Am I racist?
Answer:
I agree wholeheartedly with you. I know that scholarships and equal opportunity with regard to education and employment were designed to prohibit discrimination and to make it possible for everyone to have an equal chance at something, but it has gone to the point of where caucasians are excluded from certain jobs or educational opportunities because they are the wrong race and by law, a certain amount of minorities must be hired (or given scholarships as the case may be).
My ex-husband tried to become a firefighter in California many years ago. He completed a fire science course at a community college, he passed with flying colors, he aced his written exam and interview, and he was very physically fit and an ideal candidate to be a firefighter. He was told that he was not hired because there were only a certain amount of positions available and they were required by law to hire a certain amount of women and minorities, and he could not be hired because he was white. To make matters worse, when he took the physical agility test, he was told that the women were not held to as strict a standard to perform physically as a man was. That bothered me considerably because even though I am a woman, I would not want a woman to rescue me from a burning building if she could not carry me or someone larger than me out of that building because she was not required to be as physically capable of pulling a hose or carrying a heavy weight as a man was.
If my life depended upon a firefighter's strength, I would want the firefighter who was rescuing me to be one who didn't have to have their physical test be lowered because of their gender. Likewise, if I were a minority, I would be offended if the main reason I was hired for a job was because I was the right race - not because I was the most qualified. I am not racist either, although my answer might be perceived that way. I am just a person who feels that whoever is the most qualified for a job or educational opportunity, should be the one who is accepted. If there are race disparities, then I am all in favor of balancing things to make it fair for everyone, but certainly not at the expense of others who are equally qualified but of a different race.
I've asked the same question. It IS racist to offer scholarships to people who are hispanic or black. That is not creating equality, that's just saying "Oh, we think you're too stupid or poor to be capable of having a good education". I was annoyed by it when I first heard about it. It's insulting to them and it's not right.
No I don't think you're a racist. You sound sincere. But to be very honest I'm afraid to answer that because I am not a racist but I don't word things very well & I don't want to give anybody the wrong impression
It's called the "double standard". I think we should just abolish things such as "United Negro College Fund." It's just further separating people and causing more racism.
Simply because we(caucasians) have a bad reputation and people are narrow-minded and ignorant. Hypocrisy is rampant. I've been called a racist and white****** in the exact same sentence.
I went to a school for the "gifted" it was small school. there were 15 people in my grade. Most the kids were very wealthy - one kid had a 400$ a week shoe allowance.
I was pretty poor. I got a scholarship.
So did two other kids - from some of the worse parts of detroit.
They got up at 6am to take the buses up woodward (20 miles) so they could be on time for school.
They did well there - they went to college on scholastic scholarships. They became successful.
Would they have been able to do the same things if they continued to go to school in the ghetto. I dont think so.
And thats the point.
They wouldnt have had the same opprotunity.
every once in a while I get bitter about the same ideas that you do.and then I'm reminded of ramone and teenya.
And I'm reminded of giving them a ride home one day because they wanted to stay after to watch a play and they missed the bus - and I know that their minds would have never developed as they did if they stayed in the closed world of the ghetto.
There simply are not as many opprotunities available when you live in poverty.
so as far as racism, I dunno, I just think that maybe you havent thought as far as possible about the ramifications of what you say.
It was once pointed out to me that there is no such thing as an Afro American (term used at that time) In the USA we are all from differing origins. except Native Americans (one time title-Indians) People from many, many parts of the world migrated to the USA, not just blacks. You don't hear the term "German America" Swedish American" even though their heritage, ancestry stems from those countries. So-why are there "Afro or Black Americans" and benefits for such but not for others? Some Black's were brought to the USA as slaves, but they weren't the only ones. But--the question is not about former slaves, it's about heritage, background, roots, ancestry. Maybe the fairness of the situation needs to be looked into. I'm not angry about someone or a given race getting benefits...good for them. But, what's fair is fair.
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