Marvel's Black & Minority Characters: Roundtable Discussion

[Anubis]

That's what it ultimately comes down to. US vs THEM. That's the way our brains work. God forbid we took into account other peoples feelings and followed the golden rule. Do unto others and all that.

 

[T'Jai]

makes too much sense we can't do it...

 

[Anubis]

Well,....................

I'm the exception,... I won't hate you for being different,.... I'll hate you for treatment because I'm different.

So of course that upgrades me from "A-hole" status to A-nal retentive.

Theres always the exception to the rule. The individual who stands outside of the mob. But we all know, those types are few and far between.

 

[Varient]

How many times have you been the only white guy in an all black/latino/asian environment, except by choice? Granted there are occasions when they're the only kid at an all black school or something, but I think the scenario of being the only minority in an all white setting in society is more prevalent, mostly in school or work.

(smile)

Never.

 

[hippy fascist]

How many times have you been the only white guy in an all black/latino/asian environment, except by choice? Granted there are occasions when they're the only kid at an all black school or something, but I think the scenario of being the only minority in an all white setting in society is more prevalent, mostly in school or work.

That's because america has a vastly larger white population than any of the minorities.

How many times do you think a black men enters an all white environment in nigeria?

You have to take proportions into account when talking about population splits

 

[Anubis]

How many times have you been the only white guy in an all black/latino/asian environment, except by choice? Granted there are occasions when they're the only kid at an all black school or something, but I think the scenario of being the only minority in an all white setting in society is more prevalent, mostly in school or work.

I live in Chicago, one of the most segregated cities in the U.S. You got places were they're only whites, only hispanics, only blacks, etc, etc. It's not enforeced by the city government, but it's there. As a matter of fact, just a couple of days ago somebody got the crap beat out of them for being in the wrong part of town. Black guy in the Mexican hood or something like that. It's crazy man. That a man can't go where he wants in a supposed free country. That's the folly of mankind. We put up our own barriers. Divide ourselves into our own little groups and defend them with a passion. We can find any reason to fight each other. Vegitarians versus meat eaters, blue eyed kids versus brown eyed kids. Men versus Women. It's all so, pointless.

 

[terry78]

^Yeah, I'm talking about here in the states though. I know the country is mostly white, so I don't think anyone with real issues about being the only white person somewhere has too much to gripe about as they can easily go somewhere they're not. I'm the only black guy in my office right now aside from another one upstairs, and while the co workers are cool and all, I'm still the only black guy around, and discussions about subjects involving race do come up occasionally, and my opinion always differs.

 

[Varient]

^Yeah, I'm talking about here in the states though. I know the country is mostly white, so I don't think anyone with real issues about being the only white person somewhere has too much to gripe about as they can easily go somewhere they're not. I'm the only black guy in my office right now aside from another one upstairs, and while the co workers are cool and all, I'm still the only black guy around, and discussions about subjects involving race do come up occasionally, and my opinion always differs.

Of course.
This is because (generally) the majority speaks from the outside looking in.

When someone wonders aloud what the big deal is about someone being the first black or hispanic or Asian to do/invent/create something,... they usually do it from the position of never having to fight to have the opertunity to do those things in the first place.

Listening to the news this morning,.. The first Black man in the NHL,.. even though he had been the highest scoring in the seasons he played was forced out of hockey by whites who couldn't handle it,.. the NHL was then ALL WHITE for 13 years before someone else was too good to be refused/ignored.

After hearing all that,.. a white co-worker looked at me, (of course I officially represent Blacks in my workplace*smirk*), aand asked "What's the big deal? Anybody who's good enough can get in NOW if they want to play."

"Why do "you people" make it such a big deal?"

(yeah I became irritated.)

My answer was civilized though,... I told him "because usually the choice, the option was not available UNTIL sumbody else suffered the abuse to make it possible for others to follow."

My life has been filled with people telling me what I can not do based on my color. Most times the ones talking were white. That's why the previous twenty or so posts surprized me.

That someone not living it can tell me that I'm the racist one.

Sigh.

 

[T'Jai]

any body else find it amusing that the 2 most...reactive individuals (who would seem to have conflicting view points) are getting along swimmingly

 

[mwm1331]

I don't live in the US and even I know that statement is totally bogus.

After this opening line I see need for further comment.

No offense but...your comments in this thread are coming across incredibly naive and...well, misinformed. Upon what are you basing them?

None taken. This is all based on my personal experience. However I see little evidence of widespread racism among whites, as opposed to a lot for widespread racism among the majortiy of blacks. Think about it, how many black leaders in politics use "my people" to refer only to blacks? How many times do you hear some underecated unintellgible idiot complain that everything bad that happens to him is becasue "all whites are racists"?(which is ironic given that it is in and of itself a racist comment) Even the lack of support for obama for not being "black enough" indicates the belief that "blacks" and "whites" are two seperate communities rather than two ethnically diverse parts of the same community. Look at the Congressional Black caucaus which refuses to allow any non-whites to join, even those who have the same politcal and social goals. Is this not the same behavior that was enforced via the jim crow laws of yesteryear?

From what I can see white youths in black neighborhoods suffer far more racially based violence and discrimination than black youths in white neigborhoods. Now much of what I am pointing to is adnecdotal which I freely admit. But the idea of a "white peoples" is delegated to the fringes of american culture, only to be espoused by the most ignorant, yet save for a few notable exceptions, the idea of the "black peoples" as a seperate group is heavily prevalent. IMO it goes far beyond a simple concept of "racial identity" (which I would find problematic enough given its biological inaccuracy) to a form of racial superiority.

Others may disagree with these observations, as is thier right, however when was the last time you heard of a White mayor refusing to hire blacks as was the case (in reverse) recently in chicago? When was the last time you heard a white politcal leader calling for a "vanilla city" as was the case recently in New Orleans. When was the last time you have heard any white, accuse any other, of not being "white enough" as is the case with Obama, Gumbel, Cosby, and in truth virtually any other black who is well spoken, educate, and a successful professional that does not fit into the sterotype of "blackness" in America today?

 

[Eros]

After this opening line I see need for further comment.


None taken. This is all based on my personal experience. However I see little evidence of widespread racism among whites, as opposed to a lot for widespread racism among the majortiy of blacks. Think about it, how many black leaders in politics use "my people" to refer only to blacks? How many times do you hear some underecated unintellgible idiot complain that everything bad that happens to him is becasue "all whites are racists"?(which is ironic given that it is in and of itself a racist comment) Even the lack of support for obama for not being "black enough" indicates the belief that "blacks" and "whites" are two seperate communities rather than two ethnically diverse parts of the same community. Look at the Congressional Black caucaus which refuses to allow any non-whites to join, even those who have the same politcal and social goals. Is this not the same behavior that was enforced via the jim crow laws of yesteryear?

From what I can see white youths in black neighborhoods suffer far more racially based violence and discrimination than black youths in white neigborhoods. Now much of what I am pointing to is adnecdotal which I freely admit. But the idea of a "white peoples" is delegated to the fringes of american culture, only to be espoused by the most ignorant, yet save for a few notable exceptions, the idea of the "black peoples" as a seperate group is heavily prevalent. IMO it goes far beyond a simple concept of "racial identity" (which I would find problematic enough given its biological inaccuracy) to a form of racial superiority.

Others may disagree with these observations, as is thier right, however when was the last time you heard of a White mayor refusing to hire blacks as was the case (in reverse) recently in chicago? When was the last time you heard a white politcal leader calling for a "vanilla city" as was the case recently in New Orleans. When was the last time you have heard any white, accuse any other, of not being "white enough" as is the case with Obama, Gumbel, Cosby, and in truth virtually any other black who is well spoken, educate, and a successful professional that does not fit into the sterotype of "blackness" in America today?

You have alot of good points man.

 

[T'Jai]

he's gonna make me do it...

 

[Eros]

I have met more ignorant black people then white people, even though white cops are more supremely ignorant at times.

 

[T'Jai]

I'm having deja vu...

 

[hippy fascist]

he's gonna make me do it...

get spoons in here and tag-team this mother****er!

 

[T'Jai]

nah he's genuinely confused, not willfully ignorant

 

[mwm1331]

he's gonna make me do it...

Please do.
Becasuse in truth your posts in the thread thus far strike me as little more than literary mastubation.
If you feel my points are invalid then show why, otherwise the self agrradizing nature of your "Im so gonna destroy this guy" posts are simply tiresome.

 

[hippy fascist]

Please do.
Becasuse in truth your posts in the thread thus far strike me as little more than literary mastubation.
If you feel my points are invalid then show why, otherwise the self agrradizing nature of your "Im so gonna destroy this guy" posts are simply tiresome.

Dude, if you're gonna use the big words it comes off far more impressive if you actually know how to spell them...

Oh and grammar is your friend

 

[T'Jai]

please read my last post... the reason u don't find any of my more...valid posts is because they keep deleting the threads after I make the guy freak

 

[mwm1331]

Dude, if you're gonna use the big words it comes off far more impressive if you actually know how to spell them...

Oh and punctuation is your friend

Dude, unless you can criticise the substance of my writings as opposed to the style do us both a favor and walk away. Because in truth all it does is make you look like a fool.

My spelling, punctutation, and typing skills are irrelavnt to the points Im making, and not realising this just makes you look stupid.

to paraphrase a quote related to the topic of this thread "I look forward to the day when a mans posts are judeged by the content of his thoughts, rather the punctuation of his sentences"

 

[Tropico]

After this opening line I see need for further comment.

The racial divides are so marked that just by visiting I notice them. And it's not because I'm some white guy looking at everything as a racial thing (which is something we've been mostly exposed to by the media as a "black thing"), I'm just used to people not caring that much about it, if at all, where I live. And each and every time I visit the US I notice it because it strikes me.

It's even more saddening that my family and friends see it as normal. It's normal for them to see all the black people and latinos and others working the "crap jobs". You can even see it when you get to the airport and notice who are the people doing maintenance, baggage handling, etc.; meanwhile, most of the people at the counters are white. And what people tell me is that they have those jobs because that's what they want or they're uneducated. I just find it odd that those people just happen to be minorities.

And, yeah, I've noticed that the racial lines are clearly defined over there. If you're from a certain culture or race you HAVE to dress a certain way and you HAVE to behave a certain way, otherwise you're a sellout. I'm not used to that crap. Even where I live where the Africans are supposed to be an "ingredient" on what makes this culture/ethnicity there are people that see it as something less than desirable. Racism towards blacks is common to an almost worldwide level, the same doesn't apply to whites.

It's like many people have said: racism today is more insidious because it's kept behind closed doors or under a veneer of political correctness; it's still alive and well and composes more than 5% of the white population in the US and internationally.

 

[mwm1331]

please read my last post the reason u don't find any of my more...valid posts is because they keep deleting the threads after I make the guy freak

I don't freak.
So fire away.

 

[hippy fascist]

Dude, unless you can criticise the substance of my writings as opposed to the style do us both a favor and walk away. Because in truth all it does is make you look like a fool.

My spelling, punctutation, and typing skills are irrelavnt to the points Im making, and not realising this just makes you look stupid.

to paraphrase a quote related to the topic of this thread "I look forward to the day when a mans posts are judeged by the content of his thoughts, rather the punctuation of his sentences"

Dude, look at your sig, if that's your thoughts...

"ooh, I can offend people on a mass scale!"

 

[T'Jai]

yeah ...but like I said ur confused as opposed to willfully ignorant so I can't bring the fire, however I'd be more than happy to break down your last lengthy post just as soon as my woman and I finish skyping so's I can concentrate

 

[mwm1331]

yeah ...but like I said ur confused as opposed to willfully ignorant so I can't bring the fire, however I'd be more than happy to break down your last lengthy post just as soon as my woman and I finish skyping so's I can concentrate

If you feel I am confused then feel free to enlgihten me. If my central thesis is inaccurate then explain why it is so. What evidence do you see of white racism being a major factor in Amreica? What evidence do you see of Black racism being either non-existant or a phenomonon of low porportions? What evidence do you see, if any,that a mojorty of whites are racist?