The 40-Year-Old Photo That Gives Us A Reason To Smile

reply to post by baddmove


It's like I've noted so many times... we got off on the right foot. Race relations had been opened to dialogue and people were throwing away those dusty animosities. We could look in the mirror and laugh at those who were still hamstrung with old beliefs and prejudices because we no longer felt threatened.

Had what began in the 70s actually survived? We might well be that colorblind society today that MLK once had a dream of...

Of course, there were (and certainly still are) those who don't want that. Their goal is division... and all too often, we play right along.

Simple truth is we are all made up of the same stuff. We all have the same brains, the difference is what we chose to fill it with. You fill it with racist crap that is exactly what your going to spew.

In my experience I have found the color of someone's skin is a poor judge of that person's character, so I choose to base my judgements of people on their words and actions. That seems to work a LOT better then skin pigment.

That photo is great image, needs to be shared.

Originally posted by baddmove
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when do we learn to be racists?

Children by and large do not have malicious attitudes towards people - they just want to play and they don't care what color the playmate is.

We learn to hate people because of hateful things people do to us. Children don't do those things, stupid adults do.

Many of us say " We hate _____ people" ( fill in your color here) but we (most of us) really don't mean that we hate said color people simply because of the color of their skin, that would be silly.

We learn to dislike groups of like minded people when those groups show a tendency to all act in the same hateful manner. There is nothing wrong with this as it is part of self preservation and protecting oneself and ones family.

I don't call that Racism at all.

Racism is hating people for hate's sake alone and or by deeming someone is somehow less than Human ( and deserving to be treated differently) simply due to skin color or background, ancestry etc. I think many people confuse racism with other hate issues and if your opponent is a different skin color we jump to the conclusion it's racism when often times it's not.

Sure there are people who do hate simply because of skin color but these are closed minded uneducated people who are just stupid haters. Most people aren't like this, so the term Racism is really being badly misused in America.

Originally posted by JohnPhoenix

Originally posted by baddmove
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when do we learn to be racists?

Children by and large do not have malicious attitudes towards people - they just want to play and they don't care what color the playmate is.

We learn to hate people because of hateful things people do to us. Children don't do those things, stupid adults do.

Many of us say " We hate _____ people" ( fill in your color here) but we (most of us) really don't mean that we hate said color people simply because of the color of their skin, that would be silly.

We learn to dislike groups of like minded people when those groups show a tendency to all act in the same hateful manner. There is nothing wrong with this as it is part of self preservation and protecting oneself and ones family.

I don't call that Racism at all.

Racism is hating people for hate's sake alone and or by deeming someone is somehow less than Human ( and deserving to be treated differently) simply due to skin color or background, ancestry etc. I think many people confuse racism with other hate issues and if your opponent is a different skin color we jump to the conclusion it's racism when often times it's not.

Sure there are people who do hate simply because of skin color but these are closed minded uneducated people who are just stupid haters. Most people aren't like this, so the term Racism is really being badly misused in America.

Thank you sir for your wonderful input!!

I appreciate that very much.......

reply to post by interupt42


It just so happens that in a thread focusing on a nice photo with no indications of racism, you have suggested that two certain men of colour would state the photo is racist. You have drawn potential racist inferences here, not Jackson or Sharpton.

As for all the other stuff about Bush, Obama, and assumptions you seem to be making about myself, I have no idea what you are talking about.

Another observation-nasty governments LOVE racists as a tool to divide society. Nothing stops people coming together to fight a common cause such as a corrupt/authoritarian goverenment like a good ol' divided society-and racists are perfect to acheive that.

reply to post by Silcone Synapse


Thats the problem right there ,We are groomed to be racist with all the LSM

I have family that are black and polish,american,australia and mums side is irish my dad is even WELSH
They hate the english

what a mixed family we have but thats us
and i have been called racist in the past

We learn to be racist from our parents, or adult society. For me, the honest truth is I learned to be racist from liberals who were obsessed with it. That's just y story, I guess.

Originally posted by LadyofGlass
reply to post by baddmove

 

You learn to be racist the same time you learn to be sexist, homophobic, violent, aggressive, bigoted, and everything else that makes for a worse world. It's called childhood (especially the first five years of development).

I think it happens after that. Most children in K-2 grade are pretty accepting of each others differences as far as race goes. I think most of us form those type of behaviors in junior or even senior high, and are influenced by our peers (& of course adults and experiences).
__________________

OP, nice photo

Short story; We took our boys to ChuckeeCheese when they were young boys. Sat in a booth to eat our pizza before playing games, and another family sat in a booth behind us. They were a family of four also and they were black. When I bent down to pick something up, it gave my 4 yr. old son a view of the booth behind me and he blurted out, "Mom look, it's Winston..Winston is here". He loved Ghost-busters and even had a Ghost-busters suit on (a one piece zip up, tan colored thing-looked like a uniform), with patches on the sleeve and all that.

Well, needless to say I was embarrassed because he said it loud enough for them to hear. Truthfully I did think it was cute (I am his mom after all), and I did chuckle as I glanced at them. The father (Winston-lol) did smile at me, but the wife didn't seem to pleased. C'mon, he was four yrs old and he was awe-struck thinking this man was his hero--how can that be a bad thing?

I never raised my sons to be racist and they aren't (thankfully).
When I was young I remember asking my mom why some people were black (this was after we moved from PA. to TN.) and I was probably about 8 at the time. She told me that God didn't have enough paint for us so we were left uncolored and had to go without. I didn't think she was right, but hey, that was my mom, so I accepted it at the time.

Later I had a best-friend and I remember her name this 40 yrs later (Janice Carney). I often rode my bike into town and we would hang out all day. There was a little store on the corner that sold frozen coke in little plastic cups for a dime and I wanted one, but Janice stopped at the door and said she wasn't allowed in. In my mind I assumed she must have stolen something, or why else would she not be allowed in. She told me it was because she was black..but I had never heard such a thing and didn't think it was true. So I pleaded with her to come in with me, she did, and the owner got all red in the face and pointed to the door. I think that's the first time I ever realized that we must be different. I was a kid so I figured adults knew better, but I still remember the sick feeling I had in my stomach.

Those feelings that make you sick in the stomach are never wrong. At a certain age we all know right from wrong and it's our fault if we don't listen to and live by those feelings.

I wish that I could say that I boycotted that store, but instead I went back in alone and bought us both a frozen coke. For a dime.

Originally posted by cuckooold
reply to post by interupt42

 

It just so happens that in a thread focusing on a nice photo with no indications of racism, you have suggested that two certain men of colour would state the photo is racist. You have drawn potential racist inferences here, not Jackson or Sharpton.

As for all the other stuff about Bush, Obama, and assumptions you seem to be making about myself, I have no idea what you are talking about.

Lol, you funny.

You said:

It just so happens that in a thread focusing on a nice photo with no indications of racism "

The picture posted by the OP is of white kids intermingling with black kids and wait for it wait for it, the OP also said:

when do we learn to be racists?

So once again you only took part of the context and twist it to fit your view. The picture , the timing of the Zimmerman trail, The timing of JJ jacksons comment about Florida , and the OP saying "when do we learn to be racists? " , has plenty inferences about racism, which you conveniently overlook.

Additionally, from the numerous response in this thread it also appears that you may be the only one that did not comprehend that this thread was related or leading to a discussion about racism.

Like I said before:

So couldn't it be suggested that perhaps you tried to play devils advocate, attempted to make a studious jab, or perhaps you look into things with Prejudice or claim racism first as a safety net?

From your response, I'm beginning to lean towards the latter two possibilities.


Again , the picture that the OP posted is great, and its great to see kids being kids and treating each other with respect and getting along regardless of color, race,gender, etc.

You also said:

It just so happens that in a thread focusing on a nice photo

In your initial reply you didn't even comment on the nice photo, for being so focused on the context of the thread.

You may wan't to stop:

We become racist through learning from others.
I lived in Texas and grew up around people of all colors, ages, sexualities, etc. In my city, being white meant you were the minority. It was totally normal to me. I never once had a racist thought in my mind because my parents never once uttered a racial comment. I never thought to BE racist, because I was never raised to be that way or think to marginalize people.
I then moved to Utah, and I have never seen more racial people (and I'm surprised because I assumed I would witness racism in the south?)
I have never seen so many people look down upon someone or make snide comments about others because of how they look, and I have even witnessed children partaking. For the first time I heard someone not even ten years old, call someone an N word and mean it.
We become racist when a role model or adult teaches us to. Just how we are born without religion, but a parent teaches us that. Just like how we are born androgenous, but a parent teaches us the way to dress due to our specific gender.

Smile... but in the want for something back that we no longer have.

Originally posted by baddmove
when do we learn to be racists?

There was a show on the Science channel that highlighted a study showing we discriminate at a very early age, possibly even inheritanly.

They took very young children and gave them baseball bats... Haha, no no no, sorry.
I will start again...

They took very young children, like 2-3 years maybe younger and showed them some stuffed animals. They then told them what kind of snacks the stuffed animals liked. Let's say either cookies or candy.

Then they asked the children to assign a punishment to a stuffed animal. By a large margin the children gave the punishment to the animal that preferred the opposite of what they personally liked. If the child liked candy, they would punish the cookie teddy bear, and vise versa.

The conclusion they came to was that the children sided with the animal that was most like them and punished the one that was different. We may very well be programmed to feel closer to groups we consider most like ourselves and be against ones that we see as different.

The difference might not be apparent to us, but once we are taught that a group is different from another, we will automatically discriminate against them.

So my view of racism is the distinction of a difference. People who are taught they are different will be racist against "other" groups, to some degree.

Once we are aware enough to reason for ourselves we see people as human. Despite a different skin color or cultural belief, we start to include them in our own group. "They are human like me. They are not different."

I was always taught that people are people, man/woman, black/white, so I don't discriminate based on culture or color.

Good post and great question.

I think racism can evolve from a combination of the following:
1. Ignorance.
2. Fear or intimidation or intolerances of differences.
3. Ignorant family values being passed down.
4. Scapegoat.
5. Personal experiences of an individual.
6. Media.

When it occurs I guess it could be different for everyone since we are not born racist, but the common denominator certainly is ignorance or laziness.

I would assume that someone who may have been raced in a racist family would likely become a racist at a much earlier age than someone who didn't,

My answer would be "We become racist at the age of when we stopped critical thinking" Unfortunately, some don't even start.

It is clear to me that racism is something that is not ingrained or biological. It is taught by parents and peer groups when children are growing up. Unfortunately when many people hear the word racism, they automatically think of white vs black. White people oppressing black people. The vast majority alive today have had nothing to do with the previous actions against black citizens, and nobody alive had anything to do with slavery. I wish people would remember that there are just as many black racists as white ones, and that to be equal in our society, people need to drop the race issue altogether.

My point is that I am tired of black activists wanting white people to stop being racist, even though the majority are not, while they do nothing to curb the racism emanating from blacks to whites. Just because slavery existed does not entitle present day black individuals to anything. That is the plain truth of the matter. White people are often very passive because they know that anything slightly racist that they do, or something that could be perceived as racist, will be blown out of proportion by the racist people in the black community. Therefore whites have developed this passivity to a great degree, and even worse, there are black people who are quick to take advantage of this fact. So white people should stop giving in to the idea of racism like this. If you are not racist, you should not have to fear the wrath of black people who would call you that.

No such thing as racism, its only brainwashed into us to divide the humans. We are nothing more than one.

reply to post by JiggyPotamus


Its not only black (so called) activist like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, but its also the media, and the WHITE journalist on the MSM who play up the racist angle (either way) that help inflame racial tension in this country.

Of course sex, violence,scandals, and racism all coincidently generate ratings and coincidently gives them all a fairly good boost to their income.

Unfortunately, Racial tension has become a profitable business and a good way to keep the people separated.

ALL sides need to unite and see past the obvious monetary influences that are inflaming racism in this country.

We need the One Million HUMAN march, where ALL types of race come together to show UNITY as ONE and put an end to this silly thing.

reply to post by interupt42


Why did you only mention Sharpton or Jackson, and not others of different skin colour?

Thanks all for the replies..

Looked like it was going to get ugly in here..

You ATS'rs did a good job keeping it civil....

thanks again!!

Originally posted by cuckooold
reply to post by interupt42

 

Why did you only mention Sharpton or Jackson, and not others of different skin colour?

Why would I have to? When I say Neil deGrasse Tyson is a brilliant scientist (who is black ) do I need to follow it up with a brilliant white scientist or would that make me racist against whites?