tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post3403700463317460926..comments2024-03-06T08:29:13.333-08:00Comments on stuff white people do: tell black people that they're not blackmacon dhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07795547197817128339noreply@blogger.comBlogger95125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-5341107634679774762010-03-18T09:01:47.750-07:002010-03-18T09:01:47.750-07:00@gorgo - the trouble is that meeting someone that ...@gorgo - the trouble is that meeting someone that doesn't fit the stereotype should lead one to question the stereotype and not the validity of the person's "blackness" (or anything elseness for that matter)<br /><br />there are more layers there but that (to me )is the worst of it. particularly when the stereotype is SO insidious.cassdawnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06637631152070000006noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-57595650718240390332010-03-18T08:33:01.722-07:002010-03-18T08:33:01.722-07:00@Gorgo: the problem is that it *isn't* dispell...@Gorgo: the problem is that it *isn't* dispelling the stereotype. By telling someone, "I like you, so you aren't like [insert minority here]," what they're really saying is, "I still view all those [insert minority here] as [bad, lazy, stupid, etc] - but you're an exception to the rest of your race!"Robinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08775402675080387821noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-17835011291551691352010-03-18T08:27:05.610-07:002010-03-18T08:27:05.610-07:00Isn't saying that akin to saying, you do not f...Isn't saying that akin to saying, you do not fit a stereotype? That would be something to be proud of right? We're not happy with the stereotype, so hearing that should help dispel the stereotype in their ignorant mind? I've never had anyone tell me that, so I'm working through this without knowing where you folks who have heard it are coming from.gorgonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-4339512853469290402010-02-05T20:49:43.648-08:002010-02-05T20:49:43.648-08:00thank you for this, another mixed person understan...thank you for this, another mixed person understands, this kid at school told me, "i hate it when mixed kids try to understand what a true black is going through", honestly, WE HAV IT WORSE, because ur whole life people question u, and 99% of the time it comes from whites, because aparantly they like to beleive they get a gold metal for proving ur not black, ytf do they care? and remember this, noone in their right mind, besides god, has the right to tell u who u are, im sick of it, cant i just say im black? whats so wrong about that?Brasileirinhohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09532109546672366721noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-53560533417017505232010-01-11T20:24:40.103-08:002010-01-11T20:24:40.103-08:00I think it's just their way of admitting that ...I think it's just their way of admitting that you don't fit their stereotype without taking a critical look at that stereotype.<br /><br />It's so common that it has a name: the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_true_Scotsman" rel="nofollow">no true Scotsman fallacy</a>.here and nownoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-38468403931630021932010-01-05T20:19:40.991-08:002010-01-05T20:19:40.991-08:00Zara,
Do is trying to give you a PROMOTION! You ...Zara,<br /><br />Do is trying to give you a PROMOTION! You don't have to be stuck in the ranks of lowly Negrodom with the rest of us darkies. You can actually go UP in rank if you just claim to be mixed. Why you're not taking Do's sage advice and elevate yourself is beyond hir.<br /><br />Macon,<br /><br />Of course they wouldn't want African-Americans claiming mixed heritage. That would degrade the designation. Can't have us lowly darkies touching it or we'll get our icky Negro all over it and it'll be worthless!Witchsistahhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01603586060096649666noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-78688124719227341142010-01-05T08:42:05.349-08:002010-01-05T08:42:05.349-08:00@ Do What I Tell You to Do,
I'm biracial (hal...@ Do What I Tell You to Do,<br /><br />I'm biracial (half-black, half-white), and I choose to identify as black. I don't think it's disrespectful to my white mother, who raised me. It doesn't mean I deny her or reject how much she means to me. What is <i>does</i> mean, for me, is that when I look in the mirror, I see a black girl, even if she isn't as dark as some other black girls.<br /><br />I also self-identify as black because I spent twenty-odd years letting other people talk about my race for me or tell me what I really am -- i.e., since I'm half-white, I can't "really" be black, or since I'm half-black, I can't "really" be Jewish. Your telling me I'm neither black nor white is more of the same crap, and it also denies me a solid group of peers. <br /><br />And that connects to the part of this that isn't a choice for me -- because while black people will accept me as one of their own, if I called myself white I'd be laughed out of the room. If I called myself white it might be a fun way to confuse other people, but the only way I can exercise white privilege is if my mom uses hers on my behalf.<br /><br />So don't tell me I can't join the Black Student Union if I want.Zarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14297967580799128420noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-65404421382405141412010-01-05T08:07:06.677-08:002010-01-05T08:07:06.677-08:00Do What I Tell You To Do,
I'm more inclined t...Do What I Tell You To Do,<br /><br />I'm more inclined to think that mixed people should have, and do have, more freedom than that to identify however they like racially (and culturally, and in other terms). Are you saying Obama, for example, shouldn't self-identify as "black," because half of his family background is white? If so, I disagree with you.<br /><br />On top of that, how slightly mixed does one have to be in your terms before one can call themselves black, or white, instead of mixed? Authoritative estimates state that a huge percentage of African American people have white ancestors, and quite a few white people have black ones. Should those large percentages also call themselves "mixed," in order to be "respectful" to certain long-lost ancestors? And what if, for instance, the person responsible way back when for a black American's drops of white blood was a raping slaveowner? Do you expect that person to declare themselves "mixed" in order to "respect" that person?macon dhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07795547197817128339noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-11099805631720899802010-01-05T07:59:37.724-08:002010-01-05T07:59:37.724-08:00If your mixed you are not black and neither are yo...If your mixed you are not black and neither are you white, or anything else.You're MIXED. Stop trying to identify with one side of the family, its disrespectful of the other side.Do What I Tell You To Donoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-58343237516840100672009-12-24T21:13:47.910-08:002009-12-24T21:13:47.910-08:00@ the writer:
I've been called "Oreo&quo...@ the writer:<br /><br />I've been called "Oreo" most of my life -- you know, black on the outside, white on the inside? When I was a teenager, all of my white friends called me this, and if I said I didn't like it, they'd say, "What? It's true!" like that was funny.<br /><br />Apparently I'm "white on the inside" because of the way I speak, the books I read, the music I listen to, the clothes I wear, my table manners, my ambitions in life -- and <i>especially</i> the way I sing. I was in a semi-professional children's chorus for most of my childhood, and it seems I don't sing "black enough" -- i.e., I don't belt like Jennifer Hudson or croon like Rihanna, which is all black people are capable of, I guess? IDEK.<br /><br />I went to an overwhelmingly white and rich private school for middle school, and my white friends' parents loved to exclaim to my mother (who is white) about how "articulate" and "polite" I was, which they never did to other white girls' parents.<br /><br />In my Cuisines of the Americas class at culinary school, <i>every single one</i> of my twenty white classmates had something to say about the fact that I'd never made fried chicken before. "Are you sure you're black?" "Hell, <i>I'm</i> blacker than you!" They'd make jokes about wanting me on their team to make the chicken, as though my blackness, though inferior, would somehow work some hot crispy magic.<br /><br />On a recent occasion wherein I tried to explain to a group of my white friends why racism hurts my feelings so badly, one of the (many and useless) things they told me was that I'm "not that black". My most problematic friend (from a wealthy white suburb in North Carolina, and who used to wear a sweatshirt with the Confederate flag on it until I asked her not to) told me, "I don't even think of you as black. You don't act black. I only remember you're black when you do something different, like wear your hair in an afro."<br /><br />... Okay.<br /><br />@ Pockysmama:<br /><br />I just wanted to empathize on the "Where are you from" question. I get that <i>all the time</i>. I like to draw it out and make it difficult for people, because I'm petty that way and I need to get something back somehow. <br /><br />I've had PoCs ask me that question, but usually it's PoCs who, themselves, are from another country, so when they ask the context is different -- as in, <i>my family's from Barbados, does your family come from the islands too?</i> When white people ask, it feels like they're telling me I'm not American. Sometimes I'll ask, "Well, where are <i>you</i> from?" and whites always look bewildered. Like, <i>what do you</i> mean<i>, where am I from? Clearly I'm AMERICAN.</i><br /><br />When we get all the way down to them asking about my ancestors, because my answer that my father and mother were born in the Bronx and Baltimore, respectively, isn't what they want to hear, I'll tell them, "My mom's family came to the U.S. from Latvia in 1887. My dad's family were slaves in North Carolina before the Civil War." Usually then I get a hurt look for bringing a topic as implicitly accusatory as slavery into the conversation.Zarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14297967580799128420noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-18679118803877963862009-12-24T16:29:23.201-08:002009-12-24T16:29:23.201-08:00Robin,
You need to know that it's awesome you...Robin,<br /><br />You need to know that it's awesome you called your friend. I'm sure many of my white friends can think back on less than stellar things they said (albeit all in good fun) but would now never admit to it.<br /><br />Hell, outside of race issues, we all can think of things we said out of ignorance <i>yesterday</i> that were less than stellar but we'd never call to rectify.<br /><br />Thanks for sharing.A.Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10542810587986768786noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-82665578231387483112009-12-23T20:43:42.609-08:002009-12-23T20:43:42.609-08:00I was thinking about something similar recently, b...I was thinking about something similar recently, because a dear friend of mine is Korean, and I remembered that one time I referred to her as a "twinkie" (yellow on the outside, white on the inside). I said this to her intending it as a compliment. She took it as a compliment, but a couple months ago (about six years after originally saying it to her) I heard someone call somebody else a twinkie, and it reminded me that I'd said that to her. I called her up later that evening.<br /><br />Me: Hey, you may not even remember this, but about six years ago I called you a twinkie. I'm sorry.<br />Her: What? I don't even remember that.<br />Me: Well, I did. And I'm sorry.<br />Her: Why are you sorry?<br />Me: *fumbles putting it into words* Because calling someone a twinkie as a compliment is like saying that being white is superior. Kinda like saying, 'you can't get rid of your Korean exterior, but at least you've become white on the inside, and of course it's best to be white'.<br />Her: Oh. I didn't take it that way. I just saw it as a compliment.<br />Me: Well, either way, I'm sorry. <br />Her: *silence*<br />Me: Should I not have brought it up?<br />Her: No, it's not that. It's just that now I have to think about why I considered it a compliment. Internalized racism is a bitch.<br /><br />We ended up having a really good discussion about it, and I've been thinking about it periodically since. I think a lot of people who say such things really don't even realize just how a statement like that is through-and-through white supremacist - that it's holding up white as the ideal, and something all PoC should aspire to as much as possible. I know I certainly saw being a "twinkie" as a positive six years ago. :(Robinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08775402675080387821noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-69133261217451271512009-12-15T13:24:31.614-08:002009-12-15T13:24:31.614-08:00The color line in America is very slim, the one dr...The color line in America is very slim, the one drop rule is there for a reason and we should never forget that.In this country no matter how you identify,you are black, it is the unwritten law of the land...and there are Millions of black people passing!<br /> <br />A nation wide DNA test would be awesome in it's revelations.<br /><br />After over 60 years on this earth I can not believe Black people still care what white people think of them. <br /><br />It is a waste of Precious Time.D W JazzLoverhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10364668632222212220noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-90852738228958022162009-12-15T06:32:49.658-08:002009-12-15T06:32:49.658-08:00@witchsista, why are you directing those comments ...@witchsista, why are you directing those comments to me? I NEVER said that black people play the you aren't black card more than whites do; every single one of my comments say the opposite. ??!!! WTFLisaMJhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18063083954078964292noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-29310130496606911752009-12-14T21:09:58.993-08:002009-12-14T21:09:58.993-08:00Native New Orleanian,
The sky is blue. Trains go...Native New Orleanian, <br /><br />The sky is blue. Trains go choo-choo. Dogs bark.<br /><br />Any new information you care to share?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-23868361164880264242009-12-14T16:01:16.349-08:002009-12-14T16:01:16.349-08:00My president if half white and don't YOU forge...My president if half white and don't YOU forget it!native new orleaniannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-9924285524771357842009-12-14T15:01:03.661-08:002009-12-14T15:01:03.661-08:00I just wanted to take a moment and amend my commen...I just wanted to take a moment and amend my comment... well not amend but my new perspective.. <br /><br />In talking to my mother I realize that the first quote was not horrible as in the way black people represent themselves, but horrible as in numerically small (and that's a bad thing).. and so in speaking about that... I would temper my remarks. <br /><br />So, while I still don't necessarily understand the need to explain the racial make up of your relationships as it relates to white people saying you are not black... <br /><br />I want to let it be known that I don't think that not having black friends in anyway takes away one's blackness, I do find it curious when people explain why they don't have friends of a particular race, or more friends of one race than another. Because any rationale always seems to fall flat.Eeyorehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03890663916890884724noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-29567107688607702152009-12-14T14:56:15.395-08:002009-12-14T14:56:15.395-08:00LisaMJ,
I'm not even denying that other Black...LisaMJ,<br /><br />I'm not even denying that other Blacks meet out this treatment to their "culturally challenged" brethren. It's happened to me too. It's happened to damn near ALL Black folks who do anything considered "not Black." I've had Black secretaries ask me what <b>I</b> was doing with a passport when I brought it to fill out the I-9 employment form. I've had Black folk on public transportation disdainfully ask why I was reading a non-fiction book if I wasn't taking a class in the subject. I've had Black folk give me the side-eye when they found out I've traveled overseas. But this kind of stuff has happened to damn near ALL Black folks who do anything considered "not Black." I'm not special because of it and neither are other Black folks who've gone through it.<br /><br />But all of that STILL doesn't excuse White dumbassedness. And to pretend that it somehow does is racist. How are Black transgressions somehow worse than White ones.Witchsistahhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01603586060096649666noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-76024959100714060752009-12-14T14:16:50.557-08:002009-12-14T14:16:50.557-08:00Listening to these comments it’s clear that all Po...Listening to these comments it’s clear that all PoC have experienced a form of I don’t consider you a fill in the blank. It’s evidence that racism against blacks, Asians, biracial individuals, and Latinos is well in effect in 21st Century America. <br /><br />Whites believe that black people are the pathological, criminalistic other; that all Asians are foreigners who speak heavily accented English or represent a “model minority” that is upstanding and gets good grades, and that being a PoC in general is inferior to whiteness and that if a PoC is educated, articulate, or doesn’t conform to a stereotype then they are “good” (synonymous with whiteness) and have earned a the privilege to not be lumped in with the others. <br /><br />I am soooo thankful for this blog. America, particularly white America, NEEDS this blog.The Shytroverthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12554818684558513438noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-87401833282616619282009-12-14T14:05:32.720-08:002009-12-14T14:05:32.720-08:00While some may believe that there’s no such thing ...While some may believe that there’s no such thing as a mixed race black, I consider people who are part black who were born in America to be African Americans because they are descended from the same enslaved Africans as I was. Therefore, same history, same culture. In that sense, yes, biracial people are “black.” But, it’s up to the biracial individual to decide with which culture they choose to self identify. I’m very proud that President Obama self-identifies as a black man, and I’ve been disgusted by whites who try to insist that he isn’t an African American.Probitnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-43525380821594935362009-12-14T08:00:52.903-08:002009-12-14T08:00:52.903-08:00>I remmber a professor coming over to me and th...>I remmber a professor coming over to me and the only other two other black girls at a reception once b/c we happened to be talking and asked us why we were self-segregating.<br /><br />Uggghhhh. I'm hearing a similar version of this over and over and it is so damn annoying. So who were all the white ppl talking to? So he's saying there wasn't a single group with only white people? Go overseas. White ppl do this ALL the time too.fromthetropicsnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-12080356677328445162009-12-14T07:42:13.245-08:002009-12-14T07:42:13.245-08:00Damn Macon,
You got a whole slew of trolls who dec...Damn Macon,<br />You got a whole slew of trolls who decided to come over here and piss in everyone's collective cornflakes over the weekend and post all over your site.<br /><br />Now I don't know what kinda black folks you all have met who are questioning your blackness but as a black female who grew up in a majority white town and except for pre-school always went to majority white schools, and as someone who "sounds white" listens to rock music, not rap, who was an anglo-phile as a teenager (I'm in recovery now :-), who worshipped the Beatles in the late 80's as a teen, who has done too many "non black people" things to count and actually does more of the stuff on the site "stuff white people do" than on the "what educated black people do" sites, I can only recall two times when black people questioned my blackness. One was in high school when another one of the few black kids asked me if I was a communist b/c I critiqued American domestic and foreign policy and generally refused to say the pledge b/c I didn't think the line about liberty and justice for all" applied to my people or if pressed I'd not say that line. Anyway, when I told him I wasn't but I was an Anglo-phile he told me black people didn't live in England (not true). And once when I was younger I was playing with some nice girls at my god-mother's house in the city and my Mom over heard them saying later that I "talked funny" that is about it. Other than that the only time my blackness has been challenged is by white folks. Now maybe I've just been lucky but for me personally this black folks reject black folks meme is crap. Also, you know sometimes we kid about this stuff, like when we say "Michael Steele's black card should be revoked" but I bet if he got into some kind of big trouble we would have his back, just like we did with OJ. And though I've gone back and forth over Tiger over the years, right now I have his back and believe that this incident has been so blown out of proportion b/c of his black 1/4 than anything else and I get sick of hearing people say crap like "it's OJ all over" please his wife tried to BEAT HIM and he's been compared to a man who was accused of killing his ex-wife. That is some racist bull-shit. <br /><br />Oh and why do folks keep jumping on the brother who wrote this post saying he must not like black people. Where the hell did that come from? He is talking about how white folks have treated him. Also, he didn't say he doesn't have black friends or that he didn't meet any black folks in college, he said there were more white folks and he met more of them than anyone else. Makes sense to me. Also, why is it when black people mention they have lots of friends of different races they are somehow shunning blackness in some people's eyes but then when black people hang together, we are "self-segregating." Some bull. I remmber a professor coming over to me and the only other two other black girls at a reception once b/c we happened to be talking and asked us why we were self-segregating. One of them pointed out that it was just as easy for any of the white people to come talk to us. NOw as many all white environments I'd been in, and as many white folks who I know have hung out with befriended and in one instance b/c I happen to be talking to some black folks, I'm self-segregating? Some bull-shit.LisaMJhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18063083954078964292noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-53492489973902654642009-12-13T21:34:53.409-08:002009-12-13T21:34:53.409-08:00I really think people need a refresher course on w...I really think people need a refresher course on what Political Correctness actually means:<br /><br />http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpK0Ad8hD0I<br /><br />(the part you want starts at 0:45)Koi Nahinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-75699108701193245082009-12-13T19:46:25.320-08:002009-12-13T19:46:25.320-08:00"Mostly because of the horrible representatio..."Mostly because of the horrible representation of blacks in the University of California system, the vast majority of the people I interacted with were white (with asians coming in second)."<br /><br />"Now I'm in law school and it's happening all over again with my new white friends (because law school isn't terribly diverse these days either)."<br /><br />These two quotes from the post struck a nerve for me. I completely understand the concept. I went to an Ivy League school and got the gasps and disbelief as well.<br /><br />I guess I don't understand how in the entire University of California system and at your current Law School, there are not black people that live up to your expectations/requirements.. or even why you feel the need to include that in the post, as an explanation for why you have so few (if any) black friends. <br /><br />It seems to me that you may hold some personal prejudices against black people, and some preconceived notions about how "they" are that prevent you from seeking out those relationships, ad that also compel you to explain your lack of Black peers in this post. <br /><br />This is worse than my white friends who use me as proof that they aren't prejudiced. I guess I simply bring it up because if a white person said the two quotes above, I would never accept this reasoning as okay or appropriate.. and I would feel the need to point out these notions as prejudiced at best.Eeyorehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03890663916890884724noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-528074983146803930.post-40536422946385891642009-12-13T13:45:18.909-08:002009-12-13T13:45:18.909-08:00Believe it or not, people. Black folk are not a m...Believe it or not, people. Black folk are not a monolith. We didn't have an international meeting to discuss "Black stuff" and make determinations about what "Black stuff" is and is not. That's up to each, INDIVIDUAL (yes, we ARE individuals and not just representatives of a group), Black person to decide that if they so wish to even be bothered with it.<br /><br />So that does not mean you get to dismiss what one Black person says is racist because you managed to find another Black person to co-sign your POV. Same for being a Black person. YOU may not feel such and such is racist or may not feel that such and such doesn't actually happened because hey, it didn't happen to you or happened differently and you're Negro through and through. That doesn't mean it wasn't and that another Black person doesn't get to see it as such. Hell, there were Blacks that didn't think slavery was all that bad, but that doesn't mean I should feel like choppin' cotton for free and servicing Massa against my will.<br /><br />Also, Black people are PEOPLE, not some perfect moral beings. Black people are under no more of an obligation to be such than any other group of people or any other individuals. We can be happy, sad, angry, irritated, mean, gregarious, isolated, jealous, vengeful and pissy for all the right and wrong reasons just like anyone else. We just don't want to be punished for it due to or have it attributed to our Blackness. So quit it with the finger-pointing of "They do it TOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!" as if somehow that just all erases White folks' bullshit. And I just find it very interested that so many of you are willing to give White folk a pass on their racism but are willing to fry Blacks on some of the fucked-up reactions we've established DUE to White racism.<br /><br />I also find it interesting that yet again, Black folk are accused of kicking Tiger Woods out the Black Club. Um, he didn't wanna be in it in the first damn place. Made that VERY plain to all and sundry YEARS ago. It's funny. If Black folk try to claim Tiger we're limiting him, denying his other ancestry and really trying to damn him to the same inferior Negro fate as ours. If we don't and say what he's BEEN saying for YEARS ("That brotha ain't Black") then we're being exclusionary meanies. <br /><br />Folks, if you're gonna pedal anti-Black rhetoric, do me a favor and PICK A SIDE AND STICK WITH IT!<br /><br />This is not the "police Black people's behavior" blog.Witchsistahhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01603586060096649666noreply@blogger.com