Quote:
Originally posted by JRutledge
I guess I will never understand why mostly people of privilege can never just say, "my bad."
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What, or who is a "person of privilege"? Who gets to make that determination? Is it strictly based on skin color? I'm not asking these things to be confrontational, but to try and understand the overall picture, because I'm a relatively simplistic person. Do you see me, as a white, middle-aged guy, as a person of privilege? From what I've read, you have a sales position, which the odds are you make more money than me, and you hold some positions in both your local official's associations and the IHSA. Doesn't that put you in a position of privilege over me? So, if I feel uncomfortable by your words and actions based on my skin color, would you feel comfortable taking your own advice and saying, "my bad"?
Remember, I'm a simplistic person in a complicated world. When I grew up, racism was the intentional putting down of a person or group based on their heritage or skin color. It seems as though racism has evolved, however, from intent to perception. The intent to put someone down no longer is the sole criteria for racism, but whether someone feels put down or held back. That's the basic idea behind the Chief Illiniwek issue here at Illinois. The Chief supporters fell the intent of the symbol is a positive portrayal of an honored tradition. The Chief opponents feel ashamed the mascot uses a religious dance in a way that degrades Indians and their traditions. The reason this issue continues is both sides are right, to some extent. The Chief supporters' intent is positive, but the Chief opponents' perception is negative. So, who's more right?
I went to a funeral this weekend for a neighbor of mine who was also the father of one of my daughter's friends. We were one of the few white families at this all-black Baptist church. I felt a little uncomfortable, which (I know I'm making an assumption) is probably not much different than what JRut feels going to ref at an all-white suburban school. Uncomfortable because I was not around people "like me". So, it got me wondering: how come people didn't come up and talk to us? Were they ignoring us because we were different than them? The more I thought about it though, the more I wondered if it was because I was a little over-sensitive. After all, if I had been in the same situation in an all-white church, no one would've come up and talked to us simply because we didn't know anyone there, except the immediate family. I could take my experience and feel slighted and perhaps a victim of racisim, or perhaps look at it in a more realistic light and not feel victimized, because there was no clear and obvious intent to ignore us or put us down.
I with Chuck for the most part - if you feel like a victim, you are a victim. And that is the trend in society today. But it seems that is as though if you take away a lot of the victim mentality, a lot of the so-called racism will go away. That's not to say it's gone, but I wonder how much is victim-mentality and how much is genuine, ugly intent? Isn't intent the main issue?