Thursday, August 22, 2013

I am Tired of Being Called a White Racist


By Alan Caruba

I don’t know when it occurred to me that I had gone from having shaken hands with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to being called a white racist, but apparently I was not paying attention.

Neither were a lot of others of my generation who had welcomed and supported the Civil Rights movement only to discover we were not going to hear a word of thanks. Younger generations have suffered the same indignity.

On Saturday, August 24, the NAACP is sponsoring a march in Washington, D.C. to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of Dr. King’s famed “I have a dream” speech given on August 28, 1963. One wonders if the first black President of the United States will put in an appearance, but the White House did not have anything scheduled on its website.

The whole nation went through the trial of George Zimmerman, the “white” Hispanic who shot Trayvon Martin, apparently the epitome of the virtues of black youth despite having been suspended from school several times and guilty of infractions that often put others his age in jail. Had Zimmerman not shot him, Trayvon would surely have gone to jail for assaulting him.

Although the rate of juvenile incarceration has dropped 41% from its peak in 1995 and is down among all racial groups, black youth are nearly five times more likely to be incarcerated as their white peers. Latino and American Indian youth are two to three times more likely to find themselves behind bars as white boys and girls.

I have heard all the sociological explanations about blacks and the criminal justice system. I am concerned that too many within the nation’s “African-American” population simply do not grow up with or absorb “white” attitudes about staying in school, getting a job, and raising a family; not all, but not enough.

To all the blacks who stayed in school, went to college, married and are raising a family in the suburbs, my apologies for seeming to lump you in with those who did not and thank you for not adopting victimhood as your mantra.

There is good news about blacks in America. U.S. Census statistics as of 2010 counted 2.4 million black military veterans that year. In 2010, 82% of blacks 25 and older had a high school diploma or higher degree. Indeed, 18% of that cohort had a bachelor’s degree or higher, and 1.5 million had an advanced degree. In 2010, there were 2.9 million blacks enrolled in college, an increase of 1.7 million since 1990.

And then there is the bad news. Blacks represent 13% of the population, but according to a fact sheet of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, blacks “now constitute nearly one million of the total 2.3 million” Americans behind bars.

In New York City, the successful “stop and frisk” police procedure has been deemed prejudicial by a judge who ordered that it be stopped. It is prejudicial if you parse the word and find it means to “pre-judge” an individual or situation that you may deem a potential danger.

Everyone profiles everyone else all the time.

The NAACP’s super sensitivity about the one HALF of the President’s racial identity that is black was recently demonstrated when a rodeo clown donned an Obama mask as part of entertaining the crowd. This device, using presidential masks, has been commonplace for decades, but the particular incident had the Missouri NAACP demanding that the Secret Service and other law enforcement agencies investigate it as a “hate crime.” The President hasn’t spoken a word about this absurd charge.

Indeed, in 2008 when Obama was first elected, we were all assured that the nation was entering a “post racial” period in which whites and blacks would join hands and put the past behind them. Despite the growth of the black middle class and other examples of the benefits that flowed from the 1964 Civil Rights Act and other protections, the ugly truth is that too many blacks seem trapped in a 1960’s time warp with the same accusations and resentments still being expressed.

How much progress has been made?

Since the Zimmerman trial it is now common knowledge that 97% of the murders of blacks are by other blacks. Less known are the many black-on-white attacks that occur routinely throughout the nation. Colin Flaherty has been making news ever since he published “White Girl Bleed a Lot.” He continues to document this vastly under-reported problem. Thomas Sowell, writing in the National Review, said ”Reading Colin Flaherty’s book made painfully clear to me that the magnitude of this problem is greater than I had discovered from my own research. He documents both the race riots and the media and political evasions in dozens of cities.”

Speaking solely for myself I am extremely disappointed by the failure of too many black Americans to simply admit that there is something terribly wrong in a community that has too many abortions, too many fatherless children, too much exploitation of welfare systems, too much drug use and trafficking, and too much blame on white racism for these and other ills.

Instead of seeing evidence that the black community in America is mounting an effort to address its problems what I and others see and hear are the same tired race hustlers, Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, and others, spewing the same “blame whitey” rhetoric.

It needs to be said that racism cuts both ways, but too much black racism gets a pass. Whites are not to blame at this point. One hopes the Saturday march in D.C. will reflect Dr. King’s generous and hopeful speech of fifty years ago. I doubt that will happen.

© Alan Caruba, 2013

6 comments:

Ronbo said...

The recent murder of an inoffensive white jogger by a young black, who is clearly a racist, speaks volumes of truth to the fact that the most violent racists in this country are young black males.

President Obama's continued silence on this most serious racial issue is ample proof, in my never humble opinion, that he approves of what amounts to black racist terrorism against whites.

I wonder when the tipping point will be reached and gangs of young whites start murdering innocent blacks?

Alan Caruba said...

Ron, the last thing I want to see is race warfare among gangs. As it is the MSM does its best to keep ill will stirred up.

sdkar said...

I agree. Calling a spade a spade is now considered racist. I am told that reverse racism (which is still just plain old racism) does not exist, because black people have no power over whites, and therefore, no racism can happen.

I beg to differ. Blacks have the power to make many white people damn scared of being accused of racism. For many, it could mean the loss of a job or a harmed reputation, not to mention the social stigma that ends up with many whites scrambling to explain why they are NOT racists. I think the ploy is to keep those that oppose blacks on the defensive constantly...and it works.

Luckily, the race card is being worn quite thin. Many are starting to see that its being used as a weapon and no longer as legitimate as it once was.

Racism is like a scab that will not heal as long as it's being picked at. However, it now appears that blacks are doing the picking...not the white people. When will they learn that real racism is quite dead. Blacks are not being dragged down the street, do not have separate water fountains, can sit anywhere on the bus they want, and have access to schools and jobs like everyone else. I think the black people see this, and realize that to keep the racism mantra going, they have to make up racism. So now we have to come up with code words uttered innocently by whites that now mean racism (brown bagging, community organizer, etc.)

It seems the ones screaming that racism should end, are the ones that are keeping it alive and well.

What they should understand, is that whites are really starting to resent this behavior. Being called a racist does not stop someone from being one. But I can guarantee you that whites being labeled a racist over and over will start to create lots of resentment. Eventually, we will ignore this idiotic accusation that keeps being yelled everytime someone disagrees with a black person or everytime a black person realized life can be unfair. Hey, life is tough regardless of the color of your skin. Get over it and move on.

We seem to be getting closer to ignoring the yells of racism, which is why it is getting louder and louder. Eventually, if things don't improve, I can see whites getting so resentful, that actual real racism will start popping up again.

America has made more progress in black/white relations in the last 50 years than the previous thousand years. But instead of seeing this, whites are still told it's not good enough. Why is this? How much better can it get for blacks today. In my opinion, the main problem that blacks are still having, are from themselves. They now seem to be their own worst enemy. Brush off the victimhood status, grow up, and join the rest of humanity in making this world a better place. Quit blaming whitey for all your problems. The judicial system is not racist, cops are not racist, schools are not racist, and there are jobs open to everyone, regardless of skin color. If you fail to make anything of yourself in life, it is YOUR DAMN FAULT. NOT WHITE PEOPLE.

kennethlawson said...

I lived down in Texas for many years. I knew Black, Whites, and everything in between. I never judged, and still don't judge a person by their color, Its the way they act and treat me that matters. A man is as only as good as his actions. I agree with you; Many blacks have a entitlement attitude, that they feel that white society owes them something, for their just being black. Which as You know, is BS. I write a blog that used to, and probably will still focus on technology and media, However, late last year, I started writing some very pro 2nd amendment articles,. The kind of material, which is controversial in come circles.
Yes every on profiles to a certain extent, the second they see someone, however it should never go beyond mental notes, & observations, to oneself. To profile withe idea of doing future bodily harm, or other racial activity is just wrong.


Kenneth Lawson
lawsonreport.weebly.com

Rich Kozlovich said...

There are a couple of things that drive me crazy about all this. First of all, the natural function of the human mind is to find patterns. That is what allows us to discover and invent things, and profiling is part of that pattern finding process. Its biological and that will never change, and shouldn’t. Everybody profiles and should. Then there are the two most misused words in the English language. Prejudice and Racism. Most people aren’t really racists. Racism means to hate someone just because they belong to a particular race irrespective of how they conduct themselves. Is it racism because we just don’t like what is going on in black America? Prejudice means to prejudge. We aren’t prejudging black America, we are evaluating black America and they have been found wanting. As for those who resent that last part….get over it….it will always be that way and should. We ….all of us…..judge our fellow man by how he conducts himself….and we should.

Tired said...

Its not about color anymore its about money. Black people are so quick to feel victamized but what of the other races that make up the United States? Caucasions have less opportunity simply for being Caucasion yet black people still feel entitled?