Is "WHITE" racist?

[Atman]

I mean, heck...as long as we're into posting absurd new threads...

Thoughts? Should we change the name of "white" to something less inflammatory? Like "peach-ish?" Pale Beige? I'm tired of this shit! I'm an Irish boy, and even my skin ain't "white." I'm totally offended!

[skooooo]

1. I guess I miss your point...?

Are you offended by something someone posted?

[bigwillq]

4. Check out GD.

Several threads on is this word racist..blah. blah. blah.

I think the first thread started in this topic was

"is the word cracker racist"

here is the cracker thread link

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x1931664

[Atman]

5. The various "cracker" and "white" posts.

Apparently, one can only be offended by derogatory/racist terms if one is less-than-white. I'm not sure what the point is. I'm just trying to remain popular on DU by posting crazy, off-beat questions with no real answers.

[babylonsister]

2. I prefer 'creamy' myself.

But I have wondered why all the questions; seems loungish to me, not that there's anything wrong with that! :silly:

[mr_hat]

3. I call racism at "wh".

[YDogg]

6. "I'm an Irish boy, and even my skin ain't "'white.'"

Perhaps you're black irish? I'm just sayin'.

:bounce:

[whistle]

7. It depends on what side of the Atlantic Ocean you are on

1. White
1. The color white.

Contrary to popular belief the word "white" is not a racial comment or slur.

This paper is white!

(idiot human rights activist) "Oh my GOSH you racist bastard!!"


...but in the UK it is a different matter:

6. white

A word if uttered in Britain could probably get you arrested as its racist ....apparently

Bloke# Omg look how white....
50# Come on sonny your comming down the station with me
Bloke# eh why?
50# Racial hatred

<link> http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=white

[Redstone]

8. Doesn't matter to me. I'm not.

Redstone

[Horse with no Name]

9. Well I could be offended on several levels

My ass is white.
My arms are brown.
My face is kinda red.
I'm like a fricking rainbow.:)

Seriously, I think racism is more than a word.
It is the intent behind the word. If the intent is hate, then yes, it is racist. If the intent is descriptive, then it's not.

[hedgehog]

12. Bingo!

Intent is everything! It's not being racist to recognize and state that we all represent different cultures and sub-cultures. The problem comes in when one or another group is denigrated. Another real problem starts when a word means something to one group of people and something else entirely to another group. Thus a white person raised in a white town in the North or Midwest may innocently refer to something as a tar baby referring to the African American folk tale while a white raised in a mixed race community in the South or West may use that same term to denigrate a black child. Needless to say, as a white from the first group, I have learned from discussions here and won't use that term again.

PS - this is not to imply that there aren't whites from the Midwest or North who toss around racial epithets with the best (worst?) of them!

[hedgehog]

10. I'm so white that the kids reflect the signal from the remote off my

forehead when they can't get a straight shot at the TV. I wouldn't say white is racist, just descriptive. I would have said that I think of myself as Irish rather than white, but I do tend to assume that other people are white so I suppose that says something. On the other hand, I read many comments from a gay male on this site onlyto reaklize after many months the "he" is a married straight woman! OMG! I just realized that I assume that she is white!

[Der Blaue Engel]

11. The ad at the bottom of the page engendered by your post:

:spray:

2 week Skin Lightener
Melederm™ is 100% Guaranteed to lighten dark uneven skin quickly
www.civantskin.com

[hedgehog]

13. Yeah, I've been noticing some weird ads myself.

Why not an ad for Coppertone just to balance things out?

[HereSince1628]

14. Personally I think I'd dislike "pinkish" more tho it better describes

my skin color than white.

[BlooInBloo]

15. I like "wonderbread" myself.... lolol!

[Cleita]

16. I prefer to use of European decent because it's true

many Europeans are as dark as any other so-called brown people. My Irish husband being one of them had darker skin and hair than me (I'm latina.)and brown eyes. His family from southern Ireland has never had any new blood interjected for hundreds of years until recently and after he was born. However, his facial features were unmistakably Gaelic.

One of my favorite lost books (from many moves) had a compilation of faces, that started with a Nordic pale blue eyes, almost white blond haired girl and then next to her was a girl a shade darker and it went on until we reached the darkest African girl. The change was very gradual, had photographs of girls from around the world. The greatest diversity was among the brown shaded people from America across the Atlantic all the way through Asia and Polynesia, but the odd thing was how similar all the girls were despite the racial diversity.

[Ignoramus]

17. Context and intent

A phrase can be racist, without the person being racist in using it.

Also, you can't choose to be racist or not. It is like wisdom, you can't decide to be wise. So, racism isn't something to be condemned for but an indication of a lack of awareness about a race issue. Of course this extends to all accusations in general. All faults in people are simply faults. In other words, there are no bad people only bad actions.

Another important point is that all isn't equal. There is a dynamic of injustice in society that goes in one direction only. In this context, in instance of racism against a white person is significantly different than an instance of racism against a "minority". Racism against a minority carries with it the contextual dynamic of racistm against minorities as a whole.

[Solo_in_MD]

18. is BLACK racist?

[El Supremo]

19. "Whitey" is...

But what's the point? It all depends on how you use the word.

[Solo_in_MD]

21. What about Whitey Herzog or Boston Blackie?

I was mocking the entire topic, sorry if it was not clear enough

[Atman]

22. That's okay...the entire topic is mocking the entire topic.

It is quite clear. Thanks!

[hedgehog]

20. Sometimes the best thinking comes out of an absurd question.

We've had a genuine exchange of views here tonight and I think I've learned from other people and I've learned more about myself. I want to thank you all for indulging my absurdity. It's certainly a relief from thinking about George!