[Cloud9]

Aight, this is definitely a topic that speaks to me, so I must respond. First, I happen to be white. Second, I have to say that i agree with most of the things that neicy81. The truth is, it's so easy to talk about how much things have "improved" for an oppressed culture...when you're on the more privileged side, that is. I realize this more than most white people, because I grew up in a very unusually diverse town. Literally, yes literally I was a minority in that town. It's not really relevant, but if you want to get technical, the biggest racial population was hispanic, then black, then white, asian, and then misc. backrounds. It's crazy because I now go to school in NYC, and even there I look around in my classes and I"m like, "what the hell? where are the minorities???" And I think that living in this type of communitywas one of the most important and positive experiences of my life. It really gave me a taste, JUST a tiny little taste of what all of my friends would face for the rest of their lives. I spent a good deal of my childhood(and to tell the truth, much of my present)hating my culture's legacy, wishing I could somehow go back and change it, wondering why it was still happening, and wanting to be anything, anyone but a white girl. As I said, this still sometimes enters my mind, but I've realized that it doesn't change anything. Yes, I believe that everyone of us caucasians needs to have an awakening in their lives, unfortunately sooner or later we all must pay for the sins of our fathers. But that's not enough. What's really important is to move beyond that towards healing, and for that ALL of us must work together--ALL the races. I can't stand it when people, usually the comfortable whites say, "oh, well you know I LIKE black people(or asian, or arab, etc), but it's just, I feel more comfortable with people like me." Not as often, but still too often, minorities say the same damn thing. Um, nonono. Bad idea. It's very dangerous to just remain with what's familiar, because it makes everything else unfamiliar. And what's unfamiliar for a long time becomes strange. And then what's strange becomes frightening---that's the problem with stupid ass humans, we always fear the unfamiliar. So what happens is you have all these white people who know nothing or just media versions of black people. Then they hear one day that a random black person robs a store, and all of a sudden, that is what we apply to everyone else in that culture. Why do you think things are still not equal? Because white people chill in their comfortable white neighborhoods, never taking the time to go out and face the unfamiliar(which I assure you, is really not scary at all, but rich and rewarding). I always make an effort to surround myself with those who are different from me. I'm telling you people, it's imperative. It's imperative for the oppressed too, because you don't want to one day make the same mistakes that we did. And believe me, it can happen. Whites were "lucky" and happened to invent the violent weapons first, which started the whole mess, but it could have been any culture really, and it still could be one day. I don't necessarily believe that the article in this thread was "reverse racism", but one day reverse predjudice, racism, whatever the hell you want to call it, COULD happen. That would be terrible, and I don't say that because I'm white and don't want to lose my footing on top of the mountain, but because whatever culture should take that role would only be hurting itself and proving that WE as HUMANS cannot learn from our mistakes. This is what I believe, I'm afraid it's not the most coherent thing I've ever written, I"m really just spurting out all of my thoughts as they come, but I really hope that someone understands what I'm trying ot say.