It’s sad to say but racism has evolved. It is no longer the
simple concept that you view a different race as inferior based on their skin
color. I fear that in today’s world it
is more a misunderstanding of the opposite race’s culture that drives this new “racism”. Some reading this may think that as semantics
and that it is still a concept of finding yourself superior based on culture
rather than race. I would beg to argue
because I believe if we simply understood each other then maybe this void could
be closed and we can all coexist. What I’m about to write are not my personal
feelings toward black people. I know many black people and have high level of
respect for most, if not all, of them.
These are simple theories that went through my head as viewpoints from a
white person’s perspective.
New Racism is Fear Based
Much like the fear we have for terrorists after 9/11 and the
many other bombing, we fear blacks for the same reason. No not all blacks are violent. When I turn on
the news what do I see? Blacks kill blacks in this city, that town, and so
on. Being a person who works and worships
with black people I know there are many out there doing good works but somehow
the news is not portraying that for the average white person.
Media also likes to spend much time expounding on the lives
of the stars when they go bad. Ray Rice
and Chris Brown are thrown in our faces while we neglect all the great things
black celebrities are doing for communities everywhere. We hear about Greg Hardy for weeks but don’t
pay more than 10 minutes attention to the inner city public schools who are benefiting
from the sports starts in that city.
Movies and rap music can also help lean toward the concept
that blacks have a propensity for violence.
I think of early rap, since I don’t listen to secular any more, when I make
that statement. Songs like “F*** the
Police” by NWA, Nelly singing about a “street sweeper”, plenty of references to
guns in Tupac and Biggie songs, lead us to think that every black is a
gangsta. White people hear this and
start to think that the whole black community is about drugs, guns, violence,
and making that all mighty dollar by any means necessary.
New Racism comes from Lack of Knowledge
If you were to check my Facebook friends list you would see
many people of varied skin color. However, I would say that I’m not very knowledgeable
in their cultures or lifestyles. I would
say that outside my own family, I hang out with one couple and they are
white. It would be easy for me to say
that is because I work many hours a week, have 2 infants, and really no time
for relationship maintenance so I stick with just one. Truth is I just don’t
put forth the effort at this or any previous time.
I believe that many people assume that people who live in
the “ghetto” or rough neighborhoods do so because they want to. I’ve heard it said “If they don’t like it why
don’t they get out?” The problem is that getting out or even getting slightly
ahead is not that easy for people from lower economic standings. I would
venture to guess that it is even harder for those of non-white skin color. I’ve had the pleasure of working 80 hours a
week and not being able to save anything up because bills are high and pay isn’t.
Better yet I’ve also heard “why don’t they change the
environment they live in” as if it is some easy thing to invest back into your
city or hood. I assume most people don’t
want to live in run down duplexes, have cracked sidewalks, pot holes and side
of the street parking. I would wager that even those in the city would love a
house to call their own, a yard for their kids to play, and a garage to park
their car. Sadly that reality is a lot
tougher to get when you have to climb a ladder that has greased rungs.
A huge thing lately that contributes to fear, as well as
lack of knowledge, is the protests by major sports players. The kneeling during the national anthem was
taken as a negative because they aren’t following the rule that you must stand.
The raising of the fist is a sign of “black power” which is misinterpreted as “power
over white people”. I think it would be
better if we used the term equality.
Women have used this for decades in search for their “power” or “voice”. Blacks aren’t looking to make slaves out of
the white folk, they are looking to be equal.
Blacks gaining more power does not mean they are lords over the whites
but have the same privileges and chances as any white person. We are not talking supremacy but
equality. Most whites don’t see this
when they see the term “black power” or “black lives matter”. Rather than it
sparking conversation it becomes a catalyst to disapprove of the movement as a
whole.
I write this in the short half hour I have for lunch and
hope that it simply opens conversation. I don’t see color, I have black, Asian, Hispanic,
and white friends. I do not ignore the
fact that color exists though and would be open to learn more about the
struggle that those individuals face on a daily. I hope this can open honest dialogue and not spew
hatred and cause a greater divide. If it
is not very clearly written I apologize but they were all thoughts swirling
around in my head and I just had to write them down and did so in a half hour.
Thank you for those of you who read it, and please feel free to message me or
comment if you wish to discuss anything further. Let’s learn how to love and not be so afraid.
We don’t have to understand each other to realize we should all be treated the
same.
