Can Black People Be Racist?

I've been hearing this lately. That black people can't be racist! From TV shows like Black-ish, and Dear White People. The argument is black people can't be racist because racism is a system of disadvantages due to race since blacks can't benefit from such a system; they can't be racist.

What do you guys think?!

 

I honestly did not know the answer when posting this, but I think it's likely that black people can't be racist or any minorities for that matter where (generally) white people are predominant. Because racism is more complex than simple individuals. In this country, when we say, we fight against racism. What do we mean? The racism that black people commit or Asians. Absolutely not. The racism of slavery. The racism of segregation. Against an unfair white society. So yeah, the way racism has always been used does suggest that black people can't be racist. That racism is institutionalized.

 

Dude, seriously whether the situation holds in one case and not the other, isn't the issue. And if your focus is to correct something so trivial, then you're just as bad as everyone else. It's this type of bull that distracts from the issue. It's not meant to apply everywhere, The people who say it don't live everywhere, so why should it apply everywhere. Because it's not meant to. Why folks got to be so literal and look only at the surface. If I go into a room and say "no one's here" and five people are in the room. Does it mean actually no one's there. Absolutely not, it just means no one that I know is there or not a lot of people are there. When they say "black people can't be racist", they are talking about America. (Something that is implied) -Facepalm-

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Racism is alive and well! These court cases prove my point that racism is within our system. That it's associated with power. Minorities don't benefit from such a system so can't be racist! Slavery, Segregation, and Jim Crow were all systems of racism. They weren't individual and never were. It's a social thing, and I'm sure everyone can agree that those three things are indeed racism and are systems or part of one! Below are clips of racism in our legislation.

 

-Facepalm- You guys think black people can be racist but they can't.

Racism isn't just some randos (random people) going around insulting and killing people based on race. It's organized, and it's a repeated pattern. Not only that but Racism keeps the big man on top (Whites) and the little man on bottom (Minorities). That's simple history! You guys are simply saying. All you need to be racist. Is to think one race is better than the other. You're looking at it the wrong way! As a society, we have to look at how racial groups interact with one another. We can't solve anything by looking at one person's action. We can't learn anything by listening to one person's experience. We can't fixed everyone's problem by fixing just one person's view on race. Therefore, racism isn't just one guy/gal's problem. Racism is all of our problems. So doesn't it make sense, that in order to solve a social issue that we have to look at social groups, in this case, racial groups and how they interact with one another. And when we do that, don't we see a pattern of white privileges and oppressed minorities. Don't we see Whites maintaining their status and power by stepping on the backs of Blacks by denying jobs and opportunities. How does addressing race-base discrimination against whites help black or Latinos from being denied jobs and statuses? How does addressing a black man murdering a white man because of the color of his skin, help the unfair treatment of minorities? It doesn't! There is a constant pattern of Whites oppressing minorities and not only that, but its a learned behaviour reinforced by society's favoritism of whites over minorities. There are laws constantly undermining minorities so they can't do shit about it or else they would. One black man in the white house can't undo centuries of racism. It won't undo the disproportionate ratio of power. This is a numbers game and if we don't address racism where it belongs then minorities are skewed, period.

Guys get educated! I know you think you guys are right, but do some research! If racism was such a simple definition and concept, don't you think we would have found a fix by now! Ask yourself if it was as simple as you think it is, why isn't there a fix? Look up "Sociology of Racism" and you'll see that racism isn't something so simple.

So no, @EtherealSummoner, your daddy's side is prejudice not racist.

 

That's true, but so what?! Why bring up some hypothetical scenario. If blacks were the majority and oppressed whites than yes ( which I'm sure they would if they had the power). Whites would be subject to racism. But who cares about some fan-fiction scenario that doesn't address the current situation we are in! Why bring up something that isn't the case?! I heard a women say if "Women were as strong as men, there would be no rape, because they could fight back". Well duh. Some make believe isn't worth discussing. So you shouldn't have brought it up! No one's denying that whoever the majority is, will want to remain on top. The reality of it, is, white people are on top! That was just disappointing to read!

That's why you're part of the problem. You want to generalize everyone and disregard history and the current system. It does matter what race and what country. Because we all aren't treated equal. A Black guys actions against a white man is a punch up while vice-versa it would be punch down. By not making a distinction that a white man's racist antics has more weigh and continues the cycle of power and white privileges is ignoring the issue.

Racism isn't about any few or many black people who have power and make race-base discrimination. It's about the systematic oppression of an entire race and the privileges granted to another. Saying black people can be racist, suggest some type of majority that black people just don't have or oppressiong other races with power they obviously don't have. Saying black people can be racist suggest black people are playing on an even playing field as white people which they aren't. So the answer would be 'no'. They can't be racist. And no one said black folks are saints. Sure they can discriminate on the basis of race, but that doesn't make them racist.

Didn't say political, said societal. And didn't merely say Black vs. White, said minorities, just used Black vs White as an example. Lastly, racism having many faces. Doesn't tell me squat.

Summoner what are you talking about that made no sense whatsoever!

Are Germans not considered white? Anyway, Hitler created a system where Germans oppressed other races (aka racism). I don't see how that disapproves anything. The social construct of race and the systems of other countries aren't comparable to the United States, so why compare the two is beyond me.

 

Saying everyone can be racist is to say all racism is equal when it's not. Which is more offensive, when a black man says "cracker" to a white man or when a white man says "nigger" to a black man. You probably realized that the latter is more offensive. Why do you think that? Because you're probably realizing what racism actually is. The connotation that the n-word has. It has 600 years of black folks being traded as cattle, dehumanized, raped, beaten. Even the word cracker, insinuates how whites cracked the whip. Not making a distinction between such systematic racism and how society reinforces these ideas is true ignorance. Black folks don't contribute to this system of oppression. Therefore, we should make a clear distinction. If their actions had an equal impact as their white counterparts that would be a different story. But it doesn't.

I'm glad racism is such a broad category of emotions that considers that we are all treated equal and live in an equal opportunity society.

You just described racism, more or less. Racism has the backing of a system and pattern of history.

Why bring nationality to a race fight. If you were to give an example of racism shouldn't you give an example of a race.

You do know that Christianity, Judaism, Catholicism, etc are organized religions, right? In other words, institutions. I don't want to give a history lesson on how religion was incorporated within many countries state of government, because I'd like to stay within the context of America. But yeah, religion did / does have institutional power under whatever context of country and time period, it is / was in.

That would make them prejudice, which in this case, bad.

It isn't racism. It's horribly racially motivated. It's prejudice. But not racist. Just because race is involved doesn't make it racist.

 

@Desert Warrior I don't know if that's true, but I hear white people saying black people can't be racist and I see them writing books on it too. So if it's just minorities, I really don't know.

Why are we talking about this. I'm not talking about any ole oppression. I'm talking specifically about oppression that whites have been dealing out since the inception of this country. I don't need people to generalize a specific issue that I'm addressing. I'm not talking about oppressing pregnant women, not talking about oppressing minors or Jews. I'm specifically talking about minorities, specifically blacks. That's peoples' problem. If I'm addressing the issue of cancer. Why would you tell me. All diseases aren't cancer. That's just contributing to the ignorance and avoidance of the issue. I know all oppression isn't racism but I'm not talking about all oppression just one specific oppression. Gosh.

But in fact the way the word racism is used to describe actual racism often refers to prolonged cruelty of whites (majority) against blacks, and some type of power and privilege. If you give me examples of racism, you'll see that it highlights all of the above. A dictionary argument isn't a point. @Desert Warrior has already explained it. The dictionary doesn't tell us how words are used or the negative connotation attached to them. They changed, they are constantly changing, and just because a committee puts it into writing doesn't make it so. I can just as well say the sociological definition of racism says racism is a system in which privileges are given to the majority and minorities are disadvantaged. Now, what did that solve? Absolutely nothing.

Not saying that at all. White people don't have it as bad. White people can be subject to prejudice, they can be discriminated against because of the color of their skin. They can be oppressed. These are all bad things, for sure. But this isn't racism. Because we aren't equal. Those things don't affect the white man's status in society. This doesn't continue some already established cycle of discrimination and advantages the whites dish out and benefit from. A white man can be discriminated against but he'll still benefit from white privileges. What you fail to realize is, minorities are disadvantaged. Therefore, minorities racially motivated antics don't yield the same weight as their white counterparts.