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Pessimists R Us
I take the train to work. From the train station I take a bus to my lab. The bus stop is roughly a half mile and gives me a pleasant walk each way. Yesterday evening it was misting rain and chilly, but not horribly so. I began my walk to the bus stop like any other day.
Two different drivers offered me a ride. One fellow in an SUV pulled a u-turn so he could make sure I was okay. "No one should have to walk in the rain," he said. I thanked both of them but declined. How nice of them to stop. Sometimes people surprise me. Happy thoughts.
After I arrived at the bus stop I watched the regulars walk up; a young black man, a scruffy long-haired white man, and the usual group of Mexican-American men and women from the nearby businesses. All walking up...
Did anyone stop to offer them a ride or is that still one of the "bonuses" of being an innocuous-looking white woman? How much progress have we really made? Is it ever going to get better? Is it better anywhere else? Is it even possible to combat racism or are we horribly inevitably fucked?
Two different drivers offered me a ride. One fellow in an SUV pulled a u-turn so he could make sure I was okay. "No one should have to walk in the rain," he said. I thanked both of them but declined. How nice of them to stop. Sometimes people surprise me. Happy thoughts.
After I arrived at the bus stop I watched the regulars walk up; a young black man, a scruffy long-haired white man, and the usual group of Mexican-American men and women from the nearby businesses. All walking up...
Did anyone stop to offer them a ride or is that still one of the "bonuses" of being an innocuous-looking white woman? How much progress have we really made? Is it ever going to get better? Is it better anywhere else? Is it even possible to combat racism or are we horribly inevitably fucked?
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well there are no easy answers to those questions...so i'll give you my opinion on the matter. we have undoubtably made progress in the last 100 years...i imagine i'm not going to get any argument on that. have we made enough progress? not in the least. and while i believe it's entirely possible to combat racism, the real struggle is ending institutionalized racism. it's inherently important for individuals to be anti-racist (the idea and practice of being opposed to racism, recognizing racism within yourself and working to change and lessen the degrees to which racism plays a part of life...that's how i understand the term anyways. it's a much more complex idea than the idealistic un-racist one). but fighting racism on an individual level isn't going to elicit change in the long run...there have been some obvious legal and educational advances, but the truth is that our society continues to be completely intrenched in institutional racism (and sexism and homophobia and biais based on socio-economic status, etc). in fact, i would argue that these structures of inequality can not be adaquately destroyed and deconstructed in a capitalist society, which kind of gets back to possibly being inevitably fucked on this issue. on yet the other hand, i do think that things will continue to imporove throughout my life...institutions can and do change on the deepest level, as do people. i have hope (but not if republicans run this country. then we are just fucked).
that's my two cents.
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in fact, i would argue that these structures of inequality can not be adaquately destroyed and deconstructed in a capitalist society
i look around the world and wonder if it can be deconstructed in any society. is it so deeply ingrained in our primate brains to separate into groups of "us" and "them" that we'll never overcome it? i wonder.
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do you mean subtle things that are not exactly a person's own racism (or whatever "ism")? i guess that's where i start considering something to be institutionalized, to be part of an institution's structure. those are really, i think, the hardest to identify, the hardest to figure out where to start to change, and the hardest to actually change. it's all really tricky and very well hidden, as historically based and grounded things usually are.
i look around the world and wonder if it can be deconstructed in any society. is it so deeply ingrained in our primate brains to separate into groups of "us" and "them" that we'll never overcome it? i wonder.
i actually don't know if a society that already has established roots in discriminitory structures can ever really be deconstructed and overcome to the full degree. the concept of difference is not the problem. it's when you go from the idea of difference to the "us" vs. "them" scenerio that you run into problems. i don't think humans by nature are discriminatory, nor do i really think that it's inherant to place subtle differences in separate groups...large differences (like different species, etc) i think might be more natural. very young children are incredibly open minded...but from a very young age children are taught to find the "other," and i think in many ways through identifying the other and focusing so much emphasis on what is different, coupled with the historically and socially grounded systems of discrimination, people in most "developed" or "developing" countries keep re-creating the same systems over and over again. i think the concept of overcoming racism (in this case) is such a big idea that it's almost completely inconceivable truly. i would think it's a matter of steps upon steps upon steps and then the necessity for not taking any steps backward and continually bringing up next generations in the ways that counteract.
i think my "knock me old" cold medicine has kicked in because i don't even know what i'm trying to say anymore...hope that makes some sort of sense (at least maybe just a tiny bit). obviously this is all speculatory theories, etc etc. i'm just a sociologist who has lost all her fun big words.
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I had a post on racism and how it affects me a while back and got some pretty interesting responses about other people's experiences.
Personally, I think the only way to combat racism in the "civilized" world is to take every child away from their parents and raise them in a big nursery run by androids representing every race and culture until they are about 10 years old.
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Personally, I think the only way to combat racism in the "civilized" world is to take every child away from their parents and raise them in a big nursery run by androids representing every race and culture until they are about 10 years old.
Strangely enough, that's about the most logical reaction I've heard.
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For me, my assumptions of 'others' were most challenged when I lived in places other than my hometown (Cleveland) and when I dealt with coming out. Living in new places gave me exposure to soooo mnay different people/cultures and I learned a lot of my assumptions. I would be such a different person had I not left Cleveland.
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Perhaps it was more of a damsel in distress kind of phenomenon?
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I'm having a Perry Farrel kind of day. Humans suck, but "we'll make great pets." It'll pass soon.
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And you were even wearing your cool leather jacket. He should've been intimidated! ;-)
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Knowing, as we do, how quickly those perceptions can evaporate when they realize we're Godless Lesbians! *gasp* was partly what led to my deep feeling of cynicism and misanthropy. Usually I expect better things from people. Some days they just really let me down.
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You're one of those Godless Lesbians!
:)
Maintaining that fine tradition of 90% of the women simon knows being gay. :)
And personally I think it's a gender thing. If I see a woman hitching, I'll stop and pick her up every time, no matter what colour she is. Colour just isn't an issue.
Whereas I won't stop and pick up men. Which, I don't think it's a sexist thing. But it might be.
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Maintaining that fine tradition of 90% of the women simon knows being gay. :)
Which maintains the tradition that 80% of the men I know have many lesbian friends. ;)
And I don't think it's necessary a sexist thing, either. But wouldn't it be lovely to live in a world where anyone walking along the road-- be it man, woman, something in between, and of any color imaginable-- would be offered a ride? Just because helping each other was the societal norm.
Do you think we'll ever get there?
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And yes, it would be nice to live in that world. Where people help out. But, we have too much fear. Which is terribly terribly sad, because I'm fairly certain the psychopathic hitch-hiker is probably in the minority.
He said, tempting fate.
Do I think we'll ever get there? No. Fear is endemic to the human soul, and I don't see how we can ever change that.
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True. It doesn't help matters when, in this country, our government actively tries to brew more fear and distrust. This "homeland security" and "terror alert level" nonsense serve no purpose but to keep us all afraid.
Which could arguably be their true purpose. Have you seen the movie Bowling for Columbine by Michael Moore?
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And yes, I have seen Bowling for Columbine. And while I disagree with one or two of his points, I do agree about the fear thing.
As does Hunter apparently. And if Hunter thinks it, then, there must be something in it. :(
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I haven't felt this alienated since (guess when) the Reagan administration.
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These days I'm into people a lot more than I'm into countries. But, that's just me. I have odd ideas about things sometimes. :)
So, do you feel confident that Dubya is going to be thrown out on his ear at the next election?
Assuming of course that some spurious 'State of Emergency' isn't declared, and the next presidential elections actually happen.
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People here aren't happy with Dubya right now, and there's a good chance he'll get the boot next year.This is provided the Democratic party doesn't totally fuck up before then. *crosses fingers*
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