From: stefan@leland.Stanford.EDU (Stefan Michalowski)
Subject: Re: How white America perceives African-Americans??!??
Organization: DSG, Stanford University, CA 94305, USA
Date: Fri, 8 Jan 93 01:50:52 GMT

Chad Glover asks:

>I often wonder how white American perceives African-Americans. What do you
>think? Here's what I seen most of the time.
>1) White America believes African-Americans are out to take their jobs.

    Many white Americans wish that this were so. They are sick of 
    sitting at meetings and seeing the same old circle of pale
    faces. To the extent that anyone likes to compete for a job 
    (which isn't much of an extent, who does?), I don't think it
    makes much difference to most whites what the color of the 
    competition is.

>2) WA believes AfAms are out to take their women.
  
    They ARE out to take white women! And white men are out to take
    black women! Face it, Chad, men want women in all possible color
    permutations. This is not news to white people. Is it really news to you?
    Sure there's a racial angle, but are black men any more comfortable
    with a white man/black woman scenario than white men are about
    the black man/white woman case?

>3) WA believes AfAms shouldn't get Afirmitive Action because it is reverse
>discrimination.

    It IS reverse discrimination. The issue of race-based AA is dead,
    dead, dead! Need-based AA enjoys the wide support of the majority
    of the populace. That's not racism.

>4) WA believes AfAms are criminals and only capable of criminal acts.

    Look, pal, there are jerks in every racial category, but I know
    hundreds of white people, and not one of them would agree with such
    a ridiculous statement.

>5) WA believes everything is fair and equal and is afraid to deal with the
>problem of racism.

    Huh? What?! Nobody on this planet believes that "everything is fair
    and equal". Also on this planet, 99% of white people know that there
    is racism. It comes in all colors, too. As to "dealing with racism",
    all I can say is most people think that their own problems should
    have first priority. How are YOU "dealing with" the destruction of
    the rain forests? Or famine in Ethiopia?

>6) WA believes that everyone can "Pull themselves up by their own Bootstraps",
>regardless of color.

    Some people can, some can't. Life is pretty tough for everybody,
    but it's even tougher if you're poor, or undereducated, or badly dressed,
    or ugly, or fat, or stupid, or non-white, etc. EVERYBODY KNOWS THIS!

>7) WA doesn't care about African-Americans until African-Americans do something
>to effect them.  

    Is this a PC way of saying "the government won't do anything to help
    minorities until there is Hell in the streets"? I'm afraid the
    answer is YES.


Chad, listen to me: I know your questions are rhetorical. You seem to
think that "White America" hates blacks and won't do a thing until a gun
is put to its head. I think you're wrong, although it would take too long
to explain why. One thing I've learned from monitoring s.c.a.a. is that
it's very, very hard for a white man to see the world through black eyes.
What I submit to you is that the converse is true as well. You have a lot
to learn about "White America". I suggest you take it from the top.

Stefan