Wait so women can choose who they are attracted to but not men? That doesn't make much sense at all. I am a Hispanic guy who grew up in a mostly white neighborhood and went to school with a white majority student body. When it came to liking girls, blondes really attracted at a young age because I mostly saw white girls for the first eighteen years of my life but as I got older and exposed to many more types of people, I found girls of all races to be attractive. So the concepts of me only liking white blonde girls changed as i was exposed to new people. I changed my mind. Nothing in my biological nature persuaded me to stay on the "right" course. People can change their minds once they get exposed to new surroundings and put down their stereotypes and realize that people of a different skin color are really no different than them in the grand scheme of things. I mean if white women can change their mind why not a white man? Also I wouldn't say racists are completely ostracized hard at all. The reputation of a racist can be harmed if they're president of a big company and put their racism out in the open but if some guy makes casual racist remarks at his office, then there is a good chance he can get away with it. The KKK may be pretty much dying but casual racism is still around. Look at Internet Message boards, they are littered with casual racism that nobody is really calling them out on.
I'm curious about what would be considered "casual racism". I always had a pretty mixed friend group and we're always be taking the piss out of each other for being black/white/Asian. Actually, race jokes in general are pretty common with us. Should we be ashamed or outraged with ourselves? Should we take offense? Where do you draw the line between racism and having a laugh?
Casual Racism is more along the lines of using racial slurs/ideas/stereotypes in a light hearted matter in an everyday setting such as an office or at dinner and just expecting that everyone is going to be cool with it. I mean your friends might not have issues with all the race jokes but supposed someone from outside your group hears them? They might have a problem with it because some jokes hurt a lot more than you think to some people. Everyone is different in what offends them, so it's kinda tough to determine where ones draw the line in this sort of thing. You just have to be careful though because you have no idea how someone's going to something you might see as light hearted.
Interesting view, and I half-agree with you. In an unfamiliar/professional setting it's definitely important to remain sensitive to these things, because, as you said, you don't know what people might take offense at. If someone from outside my friend group overhears us and finds it offensive... Then they find it offensive. They can have a problem with it all they like. However, I'd be hesitant to label it as 'casual racism'; doing so is subtly calling the speaker a racist. A person isn't a racist unless they believe that one race is inferior to the other. Unless the speaker genuinely believes that and their words reflect that belief, it shouldn't be labeled as 'racism'. Stripping away the intention and focusing on the words will always lead to misinterpretation. For example, by focusing solely on the words, something as innocuous as "I love steak" can be interpreted as promoting animal cruelty. However, the speaker could really just be enjoying his dinner. It's impossible to make sure that nobody is offended by what I say, so I shouldn't be branded a racist just because someone took offense. If anyone is offended at anything, they should think "Why am I offended?" and "What was that person's intention?" We shouldn't be so quick to jump the gun and call them racists. I mean your friends might not have issues with all the race jokes but supposed someone from outside your group hears them? They might have a problem with it because some jokes hurt a lot more than you think to some people.
Well it's a good thing I never said that, then? Good for you. So what? There's also a good chance he'll lose his job for it. And yet here we are, on an Internet Message Board, bemoaning racism (or the bemoaning of non-existent racism).Wait so women can choose who they are attracted to but not men? That doesn't make much sense at all.
as I got older and exposed to many more types of people, I found girls of all races to be attractive
if some guy makes casual racist remarks at his office, then there is a good chance he can get away with it
Look at Internet Message boards, they are littered with casual racism that nobody is really calling them out on.