Here we go again with the same, tired narrative. This "Dear White People/Check Your Privilege" nonsense is no more than SJW sectarian race-baiting. My whole family consists of people from all different ethnicities, with me in particular being a blend of West African (insert ebola joke here) and whatever the hell my mother is (combination of French, Italian, Cajun, Haitian, etc). On the surface, I look "black", so in America, that would be the box I have to check on my college applications. Because of my phenotype, I was subjected to racial slurs (from mostly Hispanics ironically, since I grew up in a border town in the American Southwest), prejudices, and other forms of discrimination. Yet, it didn't stop me from achieving the things I have in life. I didn't throw my hands up and just wallow away in some defeatist cesspool, cursing the heavens above for having melanin. What we think, we become.
Yes, there are levels of racism in this country that are both overt and subtle.
Yes, there are places in this country where people do not have the same economic/social opportunities as everyone else, and that those who are born in shite conditions get a negative start over someone who has born in Suburbia, USA.
Yes, the police and other forms of law enforcement have levels of profiling that may or may not include a particular minority group or groups.
Despite all of these things, do you give up? Do you just accept the idea that you are "inferior", and just conduct yourself EXACTLY how the racists/bigot demagogues say you are? That's weak, man.
Quote: (10-26-2014 09:09 PM)TravelerKai Wrote:
The world has never been fair. That does not mean you have to give up on improving yourself. We could at least play to win the game if nothing more. At least that would ensure you get home safely everyday.
Hit the goddamn nail right on the head. Yes, one could argue that there is still injustice directed towards the Black community. However, what have they done to alleviate some of the burden themselves? Last I checked, murders in South Side Chicago, New Orleans, Philadelphia, etc, are still ridiculously high. Dropout rates are unimpressive. Drug problems, HIV/AIDS percentages (i.e. Google Baton Rouge HIV rates), and percentages of men going to college still need work. You mean to tell me these numbers are simply hyperbole and that the reason for all of these things is simply
The System?
Making movies about other minorities "checking their privilege" does very little in improving the well-being of those who need it most. This unadulterated deluge of victim blaming is terrible beyond measure, corroding the insides of people telling them its okay to sit there and do nothing to improve yourself and/or the community around you. As critical as I'm sounding right now, I do not believe the Black community is without hope. The contributions to culture by the Black community are pretty staggering. Great inventors, idealists, and the like helped to build America into the hegemonic juggernaut it is today. If more people in the less fortunate areas opened a damn history book, being this hopeless damsel in distress wouldn't make sense. Once people realize that the current narrative they are propagating is a losing one, then maybe, JUST maybe, we can move onto greener pastures.