Thoughts on life, love and faith by Plasticmind.

9 April 20061. ms mimi:

Sometimes we view the world where we are; this woman, who obviously was dealing with the drama of having three kids looked at you and projected a perception, that may or may not have been true based on her expereince wuth people in a different income bracket, mos of whom happen not to look like her.

Nothing wrong with a little self reflection; it is always good for the soul. For me as a black person, I know I'm not immune to my own bias and prejudice. I also recognize that I am more cognizant of racism than someone who is non-black, because unless you live in an environment where you're reminded of your race, you won't notice racism.

I related to that scene in Something New, where Sanaa Lathan's character tells her white love interest that being Black means you don't get a night off. I think that is true. I have dated interracially, but not a white man for that reason. I feel that I spend so much time being told I am being over sensitive and paranoid about racism that if I heard it from my mate I'd flip. I often wonder if that is fair.

I don't think that all white people are predisposed to being rabid racists. I think more often than not that many are unaware of my expereince, or put off by it so I don't bother to share honestly. Maybe that is the problem. If we had more honest conversation, I think, at least at the human level we could deal with the institutional issues.

9 April 20063. jsottkill:

The more I see your site, the more I like it.

10 April 20064. jscottkill:

RYC: By the way, there are only 5 chinese brothers

11 April 20065. Haley Killian:

I think stereo-typing is unavoidable. People just think certain ways about other people. Some of the time, they are true. I wish we could wipe the black vs. white slate clean and start over. I'm sick of feeling like there's unresolved issues with people I don't even know. But since people are not perfect, we'll have to do the best we can. I think you did well in answering that lady. (I can't believe she said that to you.) You tried to show her God's love--love that doesn't see color--what more can you do? But I know how you feel. Paranoid that you're a racist when you know you're not. It's crazy.

11 April 20066. Haley E. Killian:

sorry that printed 3 times. I couldn't get my comment to post. Apparently, it was.

19 April 20067. Yellowhead:

I think one possible step that can be made is frequent exposure. Become more vulnerable. Avail yourself to more difficult testing. But don't think words will always change people.

28 April 20068. make money online:

Great article, that was interesting

4 May 20069. Jesse...:

I am a black Trinidadian.. and in my country, it is not just about black versus white.. It is Indian versus Negro... and the both groups envy the whites. Just about everyone in Trinidad associates white people with wealth, power and prestige.

I was appalled when one day I went into a store in one of the big malls here, and a store-clerk, a complete stranger, suddenly began to relate how much she despised being dark-skinned because guys never really paid her much attention and how much she wished she could be white. She believed that fair skin was far more beautiful than what she was born with.

All I could feel is pity.. I could not immediately understand the extent of her feelings in regard to blackness nor could I could fully comprehend why she would drive herself to depression but I could relate.... because sometimes I too, feel disadvantaged and intimidated by white people.
This is the result of neo-colonialism in the Caribbean and everywhere slavery existed. It is something that persists in each new generation and is embedded our minds that we are less beautiful, less worthy, less human because we are black. It will take a verrry long time before this kind of thinking is eradicated.

I will leave you with Bob Marley's words: Emancipate yourself from mental slavery, none but ourselves can free our minds

18 November 200810. John:

Hello Jesse, I just stumbled over your website using stumbleupon and did one random click on this topic "rich white people" dating back to April 2006. I am from Europe, Austria a white guy and live in Chile right now and soon will be moving to Argentina. Till 1995 we almost had no black people living in our country. I really mean almost zero. You would know where he would live and probably even know his name, so few where here. And they were respected and exotic interesting. After entering the European Union, thousands came from France, Netherlands and or directly from Africa asking for asylum. Within months the crime rate went up, police squads stormed districts in the 10/16/17 district in Vienna which were formerly quiet places.You could easily spot them because of their skin in metro stations dealing drugs and or being hunted by the police. So, what does a country that had absolute no contact with black people before think about black people a couple of years after? Well, imagine. We all damn them and wished them to be gone and the few good ones that live among us are cursed already with the same hate. Now the USA is a total different story longing back some hundred years ago, but still no matter which white guy in the US - he supported slavery, he is the reason for our (black) misery. And the blacks seem to use that as an acceptable excuse not to achieve anything great in their lives because its white land, white brotherhood, white contacts, white management. I studied in the Netherlands directly near the town Middleburg and Vlissingen where actually all the huge slave trading ships left the harbor heading to Africa and almost every citizen living there has a story to tell about their grand,grand,g,g,g,g dad. And as you can guess, some still smile about it and probably still see them as tradable goods. This is a very complex matter but I think the only solution in order to get deep respect from the white people towards the black people is to see a flourshing Africa with stability, culture, low courrption, diplomacy - something to look at with pride, because till this present day there is no country in Africa without white influence working great. South Africas is in my opinion the achievement of dutch and therefore white influence. Once the black people have a great country of their own as reference the light onto them will change. I am also really glad that Barack Obama won the election and hope he will bring a new era of interracial respect. Not so sure about his wife, because she seems very anti-creative and power orientated vs. moving forward and attacking issues (contrary to Barack). Barack seems to be a good hearted guy and I'd love to have personal conversation with him. So far what I have seen the country where black and white live "almost" in harmony together is Brasil. Though again, the black north is poor, corrupt and dangerous and the white south is rich,stable and prosperous....Solution: put all black people in the USA into university and higher education and soon the white majority will be the poor...but then they are not given equal chances...

18 November 200811. Bill:

No body is racist until they come to the south....Why do you think there are more racist in the south? There are more black people.

22 November 200812. charles s:

there is good and bad people of all colors. prejudice is judging without knowing . I know all this and still I hate mexicans even though I was in the military 30 years ago and one of my best friends was a mexican .

24 November 200813. Pat:

The subject of reparations is back in the news again. I would gladly give all I have if I could get a signed afidavit from every black person in the country that it is finally over, that we're cool and they no longer blame up for every negative aspect of their lives. I don't consider myself a prejudiced person, I'm a victim of whatever I experienced as I grew up but I tried not to let it influence my opinions. Look at America now. we have to say the "N" word, we bend over backwards not to offend anyone and we elected a totally unqualified person to be president all based on race and white guilt. And don't tell me this election wasn't about race when 98% of blacks voted for Obama and about 50% of whites did. Race relations would be so much further along in this country if it wasn't for a select few who profit from it. You see without racism the NAACP wouldn't have a reason to exist and certain race baiting poverty pimps would be out of a job. Can we please get over this now and get on with life?

27 December 200814. Brenda:

Being a black Southern woman who has lived in the West and Mid-West, I take issue with Bill's statement:

"Nobody is racist until they come to the South....Why do you think there are more racists in the South? There are more black people."

Yes, there is racism in the South. But also in the West, North and East. As for the number of black people in a location having an impact on the number of racists....I don't see the connection.

The difference is (in my humble opinion), Southerners tend to be more honest about their racism. I would rather be called a N*****r by a Southern racist to my face, than have people put on the facade of a non-racist. You get a lot of that in California where I lived for 15 years. The more "liberal" the ideology, the more insidious are the politics of the people living there. The economic politics of wealthy white liberal Democrats are worse than any drug.

They talk the talk. Liberal Democrats (perceived as non-racist) are about keeping blacks enslaved through entitlement programs like welfare. If that isn't racism I don't know what is. Years of this insanity has taken its toll on black families. Black people need to get off the government "crack", get out of the blame game, and take personal responsibility for what happens in their lives.
If you don't work, you don't eat. Plain. Simple. Cold hard fact.
Bill Cosby tried his best to spell this out but was attacked by the entitlement mob carrying torches and pitchforks.

While I'm at it, not every black person voted for Obama. I didn't. His world view is in direct opposition to what I believe as a follower of Jesus Christ.

(Now I am starting to ramble.)

Bottom line: You don't have to love every person solely based on their skin color. That's absurd. But, just be honest in the relationships you do have.

Most of my friends are white. I love them because of who they are and the richness they bring to my life. And, we talk about everything. No subject is off limits. That way we all can relax and be ourselves. Just the way it's supposed to be.

2 June 200915. Mariya:

I can relate with:

"I felt like I had to go out of my way to prove that I didn't hate black people. Which felt so strange, because I don't."

I was born in Russia and came to the United States when I was seven. I don't have an accent and look and act pretty American so I think I am indistinguishable from white American-born people. So I often feel that if I meet a black person on the street or on the bus or am introduced to someone black at school I have to work extra hard to prove that I am "not one of those racist white people" even though none of my ancestors even had anything to do with slavery.

I actually know for a fact that my great great grandmother was a serf, which is somewhere between a slave and a sharecropper. And coming here I faced many of the economic challenges poor blacks face; for instance, we were on food stamps for about a year. Additionally, before we came here my family lived in 90s Moscow which was as violent and chaotic as any ghetto, so I can relate to that as well. I also often feel insulted when I am referred to as a "commie" or have stereotype jokes told about me or see things in the media that basically degrade Russians, so I know about being singled out for what you can't help being. And yet, when I meet someone black, especially someone black who may be impoverished, I am afraid that all they see is a spoiled suburban white kid, someone who doesn't talk or act like them, knows nothing about the kind of life they have led, and looks down on them on top of it all.

I really hate how there is this perceived boundary between not only me and those blacks that I meet but many other whites who really have not had anything to do with the problem, and would even like to be part of the solution. I want to have more black friends but I am afraid of initiating that connection, because I fear that I would always have to walk on tiptoes to keep from saying something wrong and starting something. I want to see black people as people, not a special population I owe something to, but there is so much needlessly in the way of that. For instance, while I think its beautiful that Obama, a half black man, got elected, I did not vote for him just because of his race and am put off by the idea that other people did (although it's worse that people who would otherwise benefit from his platform didn't vote for him because of his skin color). I'm glad racial relations are getting a little better in this country but there are still many many people, white and black, who need to get over their BS.

Maybe I just need to be more brave and try to meet/befriend black people on a case by case basis.

18 July 200916. Adam:

Hello, I read this intersting article and most of the replies.
I agree with John, that maybe some problems originate from African countries being corrupt and not developed enough, but I don´t know why this happens. And South Africa seems to be doing well, because white English and Dutch built it up and now the people nowadays can keep the country going on.
But what about Zimbabwe? Why has it gone so bad? it´s so sad.
My family lived there but left before independence, to move to Jamaica, to do with my grandparent´s job, in BICC general cable. (Brithish)
It´s a pity that there is always racism, even where I live, in Catalunya, (autonomous part of spain), where we have a lot of morocans, and also other africans, and south americans and eastern europeans, and people hate mainly darked skinned and thr arabs. White imigrants are better off. Why? Is it because they are the most diferent?
I hope one day Catalunya becames that the UK or USA where many immigrants have good jobs, in TV, or in politics, in big companies. Then maybe they´ll have more respect.

17 September 200917. Jesse F.:

You are want you want to be, everyone can get down on their luck, fortune has no eyes and white people have had a better time in life since the 1780's (USA and french revolutions, birth of democracy)... but they had almost 200 years of civil wars, continental wars and great intercontinental wars. Yes, white people have a different culture and black people have a much harder history in the US then other's. Before that it was a feudal and precarious life for everyone who wasn't a property owner.

In Europe the idea of "modern" science, liturature, art, business and basiclly every development in the pas 500 years has been and is attributed to an european or someone of european decent. Constantly and continuously any culture that has not made significant contributions to the "world" is considered inferior.

That's how people see each other, a measure of some sort, one against another. The same for religion, if you are not of my religion you are "lost" or "not enlighted" or " unsaved" just another way of saying inferior.