A Nation of Cowards?

[Fountain79]

"If we're going to ever make progress, we're going to have to have the guts, we have to have the determination, to be honest with each other. It also means we have to be able to accept criticism where that is justified,"

This has been posted in other places on the site but I thought I would bring it here. I think this is a good speech however controversial. I truly believe that if we are to advance as a nation we have to be able to talk honestly about race and get away from our self-denial about our own racist tendencies.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090218/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/holder_race

[alexandria]

1. We elected a black president and we are still racist? NT/

[Fountain79]

2. I agree with him to a point....

We are often afraid to discuss honestly our feelings about race. We are so terrified of people identifying us as racist that we pretend that we have no negative feelings or disagreements with other groups.

[burythehatchet]

3. Just as racist as we have always been n/t

[bbinacan]

4. Bullshit. n/t

[burythehatchet]

6. its what's for dinner n/t

[Bucky]

10. In the past I've posted here a truism that you've just illustrated

Americans are almost incapable of discussing race. Simply bringing up the topic turns all of us into mewling, sputtering nincompoops.

Ah, here's the post ==> http://journals.democraticunderground.com/Bucky/171

[Political Tiger]

5. Electing Obama did not magically wipe out racism. n/t

[burythehatchet]

8. that's gonna come as a shock to a couple of posters!

[J-Lo Biafra]

13. Shocking, isn't it?

I just assumed that all the racists in this country turned into pillars of salt at noon on Jan. 20.


:eyes:

[Bucky]

7. If you want a conversation, you have to start with the language of respect.

Calling someone--or calling an entire nation and its culture--racist is simply a conversation killer. Starting off with that premise is guaranteed to produce zero progress or reconciliation. Judgmental labels may be personally gratifying to toss about, but they simply don't invite introspection.

"Our nation has a problem with racial division and lingering prejudices." See, I've said the same thing as "racist tendencies" but I've also allowed room for nuance and understanding.

[alexandria]

11. All nations have the same problem.

You do not see to many Black presidents in Europe..
America has always led the way.

[Bucky]

12. Not exactly a parallel comparison. America's been multiracial for 400 years.

Europe's only had non-white people in significant numbers in their populations for less than a generation. Being a nonwhite European is a very new concept. Being a nonwhite American is perfectly normal. We've been talking about the possibility of a black president for over 40 years. Forty years ago there weren't even any nonwhite Europeans, let alone nonwhite politicians in Europe.

Ironically, for a while in the 60s the next in line for French president under DeGaulle was an Afro-Guianan delegate to the French Senate. Given all the assassination plots there were against DeGaulle, Europe very well could've beat us to the black president distinction.

[thunder rising]

9. A lot of opinion for an asshole that will not prosecute the worst criminals in the US