Tuesday, October 30, 2007
My Theory
The issue of racism and how it affects America's youth is one whose severity can be argued. Many people hold the opinion that the issues of violence that have occurred against African American youth are isolated and that racism is not a huge problem in today's society. The few incidents that are made public through the media do not even begin to touch on all the cases of racism that have been present in schools. In order to begin to end the racism in schools, parents and their children must be educated on the topics of accepting others and racial equality. If the future generations are educated, racism can slowly begin to become less of a problem in schools and within youth and then later society as a whole.
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A friend of mine penned a great take on black/white racism which more than anything points out our stubborn stupidity:
"White America looks at the Vietnamese, the Irish, the Jews, and they say, ‘What’s the problem with the blacks?’ The resentment you hear around this town is based on that, not on old ideas of superiority.”
“Do you feel that way?”
“I used to. I don’t anymore.”
“Why not?”
“The Indians.”
“Indians? You mean Native Americans?”
“Think about it. Indians are the only minority that’s had as much trouble as blacks. Why? Both races had their cultures shattered by the white man. All the other groups— Irish, Italians, Vietnamese, whatever— may have come here destitute, but they brought one thing with them. Their national identities. Their sense of self. They congregated together in the cities and on the plains, like with like. They maintained their cultural identities— religions, customs, names— until they were secure enough to assimilate. Blacks had no chance to do that. They were stolen from their country, brought here in chains, sold as property. Their families were split, their religion beaten out of them, their names changed. Nothing was left. No identity. And they’ve never recovered.”
“And you parallel that with Native Americans?”
“It’s the same experience, only in reverse. The Indians weren’t stolen from their land, their land was stolen from them. And their culture was systematically destroyed. They’ve never recovered either, despite a host of government programs to help them.”
“That’s an interesting analogy.”
“If you don’t know who you are, you can’t find your way. There are exceptions, of course. Bright spots. But my point is that whites don’t look at blacks with the right perspective. We look at them like an immigrant group that can’t get its shit together.”
---Greg Iles "The Quiet Game"
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