Re: Help me, class assignment!!!
Gender: Male
Race/Ethnicity: White/Caucasian
Age: 16
1)What is the first word that comes to your mind when I say “White”?
White. Completely serious, no joking.
What is the first word that comes to your mind when I say “Black”?
Black. Completely serious, no joking.
2)What does racism mean to you?
Racism is the belief that people of one "race" (often defined as color of skin, but other factors also determine one's race) are inherently superior to those of another race, simply because of race differences.
3)Do you believe all people have equal opportunity?
No. An impoverished person obviously won't be able to afford college and therefore will not be able to have any sort of occupation requiring a degree. Biologically I believe all people have equal opportunity, but situations one is put in that one has no control over, in other words, one's environment, greatly affects the "opportunity" one has.
4)How often do you hear racially offensive words? (daily? Times per week? Times per month?)
About daily, I'd say, but only online. Off my computer, maybe only once or twice per week.
5)How many people of a different race do you work with?
I'm a student, this question is not applicable.
6)Are you open to friendships with people of a different racial background?(Yes/No)
Yes.
7)What percent of your friends are of other races?
About 15%
8)Is the neighborhood you live in racially diverse? (Yes/No)
No. Not by mandate, but by happenstance. It just so happened that all of the people in my neighborhood (that I know of, anyway) are white.
9)If you hear such words, would you say anything? (Yes/No) If yes, what would you say?
No. The reason I wouldn't is that racially "offensive" words are no longer offensive. The number of times I've heard "n*****" in songs made by black artists has caused me to believe that the word no longer carries any sort of meaning, offensive or otherwise.
10)Do you know the difference between prejudice and discrimination? (Yes/No) If yes, describe it for me.
Although I've never thought about it, I suppose I can tell the difference. Prejudice is inherently negative, as it involves an automatic feeling of dislike of one category, and an automatic preference for another, without any other information. Discrimination refers to choice of categories, allowing for the possibility of extra information. Though I suppose prejudice also refers to a feeling of preference whereas discrimination refers to actual acts.
11)Do you think some types of discrimination are okay? (Yes/No) If yes, what types or under what situations?
Yes, of course. With all the people available today, having a female actor play a male role is unnecessary, and vice versa. People like Eddie Murphy do it for the comedic value, but anything "serious" should most definitely discriminate by gender for role selection (this is referring to a play or movie situation, of course). Other situations are similar.
12)Have you ever felt discriminated against? (Yes/No) If so, based on what?
Yes, based on gender and race. One of my teachers would grade all of the white students in her class much more harshly than her black students, and allow the black students much more freedom and leeway. This was noted by several parents, and the teacher eventually resigned due to the "scandal." She also frequently seemed to give extra attention and benefits to the female students in her class, shunning the male students.
On gender, I feel discriminated against by the scholarship system. There is no "male-only" scholarship, but many, MANY, "female-only" scholarships. There are also several "black-only" scholarships and zero "white-only" scholarships. This is racial and gender discrimination, zero doubt.
13)Do you agree with inter-racial marriages? (Yes/No) Explain why or why not?
Of course I do. If two people love each other, a biological aspect which cannot be changed by the people themselves should be irrelevant when it comes to marriage.
14)Do you feel racism is still a big problem today? (Yes/No) Please explain why or why not.
Not in the traditional sense, no. The historically-suffering black population is now receiving several benefits and preferences due to affirmative action programs in America. Quota systems are in place to ensure racial diversity within the workplace. None of the people I have ever associated with have discriminated racially.
However, reverse discrimination is becoming a problem. The aforementioned quota systems are shutting out qualified whites from positions in favor of workplace diversity. My uncle was competing with a black person for a position at a company, and although he had better credentials and did better on the interview (as told to him by his prospective employer), the black person was hired because it was necessary due to affirmative action policies. If this continues, it could become a large issue in the near future.
15)How can YOU combat racism?
Short of lobbying for racial equality by marching and protests, there really isn't much I can do that I don't do naturally. By looking at a situation objectively, racism can be completely and entirely avoided, and that's what I aim for, for several reasons.
For all occupations, I see a white male. Yes, even for prostitute, rapper, and Hot Wok employee. Why? Because I am a white male, and therefore all my mental images, when a gender and race aren't specified, take the form of a white male.
Gender: Male
Race/Ethnicity: White/Caucasian
Age: 16
1)What is the first word that comes to your mind when I say “White”?
White. Completely serious, no joking.
What is the first word that comes to your mind when I say “Black”?
Black. Completely serious, no joking.
2)What does racism mean to you?
Racism is the belief that people of one "race" (often defined as color of skin, but other factors also determine one's race) are inherently superior to those of another race, simply because of race differences.
3)Do you believe all people have equal opportunity?
No. An impoverished person obviously won't be able to afford college and therefore will not be able to have any sort of occupation requiring a degree. Biologically I believe all people have equal opportunity, but situations one is put in that one has no control over, in other words, one's environment, greatly affects the "opportunity" one has.
4)How often do you hear racially offensive words? (daily? Times per week? Times per month?)
About daily, I'd say, but only online. Off my computer, maybe only once or twice per week.
5)How many people of a different race do you work with?
I'm a student, this question is not applicable.
6)Are you open to friendships with people of a different racial background?(Yes/No)
Yes.
7)What percent of your friends are of other races?
About 15%
8)Is the neighborhood you live in racially diverse? (Yes/No)
No. Not by mandate, but by happenstance. It just so happened that all of the people in my neighborhood (that I know of, anyway) are white.
9)If you hear such words, would you say anything? (Yes/No) If yes, what would you say?
No. The reason I wouldn't is that racially "offensive" words are no longer offensive. The number of times I've heard "n*****" in songs made by black artists has caused me to believe that the word no longer carries any sort of meaning, offensive or otherwise.
10)Do you know the difference between prejudice and discrimination? (Yes/No) If yes, describe it for me.
Although I've never thought about it, I suppose I can tell the difference. Prejudice is inherently negative, as it involves an automatic feeling of dislike of one category, and an automatic preference for another, without any other information. Discrimination refers to choice of categories, allowing for the possibility of extra information. Though I suppose prejudice also refers to a feeling of preference whereas discrimination refers to actual acts.
11)Do you think some types of discrimination are okay? (Yes/No) If yes, what types or under what situations?
Yes, of course. With all the people available today, having a female actor play a male role is unnecessary, and vice versa. People like Eddie Murphy do it for the comedic value, but anything "serious" should most definitely discriminate by gender for role selection (this is referring to a play or movie situation, of course). Other situations are similar.
12)Have you ever felt discriminated against? (Yes/No) If so, based on what?
Yes, based on gender and race. One of my teachers would grade all of the white students in her class much more harshly than her black students, and allow the black students much more freedom and leeway. This was noted by several parents, and the teacher eventually resigned due to the "scandal." She also frequently seemed to give extra attention and benefits to the female students in her class, shunning the male students.
On gender, I feel discriminated against by the scholarship system. There is no "male-only" scholarship, but many, MANY, "female-only" scholarships. There are also several "black-only" scholarships and zero "white-only" scholarships. This is racial and gender discrimination, zero doubt.
13)Do you agree with inter-racial marriages? (Yes/No) Explain why or why not?
Of course I do. If two people love each other, a biological aspect which cannot be changed by the people themselves should be irrelevant when it comes to marriage.
14)Do you feel racism is still a big problem today? (Yes/No) Please explain why or why not.
Not in the traditional sense, no. The historically-suffering black population is now receiving several benefits and preferences due to affirmative action programs in America. Quota systems are in place to ensure racial diversity within the workplace. None of the people I have ever associated with have discriminated racially.
However, reverse discrimination is becoming a problem. The aforementioned quota systems are shutting out qualified whites from positions in favor of workplace diversity. My uncle was competing with a black person for a position at a company, and although he had better credentials and did better on the interview (as told to him by his prospective employer), the black person was hired because it was necessary due to affirmative action policies. If this continues, it could become a large issue in the near future.
15)How can YOU combat racism?
Short of lobbying for racial equality by marching and protests, there really isn't much I can do that I don't do naturally. By looking at a situation objectively, racism can be completely and entirely avoided, and that's what I aim for, for several reasons.
When you see these occupations what person do you see in that occupation?
For all occupations, I see a white male. Yes, even for prostitute, rapper, and Hot Wok employee. Why? Because I am a white male, and therefore all my mental images, when a gender and race aren't specified, take the form of a white male.
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