Graphic examples of the racially-based social caste system v2.0

[Number23]

This discussion thread is pinned.

(This thread, which is hands down one of the two greatest threads in DU history, was too valuable to lose. http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=258&topic_id=3657 It was started in 2006 by the incomparable Brewman_Jax)

Regular readers here know that society at large has no problem condemning the overt and obvious acts of hate and bigotry; but that's like acknowledging that the sun rises in the east, the sky is blue, water is wet, and the Pope is Catholic. All no-brainers.

Please post here articles and stories of graphic examples of where being not-white overshadows one's professional or academic credentials. This is to show that even in the 21st Century, the past roughly 400 years of bad attitudes didn't magically disappear with the Brown vs. Board of Education court ruling, the "I Have A Dream" speech, and the signing of the Civil and Voting Rights Acts.

I'll start with My Black Skin Makes My White Coat Vanish

Please post your own examples as you come across them.

[Warpy]

1. It's on DU2, so I'll start right here

I have an Irish hide. In fact, I'm likeliest the whitest white person in New Mexico.

So it's amazing to me that even out here, when I walk up to any sort of service area, all the people of color who are already waiting seem to disappear to the people behind the counter.

They all react with surprise when I point them out as being here first, so I don't imagine many white folks notice that.

I do.

[Number23]

2. Yep.

So it's amazing to me that even out here, when I walk up to any sort of service area, all the people of color who are already waiting seem to disappear to the people behind the counter.

The only people that seem to acknowledge the existence of black folks in stores are security. So busy watching us they miss the 210 white people that have stolen half the store.

[Lilith Rising]

14. Much the same would happen with me when I lived

in Atlanta. I was was poor and a minority in a predominately black city and was still treated like I was better or more deserving somehow just because I am white.

So, yeah, I definitely noticed it too and didn't like it one bit.

[xrayvision2005]

3. Here's mine:

It's amazing to realize how many people are ignorant and oblivious to the DOC's racist agenda, affecting the lively hood and futures of untold victims. More shocking to me still is that I was once one of them. As one of a zillion falsely accused I discovered the indignity of of the prison system first hand. Thankfully that experience instilled the drive to affect change. http://www.ProvidenceBTB.orghttp://raymond-incite.blogspot.com/

[Number23]

4. Transgender bias + institutional racism = a world of pain for black transgendered individuals

The National Transgender Discrimination Survey (NTDS) measured transgender experiences of discrimination. The survey results showed that transgender people faced bias that affects all areas of life. However, one of the most important findings was that the combination of anti-transgender bias with structural and individual racism meant that transgender people of color experience particularly devastating levels of discrimination. Among them, Black transgender people often reported the highest levels of discrimination.

Key Findings:

* 34% of the Black Transgender community reported a household income of less than $10,000/year.
* 21% of Black transgender people reported being refused medical care due to bias
* 41% of Black respondents said that they had experienced homelessness at some point in their lives. Of those who had experienced homelessness, many tried to access shelters but were denied access altogether (40%) or experienced harassment (61%), physical assault (32%), or sexual assault (31%) at the shelter.

http://nbjc.org/issues/transgender-equality

Being transgender is difficult, but being transgender (or female, poor etc.) + being black makes it even that much harder.

[nofurylike]

5. tony awards: caste exemplified.

i have never seen them before. last night, i was stunned by what i watched.

many, many more black actors have parts in the shows, of course; many received nominations, too. at long last. HOORAY!! production companies are making big money on black history storylines and issues of racism, and classism, depicted in numerous shows.

but how many blacks actually touched that awards stage last night? many as performers in excerpts from the nominated plays. one, Audra McDonald, as an award winner

http://www.theroot.com/buzz/audra-mcdonald-porgy-and-bess-win-tonys

... Tyler Perry as a presenter ....

i turned it off so many times, disgusted, but then turned back to see if maybe i was wrong - in fact, that was why i did happen to see Audra McDonald win her fifth Tony, first as leading actress, for Porgy and Bess, which also won for best musical revival - to see if i might have missed something that would correct my take on it, but i do not think so.

there were several plays with all white casts - ?! and there were some with almost all black casts, except for the white stars, or the white producers, directors who accepted the awards they won. white men accepted the award for Porgy and Bess's win ....

it was intensely disturbing. but then, it was also far more inclusive than in so much of the past. so, maybe i ought to see it as a sign of progress???

if you saw it, will you tell me what you thought of it? if you didn't, there might be an online video of it? i would be interested in the thoughts of any who saw, or see it.


thank you so very much for this thread, Number23!! and for carrying on this outstanding and vitally important tradition begun by the, yes, "incomparable Brewman_Jax"!!

[Number23]

6. Really great post, Fury

And it's an excellent question. I haven't seen the Tonys and probably won't, but your question reminds me of the conversation we had in this forum over The Help and how some white posters didn't see anything wrong with the story and felt that it was perfectly understandable to have the movie centered around the young, white woman because that allowed them to "relate" to the story. As if had the story been told exclusively from the perspective of one of the black maids, that would have somehow seemed to alien.

And I get your ambivalence on this because on one hand, it is great that there was more racial diversity than at previous Tonys but on the other, it's STILL nowhere near enough and why are so many whites walking home with the prizes even if the stories are about black people?

I don't think much is going to change until black people are allowed to tell our stories in our own voices and to have these stories still be as respected/admired/popular as they are when they are told by whites. For every Malcolm X there are a dozen Color Purples and even though I am immensely glad that they are both getting onto the screen, it would be wonderful to have more diversity behind the cameras which would probably lead to more diversity in front of it as well.

[nofurylike]

7. thank you so very much, Number23.

that means a lot to me, coming from you.

the parallel with The Help is painfully fitting.

the movie centered around the young, white woman because that allowed (whites) to "relate" to the story .... As if had the story been told exclusively from the perspective of one of the black maids, that would have somehow seemed to alien.

i always wish we could hear the honest thoughts of those black maids. i can only imagine what they would never have said to that white woman who stole their stories! just as i would have given anything to hear the honest thoughts of the black broadway stars at those tony awards, whose faces barely masked their feelings as each black nominee was passed over with each successive award. when they announced Ms. McDonald's winning, there was a silent, but perceptible, gasp from the entire audience!!

it's STILL nowhere near enough and why are so many whites walking home with the prizes even if the stories are about black people?

yes!

on one hand, it is great that there was more racial diversity

yes. it seemed as if the black actors were seeing it that way, knowing progress is slow but IS happening; and so patiently accepting the limitations of whites who can only grow just so fast.

one other thing that helped: black cast members of plays that won (Porgy and Bess won the top award for a play) were clearly thrilled and proud, cheering and grinning while transcending the wrong of their still not being the ones receiving the awards their own labor and talents earned (along with the profit they are raking into those white male producers', and their white stockholders' pockets). i felt deepest admiration for their magnanimity.

Hear, hear!!:

I don't think much is going to change until black people are allowed to tell our stories in our own voices and to have these stories still be as respected/admired/popular as they are when they are told by whites. For every Malcolm X there are a dozen Color Purples and even though I am immensely glad that they are both getting onto the screen, it would be wonderful to have more diversity behind the cameras which would probably lead to more diversity in front of it as well.

O! YES!! how wonderful that would be!! - WILL be!!!

i know i ought to, and i might manage to, write my criticism to the tony people. i am sure they are just as you say of whites seeing The Help: "didn't see anything wrong ... and felt that it was perfectly understandable ... "

sigh ....

thank you, again, dear Number23! and for this thread!

[Number23]

8. Jordan Davis case

http://www.salon.com/2014/02/18/michael_dunn_and_open_season_on_black_teenagers_the_onslaught_of_white_murder/

[Number23]

9. Verdict in Renisha McBride case still to come

[Number23]

10. One last kick

[kwassa]

11. I miss Brewman Jax and this epic thread.

It was such a great service.

[Number23]

12. Me too. I'd never be able to do it justice but I had to try

It was way too valuable to lose.

[kwassa]

13. He was like Ta-nehisi Coates without his bully pulpit.

Coates is doing the same job from his standpoint as an editor for The Atlantic.

The history is getting out there.

[NOLALady]

15. Kick

[Number23]

16. Thanks, NOLA. I got a request to pin these two threads and I think it's a great idea

I keep forgetting about them and so much stuff has not been added as a result of me not kicking them as regularly as I should be.

So I'm going to pin them and that way, even if my tired old brain forgets, everyone can still see them and contribute as needed.

[kwassa]

17. Thanks for pinning them both.

This is where they should be.

[Number23]

18. As usual, we are so on the same page.

[Number23]

19. Rachel Dolezal and Dylan Roof

Dolezal, a white woman who pretended to be black, benefits from white privilege even in blackface, with numerous people calling for understanding and even trying to co-opt another word -- transracial -- to explain a person from the dominant culture "passing" as a member of a less dominant one.

Roof, the shooter who killed nine people worshiping in an historically black Charleston, SC church, was apprehended with kid gloves. His arrest was calm, even polite in stark contrast to the killings of black people by police officers, many of which have been charged with committing NO crime, let alone the murders of several innocent people.

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

20. Example: Walking on a narrow sidewalk; white people seldom move out the way...

Making space for the passerby's who are people of color.

I'm belong to a POC discussion forum for women and we discuss the impact of internalized racism and superiority on the psyche of both black and white people.

An example that we discuss is becoming aware of our own internalized sense of inferiority when simply walking down the sidewalk. We noticed how when a group or even a few whites are walking down a narrow sidewalk and blacks are walking the opposite way (facing towards each other), they--the black person or group--is forced to move or make space to avoid a collision.

Of course this is not explicit or even subtle racism--it is very much internalized. Black people move out of the way to avoid collision. In fact, one women recounted that she was nearly pushed into the street with oncoming cars while the group of white folks continued past her.

People don't even realize the psychological racism the impact that white privilege has on the psyche/the mind.

[Number23]

21. There have been entire books and courses on white people actually not even SEEING when a brown

person walks past them on the street. It's like either we don't exist or we are something to be scared of.

I bet the not being seen is worse for black women than black men. Black men get seen, all right.

[randys1]

22. Reminds me of Larry David "Curb" episode where Larry smiles and waves to AfAm walking

past him and he explains to his friend Jeff why he did that "I want them to know I am one of the good ones"



I laughed because I do the same stupid thing, and if I was on a narrow path with anyone I would move but I would move quicker for a Woman or an AfAm...

Which is in itself, racist, sort of.

And I dont think it is guilt, I dont feel guilt when I stand aside for a Woman, so I dont think I feel guilt when i stand aside for a Black person...I dont know what I feel, I just know that I feel something very strong.


AND for a while I felt dumb, out of step, or something when my 20 something son tried to tell me that his generation saw race or color differently. And i know he is a very liberal person like me but I think he is assuming something that isnt true.

[Number23]

24. It's absolutely hysterical that you think that this is in any way appropriate, needed or wanted

I've said it before, the worst thing that Sanders has going for him right now on DU is some of his supporters.

Agreement

Society needs a wake up call to see the truth. I think there is a man who has recently entered the race who will fight for communities and bring issues out. A man with fire in his heart and the ethics of Cornel West on his side.

His Name: BERNIE SANDERS

Spread the Word.

Bernie Sanders 2016

https://berniesanders.com/

[Depaysement]

26. I think the word you wanted was "condescending"

Oddly, this spam helps to prove your point. You don't see people type "Adam West" at white people thinking that will somehow secure their votes.

[Number23]

25. ONE juror had the sense to see what you're doing here. This place is just gone

YOUR COMMENTS

This is wildly inappropriate for a thread in the AA forum about racism in the US. This thread is documenting racism in the US. Someone coming in and posting some pro-Sanders spiel that has nothing to do with this forum or this thread is beyond inappropriate and completely unwanted.

JURY RESULTS

A randomly-selected Jury of DU members completed their review of this alert at Tue Jul 14, 2015, 11:00 PM, and voted 1-6 to LEAVE IT ALONE.

Juror #1 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
Explanation: No explanation given
Juror #2 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
Explanation: Are you kidding me? Do you even know who Bernie Sanders is?
Juror #3 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
Explanation: No explanation given
Juror #4 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
Explanation: No explanation given
Juror #5 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
Explanation: No explanation given
Juror #6 voted to HIDE IT
Explanation: Agree with the alerter. A quick search reveals this newbie is spamming a variety of groups with pro-Bernie messages.
Juror #7 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
Explanation: Not really seeing what's wrong... (and I'm a Hillary person)

[randys1]

27. White people know better for you than you. There is NO other conclusion to arrive at.

Try telling them that, and they double down on telling you what is best for you.

I am less concerned (because I can afford to be) about his race consciousness or lack thereof as I am about losing the WH to the terrorists.

Whatever we have to do to not lose it, I say we do that, even if we arent comfortable doing that.

But, again, I dont have to dodge bullets while I jaywalk. And I often jaywalk.

And I have not been pulled over by a cop for 20 years.

How bout you?

[JustAnotherGen]

30. Lo and behold

Nothing to do with this forum . . .

[ismnotwasm]

28. I'll add numbers to this thread later

--there is a dearth of African Anerican Physicans. At my place of work--more diverse than some, many perhaps, there are a number, still too small for the population of MD's. It gets worse in fields such as surgery. I know of exactly one Female African American surgeon doing her fellowship right now.

[Number23]

29. Great! Look forward to your update!

[scarletwoman]

31. Systemic racism - there's just no end to it...

I heard this segment on NPR Thursday morning (10/1/15):

Despite Improving Job Market, Blacks Still Face Tougher Prospects

New social science research explores why the unemployment rate for blacks is persistently worse than the unemployment rate for whites.

Transcript:

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

The outlook for jobs has been growing better over the last few years, but there are still many young people looking for work. And things have been especially difficult for African-Americans. NPR social science correspondent Shankar Vedantam joins us now because he's come across some new research trying to explore why this would be the case. Hi, Shankar.

SHANKAR VEDANTAM, BYLINE: Hi, Steve.

INSKEEP: What's the research?

VEDANTAM: Well, the new research is trying to understand why blacks have experienced significantly higher levels of unemployment and underemployment compared to whites in the aftermath the Great Recession, Steve. Some research shows that black college grads have twice the level of unemployment as white college grads. I was speaking with John Nunley. He's an economist at the University of Wisconsin at La Crosse. Along with his colleagues, he mailed out more than 9,000 resumes in response to online job ads. And for each ad, the researchers mailed out four resumes with different names. Some of the names were Claire Kruger and Cody Baker - typical white names. Other names were Ebony Booker and to DeShawn Jefferson. These are more typically black names, Steve. Nunley and his colleagues analyzed how likely the different resumes were to trigger a callback, a request for an interview. Here he is.

JOHN NUNLEY: The black name applicants in our study received about 14 percent lower callback rate than otherwise identical white applicants.

<snip>

NUNLEY: In customer-related jobs, we found that black applicants were about 28 percent less likely to receive a positive response or a callback compared to otherwise identical white applicants.

INSKEEP: Wait a minute - why would a company be willing to hire an African-American for a back-office job, but reluctant to hire an African-American to be the maître d' at the restaurant or the salesperson in the car showroom?

VEDANTAM: You know, we actually don't know the answer to that question, Steve. The researchers didn't go to the companies and say why did you select this resume, but not this one? For whatever reason, companies seem to believe their customers prefer to interact with whites rather than blacks. We don't know if this is because companies are biased and mistakenly think their customers prefer to interact with whites or whether customers are actually biased and companies are catering to those biases. Either way, of course, it's discrimination.

<snip>

INSKEEP: Wait, so you're African-American. You got a college degree, maybe a graduate degree. You've got good experience. You're getting ahead in life. But as you go forward, life becomes less equal instead of more.

VEDANTAM: It is certainly the case that more qualified African-Americans do better than less qualified African-Americans. But what they're also finding is that the disparity between whites and blacks grows as qualifications increase. So in other words, if you're an African-American, climbing the hill is a good idea. But even as you climb the hill, the hill keeps getting steeper and steeper. (my bold)

Please go to the link and read - or listen - to the whole piece. I snipped out some parts in an attempt to not violate DU copyright rules.

Nothing that no one here doesn't already know, but hearing about this study that confirms the bias so starkly was particularly striking.

[MADem]

32. They've gone and moved that article, but I found it!!!!

http://www.newsweek.com/my-black-skin-makes-my-white-coat-vanish-107511

The first time it happened I was a brand-spanking-new M.D., filled with an intern's enthusiasm. Proudly wearing my pristine white coat and feeling sure that I was going to save the world, I walked into my patient's room.

"Hello, I'm Dr. Kasongo. How can I help you?" I asked cheerfully. The patient was a pleasant African-American woman whose chief complaint was abdominal pain. I spent the next 10 minutes taking her history, examining her thoroughly and doing a rectal exam to spot signs of internal bleeding. I explained that I'd treat her pain, check her blood work and urine samples, and go from there. "That's great," she said with a smile. "When is the doctor going to see me?"

I frowned. Hadn't she heard me? Hadn't I just administered an invasive exam on her posterior? "I am the doctor," I told her, making myself smile again. Did she sense my newness? Was it my lack of confidence that made it hard for her to believe I had a medical degree? I decided that even though I was a 30-year-old intern, it must be the youthful appearance I inherited from my ageless mother that was confusing her.


That was four years ago. There have been many such incidents since then, ranging from the irritating to the comical, and I no longer have much doubt that what baffled my patient was the color of my skin. Several months later, I was having dinner at an upscale hotel in Las Vegas with a friend, when she started choking on a piece of food. As she flailed her arms in obvious distress, frantic cries of "Is there a doctor in the room?" rang out from nearby tables. I assured everyone that I was a doctor and administered the Heimlich maneuver successfully. Even as my friend regained her bearings, people at the surrounding tables kept screaming for a physician. Once the "real doctors"--two white males--came to the table and saw that her airway was clear, they told the staff that it appeared that I was in fact a doctor and that my friend was going to be fine. Yet, far from comforting them, this information produced only quizzical looks.

Over the years, the inability of patients and others to believe that I am a doctor has left me utterly demoralized. Their incredulity persists even now that I am a senior resident, working in one of the world's busiest hospital emergency rooms. How can it be that with all the years of experience I have, all the procedures I've performed and all the people I've interacted with in emergency situations, I still get what I call "the look"? It's too predictable. I walk in the room and introduce myself, then wait for the patient--whether he or she is black, white or Asian--to steal glances at the ID card that is attached to my scrubs or white coat. (I've thought of having it changed to read something like: It's true. I'm a real doctor. Perhaps you've seen a black one on TV? ).....

[Number23]

33. You are FABULOUS!

So glad that you found the original from Brewman's link. You are all kinds of awesome.

And that story is every bit as poignant and true today as it was when it was written.

[VulgarPoet]

36. Thanks for the find.

The first link had 404'd, so I was about to have to resort to google.

[Number23]

34. Black artists threaten Oscars boycott over lack of black nominees for SECOND YEAR IN A ROW

http://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/jan/20/academy-awards-black-actor-nominations-oscars-unlikely-to-change-insiders-suggest

'Oscars president Cheryl Boone Isaacs says she is ‘heartbroken’ by absence of non-white acting nominees and says it is time for ‘big changes' http://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/jan/19/oscars-2016-academy-president-heartbroken-by-lack-of-diversity

[Number23]

35. An Unfortunate History of White Actors Playing Other Races

Hat tip to gollygee's thread on this

http://www.democraticunderground.com/118738026

[heaven05]

37. this american culture

has held on to it's de-facto apartheid for GENERATIONS. It won't dimish or go away until a MAJORITY that benefits from the american apartheid system(s) in place rejects hate and racism and demands equality for all colors and manner of lawful human beings. I won't hold my breath waiting for THAT to happen.

[tblue37]

38. How about the fact that our brilliant, elegant, extremely well-educated POTUS and FLOTUS

Last edited Sat Apr 9, 2016, 06:53 AM - Edit history (1)

are not only treated as illegitimate squatters in the WH and constantly obstructed by racists whenever they try to fulfill the dutiesof their position, but that there are actually people who claim that they need to see Pres. Obama's transcripts from college and law school, because they don't believe he actually earned his degrees.

I mean, anyone who even listens to him and Michelle can hear how intelligent and well-educated they are, but because they are black, bigots assume they can't possibly have earned such impressive academic credentials.

[Number23]

39. Black men are killed for selling loose cigarettes. Wealthy white Stanford swimmers get six months

of jail time for RAPE.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/07/us/outrage-in-stanford-rape-case-over-dueling-statements-of-victim-and-attackers-father.html?_r=0

[MrScorpio]

40. Dr. Sinclair Grey III – Can ‘White Male Privilege’ Ever Come To An End?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/118753457

These ‘so-called United States of America’ has always played favorites. Even though many have seen as well as witnessed some of the strides people from all walks of life have accomplished, there is without a doubt the notion that ‘white male privilege’ is still dominant. Let me say it this way. Whenever ‘white male privilege’ gets to flex its muscle, either financially, politically, and in the recent case of Brock Turner, judicially, people are reminded that we have a long way to go to see justice and equality.

The recent sentencing of Brock Turner to only six months in jail by Judge Michael Aaron Persky shows how corrupt our criminal justice system continues to be. Think about it for a moment. Black and Brown people are convicted and sentenced to longer sentences for much lesser crimes than the sentence Turner received after being convicted of rape. There is no justification towards the leniency Judge Persky handed down to this rapist. A letter from the father stating his son had no prior legal troubles contributed to the judge’s decision. In addition to that, it should be noted that Judge Persky was probably looking out for a fellow Stanford student. How deep is alumni loyalty to a fellow student who commits the crime of rape and gets off with a slap on the wrist?

America needs to wake up and address the disparity of handing down prison sentences. No one is so naive as to think there isn’t any difference in how Blacks, Whites, and Latinos are sentenced. Those who have the financial means are afforded the best attorney’s and resources while those who don’t have the financial means or should I say (the have not’s) are stuck with insufficient representation.

What’s so troubling in this ‘white male privilege’ case of Brock Turner is that the victim has to relive her nightmare. Often times, the ‘white male privilege’ syndrome doesn’t care who it/he hurts. It’s all about self-gratification. Let’s be real for a second. ‘White male privilege’ is alive and well. Because it’s alive and well, it will crush, degrade, and demean anyone and anything that gets in its way. As soon as those who are not privileged to that upper echelon come to grips with this idea, perhaps change will happen.

http://yourblackworld.net/2016/06/07/dr-sinclair-grey-iii-can-white-male-privilege-ever-come-to-an-end/

[Liberallover976]

44. I'm not sure if this is relevant

On the New Dynasty from the CW, they have the black driver for the rich white family, sleeping with the daughter of the boss, and doing her dirty work.

I know that he's supposed to be based on the michael culhane from the original, but he was a Denver white guy.

it's dfferent now that he's an Atlanta black man.

It brings back the old stereotype of the southern balck b..k

[JonLP24]

45. Going around different forums

I see 8 trashing LBN, GD, ATA 25 for Sports but 100 trashing this forum.

I think that's sad.