discrimination in south dakota

[ducksburg]

Originally Posted by down to earth

I for one would never be embarrassed by expressing my views about discrimination and racism...unless you live it, experience it and feel it...you'll never "get it".

I believe that a couple of reasons why people chooseto identify themselves as "Asian American, African American, Native American, Arab American etc.etc....is to:
#1. Make it a proud reminder of their heritage and the struggles it took for them to be here and to honor their pasts'. If someone wants to identify themselves as "Czech American or German American" that is THEIR choice. If it's not important or meaningful to identify yourself as such, then so be it. But those who DO want to identify themselves as such shouldn't be scrutinized or questioned about it...it's their choice...not yours.
#2. Another reason why some groups choose to identify themselves as a particular group is to remind people outside of that group, that, even though we are all Americans..... We come from different backgrounds and histories and because of that our heritage is part of who we are and it will help explain why we believe in certain things, practice a certain faith, experience things a particular way...etc...it's a method of reminding others that "I acknowledge that I may have different ways of thinking, believing, and living life than you and I want you to be able to understand me better."
The defensive stance of "Everyone should just forget it and call themselves American" is denying people the opportunity to really express who they are, what they (or their ancestors)have experienced and how they experience the world. Being defensive about this is a way of devaluing the person's identity and heritage, and we all have the right to these things.
Anyways...enough said, I need to get back to fighting discrimination in my own state...God knows there's enough here...Best of luck with your struggles in South Dakota. I'm removing myself from this thread..not cause I'm embarrassed, but because I'm tired of beating a dead horse...either ya get it or you don't, and agreeing to disagree is good enough for me....Adios!

Maybe discrimination is a more important reason than being proud of their heritage.If all the people are treated in the same way,why bother to think about their past and ancestors?

[faulkton]

Originally Posted by Jammie

I'm sorry that I can't really say much about Asians in So. Dak. There are very few in my area. (southeastern, SD) At one time I did work with two girls who were Oriental. I really liked them. They were so sweet and it was fun learning about the country they came from. We also have a realtor in town who is Oriental and she and her husband are both leaders in the church and community. Am I right in assuming that Orientals are the group you're refering to?

rugs are oriental, people are Asian.

[faulkton]

Originally Posted by ducksburg

Maybe discrimination is a more important reason than being proud of their heritage.If all the people are treated in the same way,why bother to think about their past and ancestors?

And you really believe people are treated equal? Thats a nice myth.

Why do blacks make .64 cents on the dollar when compared to whites? Why is the rate of infant mortality higher? Why are their lifespans overall shorter? Why aren't they represented equally in higher education or the political system?


Its nice to think of yourself as unprejudiced and 'color blind', ignorantly believing everyone has equal opportunities in America. However when you look at the demographics its pretty easy to see that it isn't true. If it is true, then why do people of color seem to get the shaft? Are they biologically or culturally inferior? Why are there such discrepancies in the stats if America is just and everyone truly has the same opportunities?

Its nice to try and get all ideological and pretend that everything is ok; blame the victim for their situation. Nonetheless, ideology doesn't do **** about the problem.

Whites tend to see discrimination and racism as individual acts of deliberate discrimination, whereas people of color tend to see it as an institutionalized system of unequal opportunities.

If it really is a level playing field, why is it that one in three black or Mexican children live in poverty? Why is it that a black child's chances of dying before the age of one is twice as high as a white baby?

If it isn't unequal opportunities what is it? Minorities are statistically underrepresented in education, government, law, medicine, ect ect ect..

Are people of color just naturally incapable being as civilized as whites? Do they turn down the help? Is that why they are statistically so much worse off than whites? They are given more opportunity than whites, yet do worse.. if thats true it must be because they are biologically inferior to whites... is that what your saying?

For whites, believing in the existence of equal opportunities provides a sense of diminished responsibility for racial inequality. Thus, whites can think of themselves as accepting, unprejudiced people without having to acknowledge that they live and benefit from a society where race makes a huge difference in opportunity. They do this by denying or being unaware of the great inequality in their society, which then they do not have to face. By doing so they can maintain a myth that society is color-blind, and that race not only should not matter, but doesn't matter. Instead of admitting the inequalities found in American society, they can blame any disadvantage they see minorities suffer on the minorities themselves.

[Godlovesall]

I am a black female (yes, I said "black" not African American) living in Rapid City. My family moved here from Louisiana looking for employment and a slower pace. We have definitely experienced White people who are not happy that Rapid City has become more diverse. We' ve been treated poorly in a well-known restaurant, local stores, and fast food restaurants. On the other hand, We've met some great people and we love it here. For those living in a white world where racism doesn't seem to exist because it isn't happening to you - well, it's the same as it was 40 years except it's a "family secret" that the rest of us aren't suppose to know about. I don't hate anyone and I haven't done anything to anyone but I'm hurt when someone expresses hate towards me or my family because they "fear" the color of the skin that GOD gave us.

[PJ1252]

at one time i worked in a major corporation thats product is on every supermarket shelf - there were 3 of us working in the payroll dept - my last name was obviously jewish and yes i am jewish - i was just hired and had the good fortune to work with the biggest bigots i have ever met - the constantly say horrible things about every nationality and religion - when wage garnishments had arrived in the payroll office one or the other would call that manufacturing facility to find out what race or nationnality that person was - it goes without saying that should that person with the wage attachment be a person of color or nationality they would just smile at each other and nod their heads - i put up with this for one year as i really needed a job but after the one year mark i applied for a position in another department - hr wouldnt move me - so i informed them why i wanted the transfer but they still refused - i told the hr person that there was a hispanic gal sitting right outside our office and that i was certain she could hear what was being said - i really didnt want anyone to think i was part of this offensive behavior - they still would not let me transfer to another department - i hung in as long as i could but eventually i just couldnt take it anymore and quit with no notice - so you can imagine my surprise 20 years later when a hispanic gal told me i made a mistake on her check because i didnt like her because of her nationality - i just looked up at her and said thats not true i hate everyone equally