Originally posted by AXO Alum
See above rant on WHITE and PEOPLE OF COLOR.
I don't see the point to using "Caucasian" instead of "white" (or for that matter, "African-American" instead of black) because I don't see one as any more PC than the other. I just use "white" and "black" because they're shorter to write.
Same for "people of color" or "minorities" in place of "Hispanics, Asian-Americans, Native Americans, African-Americans, Pacific Islanders and multiracial people."
Anyway - I don't take anything for granted - I have been put in the position of being discriminated against for being Caucasian - but some people think that that is perfectly okay.
I'm of the mindset that very few people who claim they were "discriminated against for being Caucasian" were actually discriminated against -- they just had a priviledge that was taken away from them when they didn't necessarily deserve it in the first place. On a similar note, men complained that they were being discriminated against when women joined them in the work force because women were taking the jobs that they thought "rightfully belonged to them." In reality, they were just holding jobs that should have belonged to women years and years ago, and now that the women were finally demanding equality the men felt like they were losing out on something when in reality, they had only prospered off a system that unfairly benefitted them for years and years. In my opinion, the same thing goes for minorities in this country. However, I realize this is a fairly liberal viewpoint and not everybody agrees with it.
In all honesty, I could probably claim that I have been "discriminated against for being Caucasian" too . . . but since the average white person probably faces said discrimination a handful of times in their lifetime and the average black person faces it constantly, I don't really feel like I have a right to b*tch.
Seriously - this sounds like sarcasm, but its not intended to be -what is the deal with "women's issues" classes? Are there also "men's issues" classes? I guess the "me" in me says "can't we just not look at a person for the skin, genitalia, hair, etc. and have just people" -- does everything have to be put in a category.
This is really a subject for another thread, but I'll answer it here. Yes, there are also "men's studies" classes, although they are less common than women's studies classes. There are also classes labeled "gender studies" which deal with both, as well as with sexuality. The majority of women's studies classes deal with the way men and women interact, though, not just with the issues that women face. (Some deal with only one -- for example, there is a women's studies class at my school which deals with women's health issues, covering eating disorders, menstruation, pregnancy, etc. -- that class covers mostly "women's issues." Most of the other women's studies classes cover the interaction between men and women, as well as "women's issues" and "men's issues." The one I took also covered sexuality and race, which are very integrated with feminism.) I agree with you that, on one hand, we should just look at people for what they are. Unfortunately, on the other hand, there are TONS and TONs of social issues that come into play and make that impossible. The point of women's studies classes is to break down the social issues so that we can all do a better job of seeing people for what they really are.
I really get offended by "women's history month" because there is not a "men's history month" -- why discriminate against the men in this country/world that have done great things? I would rather be "judged" as great in the whole scheme of things, than being a tag-line added because some woman felt like woman-kind (or womyn-kind...geez 
) was being "held back" since they didn't have their very own month of recognition. I don't want that for my kids - I want them to grow up knowing that everyone possesses a special quality that makes them "them" -- not that they need to judge people based on appearance, etc.
I would prefer an integrated curriculum that covers both the achievements and contributions of men and women . . . however, as normal curriculums (especially in elementary/middle school) focus overwhelming on men's contributions, I would rather there be one month set aside for women than no months.
I have said it before and I will say it again -- race/sex will always matter to *some people* even though they are the ones bitching the loudest that it shouldn't....think on that one - it really makes sense if you read it right.
I think this is mostly because those people are trying to retain the culture associated with their race or sex without retaining the stereotypes, and it's a difficult thing to do. There's something to be said for seeing black/white/whatever as all equal, but I think that most people are trying to get to that "equal" status without throwing out their culture and heritage. Being equal is not the same as being the same.
Wow, that was long.
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