The race to a race-free world….
felixwas has a great take on the persistence of racist barriers in America over at . The following is my comment on that thread, xposted here for those who might miss the 5e exchange otherwise.
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Some of this is obviously bad – very bad – despite the fact that a question like “If I ask to see the manager of a store, I can be reasonably sure that person will be of the same race as I am?” is reflective of basic demographic math than it is racism. With that one, I find myself wanting to explore deeper, instead asking whether we have evidence anywhere on the planet of a minority population comprising 15% or less of the total being treated in a genuinely equal fashion. If we do, then we have a model. If we don’t, then it’s not promising for blacks, is it?
I also try to take some heart in the fact that, as far as we still have to go, the US has at least shown some general interest in getting it right compared to other cultures. I’ve been following the whole racism in Euro football issue for awhile now – I’m a big soccer fan and watch as much English, Italian, German and Spanish league football as I can – and it’s really true that as bad as racism is in the US, it’s a damned sight worse over there.
I first realized something was up in 2000 when we were in Italy and I saw swastikas spray-painted in a number of public spots. More recently there have been a series of well-publicized stories, including:
- goddamned Paolo DiCanio saying he’s a fascist, not a racist, and Berlusconi more or less backing him; next time I’m in Italy I’ll be sure to seek out all the black and Jewish fascists roaming the streets of Roma raprazentin’ Dachau, motherfucker;
- Espanyol has suspended two fans for racially abuse of Barcelona’s goalie, who’s from Cameroon;
- Samuel Eto’o of Barcelona, one of the most brilliant talents in the world, almost walked off the pitch during a February game with Real Zaragoza because of rampant racist abuse from the Zaragoza fans; UEFA, the governing body of Euro football, reacted swiftly, levying a fine of €9000 (that’s $10,975.94 US at today’s exchange rate); no word on whether the Primera Liga club paid directly out of the petty cash box.
It was wonderful to see one of England’s top players, Manchester United and national side defender Rio Ferdinand, step up to call UEFA out:
England’s Rio Ferdinand has launched a scathing attack on UEFA for what he sees as a failure to stamp out racism.
He backs a European Parliament resolution calling on referees to be able to abandon matches where supporters make racist taunts.
The 28-year-old Manchester United star said: “It is time for UEFA to stop paying lip service to the problem.
“UEFA should look at imposing huge fines or deducting points within tournaments or competitions.”
FIFA imposed a £44,750 fine on the Spanish FA after Shaun Wright-Phillips and Ashley Cole were the target for monkey chants during last year’s friendly with England in Madrid.
Ferdinand said: “The fines handed out after the England-Spain game were a joke.
“For too long now, European football authorities have not taken the problem of racism in the game seriously and refuse to acknowledge how widespread the problem is.
He couldn’t be more right, although so far UEFA hasn’t shown that it has any intention of getting serious about the problem.
All of which is to say that as bad as it is in the US, it’s worse elsewhere. I’d like it if we could make more headway faster toward becoming the first society in the world to drive racism of all sorts into extinction (or at least get it on the endangered species list). We lead the world in so many categories – wouldn’t that be a nice one to be known for?
lullaby pit 
Thanks, Sam, for your thoughtful response. I’m not sure if the example questions I cited were the best examples from the list, but I hope the questions at least pointed in the direction of white privilege.
My friend the mediastar and I are nearing the end of a series of weekly workshops on racism in America, and it’s been an enlightening yet troubling experience. It’s compelled me to confront things (some of them inside my head) that I either refused to admit were there or denied were there, and some of that stuff is ugly. It’s also compelled me to better acknowledge the extent of racism in our nation today. But the theme of the workshop is that racism is a disease, which makes it easier for me to deal with the stuff that’s in my head, because no one makes a choice to catch a communicable disease. And I know that my case is confined to my head; it hasn’t spread to my heart. And now that I recognize the symptoms, I can work on the cure. That’s progress, I hope.
At the end of your post, you say, “I’d like it if we could make more headway faster toward becoming the first society in the world to drive racism of all sorts into extinction …” Amen to that. Until the workshops started in early February, though, I’d been content to sit on the sidelines, having convinced myself that since I wasn’t living a racist life, I wasn’t part of the problem and therefore was contributing to its demise. But as the saying goes, “If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem.” I’m trying to stand now on the left side of the comma in that sentence.
And by responding so thoughtfully to my post, you’ve helped, too, because other people will think about what you say, which may lead them to respond, or think, or act. Thanks.
Thanks, Sam, for your thoughtful response. I’m not sure if the example questions I cited were the best examples from the list, but I hope the questions at least pointed in the direction of white privilege.
My friend the mediastar and I are nearing the end of a series of weekly workshops on racism in America, and it’s been an enlightening yet troubling experience. It’s compelled me to confront things (some of them inside my head) that I either refused to admit were there or denied were there, and some of that stuff is ugly. It’s also compelled me to better acknowledge the extent of racism in our nation today. But the theme of the workshop is that racism is a disease, which makes it easier for me to deal with the stuff that’s in my head, because no one makes a choice to catch a communicable disease. And I know that my case is confined to my head; it hasn’t spread to my heart. And now that I recognize the symptoms, I can work on the cure. That’s progress, I hope.
At the end of your post, you say, “I’d like it if we could make more headway faster toward becoming the first society in the world to drive racism of all sorts into extinction …” Amen to that. Until the workshops started in early February, though, I’d been content to sit on the sidelines, having convinced myself that since I wasn’t living a racist life, I wasn’t part of the problem and therefore was contributing to its demise. But as the saying goes, “If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem.” I’m trying to stand now on the left side of the comma in that sentence.
And by responding so thoughtfully to my post, you’ve helped, too, because other people will think about what you say, which may lead them to respond, or think, or act. Thanks.
Those of us who’ve been studying and yammering about memetics for awhile are bound to appreciate the idea that racism is a disease.
While I might not see it as such in a clinical sense, it’s really valuable to understand how ideas – good and bad – are very like viruses. Once you get that metaphor in your head, it makes it a lot easier to see the importance of things like inoculation and the incredible value of people like you and , who are kind of like doctors in the battle against the disease…
Those of us who’ve been studying and yammering about memetics for awhile are bound to appreciate the idea that racism is a disease.
While I might not see it as such in a clinical sense, it’s really valuable to understand how ideas – good and bad – are very like viruses. Once you get that metaphor in your head, it makes it a lot easier to see the importance of things like inoculation and the incredible value of people like you and , who are kind of like doctors in the battle against the disease…
The trouble with the memetics model is that, if you go back far enough, the roots of the meme are in the gene so to speak. Difference, in and of itself, is sufficient.
Take Nigeria for instance. We have 126 million people of effectively the same colour. One would think there’d be no discrimination amongst ourselves – and one would be wrong. Leaving aside the frequent violence between Muslim and Christian (which pretty much breaks down to Hause vs. Igbo), the tribes all exhibit racist tendencies toward each other. Hell, even within tribes, people have a problem letting their kid marry someone who speaks a different dialect of the same language.
Point being, racism is not a battle that can be won, only fought and fought well.
The trouble with the memetics model is that, if you go back far enough, the roots of the meme are in the gene so to speak. Difference, in and of itself, is sufficient.
Take Nigeria for instance. We have 126 million people of effectively the same colour. One would think there’d be no discrimination amongst ourselves – and one would be wrong. Leaving aside the frequent violence between Muslim and Christian (which pretty much breaks down to Hause vs. Igbo), the tribes all exhibit racist tendencies toward each other. Hell, even within tribes, people have a problem letting their kid marry someone who speaks a different dialect of the same language.
Point being, racism is not a battle that can be won, only fought and fought well.
Hause
I of course meant Hausa. Sorry.
Hause
I of course meant Hausa. Sorry.
I don’t believe there is a cure for racism.
It’s a disease like AIDS and cancer. There is no cure; all we can do is treat the symptoms.
I don’t believe there is a cure for racism.
It’s a disease like AIDS and cancer. There is no cure; all we can do is treat the symptoms.
Pause for reflection…
…and that’s always a good thing. I’d love to hear more about the workshop; was it presented for a specific audience, ie. workplace, or was it a community event? How well-attended was it, and would you say, ultimately, it achieved it’s goal? (beyond what you personally experienced)
Pause for reflection…
…and that’s always a good thing. I’d love to hear more about the workshop; was it presented for a specific audience, ie. workplace, or was it a community event? How well-attended was it, and would you say, ultimately, it achieved it’s goal? (beyond what you personally experienced)