Anyone who thinks racism isn't perfectly acceptable on this board better look here

[nam78_two]

(its fine as long as it isn't about a group you are likely to be called out about)

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.ph...

The issue being discussed here is without doubt horrific-Indian society (like most around the world) has a long way to go regarding the emancipation of women.

Here is what is not a constructive way of discussing the issue:

a) Saying all Indian men have small penises and hate women
b) "These are the people we are outsourcing jobs to and they are all child murderers."

And I have seen comments of this type on many outsourcing threads and on threads about China too. There is a way of discussing these issues without using broad brush generalizations about countries with a billion+ people.

Anyone making statements like this about Mexico or Iraq would (very rightly) be called out on it. You probably won't be called out mostly for making comments like that about China or India, but is that what this board should be like?

[Jcrowley]

1. Agree

I've seen it denied entirely.

K&R

[nam78_two]

3. Thanks.nt

[NMDemDist2]

2. when you see blatent bigotry please hit the alert key. the Mods can't

watch every post in every thread 24/7

just saying....

[nam78_two]

6. Oh absolutely-it isn't a problem with the mods

Its about how few people in the community call someone out on this.

Aparently racial sensitivity isn't applied across the board.

[LoZoccolo]

4. Criticizing preventable actions is hardly racist.

Are all the threads that criticize American culture (consumerism, driving SUVs, etcetera) racist?

[William769]

9. Bingo!

[nam78_two]

10. I was talking about the tone of the criticism

As I said in the post I am in NO WAY denying that what is being discussed there is some effed up stuff. But there are more constructive ways of discussing it.

[JVS]

16. Do these actions justify labelling all Indians as child-murderers?

[LoZoccolo]

19. That is out of line, I agree. n/t

[JVS]

20. Wow. Agreement in GD. Who'd have thunk it

[951-Riverside]

5. They do have smaller penises

Its a real concern because of the condom failure rates.

"As per international standards, most condoms are 150 mm to 180 mm in length and 44 to 56 mm in width. But data collected in Mumbai till 2001 showed that 60% of the participants measured 126 to 156 mm in length and 30% between 100 and 125 mm,"said a city researcher, pointing out that there was a difference of at least 5 cm in length.

Read more here: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Cities/Mumbai/Indian...

[nam78_two]

8. So saying they hate women because they have smaller penises is fine?

[SlipperySlope]

12. Of course not

Having small penises doesn't lead to hating women. That is silly.

[LoZoccolo]

7. P.S.: IBTL!!!!!!!11111

[SlipperySlope]

11. Small Penis != Hate Women

I don't know where the poster got that. There is no evidence that having a small penis leads to hating women.

[maxsolomon]

13. xenophobia & predjudice are universal constants

especially when "they took our jerbs" enters the picture as it does with india & china. expecting 100% not-rascism anywhere on this planet is unrealistic.

the fact that you're calling out those practicing it on this board is proof that it isn't "perfectly acceptable".

oh, and per Wikipedia: "Racism is commonly defined as a belief or doctrine where inherent biological differences among the various human races determine cultural or individual achievement, with a corollary that one's own race is superior and has the right to rule others."

do you mean Bigotry?

Per Wikipedia: "A bigot is a prejudiced person who is intolerant of opinions, lifestyles, or identities differing from his or her own. The origin of the word in English dates back to at least 1598, via Middle French, and started with the sense of religious hypocrite, especially a woman.

Bigot is often used as a pejorative term against a person who is obstinately devoted to their prejudices even when these views are challenged or proven to be false. Forms of bigotry may have a related ideology or world views."

[nam78_two]

15. I guess "bigotry" fits the bill more

I have seen comments about "those disgusting Indian accents" in the outsourcing threads .

[Gormy Cuss]

18. Thank you.

Too often "racism" is used when "bigotry" is the more appropriate description, not that either is acceptable.

[demnan]

14. I thought some of the posts

were harsh on that one. That's why I tried to remind people that this is a society which suffers a lot of poverty and perhaps killing one child who would cost money was better than killing them all.

We do need to address how we think about cultures which are vastly different than ours. I believe that arranged marriages are the cause of much of the problem here.

[acmavm]

17. Some people are being overbroad in their condemnation of

a brutal and barbaric practice that is quite widespread in the country in question. No, not everyone aborts or kills their female children. Just a lot of them do.

If I could give an award out once a week for the best 'understatement', you certainly would get it hands down.

<snip>
Indian society (like most around the world) has a long way to go regarding the emancipation of women.
<snip>

I do not believe that even comes close to the actual circumstances (from the previous thread):

Ten million girls have been killed by their parents in India in the past 20 years, either before they were born or immediately after, a government minister said on Thursday, describing it as a "national crisis".

Those poor girls have been emancipated right out of this world.

[lukasahero]

21. The Indian thread is difficult

I absolutely agree with you that there are some horrible remarks made there, however, I also have to admit that, being female, I wonder how many of those who are "justifying" the behavior being discussed are doing so because it's "only" girls that are being killed. "It's the culture", "it's the poverty" is an easy way for us to dismiss our responsibility. (Which came first, the chicken or the egg?)

Between racism and sexism in this country and this board, we have a long way to go to enlightenment. DU is not known for it's ability to sensitively discuss complex issues that demand nuance and diplomacy to address. It's not a fault of DU but of larger communities in general.

Given the number of "us" vs. "them" threads here these days, how can we still be surprised when we see racism, sexism, all-sorts-of-isms displayed in all their glory even among "progressives"? Those of us who see it and acknowledge it for what it is have an obligation to step up and speak out against it.

[Bobbieo]

22. If Indians persist in killing female babies

pretty soon, no more Indians!

[lukasahero]

23. Did you mean to reply to me?

I guess I should at least thank you for proving my point about how DU isn't really known for being able to discuss difficult situations with the nuance required.