Cultural Appropriation and Acceptable Racism

[DireWolfM14]

For decades the media has vilified racism, bigotry, and prejudice; and rightfully so.  Of course I resent racism of any kind, regardless of who it's directed towards.  People should be judged on their character, personality, integrity and not on the color of their toe nails or the breadth of their nostrils.

But now I see a trend that makes me cringe.  Bigotry and prejudice are still ripe and getting pungent, but now it's being directed at white men.  And it's all coming from the Left leaning Progressives, who are the ones that spent decades screaming for racial justice.  Now they want to subject those who founded and built this great country to their brand of Justifiable Racism.

They create phrases like White Privilege, Affirmative Action, Diversity, Inclusion.  But the way the words are used is often the exact opposite of their meaning.  

More and more I'm finding myself in an Orwellian reality.  Double speak; four legs good, two legs better.

What do you folks think?

[WiresAreComing]

But now I see a trend that makes me cringe.  Bigotry and prejudice are still ripe and getting pungent, but now it's being directed at white men.  And it's all coming from the Left leaning Progressives, who are the ones that spent decades screaming for racial justice.  Now they want to subject those who founded and built this great country to their brand of Justifiable Racism.

Same cringe here. Judging by social media articles, now it somehow seems that you`re supposed to be ashamed of being infamous 'privileged white male'. Somehow you are to blame for not belonging to any minorities - which sounds extremely absurd. It is all the same old story - take an initially good idea: i.e. fighting racism, body positivity - and bloat it totally out of proportion.

[Spendulus]

.....
What do you folks think?

It's really kind of funny.

Yes, those Muslims so often subject to angry stares or discrimination, those of them who are pretty much white, now get it double, sort of.

But that's all crazed political left thinking.

I'd ignore it.

[coins4commies]

They create phrases like White Privilege, Affirmative Action, Diversity, Inclusion.  But the way the words are used is often the exact opposite of their meaning.  

More and more I'm finding myself in an Orwellian reality.  Double speak; four legs good, two legs better.

What do you folks think?

Well, no one can explain how things are used by random people on the internet.  You will always find people that misuse things but none of these phrases should make you cringe.  If you are against systemic opprression, you should think positively of all of these terms. 

No one is blaming anyone for being white.  White privilege is not something you should apologize for or feel bad about.  Its just something that you should be aware of. 

When we say "check your privilege" it literally means that you may not be able to understand the context of a struggle because you have never been victimized by this particular struggle.

Its also important to realize that race and religion are not the only pillars of identity before someone comes in here and says "just because I am a white male, doesn't mean I haven't lived through any struggle".  Right, it just means you didn't struggle because you are a white male.  There are so many pillars to someones identity, any of which could come with struggle or privilege.

Gender
Race
Sexual orientation
Religion
Family origin/class/makeup
Body image
Learning style
Geographic background
Language

These are all things that people are kind of just born into and don't have much control over.  We would never blame people for any of these but its important to acknowledge privilege.

Unless you are a Christian, cis-gendered, straight, white, male raised in the US with english as a first language, a traditional learning style, born to an affluent family with no physical defects, then the constructs of society have built-in struggles SOMEWHERE for you.  Otherwise, you should at least acknowledge that society is designed for you as the default identity.

[jonemil24]

From ancient seafaring techniques, sugar trading, and slave trading, the white people really know how to exploit things. Forgive me with this statement, but I'm not talking in general here. There are good and bad white people, but bad things will always be more noticeable.

I may not know how Brits treat black people, but some of them really hates Muslim immigrants. On the other hand, some white American people always hate blacks, and there are many videos circulating of their discrimination all over the internet.

The sad reality is, some people think that whites are really privileged people, and most Asian countries will treat them nicely, except for this . Every time that a "mestizo" visit my country, they will always be head-turners. And a non-white child's eyes will always fancy white people. Watch this video if you have the time.

[Ladysmith]

No skin color is immune to compartmentalization and judgement. What were once considered minorities are on their way to becoming the majorities and considered more deserving of respect. It's our need to categorize and associate everything that is the root cause of this problem, as people are vain more than anything else. The only way around this would be to create a completely digital society where everyone has an avatar. Until then, there is no escape from this. There will always be racism in some form or another.

[FilesFM_Announcements]

No skin color is immune to compartmentalization and judgement. What were once considered minorities are on their way to becoming the majorities and considered more deserving of respect. It's our need to categorize and associate everything that is the root cause of this problem, as people are vain more than anything else. The only way around this would be to create a completely digital society where everyone has an avatar. Until then, there is no escape from this. There will always be racism in some form or another.

Im starting to think racism is natural.. I suffer from vitiligo, where even my immune system hates my skin pigment; and tries to make me entirely white! 

[cryptothief]

It's a tough conversation, and a multi-faceted one. There are situations where it is being taken 'too far', but there was always going to be a push back, before (many years down the line) it settles down. There are huge advantages to being born white, but that's not to say that everyone will benefit. As coins4commies said, many other factors will dictate how much of an advantage you could potentially end up with.

Gender
Race
Sexual orientation
Religion
Family origin/class/makeup
Body image
Learning style
Geographic background
Language

Try any one of the following and see how it turns out for you...

* Leave everything else the same, just change your name to Mohammed/DeShawn on a job application.

* Be 'of pregnancy age' when attending an interview.

* Walk down the street holding hands with another guy/girl

* Spend a month in a small village in North India - eating, drinking, working, sleeping etc.

Plenty more ways you can find out how you are privileged or not, especially if you look further afield. It has improved to some extent, but there's still a long way to go, and it will be an even longer process unless those at the top stop to pull up those who could not get there otherwise. Equal amounts of hard work does not create equal opportunities.

[UconBit]

Any extreme is bad. And right now, that is what's happening.

[SnowAugustine]

There is cultural appropriation and then there is getting influenced by a culture. People nowadays can't seem to see the difference between the two, in application and in recognizing it.

[Spendulus]

They create phrases like White Privilege, Affirmative Action, Diversity, Inclusion.  But the way the words are used is often the exact opposite of their meaning.  

More and more I'm finding myself in an Orwellian reality.  Double speak; four legs good, two legs better.

What do you folks think?

.....
When we say "check your privilege" it literally means that you may not be able to understand the context of a struggle because you have never been victimized by this particular struggle.

Its also important to realize that race and religion are not the only pillars of identity before someone comes in here and says "just because I am a white male, doesn't mean I haven't lived through any struggle".  Right, it just means you didn't struggle because you are a white male.  There are so many pillars to someones identity, any of which could come with struggle or privilege.
.....

Thanks for explaining this. I admit I have truly struggled with understanding these concepts, because they are so stupid.

May I ask you next time I run into some totally stupid aspect of political correctness?

[coins4commies]

I can't help but guess your pillars of identity on the basis that you automatically think the entire concept of privilege is "stupid".   Probably proves my point. Thinking this is stupid is highly indicative of privilege.

[TECSHARE]

I can't help but guess your pillars of identity on the basis that you automatically think the entire concept of privilege is "stupid".   Probably proves my point. Thinking this is stupid is highly indicative of privilege.

Or perhaps he supports equality of opportunity and has the good sense to know equality of outcome is impossible.

[t04kaKt04ka]

From ancient seafaring techniques, sugar trading, and slave trading, the white people really know how to exploit things. Forgive me with this statement, but I'm not talking in general here. There are good and bad white people, but bad things will always be more noticeable.

I may not know how Brits treat black people, but some of them really hates Muslim immigrants. On the other hand, some white American people always hate blacks, and there are many videos circulating of their discrimination all over the internet.

The sad reality is, some people think that whites are really privileged people, and most Asian countries will treat them nicely, except for this . Every time that a "mestizo" visit my country, they will always be head-turners. And a non-white child's eyes will always fancy white people. Watch this video if you have the time.

What you are saying is true for the USA and the Euro. But not suitable for China or Russia.

[af_newbie]

...
They create phrases like White Privilege, ...

I don't think the White Privilege exists.  Majority of whites are not in the 1%.

They work their asses off like everybody else, actually, they have to work harder because of the affirmative action.

Try to get to Harvard if you are White or Asian.  

Affirmative Action is racist!!!

"I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character." - Martin Luther King Jr.

I guess that dream is dead for white folks.

What is next, segregation for whites?

[coins4commies]

I can't help but guess your pillars of identity on the basis that you automatically think the entire concept of privilege is "stupid".   Probably proves my point. Thinking this is stupid is highly indicative of privilege.

Or perhaps he supports equality of opportunity and has the good sense to know equality of outcome is impossible.

No one has suggested equality of outcome but nice strawman.

[TECSHARE]

I can't help but guess your pillars of identity on the basis that you automatically think the entire concept of privilege is "stupid".   Probably proves my point. Thinking this is stupid is highly indicative of privilege.

Or perhaps he supports equality of opportunity and has the good sense to know equality of outcome is impossible.

No one has suggested equality of outcome but nice strawman.

Oh but you have. You telling people to check their privilege shows very clearly you do not beleive in outcome of opportunity, because you think certain people should have limited opportunities to make up for the ones you think have more. It is at the very core nature of this privilege argument.

[coins4commies]

I can't help but guess your pillars of identity on the basis that you automatically think the entire concept of privilege is "stupid".   Probably proves my point. Thinking this is stupid is highly indicative of privilege.

Or perhaps he supports equality of opportunity and has the good sense to know equality of outcome is impossible.

No one has suggested equality of outcome but nice strawman.

Oh but you have. You telling people to check their privilege shows very clearly you do not beleive in outcome of opportunity, because you think certain people should have limited opportunities to make up for the ones you think have more. It is at the very core nature of this privilege argument.

Checking privilege doesn't limit anyone's opportunity.  Its simply asking someone to acknowledge the struggles of those who do not share their identity.  Its a demand for courtesy.  its not saying "you don't get _________ because you have privilege".

[TECSHARE]

I can't help but guess your pillars of identity on the basis that you automatically think the entire concept of privilege is "stupid".   Probably proves my point. Thinking this is stupid is highly indicative of privilege.

Or perhaps he supports equality of opportunity and has the good sense to know equality of outcome is impossible.

No one has suggested equality of outcome but nice strawman.

Oh but you have. You telling people to check their privilege shows very clearly you do not beleive in outcome of opportunity, because you think certain people should have limited opportunities to make up for the ones you think have more. It is at the very core nature of this privilege argument.

Checking privilege doesn't limit anyone's opportunity.  Its simply asking someone to acknowledge the struggles of those who do not share their identity.  Its a demand for courtesy.  its not saying "you don't get _________ because you have privilege".

check noun
\ˈchek
\
Definition of check

(Entry 1 of 3)

1 : exposure of a chess king to an attack from which he must be protected or moved to safety with his king in check

2a : a sudden stoppage of a forward course or progress : arrest the outbreak of war in 1939 gave a sudden check to the sculptor's work— Herbert Read

b : a checking of an opposing player (as in ice hockey)

3 : a sudden pause or break in a progression the invaders coming in without a check

4 archaic : reprimand, rebuke

5 : one that arrests, limits, or restrains : restraint against all checks, rebukes, and manners, I must advance— William Shakespeare


Yes, it has most definitely resulted in "you don't get _________ because you have privilege." Is it asking or is it demanding? Pick one. You can't even follow your own standards within a single paragraph.

[Spendulus]

.....
Checking privilege doesn't limit anyone's opportunity.  Its simply asking someone to acknowledge the struggles of those who do not share their identity.  Its a demand for courtesy.  its not saying "you don't get _________ because you have privilege".

That's one of the stupidest rationalizations I have ever heard.

Because statistically, individual variability is orders of magnitude higher than variability attributable to visible groupings such as skin color.

Your demand for courtesy is an insult.