Is it racist now to be proud to be a white man?

a reply to: Slanter

What a great idea, and a better thread.
I think I would be inappropriate to be pleased about
an attribute I had no control over inheriting... any
more than something else I haven't earned or done.

For MHO, I find people proud of something they are
naturally, instead of what they are or do while here
-- no matter what -- somewhat busy under-achieving.

Forget it: that sounded like I'm a workaholic or insecure.
HEY, maybe some of both

Behavior should be chosen over appearance. An analogy to consider:

The make of your vehicle does not affect the way it operates as lemons can be found amongst them all.

originally posted by: imsoconfused
a reply to: CagliostroTheGreat

Is it racist to be a proud black man or a proud Hispanic or Asian?

Of course not. That is my point. Cant I just be a proud white man without being racist?

Well, perhaps the easiest way to answer would be what is it particularly about being white that makes you proud?

I think personally you are indulging in a metaphorical little man syndrome thinking, but maybe there is something about your achievements through being white, the oppression you and other white people have had to face through history because of the colour of your pasty pale skin, what is it exactly or are you just snivelling because you can't have your own little rally?

a reply to: Aboom

I agree with your thinking. I do think all this different culture to be respected blah blah is getting boring and its time to think why its being pushed by governments etc. Naturally its the best way of dividing up your population. If they all considered themselves citizens with equal rights they could unite against you.

We would all be better off united and watching the actions of those in charge of us and perhaps able to stop some of the government led atrocities that have been happening over the last decade or so.

originally posted by: tothetenthpower
a reply to: imsoconfused

Here's the problem with being proud to be anything.

If it's not something you personally accomplished, then what are you proud of?

Being born? Having ancestors who accomplished great feats that you did not?

It's ridiculous. I'm a gay man for example, I don't go around telling people I'm proud to be gay, because it's not something I did anything to achieve. Sure I suffered discrimination and some violence in my youth and there's no excuse for that.

But it doesn't mean people can start walking around claiming they are proud of something that they had NO part in creating.

~Tenth

I can see what you are saying but I also would argue with it. For non whites in certain societies up until very very recently (arguably currently to an extent), the fact that they are not white has meant barriers have been put in place that wouldn't be there for a white person - like it or not, it's the case, certainly in America within the lifetime of people around today. Stygmatised for the colour of your skin, something you have no power of can lead to feelings of shame - however ridiculous that is. But the opposite of shame is pride, and I can understand why people would want to display that no matter how much they have been belittled, no matter how much they have been classed as somewhat lesser than others, they are proud of who they are.

For a gay man, again, within the lifetime of some people on ATS, to be so and known to be so didn't amount to a little bit of abuse, it could, and did for many amount to prosecution, persecution, social exclusion and career destruction. Again, I can fully understand why a gay man (or woman) should want to proclaim that they are proud to be what they are despite what it may mean.

I'm not quite so sure - and I'm a straight white male - I can think of any comparisons for a typical white person, certainly in the west.

a reply to: imsoconfused

Am i proud to be white . i am not sure what that really means . I am white , well more of a medium brown i guess . And am i glad i wasn't born in South Sudan for instance , hell yes , and that has nothing to do with being black . Proud to be white is a concept i am struggling with .

Isn't it strange that when black people take white people's things and make them their own [putting their stamp on it], they are called creative and they are admired for including their culture etc.

But when white people do this to black people's things, we are called racist or [in music] we stole their ideas.

I'm talking generally, fashion, music, styles.

That has always wound me up.

If you really look at it from a distance, white people have bend over backwards not to be racist, because we have come to understand that it is wrong. There are laws and regulations etc [forget that some people will still be racist regardless, individuals still have a right to think what they want - on both sides]. The Brits stopped slavery, you are shunned or arrested if you even say the wrong thing. Yet black people still have a go at us. What more apart from killing ourselves can we do to please?

I feel almost hopeless that none of our effort is being appreciated. It's like when someone says sorry and MEANS IT and the other person just won't accept it and keeps going on.
The outcome will usually be a "Well suit yourself then."

a reply to: imsoconfused

White people are generally looked down upon and even trashed in the media and elsewhere. Take a look at the double standards.
White Pride Wikipedia

White pride is a motto primarily used by white separatist, white nationalist, neo-Nazi and white supremacist organizations to signal racist or racialist viewpoints.

Black Pride Wikipedia

Black pride is a movement in response to dominant white cultures and ideologies that encourages black people to celebrate black culture and embrace their African heritage

Western society is taught from cradle to grave that being white is bad. It is embedded in our education system, the media, and even our politicians spout this nonsense. White people are supposed to be guilty for the sins of people that have been long deceased. White people are painted as oppressors and imperialists. Anything that people of European heritage have accomplished is overshadowed by hatred and blame. We are painted as the reason that any other culture fails. It is all our fault, and we need to wear our shame and guilt like a Star Of David patch on our sleeves. The anti-white propaganda reaches far and wide, and it has been very efficient.

I created an in depth video about this issue.
youtu.be...


White people are tired of this. A lot of non-white people are tired of this as well. Racism cuts both ways, but the progressives would have you believe that ONLY white people can be racist, which is an outright lie. Progressives are working very hard to remove white people from the equation all together.

We currently live in a society where the only class of people that are not offered equal rights and opportunity is the straight white male.

If you buy into this anti-white rhetoric, then YOU are a racist, and YOU are doing the same thing you claim to be against.

a reply to: imsoconfused

That is because white people have done so well for themselves for many many many years and because of this, other cultures get embarrassed by their own background or rather feel cheated out of something they wish their own race would have done for them yet did not.

So now we have this mentality where anyone other then white will jump on the bandwagon with those of similar descent and basically shout...... ''I want my great heritage and background, why not me, why not meeeee.......'' *cry,cry*

haters gon hate loooll.

seriously though most of these accounts that are loudly bashing trump and white people and all that stuff are paid shills and sock puppets and once the election is over ats will go back to normal. youll see the same thing on virtually every other major web forum, and social media sites. the net has been inundated by "liberals" but once the paychecks stop itll be business as usual.

a reply to: BlackProject

That video is stupid and not at all funny.

originally posted by: Creep Thumper
a reply to: BlackProject

That video is stupid and not at all funny.

Sure thing winston.

originally posted by: galaga
I have pondered this question for a long while. Here is my theory.

Black folks have lost their entire culture due to slavery. The USA has categorized them as the generic term "black".

So, for a very long time the only thing they could be proud of was their skin color. Black and Proud.

Now, most white folk, can and do have clubs and parades that display their whiteness. White folks are damn proud of being Irish, British, Italian, Spanish, Russian, Greek and all the rest.

See what I'm saying?

I think this is a key point when it comes to discerning the validity of such "Pride" movements in the US that probably translates pretty much evenly across the globe, IMO.

Here in the States, I feel like the notion of "Black Pride" must've began when blacks all across the country started deciding that "No, you know what, as a matter of fact I am five whole fifths of a human! Not the three they tell me I am" a couple centuries back.

The "pride" arises from as such in a situation when someone is told that their heritage or race is something to be ASHAMED, or at the very least less than proud, of. They want to say in opposition that no, in fact I have every right to be as proud of my heritage as anyone else.

I am sure every ethnic or racial group has had this kind of cultural experience at some point, somewhere in the world. It is a natural tendency, I would think, to be proud of the things you cannot change but people try to use to tear you down. A defense mechanism, if you will.

That said, I agree with the other posters that while you can certainly be proud of your race without being a racist, it is a silly thing to be proud of. You cannot change it, you did not choose or earn it, so who cares?

The thing is, the other side of this coin is that it is equally silly to look down on someone else for the same reasons. That's the side of the coin some people seem to have everything an issue with and THAT IS where racism comes into the equation.

originally posted by: imsoconfused
Am I allowed to be proud of my race and heritage, without being considered a racist pig if I'm white?

I

Why can everyone else say they are proud of their race without being racist. A white man says it and bam hes the KKK.

Maybe it has to do with the whole "White Power" thing? I mean normal white people don't go around talking about how they love to be white or that they are proud to be white. Most people that say such things are either KKK, Neo-Nazi or just a plan old racist. That is why another person may call you a racist. It is just like the swastika, the nazi's did not invent it and it had another meaning before they used it. So if someone goes around with say a swastika tattoo, that is meant to represents the pre-nazi meaning people are going to assume that person is a Nazi.

I am white, but I would question the motives and wounder if their was a hidden meaning if came across another white person going on and on about how proud they are to be white. The reason why is what I posted above. The only people I have ever came across in real life that talked about their white pride were racists.

I don't really understand why any skin color needs to be celebrated at all.

originally posted by: BrokedownChevy
I don't really understand why any skin color needs to be celebrated at all.

I think the discussion here is not whether it should or should not be celebrated but why is it socially acceptable for some races to be allowed to do it while others are considered racist for it.

We should be only proud of the individual accomplishments we each make. We should not try to own the accomplishments of others wether they be ancestors or not. If anything we all share the accomplishments of the past but only own the ones we contribute.

By labeling yourself you separate yourself from others, white black and any gradient between, these factors mean nothing, and is like being proud of hair color, or eyes, you did not make these things they were passed down. Focus on your accomplishments and be proud only of your own success.

Besides should you also shame yourselves for the wrong doing of the past? To claim pride of the good things require you take shame to the bad. I own no shame of my ancestors neither do I take pride. My life is judged by the actions I control not by the actions of those before me.

As a person of mixed heritage (being both black and white), I'd like to add my thoughts to the mix.

As I approached my teenage years it began to dawn on me that I knew very little about my black heritage. Sure, I had a very basic understanding, but beyond that I was clueless. I had no idea about who I was or where I came from, and at no point had any of the (many) schools I attended offered to educate me or any of my classmates on it.
So I began to dig. And as I dug I learned just exactly how much my ancestors had gone through. And I don't just mean slavery. I mean everything else. As a kid I lived with my dad on a tiny island where I was the first non-white that 99% of the population had ever seen aside from TV. When my very dark mum came to visit me, people would stop and stare or point, in the best cases. Other times they would be incredibly abusive towards her. And even that was nothing compared to what black people had gone through mere decades before.
So I learned, and I understood, and I cried. Because the people who just got on with it had a pretty rough time anyway, and in spite of that fact, some people had had the courage to stand up and say, "This is wrong." And people like that are why I am proud of my black heritage, fiercely proud.

As for my white heritage, I am proud of that too, but for different reasons. I am proud that my white ancestors realised that the actions they had engaged in were wrong, and had taken steps to ensure equality for all. To admit to such a fault also takes courage. But I am less vocal about my "white pride" for the simple reason that there is no such thing. My black family members couldn't tell you where they originally came from beyond my great great grandfather. The only thing they're certain of is that the family surname is the surname of someone who owned one of my ancestors. So, the only racial identity we have is black.
Conversely, my white family members can each (without thinking) tell you which European country they originated from (or which city in the US) going back centuries.

Do you see the difference?

My black family members are proud to be black. That's it. They're not proud to be Namibian or Ethiopian or Ugandan because they don't know if they are. They're not proud they don't know the family name we originally carried, or that our only family identity is that of a white slaveowner who lived centuries ago.
My white family members are proud to be American/English/German/Hungarian/Irish/Norwegian. They're proud to know when great-great-great-great-great-great grandpa moved from Hungary to Germany where he met a lovely young woman he'd eventually marry, and their daughter moved to Norway and married a fine gentleman etc etc.

Long story short, my black family is just black. And we're proud of that. My white family members are a mix of European descendants, and each of them our proud of their heritage. None of them are proud to be white, they're proud to be < insert country of origin here >.

a reply to: imsoconfused
The reason why you are not supposed to be proud of being white, is because it would be far easier for someone with a white heritage to get a superiority complex than someone who isn't. For instance, western white culture brought about the Renaissance, industrial revolution, technology revolution, ideologies and values promoting decency and tolerance, etc...

If you're basing your identity on your white heritage, then yes, it's very easy to feel superior because if you're measuring a culture based on progress in terms of technological, social (doing away with superstitions and barbaric behavior), philosophical, free thought, etc.., it could easily be argued that white western culture has by far and away made the most contributions and is most responsible for our modern world.

Now if you're someone that does not measure progress or positivity in the way described in the preceding paragraph, or someone that looks at just the individual and not what culture they happened to be born into, then someone's heritage really shouldn't matter. However the hypocrisy is that our culture, in an over-the-top hypocritical effort to try and make certain cultures feel good about themselves, have basically pushed for other culture's to be proud while telling whites to shush because they are obviously the most "superior" culture so no need to rub it in. It's like a 1st place finisher in a competition trying to humbly accept his position so as to not make others feel bad, yet the others who placed are saying "yeah baby, look at me, I got a ribbon and I'm special!"

Being a person who is of mixed race (European and Native American), I have never felt "proud" to be of any particular heritage, but have felt very grateful that I was born the human being that I was born. What I wrote above is what I feel is the underlying reason for why white western culture (which I do happen to feel that the world would be a very different place without its influence, and probably would still resemble how things were 1,000 years ago or more without its influence) and its obvious achievements are subdued. Basically it's so as to keep people level headed and not having entire groups of people taking on a superiority complex like what happened in WWII with Germany. However I do believe that the level of white guilt has gotten to be pretty ridiculous.

nope, its just the white pride things usually equates to white power which usually equates to racism and violence . other ethnicities use pride as a confidence booster after being told they are less