Why Are Minorities Always Told To "Stop Whining?"

It's wrong, but when those of the majority hear minorities talk about racism, homophobia, and so on, they sometimes feel accused. Like somehow a black person talking about racists must be talking about all non-black people. It's a delicate balance nowadays. A lot of white people want to pretend that they don't see race, so as not to seem racist. But this also ends up erasing other racial identities unintentionally. People want to think "we're no different" rather than "we have some differences, but we are all human beings and therefore equal" because the former seems less messy, I think.

Those who say racism and homophobia don't exist are likely those with white, straight "privilege" who are fortunate in that they don't *see* racism or homophobia in their own lives. So, it's easier to not confront the issue, when it's one that does not confront them. People also seem to forget that these issues may exist elsewhere in the world, even if in their own bubble it's not something that is a frequent problem.

I feel I should add, I'm white myself, so I can't speak from the perspective of a racial minority. I'm just trying to share what I've observed in my own life, as well as some things a friend of mine who is interested in racial issues has shared with me in the past.

 

You remind me of this...
[YOUTUBE]JXWBuoYc8SI[/YOUTUBE]

 

Simple, because with minorities there is a lot of special snowflaking with individuals and society seems to pick up on that more.

 

From my experience, people are told these things for two reasons...

1. These people are looking to get something for free or get their name/picture in the media, without working for it. So others have gotten sick and tired of these abusive opportunistic vultures....and just want them to shut the hell up and drop dead.

Which leaves those VERY FEW people out there actually sseking justice, thrown into the garbage pile with that trash.....which makes it hard for them to be heard, much less paid attention too.

2. Because black people DO base everything on race. I have, and have had, black friends who have told me this, because they are taught this early in their life.

I have also worked with plenty of blacks who fly into a rage when ANYONE from a different race says ANYTHING to them...screaming and cussing at them that they are bigots and what they said is racist and bigoted, even if what the other person said had absolutely nothing to do with race, religion, color, or sex.

People get tired of this shit because it is a daily basic abuse by most blacks, to get something for nothing.

And my black friends have also told me this is how ghetto blacks are brought up, but not so much for educated blacks.

This goes for any and all races, sexes, and social groups as well. Those few who only want justice or fair treatment rarely get heard, because of all the vile, contemptible, blood sucking, opportunistic vultures out there who scream "discrimination", because they want free money or some self-righteous fame.

 

I just want to register that I think it's absolutely malicious and contemptible to be claiming that a majority of people who say they face discrimination are lying. And I'm just going to leave it at that before this conversation precipitously deteriorates any further.

~ Adrienne

 

I think if all groups minority or majority realized they all face discrimination the world would be a much better place. If we all realized that no one likes discrimination and admit to that our politicos would be less divisive and people would have more of a attitude like "so be it what people do with their life is none of my damn business" than we could have more simpler world.

But it's more complicated than that. For example their are christian on both sides of the issue on gay rights you cannot deny that because most politicians particularly democrats are pro gay christians. So should one opinion rule out another no it shouldn't and that is why there needs to be a separation of church and state. Sadly though most conservative christians believe that they are the only kind of christians make the pro gay christian minority look they don't exist. You don't see fox news talking about pro gay christians do you?

Every group deserves to fight for equal rights and the people who call that "whining" are just upset because they are on the losing end of things. Like I said before if everyone minded their own damn business and like Former Republican Senator Alan Simpson of Wyoming said Republicans believe that government is supposed to be out of people's so it is not a Republican value to oppose someone marry who they love. A perfect argument for a deeply flawed party. There are many republicans who now support us like Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, Mark Kirk and Rob Portman and we should always embrace those from either party who support our cause. Cause in all honesty Democrats used to be on the wrong side of this issue if you look at past voting records like in the 1990's so it is gonna get better in all aspects of politics and life. When a politician or a regular person wastes their taking away rights it says more about them than anyone else. I am christian and believe in the bible but in all honestly no person is more than holy than the other. They are all sinners and all sins are equal and politicians are especially guilty of this. Crying about sin and doing naughty stuff while away from their families in Washington D.C.

I know I went somewhat off topic but hopefully you get my point

 

Well, if the "Blacks" are saying it, then who can argue?

If you are going to speak on the subject of race and minority demographics, then speak with arguments that come from a place of substance and understanding. The fact that you continue to make claim that these are all views which are supported by the African Americans that you have allegedly acquainted yourself with does nothing to enforce them.

Not simply because hearsay is often manipulated and very rarely maintains its integrity; rather because the argument that inequality is often exaggerated because of a flaw in the mindset of many minorities attempting to appear as valid based on the fact that it is a belief that is held by some minorities is illogical. You cannot argue that a claim is baseless based on the fact that another baseless claim rejects it. The fact that "A ___ person said this" and "Well, I have a _____ friend" is all to often used to validate one's views or character rather than looking to creditable, educated sources speaks volumes about how many people in society actually care enough to become knowledgeable on issues that don't affect them rather than making frivolous claims.

Opinions on the subject of social discrimination are irrelevant, regardless of who's mouth they leave. We have statistics. Statistics of lack of representation. Statistics of hyper-criminalization. Statistics of racial profiling. Statistics of hate crime trends. Statistics of the role demographics plays economic inequality; both nationally and internationally. Data collected and dispersed by both local and national government agencies. Data provided by international authorities. We can all debate the motivations behind these phenomenons; however, their prevalent existence is not up for debate.

 

Racism does exist, and it's awful. I think most people really do try their best to treat everyone equally, but I don't know how anyone can see what's been going on with the police and not be disturbed by it. Then our criminal justice system fails again when police kill people and almost never get indicted.

As for minority status, every one of us here checks at least one box for sexual orientation. That restaurant in Indiana can keep their stupid pizza, thank you very much. (Who has pizza for their wedding anyway?) But personally I would rather just not give them my business than sue or shame them into grudgingly serving LGTB customers.

 

Why, oh why, did I open up this thread? I just knew it wouldnt lead to any good.

I really didn't want to get into this, but this entire post is some of the biggest BULLSH*T I've read yet. And adding in the typical 'I have x friend' and whatever else to somehow try to justify it doesn't change the actual tone of this post; The 'oh, but I also mean it can be any race' isn't fooling anybody.

Gen's already put in a piece so I'm just going to second Pret's stance and backpedal away from this impending clusterf*ck. >,>

 

Even though I guess you're in america this is still bullshit !

 

I guess I am fortunate enough to be surrounded by decent people, because most of the time I forget I am a minority. I'm half latina and LGBT and a lot of the time it doesn't make a difference in how I'm treated (but then again, I can pass for straight and I live in an ethnically diverse area anyway)

 

Thank you. You and Gen contemplated me.

In my country I notice that the discourse defending that "racism is fiction" and that "minorities are treated like snowflakes" is absolutely among our circle of privileged people, who more often than not are direct descendants from european immigrants and are white, while the majority of the population is colored (mostly descendants of Indians and African Americans) and segregated. Fuck, we're still not over slavery, and considering the current state of things, it's likely we never will be.

I'm not being radical. It's just reality. No one would mobilize and fight so hard if it prejudice AGAINST MINORITIES wasn't as real and pernicious as it is.

 

I couldn't agree more.

Colorism exists across all racial demographics. Every single prominent culture in the world has individual slurs for the darker members of society. There are far too many people this days that believe that racism is about slave ships and lynching, enslavement and genocide, etc. Pure malice absolutely still exists in the hearts of many, but the racism that exists now is much more socioeconomic than every before. You don't have to be a racist to benefit from the effects of racism or colorism in society. When people talking about these issues, it is not about shaming those who are of a specific demographic. It is about encouraging awareness so that incoming generations, specifically, can work against these issues in society.

To visit South America, India, Africa, East Asia, all regions that are so heavily populated with people of color and to pick up a magazine is so disheartening. When across all cultures, there is a lack of representation for people with darker skin tones. When skin lightening products are popular in every single region of the world that is not primarily white. Products to change hair texture. Plastic surgery to have more European features. Why? Because even in those region where European descendants are the minority, their faces are in the media. They are the one's who hold the most government positions. They are the one's who are viewed as the standard. At this point, refusing to acknowledge these things is society is a voluntary decision.

This is coming from someone who has been to certain regions and received blatantly better treatment because I am "the beautiful kind of black" (Which is a direct quote for the record). It is not different than hetero-normative society, in which it is easy not to face those things if you aren't forced to.

 

Agreed with everything said so far, but wanted to share my views, as someone who falls into several minority groups, and insight to how they intersect:

1) They (privileged groups) are often unaware of their own privilege, and assume everyone else has the same (or similar) experiences in life. If someone is seen as less successful, or happy in life, it's chalked up to their individual experiences alone, without thought to the circumstances they might have been born into. It's common for minority group members to be made unaware of their differences from an early age, whether it be due to bullying, followed suspiciously in stores, or being cat-called on the street by strangers.

2) Listening to so-called "whining" would mean having to confront their own privileges, and their part in oppression of minorities. Obviously, this is uncomfortable on many levels, and I think a lot of people are simply unwilling to put so much time and effort into helping a cause that doesn't benefit them directly.

3) Rights and visibility for women, people of color, LGBT, the poor, etc. is sometimes seen as a threat to the status quo. When people feel their traditions and way of life threatened, they fight back. Look how people reacted to civil rights and and end to slavery, for example. Suddenly, they're competition: fair game.

Oh, and being a member of one oppressed group doesn't automatically mean you're going to understand and support others. There's racism in mainstream feminist movements, sexism in queer circles, homophobia in ethnic groups. I have seen white, straight cis men comment how "Wow, I had NO idea this is what ___ went through! I feel a lot more enlightened since reading that," but I'm not always sure how much of that is sincere (the cynic in me).

 

I love the demeaning use of language people have been using. "Special snowflake" and implicitly agreeing that complaints are "whining", as if they were nothing but weak mewlings instead of intelligent points to be addressed, are an easy way to avoid saying anything valuable. It's much easier to just be derisive to those you deem unworthy of an equal and respectful discussion. Not taking people's grievances seriously is one of the most malicious things you can do - it establishes from the tone and substance that you do not attach any real value to the people you're talking about.

I have nothing new to add after the excellent points made previously, but I'd like to attach this to gravechild's first point; refusing to acknowledge privileges and disadvantages is often a simple avoidance technique - what's really the problem is that the more fortunate know that they exist and happily live with that. It's often thought of as "human nature", "just the way things are" or whatever else they can contrive to justify their relatively fortunate position without actually applying any intellectual effort to defend it.

 

Racism in general is a difficult topic to deal with. I certainly hope that it all quiets down.