Quote:
Originally posted by HeidiHo:
I don't think Mike would have mentioned race if he was racist He kept being asked where he was from and I think the conversation was an extension of those questions. I think that if the conversation had gone further we would have realized that Mike was saying "that's what Uncle Bob thinks, but I know he's wrong." At least that's what I hope he meant. We're all teachers at some point. Coral & Malik could have said "I went to ABC U., and he went to EFG U., we're educated." I don't believe there were bad intentions by anyone involved. Sorry to intrude.
Heidi
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Well like my grandma used to say, "the road to hell is
paved with good intentions.". Unfortunately Heidi Ho, Black people in America are constantly put into the position of being the "educator" when it comes to race. We deal with it in the class room, with fellow students, professors, co-workers, supervisors, doctors, pastors, you name it, and we have to face it everyday.
I don't believe that Mike is a card carrying member of aryian nations united or anything, but he like
every other person raised in western society, is indoctrinated from birth with the racism inherent in this culture.
Mike even insinuated that Coral was not familiar with the education system in his area, so in his opinion, it was very possible that his uncle was right. He said at one point that the reason his uncle gave made a lot of sense to him. So while I doubt he will burn a cross on a Black person's yard, that racist belief will make a huge impact on the world when it comes time for him to make hiring decisions in a future job, or the way he treats fellow co-workers opinions or research. So while he may not have meant to offend Coral and Malik, he did--and not just on a surface level. When you have to live with ignorance
every day, and you know that sincere ignorance, hurts sincerely, then comments like that cannot go unchallenged. And why should Coral and Malik have had to say anything about their own education? That merely validates uncle bob's opinion of the Black people in Bob's area, and makes Coral and Malik the "exception" to the rule. As in "you're not like most Black people".
I hope you understand what I'm saying. Moderators, I know this is long, but as I saw it as a "teachable" moment, I decided to "be an educator" one mo' gin!
