Comments on: Wherein I Finally Understand White Privilege

By: Wherein I Explain Race

Wherein I Explain Race — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 16:03:25 +0000

[...] to be sure that I did it right and not in the heat of debate. It all started a few months ago when Craig wrote a post about a college course on white privilege. While there was much snark to be had, the intentions of [...]

By: Craig

Craig — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 01:50:55 +0000

Seems to me that if, as you folks argue, that there is no basis for race in physical traits acquired through genetics, then there can, by definition, be no such thing as racism.

By: Robfunk

Robfunk — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 01:37:13 +0000

Rita, it is you who are “hopelessly confused.” Considering the overwhelming majority of Biological Anthropologists say that race IS NOT biologically sound, thus race IS a sociological construct.
Name ONE, just ONE, trait that is UNIVERSAL in a race and I will believe you, but that is simply untrue, unscientific, and ignorant.

By: Rita

Rita — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 10:38:13 +0000

You’re hopelessly confusing biology with sociology. The particular expression of genes is biology…..which is why my pug will never be confused for my Akita. The assumptions we make about a particular expression of genes is sociology….which is why I don’t expect my pug to understand dogs on tv aren’t really a threat but I do expect my Akita to ignore them. Pugs are generally stupid. Akitas are not.

Interesting though that you picked my one example of black skin.

By: Robfunk

Robfunk — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 08:43:55 +0000

Shane is absolutely correct on all counts. Proof? Simply look back on the history subject at hand: “whiteness.” You will quickly realize how race is not grounded in biology (science simply cannot prove that it empirically exists) and how it does EVOLVE through societal, institutional, political channels.

By: You really missed the point, guys « The New Willard

You really missed the point, guys « The New Willard — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 04:37:46 +0000

[...] Wiley Cody, over at the enlightened Big Sky Cairn, really missed the point on this one and so did Craig (MT Politics). It’s dangerous for ill informed people to comment on racial issues because [...]

By: Big Sky Cairn » Blog Archive » The Left (on Racism)

Big Sky Cairn » Blog Archive » The Left (on Racism) — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 23:55:10 +0000

[...] The University of Colorado asserts that racism is about white privalege and therefore a racial minority cannot be racist. * Mark T [...]

By: Shane C. Mason

Shane C. Mason — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 17:03:32 +0000

OTOH I don’t think anyone would confuse a Nigerian with a Pakistani, regardless of their skin color. I think what Craig really means, if I can put words in his mouth, is that race is based on a set of specific physical characteristics, one of which is skin color.

Exactly the point, any such traits you choose to delineate race are arbitrary and chosen by societal constructs, since the the expression of a given physical trait (like skin color) is independent of any other physical trait.

By: Mark T

Mark T — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 16:16:38 +0000

Yes. I know it when I smell it. I don’t even have to see it.

By: Rita

Rita — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 11:59:04 +0000

Ah but it’s how that 6% genetic difference is expressed that defines race, isn’t it? For example, no one would think I am bloody British, but I am defined as white. Cherokee and Apache are fairly distinctive from each other, but both are defined as American Indian (or whatever the hell the correct term is these days). Guatemalans & Mexicans differ physically but they’re both considered Hispanic…and brown is the new black btw.

OTOH I don’t think anyone would confuse a Nigerian with a Pakistani, regardless of their skin color. I think what Craig really means, if I can put words in his mouth, is that race is based on a set of specific physical characteristics, one of which is skin color. It’s the assumptions we make about a person based on a certain set of those characteristics that are a social construct…which may or may not be true.

Nothing new, been going on since time began. One of the most basic tenets of sociology is that in order for there to be an ‘us’ there must be a ‘them’. And no, I didn’t RTFA. I had enough of that nonsense in undergrad.

People are just people…some are good, some are bad, and most of us fall somewhere in between.