tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8075448.post7008817344726217945..comments2024-02-15T05:08:32.917-06:00Comments on Cliff's Crib: A Complicated Issue With No Simple SolutionCliftonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389032037779987856noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8075448.post-64198893955090070802010-08-11T19:22:22.769-05:002010-08-11T19:22:22.769-05:00Here are some thoughts from a multi-ethnic researc...Here are some thoughts from a multi-ethnic research institute on how to productively talk about racial issues in the USA:<br /><a href="http://kirwaninstitute.org/research/talking-about-race.php" rel="nofollow">The Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity: Talking About Race</a><br /><br />Here are some thoughts by Thandeka, an African-American UU theologian about how <b>not</b> to talk about racial issues in the USA (and, like the point Shirley Sherrod made at the end of her talk, she suggests class remains a huge problem in the USA that needs to be addressed, because as she says, the USA does not work too well for most white folks either, even if it may work somewhat better than for most non-white folks):<br /><a href="http://archive.uua.org/ga/ga99/238thandeka.html" rel="nofollow">Why Anti-Racism Will Fail</a><br /><br />Howard Zinn (light-skinned) in the last chapter of A People's History of the United States makes much the same point; from: <a href="http://www.historyisaweapon.com/defcon1/zinncomrev24.html" rel="nofollow">The Coming Revolt of the Guards</a>: <i>"How skillful to tax the middle class to pay for the relief of the poor, building resentment on top of humiliation! How adroit to bus poor black youngsters into poor white neighborhoods, in a violent exchange of impoverished schools, while the schools of the rich remain untouched and the wealth of the nation, doled out carefully where children need free milk, is drained for billion-dollar aircraft carriers. How ingenious to meet the demands of blacks and women for equality by giving them small special benefits, and setting them in competition with everyone else for jobs made scarce by an irrational, wasteful system. How wise to turn the fear and anger of the majority toward a class of criminals bred - by economic inequity - faster than they can be put away, deflecting attention from the huge thefts of national resources carried out within the law by men in executive offices."</i><br /><br />Here are some thoughts by a white psychiatrist (John Cannell) who studies vitamin D deficiency on what he calls a "Tragic Injustice" of political correctness combined with discrimination leading to a failure for everyone to take some African-American health issues more seriously and do more research on those issues sooner -- issues that are now effecting everyone as we all spend more times indoors and have been told to fear the sun:<br /><a href="http://www.vitamindcouncil.org/health/autism/the-black-community.shtml" rel="nofollow">Autism and The Black Community: A Tragic Injustice</a><br /><br />That point is echoed by this Black health researcher (Curtis Duncan) from a different direction: <a href="http://curtisduncan.blogspot.com/2009/10/why-michelle-obama-is-more-likely-to.html" rel="nofollow">Why Michelle Obama is More Likely to Die From Breast Cancer than Hilary Clinton</a>.<br /><br />So, maybe some more pieces of the puzzle from several different directions... Mostly agreeing regardless of skin color (why I noted it).<br /><br />From my own thinking on this, I'd wonder if there are two broad categories of people who hold problematical views on some subject like racism (or any other -ism, see "Rankism") -- those who are ignorant/misinformed and those who are closedminded? Ignorance and misinformation can perhaps often be dealt with relatively straightforwardly by education and experience; closed-mindedness is a whole different problem and may take a much broader approach to help such people grow, because some people are just not open to new ideas on a subject. Unfortunately, we have a mainstream compulsory school system that tends to beat curiosity out of most people at an early age (as shown in a recent documentary "The War on Kids"). And then, as Thandeka, Shirley Sherrod, and Howard Zinn all said, our socio-economic system then sets groups of people against each other in different ways once they are out of school. Given that, it's really a tribute to human nature we have made as much progress in so many areas as we have, even if we have a lot further to go.Paul Fernhouthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18277410080082245333noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8075448.post-63659323462992023972010-07-30T12:31:42.186-05:002010-07-30T12:31:42.186-05:00I'm going to start calling you Wise Cliff. Wi...I'm going to start calling you Wise Cliff. Wish more people read your work/play. If you lived in certain other cities, you could shop in Best Buy with no one noticing you. But you wouldn't be in New Orleans. Sherrod's response was outstanding, and the job the Administration offered her is a no-win job. That's an Ag tradition. No one should watch Fox news. Watching The Simpsons is OK, though.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8075448.post-42931560390779457842010-07-27T22:33:59.465-05:002010-07-27T22:33:59.465-05:00When you gonna get back to blogging FM?When you gonna get back to blogging FM?Cliftonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03389032037779987856noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8075448.post-42067358798358169462010-07-27T22:22:14.517-05:002010-07-27T22:22:14.517-05:00Cliff this is well written and well explained. The...Cliff this is well written and well explained. The whole episode was not a surprise for me. Sad to say, but I've come to expect disapointment on this issue. Until we are ready to be honest and respectful about our race issues I don't know how good it can be for the next generation. After all, we pass a lot on to our kids. I'm hopeful for the future, but at some point we in this country have to stop putting things off and hoping for a better future.Not So Old Soldierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14827298555439461765noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8075448.post-86656094069698730602010-07-27T20:41:14.547-05:002010-07-27T20:41:14.547-05:00I recommend this brief essay by Orlando Patterson....I recommend <a href="http://www.thenation.com/article/36882/african-americans-virtual-depression" rel="nofollow">this brief essay</a> by Orlando Patterson. It gets at much of what Cliff addresses, and contains a clue as to why President Obama treads lightly.<br /><br />Cliff, your forbearance is incredible. That thought of an American citizen -- or anyone living here -- having to have a necessary acceptance of even superficial racism doesn't surprise me, but it still depresses me.K.https://www.blogger.com/profile/10222703055177237209noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8075448.post-47085283626739258092010-07-27T11:34:38.704-05:002010-07-27T11:34:38.704-05:00Once, matters of race were clear: you can not drin...Once, matters of race were clear: you can not drink here; you can not sit there. Now, as you mentioned, I find them a bit more contextual. It's funny that the entire Sherrod debacle was as simple as a matter of context. <br /><br />The thing about Fox News is, it doesn't cater to moderate opinions that it wants to sway. Fox News caters to staunch conservatives who "want their country back." Jumping when it says how high will accomplish nothing - unless your plan is to feed the beast. <br /><br />I supported the brother, and I think he can still accomplish good things, but I never expected him to put on a dashiki when revolution breaks out. He's not just the President of Black America, so I can't expect him to.<br /><br />But here is where his inexperience shows. Frankly, we all should have seen this coming.Beauty Jacksonhttp://beautyjackson.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8075448.post-38647067369023733462010-07-27T10:44:01.148-05:002010-07-27T10:44:01.148-05:00Hi Cliff, thanks for your thoughtful writing. M...Hi Cliff, thanks for your thoughtful writing. My reaction when watching how Shirley Sherrod handled this situation was, I hope if I'm ever being grilled on the spotlight like that, that I'll be that plain and clear in giving good answers. I was glad that the normal mainstream media did point out that she had been taken completely out of context. If you think about the other prejudices in our culture, gender, sexual preference, IQ, class, etc., the changes have not come easy there either. We're supposed to give each other a break, but people are too fearful of something being denied to them on the basis of somebody else getting the respect they deserve. spSusanna Powershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12171292385713491199noreply@blogger.com