Can acceptance of cultural inferiority be overcome? Compare the examples that Zinn cites with other examples of justification for racist attitudes and behavior that you have encountered.How can the reality of slavery (as it was to a human being who lived inside it) ever really be described? Are the conditions of slavery as important as the existence of slavery?Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Slavery, Civil War, and Reconstruction - March 2010
Can acceptance of cultural inferiority be overcome? Compare the examples that Zinn cites with other examples of justification for racist attitudes and behavior that you have encountered.How can the reality of slavery (as it was to a human being who lived inside it) ever really be described? Are the conditions of slavery as important as the existence of slavery?
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Zinn discusses how racism did not only occur in the South but also in the North. He wrote, "New York blacks could not vote unless they owned $250 in property (a qualification not applied to whites)" (Zinn).This shows that no matter where you went in the United States, there were still racist sentiments. As much as I do not want to admit it, I believe cultural inferiority will not be overcome. When we watched "Right America, Feeling Wronged," I remember one man saying he was against Obama because it was the way he was raised. If people continue to be raised with ideas that whites are superior, cultural inferiority will definitely never be destroyed.
ReplyDeleteAs for Maddie’s point about cultural inferiority never being destroyed due to people being raised that way is an excellent point, and I definitely agree. I also think the origin of whites being superior can come from places other than where a person is raised. They can come from the media, peers, possibly everywhere. And if a person is surrounded by these ideas, then eventually they will probably begin to believe it. From “Right America Feeling Wronged,” I remember there was a man, I’m guessing in his late teens or early twenties, who had a shirt that he had made saying that Obama will bring socialism to the United States. However, socialism was spelled wrong and when asked if he would explain what socialism was, he asked if he could to look it up first. I think that this is an example of a person who has been told what to believe which is why he can’t explain why he thinks Obama is a socialist.
ReplyDeleteI find the question “How can the reality of slavery ever really be described?” a very interesting one because it’s easy just to say that slavery was terrible, but that doesn’t describe any of the realities. I think one of the only ways slavery can really be described is to live through it and experience everything the slaves had to go through, from the constant work, punishments, and emotion they lived with on a daily basis.
I agree that racism will be deeply rooted in our society given the upbringings of certain people, but I believe that the "acceptance of cultural inferiority" could be significantly reduced, although not eliminated,with enough effort. Zinn notes how Fredrick Douglass, a slave, stated that "It was not color, but crime, not God, but man, that afforded the true expalnation of the existence of slavery [...] what man can make, man can unmake" (181). Not only did Douglass recognize that racism against blacks required teaching others about it, but this slave believed that it could be undone.
ReplyDeleteCultural inferiority can never be fully eliminated because people will always use it as a means of scapegoating or exercising personal power. Therefore, there will always be people trying to influence others to embrace cultural inferiority, and people will then adopt that mindset. This influence is everywhere, even in Congressional laws such as the naturalization laws, which in 1790 allowed only white men to become citizens. While there are fewer extreme examples of cultural inferiority today than back then, the examples cited by Maddie and Margi still show glimmers of racism.
I agree with Margi that the only way to truly understand slavery is to be under the control of another person and lose personal freedoms. As for the conditions of slavery vs. its existence, I believe that the existence of slavery is more important than the conditions due to slavery's core aspects-- no matter how good the accomodations were for slaves (and it's reasonable to say they were rarely good), they were required to obey another person and would always be weighed down with living without personal freedoms.
Cultural inferiority can not be overcome, because the sole reason Blacks are in our country right now, is because we thought they would be easy to control. Zinn writes that "Their helplessness made enslavement easier. [...] They had been torn from their land and culture and forced into a situation where [their culture] was slowly obliterated." (Zinn 26) Because of this, Blacks born in America were not really African anymore, but African American. Their skin color became a way to identify them as slaves, like one's rank in the army is indicated by a badge. The lingering effects of racism can still be seen in my opinion, a lot from many individuals, despite how "civilized" and "politically correct" we believe ourselves to be. For instance, a fraternity at UC San Diego recently threw a party to mock black history month called the Compton Cookout. "Officials at UC San Diego are condemning a ghetto-themed party organized by fraternity students to mock Black History Month. "A Facebook posting advertising Monday's 'Compton Cookout' invited people to a condominium complex off-campus.
ReplyDeleteThe invitation urged all participants to wear chains, rapper-style urban clothing by makers such as FUBU and speak very loudly.
Female participants were encouraged to be "ghetto chicks" with gold teeth, cheap clothes and "short, nappy hair." (KTLA news)
These stereotypes that still, despite effort from the population, reside in our heads prove that no matter how hard we try to eliminate them, there will always be a few individuals who are still racist.
You can never fully describe the prospect of how it feels to be owned by another human being though. Since we have eliminated slavery in our country, no one group has been enslaved. Its just like reading about the Holocaust, and videos the soldiers took of it. You can see how they lived, and you can see how badly the conditions were, but you can never really know how it feels until you experience it. Also the fact that slavery existed is much more meaningful than its conditions since looking at people we know and thinking " if this was the 1700's they would have been property" is much more meaningful than knowing how bad it was for them.
I like what everyone has said so far about whether racism can or cannot be eliminated. One thing this discussion reminded me of was what Thomas Jefferson wrote in Notes on the State of Virginia. He wrote, “Deep rooted prejudices entertained by the whites; ten thousand recollections, by the blacks, of the injuries they have sustained; new provocations; the real distinctions which nature has made; and many other circumstances, will divide us into parties, and produce convulsions, which will probably never end but in the extermination of the one or the other race.” Basically, he says that no matter what blacks and whites are always going to be separate because of old prejudices, past injuries, and natural differences. However, an African American was elected president. Doesn’t that alone kind of prove him wrong? Personally, I actually agree with Zinn that there is some hope for an end to racism. There are plenty of people who are not racist because of the way they were raised, so there is no reason why everyone can’t be that way someday. I think the real question is, how? How would we get to that point? What would we need to do to dispel such strong prejudices? Or is it too much to hope for? It would obviously take a lot of time, but that does not mean it can’t be done. What do you guys think?
ReplyDeleteI completely agree that cultural inferiority will never be destroyed. Some of our mistakes that we make can never be undone, and, unfortunately, we will always live through the consequences. There will always be this constant divide, a relatively small but symbolically large difference that sadly cannot be overcome. Due to our ancestors, and their strong beliefs about slavery, people will always come to believe that their is a divide through skin color, even if they are fighting for equal rights for everyone. If I correctly recall, there was a specific group of people interviewed in "Right America, Feeling Wrong" that said they were voting for Obama solely on the fact that he was "black". Personally, I do not believe there is such a thing as race. No one's skin is ever the same tint as another's. However, though these people believe they are accomplishing equal rights for everyone, they are actually acknowledging that there is a difference in "race".
ReplyDeleteOn that note, I have to disagree with Matt's point when Fredrick Douglas stated that, "...what man can make, man can unmake" (181). Society's flaws, or faults, can never be erased, and, sadly, they have effected us all in a negative way. The fact of the matter is that slavery will always have an impact, be it small or large, on how this country views the color of one's skin.
I also agree with Ben when he claims that we will never be able to understand what slavery was like unless we are to be enslaved. It is like the lyrics of the song, "What It's Like", by Everlast, when the lead singer states, "God forbid you ever walk a mile in his shoes 'cause then you really might know what it's like to have to lose". These lyrics bring up an excellent point that no matter how much we research slavery to try to understand just what a slave might be feeling, we will never be able to fully understand the pain, inferiority, and misery that were inflicted upon a certain "group" of people.
As for the matter of whether or not the conditions of slavery are as important as the existence of slavery, I personally believe that the conditions hold the same amount of importance. We know that there were other countries that had instated slavery, as we did, but we know of no other country that defiled a human being in the manner that we did. Acclaimed historian, Howard Zinn, states that, “There is not a country in the world history in which racism…that combination of inferior status and derogatory thought…has been more important, for so long a time, as the United States” (23-4). Zinn brings up the excellent point that we may try to justify our mistakes by claiming that other's have fallen subject to installing slavery as well, but we stand alone because of the power and influence that we let slavery have over us all.
- Brittany B.
I agree with everyone on the topic of whether cultural inferiority can be undone. Another reason that I have experienced firsthand for why that is is because everyone in the past was an ancestor of someone now. Zinn describes the treament of slavery on the plantations as "lifelong, morally crippling, destructive of family ties, without hope of any future" (28). For some black people that I've heard speak on this, knowing their ancestors and realizing this is what happened to them because of white people, this knowledge creates racial hatred even today. It is hard to get past what one group of people has done to your ancestors in another group of people easily. Terrible treatment of the slaves by white people is not something that can easily be forgiven.
ReplyDeleteIn terms of whether the conditions of slavery as important as simply the existance of slavery, I'm not sure if conditions is referring to the reasons for slavery existing or the conditions for the slaves themselves, but either way, I think that just the fact that slavery existed in the first place is the more important thing. First of all, the reasons for slavery do not excuse the horrible conditions that the slaves had to live with. Even if the slave owners wanted to use slaves, it doesn't justify making their living conditions as terrible as they could possibly be. In addition, if the idea of slavery was never brought about, the conditions would not be relevant. It is more important to recognize the very fact that slavery existed at all and why that is before looking into the specifics.
The idea of people being nurtured to believe a certain way is an interesting one. John Locke had this theory, called tabula rasa, or clean slate. It basically says that people are all born the same way, but we turn into our own personality based on our surroundings. Says Locke himself, “we are like chameleons, we take our hue and the color of our moral character, from those who are around us" When applied to the idea of cultural inferiority, Locke is saying that no one is born racist, but we are instead groomed to be racist.
ReplyDeleteWe can see this quite clearly in "Right America, Feeling Wronged," as Margi and Maddie have both pointed out.
However, Matt did make an interesting point-- is scapegoating people who are different than we are part of human nature? Or is it merely something that we have learned to do? This is an interesting question that may never be answered.
I think that while it would be completely impossible to completely comprehend slavery (imagine explaining colors to a blind person, or music to a deaf person) but there are ways to semi-understand what it was like, such as listening to what people who experienced it had to say. However, what Brittnay says, about people refusing to listen, may ring true for people who have lived their whole life believing that they are "superior" to other races.
I think the interesting thing about all of these questions is that they can all tie back to each other, showing how interconnected they all are.
Its pretty cool that we all agree. One more thing i'd like to add. Since the United States was basically built on slave labor, whenever we look out our window or use any kind of technology we are reminded that we wouldnt have gotten this far without some form of slavery. Since our country is strong now we no longer need slaves to build and therefore can condemn it as wrong. How can we erase a prejudice and a vision so deep rooted in our everyday lives, and how can we condemn something that made our country what it is? I dont think we can erase cultural inferiority fully, and Its weird to think that we are now condemning what made our country great. It was obviously wrong to enslave others, but its still a funny thought.
ReplyDeleteI agree that because cultural inferiority was not overcome at the end of the war, it will be difficult or even impossible to overcome it now. Zinn wrote in Slavery Without Submission, Emancipation Without Freedom that "racism in the North was as entrenched as slavery in the South, and it would take the war to shake both" (Zinn). This implies that that the war would become a uniting force that, through the participation of both blacks and whites, would end cultural inferiority. However, the whites and blacks were fighting for different reasons, thus they were not truly united in their cause. Plus, blacks and whites were separated in the armies, and, as Zinn states, "white privates received $13 a month; Negro privates received $10 a month" (Zinn). Clearly, if the war was intended to unite the blacks and whites, the execution was lacking because it continued their separation
ReplyDeleteAs for the question concerning the conditions and existence of slavery, I agree with Brittany that because other countries have installed slavery, we have used that as an excuse for our actions and the horrible conditions placed on the slaves. This justification of our actions allowed people in our country to continue their racist thoughts. Thus, the conditions of slavery are just as important as the existence of slavery.
Just to mix up the conversation a little bit, I think I'll add in Zinn's question that he added at the end of chapter 9:
"Du Bois saw this new capitalism as part of a process of exploitation and bribery taking place in all the "civilized" countries of the world:
'Home labor in cultured lands, appeased and misled by a ballot whose power the dictatorship of vast capital strictly curtailed, was bribed by high wage and political office to unite in an exploitation of white, yellow, brown and black labor, in lesser lands...'
Was Du Bois right-that in that growth of American capitalism, before and after the Civil War, whites as well as blacks were in some sense becoming slaves?"
From what I have read, it seems most people are in agreement about the fact that societal pressures and prejudices are deep-rooted and formed early in a person's life. They think things because they are told to, and for no other reason. I like the point Margi makes about the young man with the shirt that attacks Barack Obama with words that he does not even understand. He knows that he is saying something that he is "supposed to" believe in, he just doesn't know what it is.
ReplyDeleteHowever, this concept of convention, and believing in something simply because the majority of people around you do, exists in less obvious and less monumental ways as well. For example, when asked why we go to school, most of us will answer that the reason is that that is what we have been told to do. Why do we plan to go to college? Because that's what all but 1 percent of Staples will do. And most of us will follow convention because that is the easy way out. The deep-rooted prejudices we have been referring to are really just a result of a deep-rooted fear of being different.
I would like to connect this back to Howard Zinn's "The Coming Revolt of the Guards." He talks about the day when the 99% of the population come to overthrow the Establishment (640). The reason why this would be next to impossible is because of the fear of going astray from what is deemed normal. Thomas L. Friedman deems the election of President Obama the end of the Civil War, and explains the "Buffet effect," where southern tough guys say they are voting for McCain, but instead quietly go into the booth and vote Obama (Friedman). This is a great example of people's fear of being different. Someone cares enough about fitting in that they are willing to lie in order to be like everyone else. I think that everyone is guilty of this on some level, and it is proof that we are all victims of a societal pressures and conventionalism.
Caroline Smith
ReplyDeleteConversely to what Margot and Brittany have said about the existence and conditions of slavery, I think that the conditions are more important than its existence. I am in no way saying that slavery is acceptable, but it would not be seen as such an atrocious crime against humanity had the conditions not been what they were. Conditions such as, "receiv[ing] two hundred lashes in the day, and [having their] feet in fetters..." (Zinn 172). When reflecting on what slaves went through, I personally cannot imagine being whipped at all, let alone 200 times in one day. Through all of this pain, many of the slaves were without support from their immediate families, because "...[they were] torn apart, when a master, for profit, sold a husband or a wife, a son or a daughter..." (Zinn 172). The dismemberment of a family unit made the slaves weaker and was another way their white owners chipped away at their moral and their desire to live.
This idea can be translated to other events as well. The Holocaust is a widely known atrocity that arouses a lot of emotion. Allow me to make a generalization and say that everyone thought the existence of the Holocaust was horrific. If you agree with this, reflect on why you think that. When I think of the Holocaust, I think of concentration camps, emaciated men, women and children, and ruthless German soldiers. My point is that I see the Holocaust in such a dark light because of the conditions and events that I know took place. The conditions of slavery and of the Holocaust were what made their existence so controversial.
I agree completely with Caroline that the conditions of slavery are far more important than the mere existence. There was slavery throughout the world at any given time. In Greece, Rome, Medeival Europe, Asia, all of these countries had slaves. However few, if any, of these countries still carry as much racism as our country does. The simple explanation is that slavery overseas was not as demeaning and atrocious as our own.
ReplyDeleteAmerican Slavery was controlled by treating every slave as livestock. As such they were not taught to read or write, not given proper homes, whipped at will by their master. However, treating slaves as animals was a double edged sword- not only did they become involuntarily subservient, but we also began to consider them as animals. And that was the foundation of rascism and discrimination in America. Overseas, without these horrible conditions, the slaves were eventually able to integrate back into society without the hatred of the previously dominant race.
As such, I believe racism can never really be overcome, at least not in the foreseeable future. The racism born out of the treatment of slaves still lives on, causing racism today. Upon the end of the Civil War, free blacks fled north and congregated into the cities. Fueled by their fear of blacks (grown out of the inferiority complex created by generations of slavery) whites fled the cities. This situation lives on today- there are poor intercity places with little funding and thus education is poor. As a result, the stereotype of blacks is someone who is uneducated. That stereotype lives on today, and fuels the current racism in America. Until that changes, American society will continue to be racist, all born out of the dehumanization of black slaves in the 18th century.
I believe Alexandra’s point of the human race being bred to be racist is very accurate and precise. I remember one man in “Right America Feeling Wronged” stating the reason he did not want to vote for Obama because he was “a Niger.” That man along with many other people in this country primarily voted for or against Obama because of his ethnicity. These people along with the rest of the public in this country all have different opinions, and because of having different opinions people create racism, parties, and various other stances whether they are good or bad. Zinn poses a very good question regarding this natural human approach to diversity when he states, “How does it start? How does it end? (…) and is it possible for blacks and whites to live without hatred?” (Zinn 26) I believe this is an excellent question that we should all pose, and to answer it I believe Alexandra has responded to the first question, but I believe that it never will end because of the vast differences our country holds. I feel that for it to end we all need to experience what it is like to be an African American and that is not possible. The best our country can do is to try to understand what it is like, but at the end of the day when we put our head down on our pillow the thoughts in our mind may be nowhere close to what others are thinking. That is what I think differentiates humans on this planets and the individual thinkers we all are and what makes up this country and this world. I feel that differences will always live and because of that no matter what race you are you will not feel the same as a person standing next to you even if you are related to some extent.
ReplyDeleteBen, although I feel that you have argued your side well, I disagree that the idea that the human race has been bred to be racist is "very accurate and precise," and I do not feel that Zinn believes that racism is a natural human approach to diversity. Zinn points out that the elements that lead to racism are "historical, not 'natural'" (Zinn 38). Factors such as the "powerful incentive of profit" and "the temptation for superior status for poor whites" combined to mold the perfect environment for racism to grow (38). The idea that racism sprouted from an economic benefit makes Zinn's argument in favor of the prospect that racism is artificial, not natural.
ReplyDeleteIn terms of the question of whether racism can be overcome, I believe that certain people have become so fixated on bringing about equality that they are actually silently enhancing racism. Affirmative Action, for example, a policy designed to redress past discrimination against minority groups, is actually doing the opposite. No racism means absolute equality, but how can that be obtained if the college admission boards are giving minority groups advantages just because they are assumed to be disadvantaged? It is this assuming that has caused the swell of racism! The idea of stepping into other people's shoes, as suggested by Ben, will do the opposite that it intends, for by even considering different races to be of different positions and places in society and life is dividing the world into categories and genres.
Therefore, although racism is not natural, it cannot be overcome. We have brought ourselves into a loose-loose situation where humankind is either racist or so obsessed with being the opposite that they are involuntarily contributing to it.
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ReplyDeleteI agree with Ben saying that it will not be able to end unless everyone can experience the same thing, which obviously is impossible to do. To address the question that Ben posed from Zinn, I don’t think it is possible for blacks and whites to live without hatred because of the feelings that have been rooted deep into this country from slavery. According to Zinn, “By 1800, 10 to 15 million blacks had been transported as slaves to the Americas,” (Zinn 29). The overwhelming amount of African Americans who were sold as property and endured years and years of hatred and racism is something that can’t be ignored in our history, and unfortunately for some, they can’t put the racist feelings they have towards blacks behind them. However, for those that may disagree that blacks and whites can live together without hatred, what may be the solution?
ReplyDeleteI feel the need to bring up that these feelings in our society aren’t only between whites and blacks though. They may be geared towards anyone; women, Hispanic, Asian, Middle Eastern. Particularly I think of the story that Mrs. Schager told of the bumper sticker she saw that was against the 19th Amendment. With people being so open about their thoughts on racism or gender discrimination, I don’t see how it is possible for us to live without hatred.
Melanie Mignucci
ReplyDeleteI disagreed with Caroline's and David's assertion that the conditions of slavery were much more important than its existence. Had slaves been kept in comfort, allowed to marry, vote, run for public office, anything, they would have still been bound to the ultimate philosophical crisis that they can be reduced to nothing more than property, and have little value other than what is assigned to them. There is no escaping that. The fact that there is slavery is much more disturbing than how well slaves are treated. Without the former we wouldn't even have the discussion of the latter.
Cultural inferiority can never truly be overcome because the very notion is dehumanising. It's like one's parents devaluing the achievements of one child over the other- though the children may be completely equal. The system is one that undermines one culture over another and I don't believe anyone- much less an entire culture- can get over that.
I agree with the notion that cultural influence (especially as it pertains to slavery) will never be completely destroyed. The origins of slavery, from the word black, for which even the connotation was evil according to Zinn, whereas the connotation for white was innocence, to the justification that white men used to lower the position of blacks and native americans (that of a savage race that "needs" the protection and structure the white man provided), were such that racism, even after slavery, could never truly vanish. Racism, as Zinn argued, is a learned action, and certainly not a natural one.
I believe that the paradox behind Thomas More's "Utopia" sums up what is the inherent issue: "the institutions cannot be introduced unless they have already been introduced" (Miller, xvi). While originally racism was an introduced institution, it grew to be part of the cultural subconscious such that the institution of equality among men can no longer be introduced.
In Zinn’s chapter two he works to prove the thesis that he states on page 38, “the elements of this web (the web to ‘ensnare blacks for slavery in America’) are historical, not “natural.” This does not mean that they are easily detangled, dismantled. It means only that there is a possibility for something else, under historical conditions not yet realized.” He states that despite the fact that many of factors have come together to create this messed up and tangled web this wasn’t always the “norm.” It took a lot of factors for slavery to find its place in America, and Zinn realizes that if, at one point in time, these prejudices didn’t exist, then the people can have the power to erase them. On page 31 Zinn states, “Negro and white servants of the seventeenth century were ‘remarkably unconcerned about the visible physical difference.’ Black and white worked together, fraternized together.”
ReplyDeleteIn an attempt not to be incredibly repetitive, I think that slavery can never really be described. For me, personally, only sometimes do I remember how horrible the slave trade actually was. Slavery is synonymous in everyone’s minds from when they go through grade school with bad, and unequal but on only a couple of instances has it hit me how bad slavery actually is, how immoral and scaring each day must have been is unfathomable. Zinn does a good job of providing good specific description of slavery which helps me get a better understanding of the lives’ of slaves. Therefore, I think that the conditions of slavery are more important than understanding the existence of slavery.
I agree with Melanie that existence is more critical than conditions. Principles vs. benefit has been an issue faced by Americans throughout our country's history. For instance, as an apology to Native Americans for lost funds, the U.S. offered to pay Native Americans $1.4 billion for lost funds. However, for the Native Americans to accept this proposal, they would have to accept it as an apology and consider the sides balanced. Would it be right for them to forget the years of torture and struggle for a sum of money? Similarly, if the African Americans had been given the choice to either live under the ideal conditions yet still be slaves or to be free but homeless and jobless, which would be the better choice? At what point is it justified to bend one's principles if the benefits are so great? Does this point even exist?
ReplyDeletehttp://www.cnn.com/2009/US/12/08/indian.land/index.html
Ah sorry I didn't refresh before I posted so I didn't see Charlotte's post, but to react to what she said, I think that your two arguments disagree with each other. If prejudice against blacks wasn't natural, then how can its conditions be more "important" than its existence? The existence itself is an artificial means of dehumanization, so isn't that itself more meaningful than any of the conditions that followed?
ReplyDeleteAlso, how can "important" really be defined in this question?
I agree with David and Caroline when they say that the conditions of slavery are far more important than the mere existence. As David said slavery occurred in many places throughout the world, but it is the fact the in America the slaves were treated as animals and not human and were excluded from society. They weren't taught to read or write, weren't given proper clothing and shelter, they had no family and they were abused by their owners. As a result cultural inferiority is produced which is a root for racism in our country. As Zinn stated in Chapter 2, racism was not natural and a result of the way owners treated their slaves.
ReplyDeleteI believe that because of the way our society is racism will never be overcome in the future. The prejudices that white people gave blacks during the civil war are still the same as they were during that same time period. In the movie Right America Feeling Wronged, people wouldn't vote for Obama because he was black and they were afraid of someone who is culturally inferior to them taking power. I feel that a threat is posed on other minorities like; hispanics, asians, and women. I believe that soon not only will blacks be the most targeted group but all of the groups above are threatened. Overall, I believe that american society will continue to discriminate and be racist as a result of the slavery in the 18th century.
Reading Kyle's post, maybe it's the fact that we will not let racism end. Think about it. People are fighting to give equal rights to all "races", but in doing this, they are only adding more fuel to the fire by acknowledging that racism exists. What is racism exactly? Does it truly mean that one race is superior to the next? The fact of the matter is that racism is a thought that someone created, it is not a permanent thing. In giving racism more attention, we are only recognizing that there is a division, when there does not have to be.
ReplyDeleteSo, maybe I do change my opinion. An optimist's view would be that cultural inferiority would end. However, to make this possible, everyone has to be willing to forgive and forget. That is the only possible way to overcome cultural inferiority.
-Brittany B
In my opinion, acceptance of cultural inferiority can not be overcome unless everyone is willing to "forgive and forget" as Brittany says. When it comes to overcoming racism our country is divided amongst those who are still racist and those who are set on stopping it. A good example of those who are still racist was the recent election. As Brittany mentioned in the video "Right America, Feeling Wronged" a lot of those who opposed Obama did simply because of his race. On the other hand, for those people that might think they are doing good by trying to bring about equality, as Anya said, they are actually "slightly enhancing it." For example, black history month is a remembrance of significant people and events in African American history. By having a month designated to black history and not one to white history we are making a racist statement.
ReplyDeleteAs for being able to truly understand the reality of slavery, unless I was able to experience something along the lines of, "the march to the coast, sometimes for 1,000 miles, with people shackled around the neck, under whip and gun, were death marches, in which two of every five blacks died" (Zinn 28) then I would not be able to truly understand. Therefore, I agree with Charlotte, with the fact that Zinn and other sources give me a better idea of what it was like but being able to describe it would be impossible.
I think that the conditions of slavery (what slaves were allowed to do, their limitations etc.) are as important as the existence of slavery because the conditions of slaves made blacks inferior as a whole and therefore blacks are still oppressed even after the abolition of slavery.
Overall, overcoming cultural inferiority is possible because as Zinn says it was "historical not natural" however it is not possible for the near future.
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ReplyDeleteIt is also interesting to consider why slavery was abolished. It is not like slavery is a new invention. Slaves were used widely in the Greek city-state Sparta, and were even more common in the Roman Republic and Empire, with at one point 3 slaves existed for every Roman citizen(ABC/CLIO). Furthermore, slavery has sprouted up in the Persian, Celtic, and countless other empires(ABC/CLIO). Slavery has sprouted up at multiple different places in multiple different times with no connection to one another. So, unless humankind grew a conscious out of nowhere, there had to be an reason why slavery is all but gone in the modern world. I am now historian, nor an anthropologist, nor at all qualified to make this assumption, but I have noticed that the elimination of slavery in America is right in tune with the industrialization of America. Furthermore, countries that went through industrialization first, such as England, abolished slavery earlier, with England eliminating it in 1834. So maybe slavery did not get abolished, but it just evolved. Would it be crazy to say that in the 20th century, the working class in america was akin to slaves, or that in the modern world, the lowest level workers in China are the modern, more politically correct versions of slaves? One works for nothing, but gets food and board free, while the other works for a payment, but spends it all on food and board. Regardless, the answer to my question is most likely a yes, but it is still interesting to think about. I feel like Zinn may have touched on it or something, I do not pick up details well.In any case, it is in the spirit of Zinn anyways.
ReplyDeleteFor the scceptance of cultural inferioty, I agreed with what most people have said that there will never be a full acceptance from everybody, becaus everybody has prejudice whether it is from the way they were raised or not. But I believe it is still prominent today just as it was 20 years ago, you just have to be looking for it. As Kelsey said we can only ocercome this if everyone "forgives and forgets" but I think that is just truely impossible, and I think that if we all could just do this, then there would be no war between Israel and the Palestinians as they believe in the notion of collective memory, which is when if something happened between the two countries generations ago it follows through till this generation and what happened is never fogotten. This is why there is so much fighting over there, because neihter side wants to forget what happened. This I feel is very similar to slavery here n the U.S.
ReplyDeleteAs for if the reality of slaver can ever be described, I do not think any of us could even imagine what it was like. As Zinn says "But can statistics record what it meant for families to be torn apart(Zinn 172). We hear about how many slaves where around and how old they where and how many died and how they were treated but we never really know how these slaves felt as they were getting sold to many different people and never getting to see their family again. I think there is no possible way people who did not live through can even imagine how it was.
(the Jamie that posted earlier was Jamie Korn)
ReplyDeleteI thought that the point brought up by Alexandra was really interesting. She was talking about Locke's theory of tabula rasa. It would be really intriguing to see a society brought up on its own just to see how things would pan out. I believe that it is truly unavoidable that one group would eventually claim superiority over the other. But if this society was brought up by tabula rasa, the clean slate, would it perhaps be a society in which blacks dominated whites? I'm not saying that it would be impossible, but I would be curious about how our society would react. Perchance someone would make a documentary, like "Right America Feeling Wronged", in which whites completely bashed the blacks for resuming power which was "rightfully not theirs." I think it would be difficult for people to see something of which they weren't used to seeing happen. Sorry that this is all on a bit of a tangent, but it was just something that came to my mind that I thought I might bring up.
On a very different note, Zinn brings up that there was fear in 1741 about whether or not "discontented whites would join black slaves to overthrow existing order" (Zinn 37). Relating back to cultural inferiority ever being overcome, I don't think that the "existing order" would have had anything to worry about. Since there was such an overwhelming number of whites versus blacks and such an acceptance of blacks being paltry, the whites would have felt odd about going against the grain. Although, true, the cause may have outshone the awkwardness and they may not have cared what others thought, but it would have been threatening to know that you're doing something that is widely frowned upon.
I like what Misha had to say; no matter what statistics are not human accounts for events. However, based upon stories from the underground railroad, such as Harriet Tubman’s, as well as personal experiences from a sixth grade trip to nature’s classroom afford me the proof of (to use a colloquialism) how much slavery sucks. Agreeing with her, imagining that amount of abuse is terrible and my idea of it is probably nowhere as awful as it truly was.
ReplyDeleteI think Jamie Y.’s point about “Right America, Feeling Wronged” is ridiculously interesting but implausible. When capturing the footage for the documentary, the production crew was asking about political issues, not social ones. I feel that based upon the way people bended their words to avoid saying that they would not vote for Obama because he is black, people would also avoid saying what Jamie hoped they would say. (Perchance someone would make a documentary, like "Right America Feeling Wronged", in which whites completely bashed the blacks for resuming power which was "rightfully not theirs.)
To return to the question of if “the conditions of slavery as important as the existence of slavery?” I think that it isn’t. The term slavery – to me – means unwanted or against ones will. In no way, shape, or form can someone desire to be owned by someone else. Whether or not a slave is given a safe living environment does not matter—it is wrong.
I think that everyone has posted ideas that each have their own merits, but I want to disagree with a point Ben made about being able to "get this far" with the usage of slavery. Unless I did not understand Ben's point correctly, all slavery did was give southerners free labor that would in turn help them make money from the products that they sold. There were not any major, new technologies that came out of picking cotton in fields or doing other mindless tasks.
ReplyDeleteSome may argue that slavery helped drive the South's economy. However, this has been proven false by an economist named Thomas J. DiLorenzo. According to him, slavery only "enriched a relatively small minority," and thus it had no major effect on the general Southern economy (http://bit.ly/drZXQh). Ben, you say that slavery got us to where we are today, yet slavery clearly did not have a lasting effect on society.
While I think it is a very interesting point Jamie brings up about whether or not the poor whites and the blacks could have actually joined forces, I happen to disagree. I believe what Zinn suggests about the possibility of a joint rebellion is true. Zinn cites Edmund Morgan who states, “There are hints that the two despised groups initially saw each other as sharing the same predicament” (Zinn 37). I believe that in a colorblind society, class would be determined by economic status, in which case, the poor whites and the poor blacks would be equal. However, as Zinn later states, the establishment offered “small gifts of status” to the poor whites in order to prevent “that unity of black and white necessary for joint rebellion and reconstruction” (Zinn 38). I firmly believe that the blacks and the poor whites would have rebelled together if not for the class exploitation which was implemented by the establishment.
ReplyDeleteThis brings me back to the original question; can acceptance of cultural inferiority be overcome? Thomas L. Friedman, the columnist for the New York Times, was clearly hopeful. In his article, “Finishing Our Work,” which was written shortly after Obama won the election, he states, “my gut tells me that of all the changes that will be ushered in by an Obama presidency, breaking with our racial past may turn out to be the least of them” (Friedman). Now that we have experienced two years since this ground-breaking event, I do not believe the mindset of people has changed. I think it is even possible this has made matters worse. Not to say whether or not Obama has done a good job or not, but I think that running on the premise of “change” led people to believe that better times were coming, and they were coming fast. However, this is just not plausible. We were in a pretty serious recession when Obama took office, and things were not going to turn around immediately, but I believe people thought they would, which is why Obama’s approval ratings have gone way down. When people did not receive immediate results, they became aggravated, and things like congressman shouting “You lie, boy!” at the President occurred. While having a black President may not have exacerbated the acceptance of cultural inferiority, I do not think it helped it any, and while I do think it can be overcome, it will not happen overnight, but rather as a long process.
I agree with many of the comments above which state that racial inferiority's roots are to deep for all races to ever be equal. In Lincoln's first Inaugural address he said "'I have no purpose, directly or indirectly, to interfere with the institution of slavery in the states where it exists."'(Zinn 189) When I read this it immediately made me realize that as hard as anyone may try it is virtually impossible for their to be equality among the races because it is virtually impossible to make everyone believe that there is equality among the races. And because it is nearly impossible to make everyone agree on one thing that is why our government is run by democracy and we vote. Because we will never be able to make everyone happy so we need to vote so that the majority of the people are happy. But no matter what is done it is impossible to make everyone agree on one thing because peoples opinions are formed based off of where they were raised, when they were raise, and who they were raised by. And because of the differences in all of these things for each person as badly as i want to believe that some day there will be equality among the races, I don't think it is possible.
ReplyDeleteRobert you made some great points. I definitely agree with your interpretation of Zinn about the class system and how the acceptance of cultural inferiority is a "long process".
ReplyDeleteObama's election was absolutely a major step towards racial equality in America. However, I disagree with Friedman when he wrote, "the Civil War could never truly be said to have ended until America’s white majority actually elected an African-American as president. That is what happened Tuesday night and that is why we awake this morning to a different country" (Friedman 1). I think we still wake up to the same country. There are still many racist sentiments in America, especially in the South. Even if there is not quite so much or such explicit racism, there is still inequality and definitely major prejudices. I think most Americans have racial prejudices, even if they do not realize it.
Also, I think the conditions versus existence of slavery is a very interesting debate. David and Caroline both raised excellent points about why the conditions are more important than the existence of slavery. However, ultimately I believe that the existence is more important than the conditions. It is impossible for anyone to know how it feels to be owned by another human being, to have no rights or privileges, to just be a piece of property. However, this definitely goes with the conditions of slavery in America. Maybe slaves would not feel like property if they were not treated like property. It is impossible to tell unless you have actually experienced slavery in person.
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ReplyDeleteI think that so far a lot of people have made many valid points. While I personally agree with Caitlin, Mel, and others that the existence of slavery is more important than the conditions, I think that the conditions of slavery play a larger role in creating prejudice. For example, I think that Caroline made a great analogy when she discussed the Holocaust, saying that while in general the detainment of people based on prejudice is terrible, the conditions of the concentration camps are truly what made it so horrific. I think that you could also compare that to the internment camps, in which the American government detained Japanese citizens. In essence, both kept innocent people as prisoners, but clearly the Holocaust was far worse because of the terrible conditions of the concentration camps. Furthermore, one had the intent of exterminating an entire race while the other was supposedly for national security. I think this can be compared to the treatment of black slaves versus the slaves in the Roman Empire and other European countries, because black slaves were completely dehumanized, as Zinns says, "[slaves] were shackled around the neck, under whip and gun [and] kept in cages until they were picked and sold" (28). Because they were treated so brutally, the racism against blacks is much more severe than against others. Zinn states other slaves had "a harsh servitude, but they had rights which slaves brought to American did not have, and were 'altogether different from the human cattle of the slav ships and the American plantations'" (27). While of course all forms of slavery or horrible, I think the conditions of the slavery are more significant in terms of racism for future generations.
ReplyDeleteIn response to the question of whether or not slavery can truly be described or realized by someone who has not experienced it first hand, I think that it is impossible to truly understand the horrors of it. Simply rereading the Zinn quotes that everybody else has chosen for the responses shocks me as much as the first time I read them, and it is impossible for me to comprehend how people could be so cruel to each other. However, despite how racist some people still are today, I do not believe that even they would think any of those things acceptable today. So doesn't that at least show that some progress has been made? While those things may have been acceptable years ago, today they are considered atrocious. Is it then possible that in the future, the racist ways in which some people today treat each other today will be considered horrible by all people in the future, even those who are considered prejudiced by the future's standards?
There is definitely no question about the prejudices that still exist. As Zinn puts it, a color line was clearly drawn and, in my opinion, I agree with Alexandra and Jamie that Locke’s theory of tabula rasa (clean slate) would be the only way to overcome the prejudices long instilled in our nation, for the erasing of the color line is very much impossible when it has been drawn with permanent marker. Like Zinn said, racism is a "complex web of historical threads", and the threads are indeed historical, so overcoming cultural inferiority, prejudice, and racism is thus impossible (22).
ReplyDeleteFriedman exhibits a naive childish hope when he says, "my gut tells me that of all the changes that will be ushered in by an Obama presidency, breaking with our racial past may turn out to be the least of them." We have NOT broken with our racial past. "Right America, Feeling Wronged" revealed that many in the South simply "ain't ready" for a black president due to their hard-core racism and using the Civil War as a crutch, in which they lean on the fact that the South slave states considered blacks as slaves, not as citizens or presidents. So, how would Southerners – or any racist American - be able to accept a black president? A black president is not the end-all-be-all of society's problems, and certainly does not end the Civil War, so I concur with many on the blog that the Civil War ended in 1865, not 2008. It is Reconstruction that has been occurring all this time, and Obama’s election helped America over a hill in the road that they could not get over for some time, but we are still on the path of Reconstruction as our nation faces economic crisis.
On the subject of slavery being accounted for and described, I see eye to eye with Misha and Elaine. As Elaine said, “no matter what, statistics are not human accounts for events.” Numbers and bar graphs do not replace scarring stories passed down generations. The reality of slavery is slowly escaping the world as the generations closer to the slaves of the Civil War and prior to have begun to die out, so, like a story passed down generations, the stories will become filled with loop holes and questions. Slavery can never really be described by a modern society, no matter how smart the historian from Yale makes himself out to be. A textbook cannot teach human accounts, and stories/simulations of the Underground Railroad can only go so far as to get people to see “how much slavery sucks,” as Elaine puts it.
However, when the issue was more tender in the early 17th century, I disagree with Jamie and concur with Robert. When Jamie said “it would have been threatening to know that you're doing something that is widely frowned upon,” the poor whites did not think this way. It was instilled in them by the elite, the establishment, the “superior” whites to think this way. “Blacks and whites worked together, fraternized together…they behaved toward one another as equals” (Zinn 31). Not everyone was exposed to the drawn color line, so one cannot be sure that these poor blacks and whites knew they were doing something wrong. If they knew it was wrong, they didn’t stop until society caught up with them and gave poor whites benefits to instill in them a forced cultural superiority. Without the interference of society, I agree with Robert in his belief that “the blacks and the poor whites would have rebelled together if not for the class exploitation which was implemented by the establishment.” Indeed, it was a “class fear” that forcibly separated these two cultures, but they would not have separated on their own in a colorblind society, about which I concur with Robert again that if status is not about color, it would be about money, so the poor blacks and whites would still be equal.
I would have to agree with Maya, and those before, who have stated that there are many prejudices still presented in today's main stream society. I also agree with Maya, and those before, who have used Zinn's "color line" to describe that racism that has created such a divide within our nation. Throughout politics, economics, and society, I, like Zinn and Maya clearly still see the remains of slavery and racism and see the toll it continues to take in many facets of our nation. This includes the social racism which was so clearly illustrated in Right America Feeling Wronged, or the divide economically, seen in the socio-economic levels Zinn pointed out, which for centuries has, in many ways been created around race. Further more it is clear that these injustices truly are intertwined and truly do affect each other, whether it's social racism keeping an African American from holding political office until Obama, or that lack a representation in the government causing minorities to continue to be stuck in the same socio-economic levels that their grandparents so desperately tried to get out of.
ReplyDeleteI would have to disagree with some before like Rubi and Caitlin when they say that, "there is some chance for an end to racism." As Zinn puts it, racism is a "complex web of historical threads." It is these historical threads that for me provide the biggest obstacle for overcoming racism. Again, slavery and racism have been big parts of America's culture and history, from bringing the slaves over from Africa to attempting to keep African America's slaves to the prejudice in this country by subjecting them to the idea of being separate but equal. In class we saw this through the institutionalization of slavery in the government through the Constitution in Article 1 Section 9 which protected slave trade and hindered Congress from outlawing or regulating it, and Article 4 Section 2 which made extraditition of slaves mandatory within the U.S. It is this institutionalization, these deep historic threads, and this erasable divide that I feel makes it impossible for racism to truly be erased. Erasing racism would mean forgetting the history of this country and no matter how hurtful or shameful the history is, forgetting it is something this country and this country’s people are not capable to doing. I feel this lack of capability is evident throughout today’s culture once again through Right America Feeling Wronged by showing the deep feelings many people still have over the Civil War in the South as well as the political and economic racism that continues to be protected by those that hold the power to do so that unfortunately has and will continue to largely keep the socio-economic levels right where they are. Of course, optimism is always needed and even with the statement that racism cannot be erased I feel that there is still hope. And while it might not be the unrealistic hope of doing away with racism all together, the hope of not letting that racism control the direction of this country and those in power, to me, is good enough.
ReplyDeleteAs for the first question, I don't even feel there is a great cultural inferiority, but there is an obvious cultural difference. Because of skin color there is an obvious seperation between whites and blacks. There is no way to erase all the history of this country and the centuries of racial struggles that the U.S. went through. As Maya just quoted from Zinn, racism is a "complex web of historical threads". There is no way to deny this and there is no way to forget everything that minorities have gone through in the past years, but I believe that a racial inequality has become more of a racial difference through time.
ReplyDelete(this is Caroline Wu. ignore the blog name)
ReplyDeleteI would like to disagree with Alex in his point that "it impossible for racism to truly be erased." True, history plays a great part in people's perceptions of what is right and what is wrong, but history is not everlasting. In the past, the Romans declared those who did not speak their language "barbarians" and obviously looked down upon them, but today, I doubt there is anyone who would use the history of Roman supremacy as an excuse to be prejudiced against other people. I am not saying that it will take something as catastrophic as the collapse of this country for people to forget the history of prejudice, but I do believe that, with time, less people will remember the physical reasons for cultural inferiority, and more people will be able to see past the dogma and accept all cultures as equal.
However, I also think that for the near future, at least, culture inferiority will still be present. As Zinn says in the Coming Revolt of the Guards, a commonly accepted means of citizenship is to go "into a voting booth every four years to choose between two white and well-off Anglo-Saxon males of inoffensive personality and orthodox opinions" (631). At least for now, the culturally accepted "leader" is restricted to a particular race, which also reflects that the population, as a whole, trusts this preset idea of leadership more than perhaps a leader who is not the stereotypical white male. Although progress is still being made, as evidenced by President Obama's election, Congress is still predominately white, beyond the proportion of whites in the US right now, which exemplifies the huge cultural prejudice that still needs to be overcome.
Caroline Nantz
ReplyDeleteConversely to Colleen, I do believe there is cultural differences. However, I do not believe that there is such a thing as race. It is impossible to separate everyone by solely two "skin colors"; one being black, the other being white. There are different colors of skin; no one shade is the same. With that said, I do not believe racism is an actual idea, but more of an idea created in someone's mind. Today, we have blown "racism" so out of proportion, that it is now considered an actual term found in dictionaries and text books. This could have been avoided if people earlier in history had come to the realization that everyone has a different skin tone.
As Jessica had pointed out earlier, Howard Zinn, a historian, states, "[slaves] were shackled around the neck, under whip and gun [and] kept in cages until they were picked and sold" (28). My question is how is it possible for us to fully understand the feeling of what it is like to be a slave? No one knows that feeling unless they have been "property" of another person. Therefore, we can describe what slave owners did to their slaves, but we will never be able to empathize with how the slave actually felt.
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ReplyDeleteI think that cultural inferiority is something that definitely will not be overcome in any of our lifetimes. It is unrealistic for people to expect a prejudice that has been instilled into the culture of a country to suddenly disappear. Howard Zinn says about the racial inequality in our country, “The point is that the elements of this web are historical, not ‘natural.’ This does not mean that they are easily disentangled, dismantled” (Zinn 38). I think that Zinn makes a great point in saying that racism is not something that is natural, but at the same time it is very difficult to completely remove it from our culture. For centuries our country has faced an inequality between the blacks and whites. Despite many efforts to end this disparity, we have not been successful in finding an answer as to how to overcome it. Zinn, however does state a plan for the dismantling of the racial inequality in our country by, “the elimination of class exploitation” (Zinn 38). I think that Zinn’s plan for reconstruction and the elimination of cultural inferiority in our country is one way of going about the problem. Personally, though, I do not think that there is one clear plan to put an end to the cultural inferiority that the citizens of our country have to face today. I think that our country will have to stay on the track that it is on now and make the gradual process that we have been making for centuries in order to hopefully see an America that is “colorblind.”
ReplyDeleteAfter centuries sealed with the cruel treatment of slaves and blacks, and many other races, I believe we have found a truth. Look at life today, yes racism does exist and is prevalent, but a vast majority of our culture has chosen to overlook the small difference between our skin, or the difference between our eyes. Rather than distinguish cultural differences many of us have chosen to embellish it.
ReplyDeleteToday classes such as African Studies, Middle East, and East Asian are offered at our school today. Why does this matter? In fact this is a major proof of progression and the abandonment of discrimination. We are now being educated about the countries and cultures of the discriminated, the racially inferior. Rather than being taught with vulgar, we are learning to respect these countries. And if a respect is earned by this generation, the respect will only continue with the birth of the next generation.
In many ways, racism is like science. History has shown us that people have believed in the most idiotic and naïve theories in order to fall asleep at night. For example, the heart was considered to be a fire for centuries. It is probable that the idealistic, righteousness of slavery was started by simply one man. Because it was something that made life easy it was considered okay, and their skin color was the scapegoat. The difference made it okay.
But evidence goes to show us not all believed this. “Black and white worked together, fraternized together. The very fact that laws had to be passed after a while to forbid such relations indicates the strength of that tendency” (Zinn 31). Even during the years of slavery there were more than a select few who ignored these small differences. As time has passed, less and less people see these differences. Thus, why I believe that as we evolve we possess more knowledge, become more confrontational, and are able to not only see but also feel right from wrong.
I don’t think that the conditions of slavery will ever become national knowledge. The conditions are simply too cruel and gruesome for many people. Unfortunately it is the knowledge and awareness of what American slaves have undergone that make us see how wrong it really is. As we become more accepting as a nation, we forget more and more of what truly went on. But these conditions must not be forgotten, with these conditions exposes a true America, gone wrong.
I agree with Abby when she says that racism will not be ended in our lifetime. In fact, I personally do not think it will be ended at all, just like many others have said above me. As Historian Howard Zinn states, "There is not a country in world history in which racism has been more important, for so long a time, as the United States" (page 23). This quote shows how racism has existed throughout history and has really been put into the minds of many people. Not only have people grown up with it, but it has been taught by some families. Although it is clearly wrong here in the Northern states, in many Southern states, there still is terrible discrimination. For example, in class, we watched a documentary about the Obama/McCain election. In this documentary, many Southerners were saying how this country is not "ready" for a Black president. I think that racism is something that this country has had a long history with and it is impossible to just completely erase it.
ReplyDeleteIt is clear that most American states have become much less racist against other cultures than they were long ago, such as the times of the Civil War. Blacks and Whites go to school together, work together, marry eachother, etc. and there is no law forbidding any of this. Nobody really thinks twice about having people of different races in the same public places. However, racist thoughts and opinions will unfortunately always exist because of the past that America has had. In my opinion, there really is no solution to people thinking ignorantly regarding other races, but to learn from the mistakes that were made in history so that none of them are repeated.
Slav i agree with a lot of what you have said, that racism is so thouroughly ingrained into our society that it likely will never be completely expunged, but i have to disagree with your statement that there is no solution to ignorance regarding different races.
ReplyDeleteIts very obvious that different races can work together, and live together, as this has been proven many times throughout history. Even back when slavery was still around, in the early 1800's Zinn says that “Black and white worked together, fraternized together" (Zinn 31.) And in todays world, i look around the school, i look around the community, and i see no racism. In fact, i have never seen racism.
Unfortunately, as we all saw in the documentary "right america feeling wronged," racism is still prevalent in many southern states, most notable places such as Louisiana and Georgia. Where did this racism come from? Zinn states in his chatper "drawing the color line" that "with [slavery] developed that special racial feeling.. that comination of inferior status and deragotory thought we call racism" (Zinn 24.) Zinn's belief was that racism came from slavery. So why is it then, that racism is still quite prevalent in America society even today, almost 150 years since slavery was abolished?
I had actually been thinking about the topic for some time, when Newsweek came out with an article titled: Is Your Baby Racist? This article answered many of my questions as to the origins of racism. Though i no longer have the issue, and so cannot use quotes, the article showed, with evidence, that though kids are not born racist, their mind soon begins to differentiate things into catagories. Included in these 'things,' is race. They catagorize race into a sort of 'us' and 'them' scenario, which would develope into racism under ceratin conditions. These conditions lie in parenting. The article showed how parenting, and the parents views, were direct factors in racist developement. The article proved that proper parenting was the solution to racism. This makes sense in real world context. In the north, where there is little racism, children are raised without racist beliefs, whereas in the south, racist ideas are perpetuated through generations.
So then, back to the question. Can acceptance of cultural inferiority be overcome? yes, i believe it can, with proper parenting techniques.
I don't know whether or not slavery is a natural thing or not but I have come to a decision that in 1619 when the first slave ship was boarded, all was going down hill because Americans had the advantage of technology. Morgan described this process in his book, American Slavery, American Freedom, he said “If you were a colonist, you knew that your technology was superior to the Indians’. You knew that you were civilized, and they were savages….” The white American men being well equipped to take over a group of people saw and opportunity and took advantage of it. Although in this case, the group was African, not Indian, the same process was used to take over a ‘less civilized’ group of people.
ReplyDeleteWe, as a country have come a long way in the treatment of blacks in America. From slaves to the black codes to the KKK to just racist jokes and comments, the treatment has improved. But I agree with Zinn and Rubi that there will be an end to racism in the future.
There is one passage from Zinn that I can not forget. Zinn quoted a document that described the voyage on a ship for the slaves. It is as follows: “he height, sometimes, between decks, was only eighteen inches; so that the unfortunate human beings could not turn around, or even on their sides… and here they are usually chained to the decks by the neck and legs.” After reading this passage, I thought I heard it all, but I will never really know how poorly the slaves were treated and the horrors they had to go through.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/08/opinion/08brooks.html
ReplyDeletethis is an article from the new york times by David Brooks in which he talks about how people tend to over simplify human nature, which cause large scale failure of policy. Such as the fall of the soviet union and the reaction to U.S. troops in the middle east, i think it can also be applied to the norths actions regarding slavery.