Hey, I'm like 13 posts away from having 200 posts! ...is that to be celebrated or pitied? I can't decide...
Anyway, due to extenuating circumstances I've realized that my approach to race debate lately has been usually passive aggressive with some sarcasm thrown in to display how little I care these days. Not how little I care for racial debate, but just debating it with certain people *shrug* I get tired. I'm one of those people who hates being told something more than two or three times--I'll either snap on you or just let you have your way and move on. I can't really be bothered with people who won't listen, I really do have other things in the day.
Usually, internally though I'm all "OJWEIRI#(!)#IO1RNJF GODDAMN YOU PEOPLE KILL ME"
People really do kill me btw, it's great. Me and my friend Daniel last night were discussing a racist incident with his room mate. His room mate, basically, is a punk bitch in every sense of the word from having a failed "open relationship" with his girlfriend to having a tiny fan in the bathroom. And now apparently he's racist to boot, good job.
This Room Mate is talking to his girlfriend about a black student in the Honors courses of Florida State University. He and his girlfriend decide that from what they can gather of black culture, because this man is in advanced courses he cannot be fully black.
This is wholly unsurprising for me as I'm often accused of "acting white" as it's called. Whites and blacks alike usually brand me as "acting white" because I speak proper English, get good grades, and I'm just generally considered an intelligent person I guess. I could go on for years about this whole acting white thing but let me address something else.
Black Success. Frankly I think people fear black success. That negro's doing better in his life than you are, how does that happen? That's not possible, we're all subhuman and can't think past bitches and hos. How does a darkie get in an Honors college?
It's amazing. As much as I'd like to delude myself sometimes that racism is slowly fading, I'll be damned if it's hardly ebbing at all--or it feels like that sometimes. Why are there still people afraid of someone "lesser" than them succeeding? That's actually a pretty easy question to answer and I bet we'll all answer it the same way but I still pose it and wonder why these cowards can't understand why Jose, Jaekwon or...okay I can't think of a stereotypical Asian name right now. But I think you get me point maybe...?
Well, there's a reason I can't think of a stereotypical Asian name right now...there are races that are just expected to perform better, like Asians *shrug* and by that I mean Chinese, Japanese and Indians probably exclusively. Anyone outside of those circles and it's a surprise. Blacks and whoever else aren't expected to succeed and when they do it's a miracle. Sigh. It makes me sad...and that much more determined to do something with my life.
...Speaking of which, I'm supposed to be writing a draft of my proposal. Um, damn, I just killed an hour in this library doing not that.
October 29, 2008
Black success: do you fear it?
Filed under
anger,
race,
reflection,
you're a yellow carrot
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The problem is that some people (blacks and whites alike) have been sold a bill of goods that claims that black=stupid=poor=ghetto=criminal.
ReplyDeleteGrowing up, I was blessed with three fabulous role models who dispelled that for me: Rev. King, Dr. Cosby, and my first grade teacher Mrs. Camp. Later, many more role models appeared including (but not limited by any means to) Maya Angelou, Iyanla Vanzant and Oprah Winfrey.
What I learned is that skin color does not dictate who someone is or what they are capable of.
There once was a gentleman back in the day by the name of Frederick Douglas who spoke and wrote eloquently. The only hole they could poke him on was that he was half white, which their excuse for his intelligence.
ReplyDeleteI would agree wholly that the public in general is scared of black success, depending on where you're from of course. But they have to find the most absurd excuses for why you are an intelligent black human being.
We're driven by a media bias that refuses to lay off stereotypes because they work and narrow-minded people understand them. I'm Asian, but I was a far cry from an academic success. The par was so high for me, I couldn't and wouldn't compete.
Anyway, great post. 200 posts so soon? Damn!
MM, I know, I've only been doing this since...March? Goodness.
ReplyDeleteBut thanks for the feedback. I was a little iffy on writing this one because it's an issue that's TOO close to me and I could feel my eye twitching as I wrote it. But I felt much better after I got it out...somehow.