• 420blazeit69 [he/him]@hexbear.net
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    1 year ago

    Structural racism exists, but so does individualized racism, where someone acts on racial prejudices even if they lack institutional backing.

    If a black American manager gives their white employees all the shit assignments because they don’t like white people, that is individually racist, even though the U.S. is structurally racist against black people. Similarly, you can point to racist actions white people take against black people that are much more individualized than structural. Some white asshole who walks into a black neighborhood and shouts the n-word until he gets beat up is being racist, but that doesn’t amount to structural racism. He’s not redlining, he’s not writing carceral policy to target black people, he’s not running a highway through a black neighborhood.

    • Nakoichi [they/them]@hexbear.netM
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      1 year ago

      Racism is not an individual action and I disagree with you trying to change the definition to align with liberals incorrect understanding of words, especially here.

      This is what people are getting mad at you for I think. I don’t care how you personally dance around liberal brainworms talking to your lib friends or whatever, but here we understand what words mean and if you are seriously trying to redefine racism to include “individualized racism” which is literally not a thing at all then we are going to have problems.

      • 420blazeit69 [he/him]@hexbear.net
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        1 year ago

        trying to change the definition to align with liberals incorrect understanding of words

        We are the ones trying to change the definition. No one outside of small leftist communities thinks racism means structural racism only. We can’t be this disconnected from ordinary people and hope to get anything done.

        • Also intentionally calling someone something they find insulting because you know that they find it insulting and then instructing them that they shouldn’t be insulted by it is just a silly waste of time.

          Its like calling someone a removed and then pontificating about how actually vaginas are beautiful and important. They’re not annoyed because they’re a misogynist. They’re annoyed because they knew what you meant by it

        • InternetLefty [he/him]@hexbear.net
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          1 year ago

          Sure, maybe that’s what some people in the west believe racism means, but they have the incorrect impression. It’s not commandist to correct errors in the thinking of the people.

    • jaeme@hexbear.net
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      1 year ago

      I too love discussing race issues from the comfort of the hypotheticals I made up inside my head.

      “Yes, a white supremacist walking into a black neighborhood to terrorize them is just like that asshole manager that I had who gave me extra work. Both of them were individually racist.”

      The whole structural vs interpersonal racism distinction gets very muddy once you realize that they both are always present together. You just end up tone policing for racists or in endless circlejerk.