The Race Issue

I will never cease to be amazed at the degree (or varying degrees) of racism that I am constantly confronted with. Seriously shocked!

So I'm having this discussion with a couple people I know about the recent issue of Time Out New York...The Race Issue. I contemplate not saying anything about anything in the issue (because I will undoubtedly get worked up) but if you know me you know that's virtually impossible. So we get going and there is a page about whether or not people think race matters, specifically in the next Presidental Race. Some of people in the article say no it doesn't matter, but others say "I'm not racist," but a black president won't be able to do the job. Another black man says black people can't have a black president because it's George Bush this and White President that, who will they blame if they have a black president? Now at this point, one of the people we're discussing this with who happens to be half black Jamaican and half Chinese says it's true black people can't have a black president. Now at that, I'm like who are you to say?!? In my mind I'm thinking did you forget you're half black? I told him you can't make generalizations like that, not all black people are like that! Then another person accuses me of making the same generalizations about the black race...to which I kindly, if not aggressively had to remind him that I was NOT saying all black people do not think that way, simply saying some may thing that and some may not, but you can't make that kind of generalization.

I was just so purturbed by the whole thing! It made me think, no wonder so many people are racist against black people (among other races) when black people who are doing well are even negative about their own people! Shouldn't we be helping one another to succeed or something, not just tearing each other down and perpetuating the sterotypes by agreeing with them. I always feel the need to defend the general idea of "my people" because we are never going to get any farther in this country if we don't. It just make me really really sad.