Study: You may be more racist than you think

[DrPhil]

Originally Posted by epchick

We actually had a discussion about this in one of my classes last year. Someone mentioned that it is easier to use a white person and a black person in those studies because one will always be viewed as the "good" person while the other will be viewed as the "bad" person.

If you were to use a black & a Hispanic person, many people would view them as a "bad" person vs. a "bad" person.

If you were to use a white & an Asian person, people would view it as a "good" person vs. a "good" person.

I don't know how logical that is, but many people in the class agreed with this person's ideas.

That's extremely logical based on the stereotypes of Hispanics (those who aren't racially white) and blacks. Overwhelmingly poor, undereducated, underemployed, criminogenic and looking to blame "the man" and wait for a government handout.

Asians are generally considered a "model minority" who are stereotyped as being smart and to be able to match wits with whites (who are the power and numerical majority). Asians are also held as being able to teach blacks and Hispanics how to take advantage of the GLORIOUS educational, social, and economic/entrepreneural opportunities that this country offers.

[christiangirl]

Originally Posted by preciousjeni

I just took the test at https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/. It's black/white preference as well as political preference for the 2008 election. I'm not even going to say what my racial preference was except to say that it was "strongly" in one direction. My political preference was "moderately" toward Obama.

I had "little to no" racial preference. That sounds about right for me.

[preciousjeni]

They have an Arab Muslim - Other People test:

https://implicit.harvard.edu/implici...lectatest.html

[AGDee]

Your data suggests a strong automatic preference for Black people over White people

Your data suggests a strong automatic preference for Barack Obama over John McCain

I took one on mothers and fathers also. I think, in my case, learning was involved. Let me try to explain...
The first block was associating Obama with good words (easy to do since I did have a bias there). Obama and good words were "K", McCain and bad words were "D". After the first block, I always found myself wanting to press "K" for good words whether I was supposed to or not. I didn't have this same difficulty with images. I had the same "learning" problem with the one about mothers and fathers but that was all words. I slowed down considerably when the pairings were reversed. I think my bias would have come out toward whichever block appeared first. Of course, I can't prove that, but that's how I felt while I was doing it.

You have completed the African American - European American IAT.
Your Result
Your data suggest little to no automatic preference between European American and African American.

[DaemonSeid]

I debated starting another thread but this fits perfectly right here.

On The Chris Matthews show they are discussing an article in The Atlantic.

Here is an excerpt and the link.

Whether you describe it as the dawning of a post-racial age or just the end of white America, we’re approaching a profound demographic tipping point. According to an August 2008 report by the U.S. Census Bureau, those groups currently categorized as racial minorities—blacks and Hispanics, East Asians and South Asians—will account for a majority of the U.S. population by the year 2042. Among Americans under the age of 18, this shift is projected to take place in 2023, which means that every child born in the United States from here on out will belong to the first post-white generation.

Obviously, steadily ascending rates of interracial marriage complicate this picture, pointing toward what Michael Lind has described as the “beiging” of America. And it’s possible that “beige Americans” will self-identify as “white” in sufficient numbers to push the tipping point further into the future than the Census Bureau projects. But even if they do, whiteness will be a label adopted out of convenience and even indifference, rather than aspiration and necessity. For an earlier generation of minorities and immigrants, to be recognized as a “white American,” whether you were an Italian or a Pole or a Hungarian, was to enter the mainstream of American life; to be recognized as something else, as the Thind case suggests, was to be permanently excluded. As Bill Imada, head of the IW Group, a prominent Asian American communications and marketing company, puts it: “I think in the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s, [for] anyone who immigrated, the aspiration was to blend in and be as American as possible so that white America wouldn’t be intimidated by them. They wanted to imitate white America as much as possible: learn English, go to church, go to the same schools.”

Today, the picture is far more complex. To take the most obvious example, whiteness is no longer a precondition for entry into the highest levels of public office. The son of Indian immigrants doesn’t have to become “white” in order to be elected governor of Louisiana. A half-Kenyan, half-Kansan politician can self-identify as black and be elected president of the United States.


http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200901/end-of-whiteness

Your Thoughts?

[WinniBug]

One thing that upset me was watching "Bring It On: All or Nothing" with Hayden Panettiere and Solange Knowles. (I know, I know...I was bored and there was nothing else on TV)
Hayden's character transferred to a mostly-black school and they constantly referred to her as "white girl", "barbie", "vanilla latte", "frosted flake" and made comments like "looks like we're finally gettin some snow on campus", "coffee is like crack for white people"....
I wonder how people would react if it was the same movie, only racial roles were reversed and Beyonce's sister was the one dealing with racist comments. Sometimes I think racism has done a complete 180 to where people are afraid to even mention a black person's skin color, but racist comments about white people are ok.

[Munchkin03]

Originally Posted by DaemonSeid

To take the most obvious example, whiteness is no longer a precondition for entry into the highest levels of public office. The son of Indian immigrants doesn’t have to become “white” in order to be elected governor of Louisiana. A half-Kenyan, half-Kansan politician can self-identify as black and be elected president of the United States.


http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200901/end-of-whiteness

Your Thoughts?

That's only true to some extent...it still takes a level of "whiteness," or possibly just being fully assimilated into mainstream culture, to be elected to high office. Bobby Jindal may be the son of Indian immigrants who was elected LA governor--but he converted to Catholicism, has an impeccable education, and uses the name "Bobby" instead of "Piyush." All of these things make him more attractive to Mainstream America than if he was still a Hindu who called himself Piyush; if he had a discernable Indian accent instead of the vaguely Southern accent that he has.

The same holds true with Obama--sure, he's got a very "ethnic" name, but the fact that he doesn't carry himself with the same manner as say a Sharpton or Jackson makes him far more acceptable--not just to whites, but to all people who are uncomfortable with the afore-mentioned men. Add to that his education level and the fact that he's half-white, and you have someone who's clearly pretty electable.

The successes of Jindal and Obama, as well as David Paterson and others, does not indicate that the concept of "whiteness" is becoming obsolete in American politics. Instead, it seems that members of minority groups are possibly entering politics more "assimilated" to the mainstream culture than their predecessors, or people of color running for lower offices.

[preciousjeni]

Originally Posted by Munchkin03

That's only true to some extent...it still takes a level of "whiteness," or possibly just being fully assimilated into mainstream culture, to be elected to high office. Bobby Jindal may be the son of Indian immigrants who was elected LA governor--but he converted to Catholicism, has an impeccable education, and uses the name "Bobby" instead of "Piyush." All of these things make him more attractive to Mainstream America than if he was still a Hindu who called himself Piyush; if he had a discernable Indian accent instead of the vaguely Southern accent that he has.

The same holds true with Obama--sure, he's got a very "ethnic" name, but the fact that he doesn't carry himself with the same manner as say a Sharpton or Jackson makes him far more acceptable--not just to whites, but to all people who are uncomfortable with the afore-mentioned men. Add to that his education level and the fact that he's half-white, and you have someone who's clearly pretty electable.

The successes of Jindal and Obama, as well as David Paterson and others, does not indicate that the concept of "whiteness" is becoming obsolete in American politics. Instead, it seems that members of minority groups are possibly entering politics more "assimilated" to the mainstream culture than their predecessors, or people of color running for lower offices.

I think it's also a matter of class status, as you kinda alluded to. Money matters to Americans, bottom line. Money can even compensate for many "negatives" when a person is striving for a traditionally white occupation.

And, even though this country is becoming "post-white" or whatever, who really controls the majority of the wealth among us? Obama mentioned the issue of wealth distribution often during his campaign.

[preciousjeni]

Originally Posted by WinniBug

One thing that upset me was watching "Bring It On: All or Nothing" with Hayden Panettiere and Solange Knowles. (I know, I know...I was bored and there was nothing else on TV)
Hayden's character transferred to a mostly-black school and they constantly referred to her as "white girl", "barbie", "vanilla latte", "frosted flake" and made comments like "looks like we're finally gettin some snow on campus", "coffee is like crack for white people"....
I wonder how people would react if it was the same movie, only racial roles were reversed and Beyonce's sister was the one dealing with racist comments. Sometimes I think racism has done a complete 180 to where people are afraid to even mention a black person's skin color, but racist comments about white people are ok.

Solange would rip you a new one for calling her Beyonce's sister in reference to one of her own roles. She apparently doesn't like that much!

Anyway, the way I see it making comments like these about a black person is adding insult to injury in a racial sense. Making comments like these about a white person is still pretty novel considering it has only been 30-40 years since a black person could do so without threat of death. Unfortunately, I think that such comments don't appeal to the humor of a lot of viewers and really only serve as an illustration that black people are classless. Movies like this one give whites an inaccurate view into the mindsets of black people and perpetuate the idea that there is "savageness" lurking just under the surface.

Overall, saying unkind things about anyone is always inappropriate, but it goes a lot further than that.

[Munchkin03]

Originally Posted by WinniBug

I wonder how people would react if it was the same movie, only racial roles were reversed and Beyonce's sister was the one dealing with racist comments. Sometimes I think racism has done a complete 180 to where people are afraid to even mention a black person's skin color, but racist comments about white people are ok.

Well, since a lot of people have had to deal with that in real life , I'm going to say that those responses in the movie were more tongue-in-cheek.

[DrPhil]

Originally Posted by preciousjeni

Solange would rip you a new one for calling her Beyonce's sister in reference to one of her own roles. She apparently doesn't like that much!

Anyway, the way I see it making comments like these about a black person is adding insult to injury in a racial sense. Making comments like these about a white person is still pretty novel considering it has only been 30-40 years since a black person could do so without threat of death. Unfortunately, I think that such comments don't appeal to the humor of a lot of viewers and really only serve as an illustration that black people are classless. Movies like this one give whites an inaccurate view into the mindsets of black people and perpetuate the idea that there is "savageness" lurking just under the surface.

Overall, saying unkind things about anyone is always inappropriate, but it goes a lot further than that.

I agree with all of this post.

Add, to the bolded, the fact that blacks are more likely to be the "token" in an all white environment than whites are in an all black environment. So people are a lot less interested and impacted by something that is a lot less common. Plus, many whites feel as though there is no lasting effect to "mean words" because once they leave that context, they are back to being white, the power and numerical majority. We've discussed before, whites will often say "I don't care if I'm called a h****," etc because hurt feelings mean nothing in the grand scheme of things. If people can't keep whites from opportunities (denying membership into a high school or college group doesn't count) outside of that setting, it is just a momentary inconvenience rather than a life altering event.

[PiKA2001]

Originally Posted by epchick

I don't know how logical that is, but many people in the class agreed with this person's ideas. But then this is the same class where a girl claimed all the people in the military are only there because they are uneducated & couldn't do better for themselves (didn't go over well, since we are in a military town and most of us only live here cause our parents were in the military)--and people agreed with her too.

I don't get that about El Paso. Why is everybody always bashing on Ft. Bliss and the BILLIONS of dollars they pump into this economy?

[epchick]

Originally Posted by PiKA2001

I don't get that about El Paso. Why is everybody always bashing on Ft. Bliss and the BILLIONS of dollars they pump into this economy?

Don't ask me, I shred that girl a new one when she mentioned it. lol.

I haven't really heard any bashing about Ft. Bliss (i've heard comments about the military in general) but people are always gonna say something. I've learned to ignore, especially in this community, Mexicans are so ignorant most of the time.

[UGAalum94]

Originally Posted by epchick

Don't ask me, I shred that girl a new one when she mentioned it. lol.

I haven't really heard any bashing about Ft. Bliss (i've heard comments about the military in general) but people are always gonna say something. I've learned to ignore, especially in this community, Mexicans are so ignorant most of the time.

Kind of funny in this thread.

ETA: my results from the Harvard thing: Your data suggests a slight automatic preference for Black people over White people
(or a pretty internalized fear of being thought of as racist since I think I have a slight automatic preference for White people actually.)

Your data suggests a moderate automatic preference for Barack Obama over John McCain (Sure, but give me Sarah Palin vs. Obama and we'll see where that gets us.)

[epchick]

Originally Posted by UGAalum94

Kind of funny in this thread.

Eh. Well, it's true.

I've pretty much decided that I don't want to raise my children in this area. I don't want them growing up with the mentality I did. People here (family included) need to grow up and educate themselves more.