that is prominent in our area. We also enjoy the German festival (it is one of our favorites) and the Greek festival.
IMO many white Americans have just forgotten about their European cultural roots. Those who have not do appreciate and celebrate their culture, at least where I live they do and no one has a problem with it and black people enjoy other cultures and celebrations in this area.
So there is nothing to "resent."
What is your European cultural roots?
I know a lot about the cultural roots of white Americans because I am a history nerd, especially of the area of which I live and due to that I know a whole lot about the European immigrants and their contributions and cultural attributes in our region. I especially know about the Polish, German, Irish, and Hungarian experience here.
So don't blame your racism on black people moving into your area. That is silly. There is a dude across the street from my dad's house right now who has 2 huge confederate flags hanging on his porch. We live in Ohio lol. No one does anything to those flags nor do they care about that guy. The street is half black and half white. The whites get more upset about the flag than the black people do. We laugh at it. The whites say it makes them "look bad."
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