DU this comment section on CNN.com about the new black history museum

[alp227]

CNN has an article "Smithsonian breaking ground on black history museum". Sadly, given the lowbrow talk about race broadcast on 1000 talk radio stations nationwide as well as online guess what the tone of the top comments are? (sort by "best rating&quot :

This one, with 7 likes (upvoting a comment doesn't require registration, just an IP address): "So why can't we have an all White history Museum, why can't we have an all white entertainment TV Channel like (BET) why can't we have a Caucasian month , Why can't we have a national foundation for Whites just like the national negggro foundation, why can't we have an all white awards show. Why can't we considered a minority and get special treatment for government jobs." I don't know whether to laugh or cry at this great display of IGNORANCE...primetime broadcast TV and the entertainment industry awards are SO majority white that your head must be screwed up badly in order to be this closed-minded.

with 6: "I just don't get it... isn't this just another form of segregation? Why don't we just stick to an United States of America history museum. Doesn't black history include others besides African Americans? I'm pretty sure all blacks did not come from Africa.... Does this mean there will be a Caucasian/Hispanic/Asian/Indian etc history museum as well? If not, why? 250 Million of tax payer dollars going to this is crazy..."

and with 4, apparently more reasonable but still in denial about race relations: "How much longer will we have to pay for the wrongs of a past generation??? All black colleges, all black high schools, all black websites, all black chambers of commerce BET, black only scholarships and grants, all black neighborhoods. If caucasians did these things, racism would be shouted from the rooftops. Black skin, white skin, yellow skin, IT DOESN'T MATTER, its time for everyone to just live as 1 people."

this one has 3 likes including mine: "YES! What a beautiful idea! I want to see this! I would travel out of state just for this! Why didn't they think of it earlier?!" (This one is the only one I linked so far so that we the smart ones can vote this up.)

Another good one: "OMG What the ignorant posters don't seem to understand is that EVERYTHING IS GEARED TO WHITE HISTORY AS A STANDARD. For the 300 Channels owned by WHITE production companys there is one BET. But I guess it's wrong to have the audacity to have one dang channel. Crazy talk." Another one to vote up.

I guess Free Republic or Stormfront or another one of those bigot sites linked to this article.

[Scootaloo]

1. Don't blame Stormfront or FreeRepublic...

Sadly, these are attitudes that I've often heard from "mainstream" Americans. It's the rhetoric of "the colorblind default is white," and yes, it's very prevalent even among liberals (the folks on the right are more often outright racist, rather than just racially clueless)

The trouble is that the privileged have a really hard time realizing that htye are, in fact, privileged. You see it in race, you see it in sex, you see it even in stuff like religion and wealth; people who honestly do feel that "everyone is equal," but can't quite accept that in hteir case, some people are just more equal than others.

It's hard to combat, too, because in a weird twist of rhetoric, anti-racism is more often characterized as "racist" and "divisive" than actual racism is. Pointing out that race is still an issue is "bad" (according to a majority white audience,) pointing our white privilege is bad (Again, according to a white majority), and explanations about why stuff like affirmative action, tageted media, and "X History Months" are actually appropriate (ig not always satisfying) patches to the problem are met with blank looks as people just let it wash by in favor of their "But everyone should be equal and equal means just like me!" platitude.

[alp227]

2. thx for your input, and now the top comment is one of the more reasonable ones i highlighted!