Do you think there are double standards on racism and prejudice?

[Jacob1983]

Do you think that in American society and around the world that there are double standards on racism and prejudice? I honestly believe that there are.
For example, can you honestly tell me that Don Imus would have been fired if he had something offensive about Christians or fat people? Do you think Isaiah Washington would have lost his job on Grey's Anatomy if he had something bad about Catholics or Asians?
In American society, there are certain groups that can be made fun of and offended and there are certain groups that can't be made fun of. Blacks, Jews, Muslims, women, and gays are the groups that are off limits. I mean if you say something bad or negative about those groups, society will treat you like a criminal. However, if you say something bad about Christians, Catholics, fat people, conservatives, and Asians then it's okay.

I'm just tired of how people go on witch hunts on celebrities when they say something stupid. It's like we treat them like they're criminals. It's also very hypocritical. I'm pretty sure all of us have said some stupid hurtful things before.

Why are pro-life supporters portrayed as women haters? If you're against illegal immigration, then you're a racist too. If you're religious and believe that gay marriage is wrong then you're a bigot. I just don't get it.

[Jon]

I can say without a shadow of a doubt I've been labeled a racist for being against illegal immigration, and because of my use of the world "alien" or "illegal." Which both words fit the description properly. Furthermore, I agree there is a double-standard, look at Dog the Bounty Hunter, he used a bad word yes, but what he said was also taken out of context. You won't see Al Sharpton badmouthing his own people when they say/do negative things, but if it's Don Imus or Dog, then all heck breaks loose.

A lot of races have been put through terrible times in the past, but we're all suppose to be equal now. Yet I think certain minorities now will use the past to defend their negative comments and actions today. Which obviously is not right.

[Heather]

There is definitely a double standard in society. Certain minorities have lost their sense of humor, and take everything as an offensive comment, when its not. Its political correctness gone haywire.

[OTH man]

yeah i'd say theres a definant double standard, i'll quote myself

BACK UP.. I can't believe you just said that, believe me, this is one issue I, a white male, won't back down from

Contrary to what people like Al Sharpton want you to believe, we don't hate blacks here, we don't hate minorities and not everything is based off of race, not even close. Every DAMN day of my life, I walk through the halls of my school/walk around town under the watch being a white male, I can't mess up, but at the same time, the minorities are breaking just about every rule there is with no punishment.. why? because if they get punished, it's suddenly a racist act, and whoever would ever punish a minority will be rallied against and shunned from society, unless of course, the punisher is a minority themself.

Furthermore, my brother (ob. another white male) had to fight like hell to get his scholarship because everyone wants to give it to a minority, in fear of being called racist themselves. Considering the majority of scholarships that are 'open to everyone' go to minorities, not to mention the scholarships just for blacks, just for women, just for hispanics, ect ect ect.. there isn't one White Scholarship, because *gasp* could you imagine the outbreak? HOW RACIST!

Believe me, if a minority here REALLY wants to make something of themself, they could find a local politician and get scholarship money, if they REALLY wanted to, they could find a way to get somewhere in life

So please, don't you dare say everything in America is biased for white males

i've been called racist for calling illegal immagrants 'illegals' too
but.. thats what they are

[Panda]

Being a white female, I take alot of shit for being aganist immigration, illegal aliens, schooling for illegal aliens for free.. yeah I am aganist it.

I remember this one time when I was in high school and I was standing in a group of girls (I was with one of my friends, I didnt know the others) and they happen to be all black except for me. I hear one girl go off and call (to quote) "that white cracker bitch" and continued to rant about someone who was white. So I dont take shit.. never have, I'm not scared of saying anything in front of anyone. There was about 6 or 7 black girls and I'm the only white girl and I go "How would you feel if I called you a n***** bitch?" I said it wicked loud, the girls looked at me in absolute shock and I said "you just offended me.. I'm going to offend you back. You want to be racist, its okay.. no its not okay, your gonna get it back. How do you feel?" the girl literally thought about it, knew I was right and ever since then all of those girls have said hi to me and have had my back if I needed them to. Hows that for double standards?

Is it okay for a black person to be racist to a white person? No its not.. but some think it is or that its not "as offensive" as if it was directed to a black person. Personally I think thats bullshit.

The other thing I dont get.. they have BET, NAACP awards.. all this stuff and scholarships only for black people but they dont have any for whites? We dont see WEP or White leadership awards and scholarships.. no because that would be considered racist and segeration.. right? I thought we were all equal?

[Jacob1983]

The truth is that we aren't all equal. If we were equal then there wouldn't be affirmative action. Being a white man is like being a criminal these days. If you're a white man then you're the bad guy. America is very messed up with it comes to racism and prejudice. We like to come off like we're all about equal rights and treating everyone the same but it's all bullcrap. In our American society, it's racist if a white person gets a scholarship for being white yet it's fine and dandy if black people get scholarships for being black. Not all white people are freakin rich. People forget that.
February is black history month. So what month is white history month? And please don't tell me that every month is white history month because that's crap and you know it. White people in America are not allowed to embrace and be proud of their heritage and culture because a lot of people are afraid of coming off as racist.

[OTH man]

Originally Posted by Jacob1983

The truth is that we aren't all equal. If we were equal then there wouldn't be affirmative action. Being a white man is like being a criminal these days. If you're a white man then you're the bad guy. America is very messed up with it comes to racism and prejudice. We like to come off like we're all about equal rights and treating everyone the same but it's all bullcrap. In our American society, it's racist if a white person gets a scholarship for being white yet it's fine and dandy if black people get scholarships for being black. Not all white people are freakin rich. People forget that.
February is black history month. So what month is white history month? And please don't tell me that every month is white history month because that's crap and you know it. White people in America are not allowed to embrace and be proud of their heritage and culture because a lot of people are afraid of coming off as racist.

yeah, it's weird how white males are like the enemy
and yes, i hate how its like assumed all whites are rich and dont need scholarships, its such bullshit
personally, i hate all this "black power" bullshit, as far as i see, thats as bad as white power and al sharptons as bad as any racist in the world
i hate when blacks claim they deserve BET, black history month, ect because they were slaves 200 years ago, that's ridiculous to hold a grudge against the current white race because of something 200 years ago, in that case we should hate the germans for embracing hitler, right?

it's just illogical

[Jacob1983]

I've never understood the slave argument. In my opinion, you would have to be born in or before 1865 to have any type of credibility. Last time I checked, there are no humans still alive that were born in the 1800s. Besides, I bet if we all did our geneaologies and ancestry trees, we could find that some of our ancestors were slaves at some point in history. Does that mean we deserve money? Nope. If you were a slave, I could understand why you would want money for being treated like crap and like property. But slavery ended in America in 1865. I get annoyed by young black people that act like they suffered like black people in the 1960s or in the 1800s. And I also get annoyed when they try to put the blame on me because I'm a white male.

Ben Folds has a funny line about slavery in his song Rockin' the Suburbs. In the song, Ben is basically saying how it sucks to be a white guy in America.

in a haze these days
i pull up to the stoplight
i can feel that something's not right
i can feel that someone's blasting me
with hate and bass
sending dirty vibes my way
cause my great great great great grandad
made someone's great great great great grandaddy slaves
it wasn't my idea
it wasn't my idea
it never was my idea
i just drove to the store
for some preparation h

[Heather]

Creed also has an awesome verse in the song One that deals with class warfare:

Society blind by color
Why hold down one to raise another?
Discrimination now on both sides
Seeds of hate blossom further
The world is heading for mutiny
When all we want is unity
We may rise and fall, but in the end
We meet our fate together

[Lorren]

I think that there is a double standard with certain groups.

There are still some very old people alive that were around in the 1800s (they would be 108 and people occasionally live to be older than that) but there is nobody left alive that was a black slave in America. At least not legally, I'm sure there are cases of sex slavery and sweatshops around today, but that's a different thing.

[Jacob1983]

I think America is more divided by wealth and class than by race.

[Heather]

Well, I can honestly say that I dont.

[Jon]

Originally Posted by Jacob1983

I think America is more divided by wealth and class than by race.

My comment to that would be plain and simple. I disagree, race is more the issue. Race you're born into it. You cannot control what race you are or where your origins are from, yet with wealth and class, you can become wealthy. You can become a member of the upper-class. You can't become a caucasian person if you're black (unless your name is Michael Jackson.)

Growing up my parents didn't have much, then they struck it big and I have everything I've ever asked for and much more than that.

I know even though we're all different races, we're all humans. I truly believe that, but a lot of America does not.

[Jacob1983]

Wealth is something you can change but it doesn't always happen. You can change it but it's very hard and it doesn't always happen. A lot of poor people stay poor their entire lives. Not every poor person has a chance at becoming rich. The reason why I believe America is divided more by wealth and class is because there isn't really affirmative action for poor people.

[Heather]

Wealth is something you can change but it doesn't always happen.

It can if you try, and dont sit back and expect it to happen for you. My parents did it, so did my grandparents (who literally had nothing after the Depression). No, its not easy, but nothing worth having is ever easy. It takes hard work, and preserverence, but it DOES happen.

There's a reason why capitalism is equated to Darwinism.