A Theory of Racism

Discussion in 'Ethics, Morality, & Justice' started by nameless, Sep 4, 2005.

  1. nameless Registered Senior Member

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    I would posit that we are everyone racists. We are either recovering, deliberately practicing, ingorantly practicing, or in denial and practicing.

    I suggest that once upon a time, when a member of our family/clan/village saw someone comming through the woods from another family/clan/village, it was probably to kill the men and children, take the 'goods' and the 'wimmin folk'. Other 'families', considering various genetic differences, looked different. Not like 'us'. I posit that there is 'hard wiring' in us all that when we see someone that looks 'different' then we do, little red lights go on, adrenaline might be pumped, etc... In other words, an attavistic survival instinct. No longer of realistic use, like the appendix that is no longer necessary to process pterodactyl liver... *__-

    So, if 'civilized', we deliberately squash this particular (animal nature) 'survival instinct' that is no longer validly necessary whenever it rears it's ugly head, or we allow it 'play' in our lives.
    I personally have never found any person, living or dead, who did not have the raw ingredients of a drooling, red-eyed, knuckle dragging racist in his very 'chemistry'.

    What do you think?

    *__-
     
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  3. one_raven God is a Chinese Whisper Valued Senior Member

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    I think that when I see someone different than me it is intriguing to me, not fearsome.
    I think that I have never seen a racist infant.
    Have you ever seen a couple of two-years-olds of different races playing with each other? If so, I don't see how you can think racism is hard-wired.
     
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  5. nameless Registered Senior Member

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    Thats why two year olds need to be cared for until their various programs come 'online'. They have no 'survival instincts' (very damn few) online at that age.
     
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  7. one_raven God is a Chinese Whisper Valued Senior Member

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    I tend to think that they are not hardwired programs, rather programmed by their environments. I am a solid Nuturist.
    What most people often refer to as "instincts" I think are more often learned behaviors.
    But, hey, I guess that argument will never be settled.
     
  8. nameless Registered Senior Member

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    Well, I'll give you that there is probably a lot of nurture (our racist parents, friends, etc... nurture our 'tendencies' or our 'recovery') involved in the equation, also. Nothing 'exists' in isolation.
     
  9. Bells Staff Member

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    Racism is something that is learned. Either through observation of those around the child or through the caregivers teaching the child to actively be racist towards another group. However one must also realise that children are inquisitive and will sometimes comment on another if they look different.. be it because the other is different in colour, race, is old or elderly (eg has wrinkles), has hair that is different, if the other has a disability, etc.

    I hate it when I see parents apologising when their children make these comments. The child then begins to think that they have done something wrong, when they haven't. It is best to simply say, when the child comments on another person's colour for example, that the person is a different colour. State the plainly obvious and don't let the child go on believing that such a diffence in colour is something that is bad or abnormal. Parents or people who tell their child that such differences make the other bad or inferior are the people who turn their children into racists, who teach their children to be racist.

    I still remember buying some baby clothes for our yet to be born child and a child of about 3 kept staring at me as her mother was looking at clothes for her. As I walked past her, she asked me why I was "sooooo fat". Her mother looked mortified and kept apologising and I frankly thought it was hilarious. I just told the child that I was fat and that was because I had a baby in my belly and it was growing bigger and one day would be born soon. The mother looked very embarrassed and kept telling her child that she should not say such things. I didn't see anything wrong with it. The child was stating what was quite obvious. I am huge at the present time and my stomach tends to enter any room first because it is so far out front. The same goes for children who comment on why someone else is dark for example. Don't apologise for a child's inquisitiveness. There's nothing wrong with it and to make a big deal out of it can sometimes make the child believe that to be different to the child in whatever shape or form is somehow bad.
     
  10. Hapsburg Hellenistic polytheist Valued Senior Member

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    I saw a baby bite a black guy's hand once. Is that a racist infant?

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  11. one_raven God is a Chinese Whisper Valued Senior Member

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    No, it's an infant that bit a hand.
    They do that sometimes.
     
  12. wesmorris Nerd Overlord - we(s):1 of N Valued Senior Member

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    I'd say the instinct is there, it's just not associated with action yet. If otherwise, we shouldn't call it an "instinct".

    Further, I disagree about racism. There is no need for it to be hardwired. You're talking about pattern recognition stuff, which is mostly learned. Everyone looks different. We learn to recognize those differences. Race is a superficial difference. "threat" or "non-threat" isn't, but isn't related to race, because back in the day you cite, most of the people trying to kill you were probably of your same "race". It'd be their clothing and demeanor and such that would cue you to differences and potential hostility.

    In my kids for instance, I've noticed an extreme disregard for race. It simply doesn't register with them. They see kids, they want to play with kids. They see people, they talk to them as long as they're in the mood and have permission (considering that they remember to seek it). I think I might remember once "why is that guy's face brown" or something to that end..

    Anyway, the theory seems pretty bogus to me.
     
    Last edited: Sep 4, 2005
  13. nameless Registered Senior Member

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    Guys.. an infant WHAT??? Infant humans have no teeth with which to bite. The best you can hope for is that he'll suck on your hand if given the opportunity.
     
  14. Hapsburg Hellenistic polytheist Valued Senior Member

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    Not neccisarilly. Gums will hurt if the kid clamps down hard enough. Plus, it's the thought behind the action that matters.
     
  15. Baron Max Registered Senior Member

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    Well, let's not forget that "racism" can be learned LATER in life, too. For example, a person might be totally innocent of "racism" and then encounter different behaviors in blacks and begin to realize that blacks are ......(fill in the blank as if you were "racist").

    Just think of a white kid from the north who has little or no experience with blacks. Then he moves to the deep south .....and suddenly encounters a whole new, different culture!! He will most likely "become" a "racist" just like most of the whites in the south.

    Baron Max
     
  16. wesmorris Nerd Overlord - we(s):1 of N Valued Senior Member

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    Racism is a meme. Hmm. I can't think of an "ism" that isn't at the moment.
     
  17. Roman Banned Banned

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    I read of an experiment recently done regarding innate racism. It's not a perfect experiment, but still rather interesting.

    There were two groups of subjects, one group white, the other black. Each were shown faces of black and white people and given a small shock when they saw the face. Eventually the subjects would cringe whenever they were shown a face, anticipating a shock.

    Then the subjects were shown faces without the shock and measured how long it took for them to stop cringing.

    Turned out that for the white subjects, they would stop cringing when they saw white faces before they stopped cringing when they saw black faces. The opposite was true for the black subjects.
     
  18. wesmorris Nerd Overlord - we(s):1 of N Valued Senior Member

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    Do you know if it was some of them or all?
     
  19. nameless Registered Senior Member

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    Not much thought going on in an infant. I raised 5 kids, no one 'bit' other than accidentally on moms tit. Grandkids either. Actually, I have had experience with the infant of many other species also. It is my experience that the incidence of agressive/defensive biting amongst infants is close to nill, especially in mammals. Perhaps an infant (?) pirhana?
     
  20. alain du hast mich Registered Senior Member

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    when anyone see's a hot person, they have all sorts of biological reactions, and subconsciously desire to act upon them. these biological reactions will still be there even if the other person doesnt have the same feelings. By your logic this would make us all 'deliberately practicing, ingorantly practicing, or in denial and practicing' rape, would it not?
     
  21. nameless Registered Senior Member

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    You are jumping from seeing an 'attractive' person who isn't interested in you, to rape. Are you suggesting that you are violently acting out your 'feelings' on this person? Actually committing rape? I really don't understand your illustration. Could you please explain the parallel? I'm really seeing a bowl of fruit here, apples and oranges, anyway...
     
  22. Facial Valued Senior Member

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    Interesting theory, nameless. It sounds a bit like Freudian analysis of things, but clearly in the case of racism it makes much sense.
     
  23. nameless Registered Senior Member

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    686
    Thank you, Facial, so far I haven't heard anything here to evidence a fallacy. Its a shame that racism has such a huge 'support base'... and 'compassion' so little.. Such ignorance must be so painful...
     

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