Comments

1. islandgirl550 wrote:

   Carmen: That IM chat was great. You guys should do that more often on different topics. I am familar with you and Lauren but not the Latina blogger, Maegan. I’m definitely going to check out her site as I AM one of those black, Latina/Afro-Caribbean girls with a lil Asian mixed in. Wow I fit all three demos… no one polled me coming out of my polling spot in Canarsie, Brooklyn.

   Posted 08 Feb 2008 at 5:48 pm ¶

2. Carmen Van Kerckhove wrote:

   LOL you could’ve had this IM conversation with yourself them, islandgirl550.

   Thanks - it was fun, we should do it again soon.

   Posted 08 Feb 2008 at 6:15 pm ¶

3. Jenn wrote:

   I do. I say they hate us. It’s a generalization of course, but as a mixed black/white girl with a Chinese boyfriend, I say they do. People confide in me all the time. All my Asian and Latina (non-black) friends say the same thing. Their parents would be disappointed if they came home with white boyfriends/girlfriends but it would be FAR worse if they came home with somebody black. Especially the Asians(East Asian & South Asian). My Chinese roomate told me straight up that her parents are afraid of black people. You guys claim a generational difference. Well I must be in the generation that is too old to see that change. I don’t look black so other minorities show me their true colors all the time and the impression of my 25 years on this earth is that most people my age hate blacks, especially Asians.

   I understand wanting the media to recognize that there are other reasons for people of color voting for Hillary, but I don’t understand why y’all are skeptical of people saying that Non-black minorities who don’t hate blacks are the EXCEPTION and not the rule. Maybe hoppin on the Obama train has caused y’all to adopt his color blind approach to race where we’re all in this happy boat together and no minority’s struggle is harder then the next. Perhaps in your world there is no racial hierarchy in which whites are at the top, blacks are at the bottom, and everyone else is somewhere in between. I have never been been to this space where you and Obama exist.

   With all the nuanced reasons people of color vote for Hillary (I voted for her mostly because Obama would be the worst thing for poor blacks ever!), I still think the polls indicate that most people are not color blind.

   As I watched CNN talk about the racial breakdown of voters in California I told my Filipino friend via instant message, “For once in my life, Asian people hating blacks actually worked in my favor!” She has always stated that Filipinos and blacks are tight, but she still knew exactly what I meant.

   The only reason Obama has made it as far as he has is that his color blind approach to race leaves racist white people with the feeling that his presidency will prove things have changed. It relieve them of their white guilt. It sets them free to tell poor blacks(whose history in this country if of oppression unlike Barry’s) to pull themselves up by their boot straps and stop complaining. Obama is a good negro. White people love him, but to other minorities he’s still just another . . . well you know.

   Posted 08 Feb 2008 at 11:00 pm ¶

4. Latoya Peterson wrote:

   Jenn -

   Please cite your reasons for thinking that Obama would be the worst thing for poor blacks ever. Hillary & Barack’s policies are similar, as I discussed in my poverty post, and Alternet has an article up explaining that BOTH front runners have issues with living up to their claims. (Jack and Jill Politics also has some interesting coverage on who the candidates received major donations and support from.)

   Also, do you mind disclosing your region? The “they hate us” thing may be true in some areas but not others. While I have had a few asian parents with racist parents, I knew plenty of kids with white and black racist parents as well. (Also, the kids who had parents who told them not to bring any blacks home also didn’t want to see any non-asians.)

   I have also known quite a few asian kids who interracially date, and more than one black-asian coupling. One friends family had the oldest son into dating white girls, and the youngest son and daughter in serious relationships with African Americans. The oldest daughter eventually had a child with a black man - the parents were completely fine with this.

   In adulthood, my social circles are a little more segregated, by my asian friends tend to agree that while race relations are a bit strained, it is really a reflection of how you grew up and where. One of my close friends said she does know people in her family that hate blacks - but they tended to work in areas she said were ghetto. And *ahem* there are a lot of black people with anti-asian bias as well. Ditto with my latino friends. There is occasionally tension, but more often than not we end up on the same sides of things.

   So, it looks like our life experiences cancel out.

   Does anyone else want to weigh in?

   Posted 08 Feb 2008 at 11:42 pm ¶

5. jen* wrote:

   eh. Having been mostly an East-Coaster in my life [with a brief stint in Hawaii], I can say that I’ve seen animosity from all - towards all. But that says absolutely nothing. We all know that there is an actual difference between the antagonism toward majority peoples by minorities and even similarly hateful activities by the majority against the minority. [Case in point: the ‘n’-word vs. ‘cracker’ or any other slang term for whites.] The fact that one group remains decidedly below the other in status, access, etc. pulls the effective steam out of many of their actions.

   So we come to the hierarchy that I have seen demonstrated throughout several southern states, a couple northern ones, and even Hawaii [the supposed racial utopia of Obama fame]. There are specific communities where there may be a pet group to be especially disenfranchised, but on the whole, American Blacks are consistently pushed to the …back of the bus.

   Anecdotal evidence is all we can share, since most of us don’t do actual sociological studies on this stuff, but we have to remember that means that nothing can be invalidated since we all come with the same type of material. In my experience, I’ve seen lots of inter-racial couples [Asian/Black, Latino/Black, Black/White, etc, etc, ad infinitum] but that’s more likely because of my military exposure than there actually being some notable upswing in love across all colors and genders.

   I thought I’d actually seen it here on r-licious, but maybe it was somewhere else that talked about how interracial relationships are indeed on the rise, but mostly because they’re counting White/Asian, and so-called White/Latino unions. [though I still contend that Latino is not a race] Black/White unions are still very low, percentage-wise. Why might this be?

   I think it could quite possibly be linked to the aforementioned hierarchy. Asians and Latinos have [in some respects] been able to ‘qualify’/pass/wev for White in various parts of this country. Or as my idiot friend [my term of endearment for her] phrased things: “[I] think maybe the black community could look to the Asian community for… strategies…. a lot of people- tons- hated anyone who even looked Japanese after ww2 in this country. it was very hard for them from what i understand. but somehow they forged ahead and as a group tend to be very successful in this country economically, socially, and in most other ways. they’re no longer dispised (sic) as a group and they don’t have the problems with poverty or drugs or crime that the black community does.”

   I honestly couldn’t have put it better. She indirectly spotlights how White people have gladly fostered the separation between minorities, even seeming to award ‘honorary’ White-ness to those who conform to the ideals/mores of the majority and who have received the support that comes with the preliminary ‘white blessing’ to obtain/maintain/retain privilege/wealth.

   Honorary whiteness comes with privilege. It comes with its own status [of ‘almost-white’ which is often used to remind those who accept it that it can indeed be taken away] and is something to be desired. Therefore, it would make perfect sense that those who have attained this quasi-Whiteness, would be adamant about NOT giving it up. Hence the fact that a PR friend of mine is trying to figure out how to ease her dad into the fact that she’s actually serious about a black guy – when he said “you can date him, but DON’T bring him home”. Dating across cultures may not be encouraged – but dating Black people is specifically discouraged/forbidden.

   So yeah, that instance is generational, but they’re not all like that one. Overall, I don’t think it’s necessarily hate. I think it’s fear. The hierarchy is there to keep the status quo in order. Those with higher status are interested in maintaining the status they DO have – which kinda echoes that HuffPo piece and subsequent r-licious comments about folks remaining conservative out of fear.

   IMO, Obama’s premise of hope strikes a nerve with folks who are tired of the struggle. [Which is all of us, right?] Who’s not ready for the fight to be over? The idea that he engenders all the hopes and dreams of MLK and POC all over the US is just too enticing to ignore – by Whites and minorities. Maybe I’ve got a fatalistic viewpoint, but I don’t think we’ve actually come that far that fast – so, I can’t help thinking there’s something else I’m not seeing. Like I’ve said numerous times [tho maybe not here], whoever gets the nomination is getting my vote. But for now, I’m a Hillary-girl. And I’m neither Asian, nor Latino. Go figure. [Sorry so long. Really.]

   Posted 09 Feb 2008 at 1:06 am ¶

6. Lauren Williams wrote:

   Jenn,

   We write about racism all day long. I’m not sure that any of us believe that we live in a colorblind society or that Obama’s success means that we are close to achieving that state. I grew up around no black people — mostly whites and Asians — and I’m well aware that people who harbor negative views of blacks can see certain people they get to know on a personal level as an exception. I was one. Barack Obama is also one. No, I was never fooled into thinking this indicated colorblindness. And I strongly doubt Obama thinks this either. But I don’t want people to be blind to the fact that I’m black. I just don’t want to be treated unfairly because of it.

   Of course there are Latinos and Asians who hate blacks (and vice versa). Yes, I’ve known some. Or rather, I’ve had friends whose parents have hated or feared blacks (hello generational gap!). Incidentally, I also know a lot of men who hate women. But to invalidate the vote of an entire group of people because of a stereotype (that they all hate blacks) is a huge mistake and minimizes the myriad reasons non-racist voters have for choosing one candidate over the other.

   Posted 09 Feb 2008 at 5:13 pm ¶

7. lunanoire wrote:

   I think there is a generational divide. What is interesting as a u.s. born af-am is how my interactions with immigrants have changed b/c of the transition from childhood to adulthood. My immigrant friends from elementaty school on up were growing up in the US like me (not exactly, but we still went to the same school, etc), and learned from experience about different ethnic groups in L.A. As an adult, I am more likely than before to interact with adults who did not grow up here, so their perspective is different- which includes how they perceive african americans. We know how warped media images are of many groups of people. I think global colorism plays a role as well.

   Posted 09 Feb 2008 at 10:01 pm ¶

8. lunanoire wrote:

   *not “so.” I meant tow write “and.”*

   Posted 09 Feb 2008 at 10:02 pm ¶

9. philly jay wrote:

   “Who says Latinos and Asians hate blacks?”

   I don’t hear the latino part much, but when it comes to asians, I hear it ALL THE TIME.I hear it from black people, and oddly enough, I hear it from asian people themselves.No matter the generation.Go figure

   Posted 09 Feb 2008 at 11:01 pm ¶

10. Wks wrote:

    I’d be interested to know the gender breakdown of the Asian American vote. There’s no doubt in my mind, and I’m speaking as an Asian American here, that racism played a significant part in the poll results, but I also wonder how sexism may have influenced the voting too. I know I may be generalizing here, but I know many, many immigrant Asian men who are both quite racist and quite sexist. It’s not hard to imagine that a person like that would have instead chosen to not vote at all.

    Posted 10 Feb 2008 at 3:39 am ¶

11. atlasien wrote:

    If Asian-Americans in California had gone for Obama 3-to-1, would that mean that they weren’t racist?

    No.

    Does that fact that they went for Clinton 3-to-1 prove that they’re not sexist?

    No.

    All this talk of “proof” is absolutely baseless. The problem here is generalizing all Asian-Americans together into “they”. As in “They hate black people. It’s a fact!” Asian-Americans are probably the most diverse racial conglomeration in America.

    Posted 10 Feb 2008 at 9:10 am ¶

12. Lloyd Webber wrote:

    While hate may not be a strong word, there’s definitely some uneasiness that asians may have with blacks (fear, perhaps). I’m Canadian, and I attend a university with a large asian population and small black one, and some of the worst on campus racism seems to be directed at blacks from asians. So I think while making a blanket statement like asians won’t vote for blacks is frankly stupid, discounting the fact that asian v black tensions are real is also stupid

    Posted 10 Feb 2008 at 1:32 pm ¶

13. Kai wrote:

    All people of all races are socialized in racist society and must overcome that conditioning. This is equally true of all racial groups. It’s silly and intellectually immature to imagine that this is somehow inherently more true of one group than another.

    Would white folks or black folks be more likely to vote for an Asian American presidential candidate, than Asian Americans are to vote for an African American candidate? I doubt it. Most folks probably can’t even imagine an Asian American president; or laugh at the very suggestion.

    Biases and prejudices may manifest somewhat differently within different socio-cultural context, but the foundation is generally a normative white male supremacism. The manifestations of racism within, say, a Chinese cultural context might stand out in the eyes of a non-Chinese person because of the overall unfamiliarity with that context which puts objectionable attributes in starker relief; while racism within dominant European American culture are much more familiar and thus less glaring, even acceptably normative.

    Whenever I hear someone say, “People of race X are the some of the most racist people I’ve ever met!”, I think to myself, “Ah, a beginner.”

    Posted 10 Feb 2008 at 4:07 pm ¶

14. Radhika wrote:

    Here’s a perspective from a South Asian-American:

    First off, there are definitely racial tensions between the Asian community and the Black community. We’ve established that.

    However, I believe that some older South Asian-Americans were inclined to vote for Clinton not only because of her close ties to the South Asian community, but because of Obama’s perceived background (i.e. his father was a Muslim, and he’s half-black). I’ve even heard comments from certain first-gen South Asian-Americans about not wanting a “kallu” (a pejorative term for a black person) in office.

    I do know first-gen South Asian-Americans who voted for Obama, but the majority of them voted for Clinton.

    I don’t believe sexism played a role in voting for Clinton (obviously), because there is a history of female presidents & prime ministers in South Asians.

    Most second-gen South Asian-Americans that I know did vote for Obama (with the exception of myself; I’ve been rooting for Clinton).

    Posted 10 Feb 2008 at 4:33 pm ¶

15. Torontonian wrote:

    My Chinese father is racist.

    He makes generalizations about black people, and “backs up” his statements with references to gangster rap videos (e.g. 50 Cent) and movies about Africa like “Hotel Rwanda” and “The Constant Gardener”. He makes generalizations about Muslims and Arabs, citing FOX News, press statements by George W. Bush, and movies like “Kandahar”. He thinks that Muslims “hate our way of life” and “don’t want to adapt” to North American society.

    Maybe he never learned about racism when he was growing up, but I don’t think these stereotypes came from growing up in Hong Kong.

    Posted 10 Feb 2008 at 7:16 pm ¶

16. luckyfatima wrote:

    we know that people of color can be prejudiced. we should also not forget that it is the white privilege power structure both within the US that perpetuates PoC and minority groups to position themselves(or be positioned) as respectively better or worse than others, always somehow in reference to “civilized” whiteness. I agree that many immigrant Asians and Latinos, Middle Easterners and also Black Africans are very prejudiced against indigenous Black American people and amongst themselves do not use the same colorblind or politically correct rhetoric that recent generations of Americans use —there was no political correctness social movement outside of the US (which in the minds of most whites, has eradicated racism—yeah right) and in most parts of the world, people openly use very racist language against other groups, immigrants take this with them into the US…dissecting this would take a long time.—I recall asking an immigrant woman once why she says she is so afraid of Black Americans…she scoffed “Of course I am afraid of them, don’t you watch TV?!?!”

    but ultimately, we should be asking WHY the US media is focusing on Asians and Latinos as the big ole racist bigots…hmmm, a little diflection from white racism and passing the buck on to PoC rather than whites for the popularity of candidates besides Obama? This is an old hat trick, hello! Jews and Blacks, Koreans and Blacks,…anyone but whites and Blacks to blind white Americans from self reflection and addressing larger issues of empowerment.

    Posted 11 Feb 2008 at 2:49 am ¶

17. donna darko wrote:

    I know I may be generalizing here, but I know many, many immigrant Asian men who are both quite racist and quite sexist. It’s not hard to imagine that a person like that would have instead chosen to not vote at all.

    lol. You’re funny but I don’t think this is what happened. Like CNN said, it’s her experience and at least what we’ve seen of her in the last 16 years and perhaps name recogntion. She’s a known quantity and not a bad one either! She’s solidly liberal and won’t be surprising in any way. Unless she decides to wage preemptive war somewhere.

    Posted 11 Feb 2008 at 5:21 am ¶

18. Anonymous wrote:

    Unfortunately, much of what jennasserts rings devastatingly true,at least in my experience. As a black man, I have personally had the displeasure of being on the receiving end of some of the negrophobic animus exhibited in Asian-american and Latino communities. In fact, it is difficult to determine exactly whichgroup has given me the most flack - white racistsor like-minded “fellow” minorities. I suspect that, to many of the Latinos and Asian-americans who favor her, Hillarysimply strikes them as being the “safe bet”, the vote that says in essence, “I still stand for progressive principles. I’m still reasonable. Just not willing to make that kind of a stretch at this point. Too much honorary privilege at stake here. Too risky in this race to be fully accepted and substantiated by the white power majority.” Some say that it’s simply a matter of comfort in familiarity with the Clinton legacy. If so, then why don’t the same trends show in the black community, who are likewise appreciative of the legacy?

    Posted 11 Feb 2008 at 7:23 am ¶

19. Ange wrote:

    I think what we are forgetting here, is that for the most part, Whites don’t love one minority group over the other. Is there one so called minority group on this planet, that can claim they have never been the victim of White racism.

    I honestly can’t speak of Asian/Latino racist attitudes towards Blacks, I have personally never encountered it and don’t socialize much with either group to know their thoughts, one way or another.

    I do believe though, that Whites have done an excellent job, of making sure we hate ourselves to the point where we want to be everything THEY are. And in our desperation to be liked and accepted by a group that for the most part have no great love for any of us, we must prove how much better we are than the group (Blacks) they hate the most. So it’s the ” See I’m not like them” mentality.

    I have lived in the South, where pretty much, the Blacks and the Whites think it’s only about them and their undying love/hate relationship. Actually that can pretty much be said for all the states that are not on a sea coast. There are parts of the South where Whites still think South Asians are Negroes with straight hair. I also believe that Hollywood, and the Establishment have done an excellent job, of making other minorities invisible. When was the last time they put an Asian or Latino as a lead in a Blockbuster???? Why, it’s not going to sell to middle America .

    I am an immigrant, so if I don’t open my mouth, Americans Black and White assume I am American, the anti-immigrant sentiments is very strong in both groups especially against Latinos. One of my co-workers who is American of Korean decent constantly gets asked where she is from. I have had White business people tell me that the Japanese are the most racist on the planet, esp towards White people.

    For me, being Jamaican, it’s easier for me to socialize with other Jamaicans regardless of their race. Yes , Jamaica have a pretty big population of people whose parents or grandparents are Chinese or Indian. My father’s parents are Indians. My race is Black, my nationality is Jamaican, which brings me to another point, when are people going to realize that “Latino” is not a race, and I don’t get Dominicans and Puerto Ricans that are Blacker than I am, saying they are not Black. Life as we know it began in Africa. We are all Africans. For me race is complex and confusing. What really defines your race??? As life, on this planet, we are all connected, whether we want to acknowledge it or not. I am thankful for this site, it has helped me to grow as a person, and to confront some of my own attitudes towards other groups.

    I am an Optimist, I believe someday we will be forced to really come together as human beings possibly for our survival, maybe not in our lifetime, but someday. I believe for the most part, most people are not that hateful.

    People of Colour, don’t believe the hype. The people who control the money and power in this country, does not love me over you, they have been programed for so long to believe that they are the best thing to happen to this planet. That it is simply all about THEM and what THEY need to do for everyone else. Don’t forget we were all uncivilized until they made us civilized.

    It’s all coming back to bite us all in the ass. We are paying the price for our greed and our hate. Autism (this one I have first hand experience with) Global Warming, Prescription drugs killing you faster than street drugs. Please Wake up before it’s too late. All that said…..

    I am a proud Obama supporter, I am not so sure about the so called Asian hatred for Blacks. Obama won Washington, a state with a very large Asian poulation. It could also be about Education. Someone correct me if I am wrong…..but maybe the more educated Asians and Latinos are voting for Obama.

    Posted 11 Feb 2008 at 9:02 am ¶

20. Kaonashi wrote:

    I’m wondering the same thing, plus maybe regional as well; he won by a landside in IL and I’m pretty sure he didn’t get all those votes from Black people either. -_-

    Also, I think when you look at things internationally more people are rooting for Obama to win than Hillary; he is EXTREMELY popular overseas. I’m in Chicago, and Hillary’s Super Tuesday party here was in a restaurant. Obama had to rent out what looked like a convention hall because people flew in from all around the world to be there, and some of those folks cheesing at the camera screaming “OBAMA” were from India, Japan, South America and Australia.

    Personally, I think it’s really unfortunate that people (and the media) are using every opportunity to drag race and sex in this election. I think that more conservative Democrats are voting for Hillary because she’s been around for a while and has White house experience while the younger generation/people tired of crap/pissed off about Whitewater are voting Obama and somehow it’s all getting turned into “You voted for Hillary because she’s a woman” or “You voted for Obama because he’s biracial.” If you’re a man voting for Obama, it’s because you don’t want to vote for a woman, of course. :/ It’s all very unfortunate.

    Posted 11 Feb 2008 at 10:42 am ¶

21. Patriot wrote:

    why can’t people accept that asian americans are smart enough to decide on their own, and that there isn’t some stupid generalizing reason to explain why 80% of asian america went hillary instead of obama? some asian americans for obama can’t seem to understand why so many aa’s went for hillary; trying to play the racism card as a possible explanation is lame as hell in my opinion. if you want reasons, here are legit reasons…

    hillary has by far the most aa’s on her campaign staff at around 1/3 than any other candidate, obama has more blacks than asians on his staff. the clintons and their circle are proven to be friendly to asian america. in the 90’s the clintons appointed several asian americans to high level positions in all levels of government and departments, and bill’s former speechwriter was an asian american (eric liu). al gore’s daughter married an asian american. the clinton’s have strong relationships with asian american groups already. more than any other candidate, hillary is analyzed the most by white racist xenophobes over asian and asian american campaign contributions. finally, look at and compare the two compliled links below, and notice how hillary’s involvement with asian america is about 3 times longer than obama’s page, which is full of way more latin-focused stuff than asian american issues:

    http://www.asianam.org/clinton_on_asian_american_issues.htm

    http://www.asianam.org/obama_on_asian_american_issues.htm

    Posted 11 Feb 2008 at 12:45 pm ¶

22. Celeste wrote:

    I’ll start out with saying that the “anything but balck issue” is quite possibly the sorest spot I have so there’s a lot of pent up rage on that issue. I don’t know how many times I’ve been told that dating outside your ethnic group is bad but bringning home someone black is the worst case scenario.
    I have to say that I don’t like it when people dismiss the animosity that exists between blacks and other minority groups (asians, latinos(monolith of course), Ethiopians, high-caste blacks, insert whatever group you like). I agree that it is really, really generational and doesn’t mean at all that whites have gotten out of the game.
    I have soooo many personal anecdotes. My Sierra Leonian stepdad calling my black neighbors n-words. My mostly indian (15/30) classmates in pre-med not accepting my black male classmate as much as they accepted me (some assorted euro/asian features and light brown hair not so scary). My Indian bf of 3.5 years whose parents refused to meet me and then evetually made him break up with me (even though I was ranked higher in our med school). Then there was the Greek guys mom and the Lebonese’s guy’s dad. Same situation, never met me but knew I needed to go because I’m black. My personal favorite is my Chinese-American husband’s father who managed to conclude that I was inferior even though my family is way better off than he is and he’s a janitor at a high school (nothing against other people in custodial professions as long as you’re not racist). I could go on about my father-in-law, he’s a piece of work. I think that most people in my age cohort (I’m 27) have more tempered views about black people but we’re still everybody’s least favorite. I would say the bigger problem with this age group is seperating blacks into the “good(affluent, educated, subtle if any blackcent)” ones and “bad (lower SES, scary)” ones.
    What bother’s me mostabout the whole thing is that when people come here from a different country some start looking down on people who were already here (whose free labor really helped the country) from the moment they set foot on the soil. That’s not cool at all and really bothers me. I’d like to think that if I immigrated to India I wouldn’ look down on low-caste indians. Anti-black racism is still really bad and even my 5-year old nephew (who’s father is Caucasian) is having color issues because even he can perceive that there’s something not so rewarding about identifying as black.

    Posted 11 Feb 2008 at 1:49 pm ¶

23. Kaonashi wrote:

    What bother’s me mosta bout the whole thing is that when people come here from a different country some start looking down on people who were already here (whose free labor really helped the country) from the moment they set foot on the soil.

    That’s a pet peeve of mine as well. Racist as hell, yet proud to sport that “Minority Owned Business” certification that was earned by the blood sweat and tears of the people they don’t like. And it’s returned in spades; my partner and I were in a Target behind a Desi mother-daughter duo and the clerk turned off the light and told them very politely, “I’m sorry, my aisle is closed.” As soon as they got into another aisle, she hissed “Psst..” at us and motioned for us to get in line. She then told us that she didn’t “want to wait on those racist nasty people” and added in a whole bunch of other stuff that I won’t repeat here. It’s not the first time I’ve seen something like this either.

    I’ve also noticed that some Africans and Caribbean have a hate-on for Black Americans 24/7; some of the comments I’ve heard regarding Black Americans (and god help you if you’re biracial or ESPECIALLY a light-skinned Black person) are truly vile and would do Hitler proud. I wish I was joking, but I’m not.

    I also have similar issues with the immigration movement; some individuals are content to let Latinos do all the “heavy lifting” when they know damn good and well they are going to be knocking over people to get in the door when the laws change. That’s so lazy and horrible I can’t stand it; if you know that you will be effected by this you need to be out there too!

    Celeste: Don’t let the ignorant get you down or make you less proud of who you are; people like that are permanently disabled and not worth renting space in your head to. Evict them, lol!

    Posted 11 Feb 2008 at 5:05 pm ¶

24. Celeste wrote:

    Thanks for the pep talk Kaonashi… Therapy and anti-depressants later I’m feeling better than I did a couple years ago about the issue. I wouldn’t change who I am but that’s partly because of this ridiculous idea that one day being black will be this super huge clolassal advantage (I don’t know how this would happen) and then everyone will wish that they were black, too, and then I can gloat. I wish I were kidding.
    I totally agree with the returning it part. True, some desi’s are big black people fans but snotty, snarky stuff like the Target example you gave does not help at all. First of all you don’t know if the duo were racist and if they weren’t you might have just given them a reason to dislike blacks. Also, if they are racist, you’re just playing into their perception of you. No progress is made at all.
    Ditto on the piggybacking other minority group’s hard work but not helping with it or at the least, not being racist toward them. It’s like the Little Red Hen: who will help me make the bread? Nobody…Who wants to eat it?.. everybody. Sometimes it seems like people want to eat the bread then flip you off for all your trouble.
    I’m such a Debby Downer and I feel bad about all the bad anecdotes I posted. My best friend is Indian. One of my exes was a black PR by way of the DR and his family (which really ran the gamut in terms of phenotype, yeesh) was completely cool (he was a complete dick, though). And obviously my husband stood up for me. So there are definetely positive examples and relationships out there I just wish that they out-numbered the bad ones.

    Posted 11 Feb 2008 at 6:11 pm ¶

25. TierListE wrote:

    Wow, I just realized that I don’t have nearly the experience in minority/minority relations as some of y’all do- I’m a bit jealous. I didn’t know of any of these “blah race hates blah (usually black) race” until I started forum lurking.

    I’m in NC, and we have a dearth of Asians- I’ve only met like 7 in my entire life. And none beyond a passing acquaintance. Because of that I have no idea if they really hated me, but they were polite to my face, and were fine with small talk and idle chat. I see more in college now, but again I don’t know any of them well. I’m mad ’safe’ so to speak, so I don’t know how that influenced my reception.

    Hm, I’ve heard the ‘don’t bring a black guy home’ thing by a couple of S. Asian women. Haven’t spoken to any S. Asian men. And nil dealing with race from any E. Asians.

    I’ve ran into a couple of sketch moments with some hispanic people, a couple of which had nothing positive to say about the black race but I- fortunately for me, har har- was happily exceptioned from it. But again I’ve met hispanics who are pro-black. And don’t get me started on the specialness that is anti-immigrant blacks. I think the tolerance/ intolerance level is roughly the same for both towards both in my experience.

    But up until now the few times that someone has openly acted negatively against me without my knowing them (of which it could have been for a huge number of factors of which racism could be one), it’s only been by white or other black people.

    And being a woman I’m not quite sure how that affected things either- a lot of black racism is very male focused- I don’t know if women are even thought of unless blatantly brought up. Sometimes I think they disconnected me a bit when they brought up such things.

    Posted 11 Feb 2008 at 7:36 pm ¶

26. Celeste wrote:

    Tierlist,
    My experience was kinda similar to yours. I grew up in majority black Flint, MI everyone else was the minority. That wasn’t paradise or anything, there was the classic “talking white” situation but I didn’t really give much thought as to how we were perceived by other ethnic groups. Then I entered the pre-med program where I was the only one in my year, there was a black male student a year ahead of me. Goodness, that was an adjustment to be sure. If had gone somewhere else for college I probably wouldn’t have as much experience in that area. My classmates accepted me because they viewed me as “the exception”. You know…the whole you don’t look, talk, walk, whatever like “most” black people.
    Again, I don’t think the animosity that some black people show to groups that we percieve as looking down on us is any more justified than the disdain some people may show toward us. I can understand the reasons why some black people may feel threatened by immigration but that should make us address why it is that these 2 groups seem to be fighting over the lowest rung on the ladder. We should instead be pushing for fair labor practices in general which I think would benefit us and everyone else. I think it would accomplish a lot more than teaming up with the Minute Men.
    As for being a woman, people aren’t afraid of you as much but then there’s the whole Rasputia/Shaniqua/Madea stereotype. I make an effort not to move my neck at all while talking because of it That particular stereotype doesn’t help in the dating market.

    Posted 11 Feb 2008 at 9:58 pm ¶

27. OG wrote:

    That is why we need to stop all this booty shaking , gang banging non-sense from being beemed all over the world, this people have no alternative but to think of us this way

    Posted 11 Feb 2008 at 10:54 pm ¶

28. ronnie brown wrote:

    we forget that under white supremacy in America, whites and black folk are polar opposites and other people of color are in the middle as the “swing vote”…hence, in order to receive better treatment in the pecking order, Latinos, Asians, etc. follow white folks lead. When in Rome, you do as the Romans do…

    Posted 12 Feb 2008 at 2:18 pm ¶

29. LeAnne wrote:

    I think you all are oversimplifying the situation. There’s definitely animosity between blacks and latinos, and VERY much animosity between blacks and asians. I have friends from both sections, but I feel pretty uncomfortable having slumber parties and such with both races. I’ve dated asians and hung out with asians, but I’m the “special” negro who doesn’t act like those other black people. Same story with latinos. But, black people can be even worse when it comes to our racism against asians. WE feel no shame saying whatever we feel about them. It’s a sad fact, but a FACT nonetheless.
    hairsmystory.com

    Posted 12 Feb 2008 at 6:58 pm ¶

30. TierListE wrote:

    That is so weird. I’ve never even been privy to the Black/Asian issue. Worse than Black/ Latino even? Wow.

    Where I’m at Asians aren’t even a topic of discussion. Ha, I had this one interesting moment when I’ve brought up something about interactions with Asians and my parents got quiet for a bit before they said “. . .you know, you’ll probably never see an Asian again after college”. There’s just zero experience here. And all of the sparse moments where Asians were commented upon it was pretty positive, if stereotypical.

    The only kinds of people I’ve heard black people say intolerant/cringe worthy things about are whites, latinos (mexicans) and homosexuals.

    Posted 12 Feb 2008 at 10:42 pm ¶

31. Patriot wrote:

    A poster above wrote: “I’d be interested to know the gender breakdown of the Asian American vote. There’s no doubt in my mind, and I’m speaking as an Asian American here, that racism played a significant part in the poll results, but I also wonder how sexism may have influenced the voting too. I know I may be generalizing here, but I know many, many immigrant Asian men who are both quite racist and quite sexist. It’s not hard to imagine that a person like that would have instead chosen to not vote at all.”
    —–
    I fiercely disasgree. Yeah, Asian men must be so sexist (but wait, then why did 80% of Asian America vote for a woman?). Yeah, Asian men must be so racist (but wait, then why have we not heard complaining or violence when 50% or more of their daughters have been marrying nonAsian in America for awhile, with barely any grumbling compared to what other men may do?).

    Posted 13 Feb 2008 at 12:21 pm ¶

32. Won wrote:

    Hey I’m speaking from a person who has dealt extensively in the Latino, White, African American, Indian, and Asian community. I have always been one to be open to all and rarely wore my emotions on my shoulders. I feel I am more of a stick by the facts type of guy. I’ve seen that most Asians that I’ve meet have been (I wouldn’t say) racist, I’m more inclined to say uneducated on African-American experience. And in return African-American have not been open to them in the right way as well. Other minorities in this country completely disregard the contributions African Americans have made to this country. Most of them don’t know that most of the freedoms and privileges they receive today are about 80% because of the contributions, deaths, and struggle of African Americans. For example: Its nothing new that Asians have in the past tried to skip over the African American struggle as if to say (Hey I’m Not Black). If u look at the (Gong Lum vs. Rice 1927) case where an Asian American father tried to enroll his daughter in a All White school and was denied. He took it all the way to the Supreme Court and lost, invoking a NEW RULE saying that NO COLORED allowed. This case switched most signs from (White Only and No Black) to (Whites Only and No Colored). She was forced to go to the colored school with everyone else, and that rule wasn’t over turn till segregation was abolished in 1954 with the (Brown vs. Board Of Education). This huge contribution was one of the many that African American contributed to American history. From Martin Luther King, Rosa Parks, Langston Hughes, all the way to Oprah. The African American impact on society has been non-short of amazing, (just being honest). I honesty feel that on top of all the great things African Americans have done in this country its been a long, long string of bad thing they’ve done in there community as well. But it’s always a reason for the madness. People naturally fear things they don’t understand and because Asians rarely venture outside of there communities, its much they’ve yet to learn about other cultures. I feel it’s an underlining fear, jealousy, and a fight for the (White Card) that invokes the hate, along with ghetto black people giving them solid justification for their ill feelings. But overall I feel Jealousy and the fight for the white card is the main reason. All of the accomplishments African Americans have made have come from tremendous pain, and struggle, mainly for equality for all Americans even though most immigrants want to overlook it. The main reason why Obama is getting the majority (Black and White) Vote is because whites know the African American struggle (oh to well). And even though Blacks and Whites have overcome many adversities, Whites truly understand Black and Black truly understand Whites. Because before anyone else made it to this country African Americans and Whites were here building it to what it is. The hating needs to stop. People are people. I feel that we all have made major contributions to this country. If I put them in my personal sequence from highest to least I would say. Whites have made the most, then African Americans, Native Americans, Asians, Latinos, Asian-Indians, and others. Lets please stop the hating on each other.

    Posted 28 Feb 2008 at 6:06 pm ¶

33. Shanna wrote:

    First of all, I’m Asian. Two years ago, a black — almost 18 year old– boy walked into my life. He was new to the town and asked for tips and advice on my school, where he was going to be attending in a couple months. We got to know each other and we started talking on the phone. This was the nicest person I had ever met in my life. I told my parents about him, they disapproved. We started dating a few weeks after school started. We talked on the phone everyday. One day, my brother ratted me out and told my mom where he lived. I was dropping him off from a movie, she saw me with him. From then all, she started going through all my phone bills. She’d follow me home. She told me she didn’t want me talking to him. She had no reason to hate him. He did nothing to my family. He tried to meet them, but I knew it was not a good idea. My dad told me I could not talk to him ever, because he was black.
    We continued our relationship, but this time we never saw each other. He promised he would never leave me, because this was out of my hands.
    Today, my parents told me they were going to go talk to his parents. The only thing they are going to get out of his parents are a big “%^&* You.” His stepfather is a very offensive man. I’m scared of him and he will probably make everything worse.
    The thing is, my boyfriend is a Christian. he isn’t a perfect Christian, but he is one. He goes to church every Sunday. We’ve been together for two years and we haven’t had sex. I know boys have needs, especially his age, but he doesn’t pressure me, and he says he will wait. He doesn’t do drugs. He doesn’t smoke. He doesn’t drink. He does not go to clubs and bring girls home. He hasn’t done anything reckless/dangerous since we’ve been together.
    I love him with all my heart. There’s no way we are going to be seperated, but if his parents and my parents converse. It will probably be over. We are going to the same college in August and we are in the same dorm. People may think we are too young, but I can see a long future with him.

    I have no idea whats ahead (my parents) I just need some advice…

    About this subject though..
    My parents hate black people, and so do my family in Taiwan.

    Posted 21 Jun 2008 at 12:27 pm ¶

34. Anonymous wrote:

    keep ur boyfriend ! remember true love conquers everything !

    Posted 03 Jul 2008 at 3:58 pm ¶

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