The Philosophy of Racism

The Philosophy of Racism

Wake up, jump out of bed, draw the curtains, open the window and sniff the air. But what is that? A growing stench emits from the streets. It smells like stupidity, but slightly different, with a more gamey and putrid essence. It is too strong and foul. Retreat. Close the window and curtains. Seek information. Someone must be speaking about this.

Indeed they are. It is in everyone’s mouths and in everyone's headlines. Racism. That smell is the verbal defecation overflowing from the masses, and no one has yet wiped their mouths. And at first look, there is not only one type of racist; there are more and many. There are too many.

When a racist speaks about skin color he merely articulates his stupidity. The color of one’s skin is the color of one’s skin and nothing more. There are no grounds for deducing from such a slight and fleeting quality as pigment, and doing so is a trusty leap of blabbering faith. “Yes, it is quite obvious their epidermis is of a certain color, and it is not even necessary to point that out, but what more can you tell us about them?” we ask. Never an answer. What more could they know? There is never a fact that arises from skin color, except perhaps the feeble insight into the pigment of the parents, or perhaps the grandparents and even further, if one enjoys that line of superficial speculation. And we must ask: “To what end? What is it you hope to find in that crystal ball you call the skin?” All of it nothing and fruitless; in practice, irrational and illogical. The skin speaks nothing, and it conceals a great deal more. One only draws conclusions from pigment and melanin if he enjoys being consistantly wrong—I suppose in a sort of blissful ignorance—racist for the sake of being racist. Worse, hate and violence against a certain shade of color due to conclusions reached by this stupidity is beyond all comprehension, and likely the result of intellectual, cultural, and logical poverty, riddled with an entire plethora of social and psychological errors.

But there are qualities of skin from which we can deduce—especially in regards to how thin it is. Rather than laugh at him, shame him, and make him mockingly aware of his irrational disposition, treat him like a sort of village idiot, and thus racism the village idiot of thought, it seems that people are too quick to get offended by it, as if judging people we have never met, based on inferences from pigment or slight mutations due to natural selection had any credibility whatsoever. Nonetheless, they run to their pitchforks at any sign of it, the same pitchforks they have always ran to. I have to wonder why they give racism the fuel to persist. It might be best to shun the whole philosophy of racism, show its logical inconsistencies and end it once and for all. But why do they put kindling on a wet fire? Quite simply, it is because they too are racist. Everyone loves them some racism.

Look at the media nowadays, which apparently best reflects the mindset of the popular cultures and ideologies we find ourselves within. The skin of the populace, and also the media that feeds it, is so thin it is transparent. As soon as someone expresses a racist comment, or takes to the social media—the herd’s delicate ear and mouthpiece—and says something stupid in less than 140-characters, there is a furor of some weird primal origin. People begin to foam at the mouth at the sign of the most ridiculous things; and every passive observer within earshot who hears this nonsense, and every celebrity who thinks his opinion is of any consequence, feels the need to stand up for certain skin colors, maybe because he feels the guilt of being born a certain shade, thereby grouping people and generalizing them according to race and histories they have had no part of, only to make a big stink stinkier, and who knows, maybe march together for a modern day lynching—a good old social, economical and historical hanging of an idiot convicted of a thought crime—we call this solidarity nowadays. Instead of crying "Stupdity! Stupidity!" they cry "Racism! Racism!". This is how the media and the meandering populace hope to abolish racism: by marginalizing all races and all colors, by giving certain races, racisms, and racists a spotlight and setting it center stage for all to see, by showing people that pigment actually matters, that we should hate or love a race regardless of an individual's worth and merit, that the color of the skin is more important than the individual who wears it, and by giving bigots and racists the power to shepherd an entire herd and setting them to stampede with a few idiotic and groundless assertions. In other words, by giving the racist what he wants. The offended and injured mob, who under a veil of togetherness and unity, once again makes a fine peacock show of its self-inflicted wounds every time it gets a whiff of its own blood and divides itself, all because it either wants to see someone thrown to the lions, or perhaps, because the populace identifies too much with its most favorite of ancient genetic mutations. Sound familiar? Politicizing race is also racism.

Reader, do you identify with your race? as if the fact that you have a similar pigment as someone else makes you just like them? When people speak about your skin color, and paint lies and their stupidity with the largest brush, are they speaking about you as an individual? Do you linger around their verbal defecation to savour the smell? Is there then some truth to their claims? Does your pigment give rise to your orthodox? Are you ready to stand beside every demon and monster and murderer and dictator who just so happened to share a similiar pigment as you? Is skin color all you see? Are you that ill-defined? For the superficial and shallow, for those who identify too much with their race, as if it defined who they were, for the racist...maybe too many rhetorical questions?

A little human to human interaction, a little travel, a little vulnerability, a little of throwing oneself into the culture of others, a little discovery, a little friendship, and a little love, proves racism to be the most baseless, the most foolish and the most absurd of philosophies. We can neither hate nor love a race. And racism is groundless. But for some reason, it also appears to be the most prevalent and most common.

Pigment is individual. Every individual has its own skin, and as such, no skin is the same. Its color is its own, individual, unique. It is impossible to classify or label or group according to race. There is no physical connection between similar skins and skin colors because there is no physical connection between individuals. This word means the same as this word. The only thing that can be concluded from skin color is the skin color. Beyond that, is racism.

Thank you for reading,

LesMis

a reply to: LesMisanthrope

Don't stop at "Race" whatever that means. We have been taught from early on to distinguish not only skin color but class, education, wealth, religion and a plethora of other "differences" that keep ordinary people divided and subjugated.

Its mostly not our fault we have fallen into line with the Status Quo.

a reply to: LesMisanthrope

Such a wonderful read. Thanks for saying what needs to be said. Although, people know this.. Something inherently inside of some others just can't help it. It's like OCD or something. I understand this. I also understand that the media is a cog in the wheel and simply making things worse :c

I think one thing we have yet to address is that.. Humans are making progress with this race thing. We truly are. I also think it is some thanks to the internet. We can come together anonymously without knowing what skin color someone might be and get along based off of someone's ideas rather than the way they look.

This translates into the real world one step at a time.

a reply to: LesMisanthrope

For me race means Human, Dwarf or Elf.

a reply to: Mizzijr

This translates into the real world one step at a time. - See more at: www.abovetopsecret.com...

We can only hope.

Thanks for the kind words.

a reply to: LesMisanthrope

Wonderful insight by a beautiful mind. Thank you for taking the time and energy to remind us what common decency, common sense and respect for all souls entail.

You are wrong my friend. You've written an extensive essay all under a false premise. Race is not merely skin color; in fact, skin color isn't the determinant. Race is determined by cranial measurements and bone structure. The differences aren't just superficial, they are integral.