sigh….

1. Racism has a very distinct odor to it, if you haven’t already noticed…so if it doesn’t pass the smell test, then it’s likely racist. =P

2. Pass

3. Pass

4. Pass

And… why do I have to use #2 pencils in my bluebook? I thought the #2 pencils were only for those Scantron sheets…. why can’t I write in blue or black ink in my bluebook?

The question whether the cause for offended feelings is in the object or the onlooker, however, has to be answered in each individual case. And when the criticism restricts itself to obscure destructive rants, then the suspicion remains that it’s more a case of ranting for ranting’s sake then genuine issues with specific points.

The comment on Jim Bursch’s accusations of racism above show the problem quite well: Bursch stated specific points (such as the label “boy”) and these specific points can be refuted. When wholescale accusations of racism are raised because of diffuse associations in a totally different context, then it’s more likely to be ranting for ranting’s sake than specific concerns. It makes it impossible to pursue an amicable solution and sort out potential misunderstandings but makes it clear from the get-go “it’s my way or the highway”. Totally aside of the destructive (as opposed to contstructive) character of such criticism, in the context of Mr. Wong, it reeks of an entirely different problem on an entirely different side: jingoism.

Joz already put it out there. Context is important. And that context includes power and class tied to race as well. For example, Chappelle did a sketch about different races having their racial demons haunting them into conforming to racist stereotypes. Black guy wants to eat the fried chicken on the plane, etc. But when it got to the white guy and his demon telling him he didn’t want to be attracted to black woman at the club, or to be afraid of his black friends… the joke sort of fell flat. In an expert move by Chappelle, he asked the audience what they thought of the sketch and most agreed that the white version didn’t work, because there really aren’t too many racial insecurities to being white. And the few that there are, all stem from a FEAR of “them” and are inherently the origin and propagation of modern racism in America.

I think racist comments are really not ok, unless you’re trying to illustrate a point. And even then it’s not that ok. As a white guy, this will still get me in trouble, but I do it anyway because I like to shake things up. For example, someone might say some off-handed comment about some people. Those people could be a different race or class or subset, doesn’t matter. But if it reminds me of some gross racist transgression, I might joke about a more obvious and accepted racism. Like, someone might say “jeez, another ASIAN driver, heheheh” and I might say “yeah we should round them up and send them off to concentration camps.” To which I’m met with looks of obvious shock. “That’s not what I meant.” they say, or “That’s not the same thing.” To which I ask “You sure about that?” Obviously, the points I’m making is that racism is racism.

Of course friends will trade ribs back and forth about each other’s background and as long as it’s “cool” I don’t see a problem with it. It’s when people take generalizations and begin using them as facts, that I find the most pervasive form of racism.

I could go on… but unfortunately, I’m NOT paid to write about this stuff, so off the salt mines.

In the former, O’Donnells chiding of “ching chong” was based on an actual individual perspective of Asian languages. In the latter, I believe each person observed racist acts, and satarized them as a comment on how egregious.

So how do you know if you’re racist? Are you laughing at the joke because you think it’s true, or are you laughing at the joke because you know it’s false?

Go on…ask yourself…