Racism on this site...

[sleepystudent]

OK, I lurk a lot and barely post. I just read what people are saying and am very occassionally impressed. But some of the racist statements-specifically anti-black(I'm black, FWIW) are really troubling to me. Especially from people who seem to think that because they are self-proclaimed progressives, they are free of any prejudice and only have good intentions. It is all sort of subtle, but I see it and I know it is not in my head. There was a long discussion about sexist language on here-I don't know how that played itself out-but there seems to be a really insensitive streak on here that people dismiss by saying they are angry with what is going on in the country(well, duh) or saying talk is harsh, and you better be able to take it, or saying that people need to lighten up and get a sense of humor(which I have always seen as being white males saying regardless of political affiliation "We are going to say this and you can't do anything about it, so just deal.")

I don't really get the impression this is a very diverse site-I don't think there are a lot of blacks on here. But the term "Uncle Tom" has been thrown around in regards to Powell and Rice. And some criticism has suggested that their race implores them to act a certain way. And this is coming from whites, I'm pretty sure-which suggests that liberal plantation mentality that the blacks better act a certain way and not get too uppity. The same thing happened earlier in the year with Al Sharpton. When he was posing no threat to the favorites, people would praise him for being "articulate"(I don't think an inarticulate person could run for Pres-of course Bush is in office right now) But when he challenged Howard Dean, the claws came out for him especially from the white liberal side and his message was discarded. I think a lot of liberal whites still have this idea that blacks are to act a certain way. There was a "Brown Sugar" thread about Condi Rice on here making fun of her basically for her race-notwithstanding the fact that "Brown Sugar" is a song from the point of view of a slave master discussing his enjoyment of raping black slave women. There was also a thread about Condi being "white" as if black people act one way and whites another and they better not overlap.( I don't like what she has done and who she is affilated with, but I am honestly happy to see a black person make it-period)


The discussion of the Air America radio station taking over a historically black radio section: the complaints of blacks were completely dismissed with the attitude that "well, they shouldn't complain, we had the money, and anyway, we all have the same concerns, so they can just listen to us" Well, no, actually, the concerns are not the same.

There was a thread lamenting the fact that black people have not risen up to support the gay marriage struggle and black people were referred to as "them" as in "Well, they will never help us" -again, this dismissive, essentialist, reductive thinking. And when blacks point out nuances in the conflation of gay rights and the black civil rights movement, they seem to be angrily dismissed on here.(Im gay, too FWIW, and I have conflicted feelings on this whole thing myself)

The dismissal of the South on this site. The South has the largest black population in the country and it is growing as blacks tire of the racism in the Northeast and the West and return home. The most segregated communities in America are almost all in the Northeast and Rust Belt. So if you angrily write off the South, you are writing off the black population as well.

I could go and on, but this is already too long and incoherent and I can just come back and add more later. Just to say that I think people on here need to check themselves more and not think that they are liberal, left, progressive, whatever and that absolves them of all prejudice. I read it every day on here and having "good intentions and a good heart" is starting to just not cut it with me.

I'll be back with more later hopefully.