why is racism considered congruent to ignorance?

Question

Racism is in fact not ignorance or stupidity at all, it is merely a manifestation of hatred and anger. (of course theoretically racism cannot exist there being no races from a DNA standpoint however the ideology is certainly extant.) Racism is a tool it unites nations (though rarely with a positive end result) - think Germany and now North Korea and China. Simply, my argument is this: racism cannot be ignorance because the "truth" that all men are created equal is arbitrary and relatively dependant upon the society, therefore racism as we know it is merely a manifestation of sociological circumstance and not ignorance or stolid intellect - both of which are incorrect connotations. If you have an opposing view or just a thoughtful opinion please divulge.

Answer 1

I agree....some of the most intelligent people or nations are filled with racism and they have full knowledge of the human structure and well as social structures........racism has More to do with ascribed status.....(a self imposed arrogance). But if you choose to ignore the fact that all humans DO have the same DNA structure (therefore created equal) and you still deem others as sub-human then ignorance comes into play....to have the information and choose to ignore it, or to never had the information..... is ignorance......

Answer 2

Racism can be considered a manifestation of sociological circumstances. Most racists are ignorant of other races because they are uneducated about that race. Sociology helps us understand the way people in different groups interact with one another. Peoples ideas and lives are developed by their surroundings. If you're surrounded by people who hate white people, then ceteris paribus, although they have never meet a white person, they also learn, out of ignorance, to hate white people. Racism doesn't unite nations it unites groups in that nation. Your writing about "the 'truth' that all men are created equal..." is a pointless remark because as you said "it's dependent upon the society". Not every society has a constitution or statue that states that all men are created equal.

Answer 3

Racism is a result of ignorance and xenophobia. But even in societies which are predominately the same race people will find a way to divide themselves.

Consider that many of the same terms used to categorize Blacks in the US have been applied to Catholics in Ireland by Protestants. We find it ridiculous that some would believe that because they are Catholic some Irish are lazy, or stupid. They score lower on test and have lower social economic status because they have been historically disadvantaged.

Fact is the dominate group always want to retain that position. And it is easy to stereotype those who are unlike you and attribute the worst characteristics to those who are least like you or who are the greatest threat to your position.

When you look historically at Racism, sexism, classicism or religious discrimination it's difficult to conclude it is due to anything other than ignorance.

Answer 4

I believe there are two types of racism. One that truly is defined to a consistently defined type of people and another americanized form based on skin color. When based on skin color along I believe it goes hand in hand with ignorance because it is often involved in a sociological or caste system. It requires a mob or government coordinated campaign of misinformation and/or ignorance. When racism is clearly say Koreans versus Japanese then it makes evolutionary sense. If you don't see it, Koreans and Japanese look distinctly different. As a person you want to get with those who share your genetic interest. But racism based solely on skin color is plain stupid. Check out the United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind case on the wikipedia link.

Answer 5

Society may not agree on what is and what is not racist, but I think that modern Western culture has come to the conclusions that 1) Racism is negative and either its presence or perception of presence can undermind and hurt society, and 2) That to best utilize the available talent pool in a competitive world and society- we need to eliminate sexism and racism.

With that said- the arguments and analyzing of racism and its causes has been dumbed down to simple terms and small bite-size assumptions.

Answer 6

Racism is a pretty much natural thing and it takes conscious effort and teaching to turn it around in our collective heads. I explain: Given that you are brought up without exposure to any community outsiders. Your primal survival reaction would be to recoil if suddenly confronted by a stranger, especially more so if a stranger of another race. Of course, if you are brought up in a rainbow neighborhood you might not have this reaction. The point here is that racial suspicion is the natural state of affairs. It has to be unlearned by most of us.

Answer 7

I agree with much of what you have said. I would add though that ignorance can be defined as the absence of understanding and experience. In my town there are absolutely no African Americans. This contributes to a lack of understanding the African American issues that confront much of the country. Without the contact with African Americans, our local citizens are more likely to draw conclusions on racism based on heresay and not on personal experience. Thus, the "ignorance" or lack of experience contributes to the spread of racism. Also, people tend to be afraid of what they don't understand or don't know. People here are generally afraid of minorities because they have little contact with them. So I believe ignorance can contribute to racism. But congruent? No.

Answer 8

Racism is ignorance. It is odd how religious people are often so racist because racism is against Jesus and the Bible. It is hateful and disgusting. The unfortunate thing is that a lot of people who are supposedly countering racism are just being racist toward a different skin color. I personally try to love all colors that people come in, and when others can't do that it is sad.

Answer 9

Well, What is ignorance? In this case it's lacking knowledge to accept and respect everyone regardless of their race. I agree this does stem from negativity, but contrast only exists to help clarify what we are truly wanting. So, if you lack clarity, you lack true knowledge. If you lack knowledge about a subject, you're ignorant about the subject. So, to answer your question, This is why Racism = Ignorance
It's been fun!

Answer 10

maximum declare that they hate the different team because of the fact they only don't understand them, for this reason the lack of expertise declare. even if if maximum folk of racists that I even have met got here from backgrounds the place racism become no longer taught and formed comments of distinctive races in keeping with movements set forth by ability of those contributors. So lack of expertise won't be able to rightly be claimed in all cases.