OT--Michael,
<<Whether or not the general public or media acknowledges the realities of today's world, racism exists in America. It's nasty face shows itself all to often.>>
I think I'll just stand by my statement. As for racism, let's understand what we're talking about here. Racism is very simply the belief that RACE MATTERS. It can be positive (Always get a Jewish surgeon) or negative, but it is simply the belief that race matters. There will always be racism in this sense, but that doesn't mean that race is a bar to economic success. Remember Oceola McCarty, the cleaning woman who saved over $4 million, if I recall correctly, and gave it to a college for scholarships.
And racism does a lot of damage, but I would posit that it is not "white on black" racism which does the damage, but, like crime, it is the black on black, or brown on brown, racism that keeps people from achieving what they might be able to achieve otherwise. Now, in the age of the internet, we have no idea who we are talking to. I might be a Sri Lankan, or a Tamil, or Burgundian or a hick from French Lick.
The most recent ethnic group to strike it rich in our country are the subcontinentals from India and Pakistan. They are quite visible these days on talk shows, running tech companies, venture capital groups. The WSJ had a story today about a 45 year old Indra Somebody, now in charge of about 3/4 of Pepsi/Quaker's business. Front page news. What, Michael, do you think people didn't notice she was an Indian, a curry-eater in a sari? Of course they did, and to some people, it might have mattered, but not to most. And certainly not to the people who made the decisions.
If you want to hear statements embracing racism, that is, that race counts, above all else, then listen to the received wisdom in the inner cities and the barrios, amigo, there you will hear the software that race counts, that white people are like such and such, that wanting things like good grades, a degree in Chemistry from Duke, medical school, etc. is somehow acting the gringo--that's where the battle is won and lost. And it is there that you will hear, most often, racist judgments about white people, how dishonest they are, how untrustworthy, how bland, how boring and dull, how undeserving, how conniving.
If you want to hear racism at work, get behind a secret mirror and have an ethnic couple (choose your ethnicity, any ethnicity other than white) approached with the idea that they might want to adopt a white child, or a white special needs child. Just see what the couple might have to say on that topic.
In my neighborhood, by the way, within an area of 20 houses, we have one adopted Korean child, one adopted (blind) Thai child, one adopted foster child (abuse), one adopted Chinese granddaughter and two adopted fetal alcohol syndrome grandchildren. All the adopters were white, by the way, and all except one had children of their own. I realize this is anecdotal evidence, but nevertheless it is true. |
