Racism.....real or just hype?

Question

I address this becaue I am friends with several people of different backgrounds. I have known them most of my life. None of them really concern themselves with the racism issue. In fact, one mentioned that the 'Race Card' is often played to acquire an advantage in a given situation. People will often back off when being accused of being even remotely racist or racially insensitive.
If you're black, Chinese, Asian, Jewish etc....just because you may have been called a name before, does that mean that there is this huge "racial" problem is society? Or, is the hype created and pushed along more for the industry it creates. It keeps the Al Sharptons of the world in business.
On a side note, whites get called names and accused of this and that everyday....yet you hear little complaining about it...even when whites are the minority.
Personally, I think that it is more hype than actual fact.

Answer 1

God......real or just hype? any question such as this, depends on were your at in the world, your state of mind, past experiences, how much you believe the things you here etc.. You say that it is more hype, but have you experienced it. Just like do you believe in God, if yes then have you seen god, if not then why would a person believe or not believe.

Answer 2

Probably, but other races besides yours have experienced great racial issues in the past, while yours has hardly had any - in fact, according to real written history, whites (no offense with the racial distinguishing) have, more often than not, been the cause of such racial trauma.

But I agree when you say that too many people use the "Race Card" you speak of in insignificant situations. Yes, there is a lot of hype.

I'm brown Asian, a Filipino, btw, and I remember once, there was this anti-Filipino letter going around the Internet. So yes, my friend, sadly, racism is still very much alive.

Answer 3

well man it's a problem in some areas and not in others. I'm hispanic and my high school was primarily hispanic but I did have a few white friends there as well. I've lived all over the United States and even Germany because my dad was in the Air Force. I never really heard much about racism and thought it was a joke towards hispanics. Then I moved a little further up into central Texas and maybe experienced just 1 racist instance but heard of so many that I couldnt believe. Texas A&M has tons of international students and unfortunately there is an instance of racism and attacks at the bars and what not.

So all in all I think its a matter of time before you witness the harsh realities that many individuals still have to go through in our new age.

Answer 4

I don't think racism is hype. I think it is still alive and very well embedded in the U.S. However, it is not a monopoly of whites, like in previous generations. Now all races are culprits.

I think that, while racism does exist, we assume it exists more than it actually does. We often go into situations with the assumption that a person is a racist without any basis. I've done it. I've went into a bar that would be considered "red neck" and assumed most there were not too thrilled I was there. True, some probably weren't, but there were many who made me feel welcome. And most of the times it was the ones who I thought would be racist.

I definitely think racism exists, but most poeple hide these feelings and go on to have actual friendships and relationships with people of other races. Eventually, some of these racists end up denouncing some of their views, while some maintain them.

The other day, for instance, a woman commented on my looks and told me I was pretty blah blah blah. She was a white woman. She went on to discuss race with the guy she was sitting next to and used the word "negroid" while calling other races by their specific nationalities like Welsh, Irish, Asian, Native American etc. But blacks were just "negroids."

This is the type of subtle racism that is still very much alive.

Answer 5

I agree with you but I disagree with you. I have personally experienced racism on more than one occassion. I think that overt racism is what exisited before, until just after the Civil Rights Era, and then covert racism took its place.
Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson are not valid to me. They have done nothing significant for African Americans and have time and time again chosen the wrong battles to fight to propel their own ambition. They are what I call symbolic leaders.
White people do not complain about the racism against them because they don't have to. Either way, they are still the majority and still have what they call "White Priviledge". This does not mean that what whites suffer is in any way acceptable. A double standard does exist.
As far as the race card, yes, I think some have used it to their advantage. But, I think its use is justified, because of starting off at a disadvantage.

Answer 6

I think its a bit of both.There is real racism. There is also a lot of knee-jerking over reaction that is pushed by minority leaders, to gain a following.
Rascism is not an exclusive whiles only club. There are rascists of every race. After 9/11, approached me spewing forth anti-Arab rascism.
There is even racism within the racial groups. This is based on the perceived racial "purity" of an individual, with those that are more "pure" believing the less pure are inferior.
Then there are situations where racism gives preferred treatment to the minority. Not including the effect of Afirmative Action, ther are many jobs where preference is given to a minority applicant. Have you ever eaten at a Chinese restaurant operated by a caucasian staff? Or a Mexican restaurant run by Arabs? (actually an Lebanese friend of mine and his family operated a Mexican restaurant for many years. Most of the customers assumed he was Hispanic.)
I can go on and on about this. In America today, thanks largely to the media, it has become legal only for white anglo saxon males (preferably from the south) to be the target of racists.

Answer 7

Racism is not really what it is, Racism is really fear and insecurity. Anyone with a mind to reason know that they cannot look at another human being, who looks very similar to them with only minor differences, and call them subhuman. If so then they are calling themselves subhuman. Racism is really about fear, uncertainty, laziness, apathy, and ignorance. We all have our cultural differences and even broken as far down as to our immediate family culture. We all do things differently no matter what ethnic background we are from. Just because someone is of the same color as you does not mean that you will have more in common with that individual. I have found that to be very true. One of my closest friends is a beige woman and I am brown. Does color and hair texture really matter when you get down to the human experience. NO! it does not, they are minor details that should not keep us seperated and really they don't, it is the fear within that keeps us seperated, it is the laziness of not coming out of our comfort zones to get to know people who are different, it is the uncertainty of rejection that we don't want to experience, it is living in an apathetic mindset that tells you, you reaching out will not make a differnece when in fact it makes a huge difference, it is ignorance and not educating ourselves on human behavior and cultural diversity.
So, racism really is not a real thing, it is easier and safer for us to say we dislike another group of people rather than make ourselves vulnerable and admit our own shortcomings.

Answer 8

In some places it is a reality.
The race card is a reality I have seen, and I know certain people have carved out quite a nice living because they are masters at hype and public speaking.
Whites get blasted also, as if they themselves were responsible for someone else's personal failures.
It's a blame game, but prejudism does exist.

Answer 9

Yes, there will ALWAYS be racists of some sort or other.

The proper response to this fact is, "So what?" Even if we were all from the same tribe, there are ALWAYS going to be people who have some advantage or difference from you -- how much money their family has, or what neighborhood they grew up in, what point in history they were born, etc. And there are always going to be individuals who are going to say they're better than people who grew up in THAT neighborhood, or from THAT era, or whatever.

And so what?

Answer 10

Ever heard of the KKK, they have been all over the newspapers lately because they are bringing their meetings back out into the public. Many of my family members are racist, they do not like blacks or Mexicans. But they grew up in the South during the Civil War. Personally, I have no prejudices, I have had friends from all over the world like Jamaica, Brazil, Australia, S. Korea, China, Japan, Mexico, England, and many more I'm sure.