I usually only post in the GARM but I figured this is a topic that’s worth discussing, especially with the possibility of an interracial president (yes folks, he’s half white too). So, DaDakota started a thread in the GARM mocking people who dwell on the past of the rockets BUT he drew an analogy to African American slavery in the US and he used the word irrelevant. I swear steam came from my nose as I exhaled. I almost exited Solid Works without saving my drawing so I could have more speed to refresh while I debate but he recommended a separate thread which was wise. I fear this might just end up being a white/minority role call with the way most people tend to feel.
It is irrelevant. If it were not, Congress should bring forward a bill authorizing slave reparations and Barack Obama should publicly support it during the primary.
There is absolutely a lasting effect. Not just from the slavery, but the 100 years of segregation and overt racism that followed. The mode of thinking that rationalized treatment of blacks in those days still persists, so I definitely think it's still relevant. I don't think that in itself warrants reparations, however.
Still relevant. Slavery may have ended over a 100 years ago, but legal segregation and Jim Crow laws ended less than 50 years ago. There are plenty of people still alive today that suffered through that.
It's impossible to tell. After 150 years of Jim Crow laws in the South, ethnocentric practices by labor unions, the Great Society, and the War on Drugs all attacking black society and the black family, you cannot separate the effects of slavery from the effects of bad government.
I'm sorry but some wounds will never heal. In world war 2, Black and hispanic soldiers could not enjoy a cup of coffee in the same line. For a black nurse to take care of white soldier was considered a violation. =/ Just yesterday, while watching Cristian tear up the eurocup 2008, my hot amiga and loyalist to judaism said to me..." I hope poland kicks the crap out of Germany." I wanted to reply with " how are they going to neutralize Klose?" But I knew why she felt that way.
Relevant to what, exactly? Slavery didn't cause racism, nor does it prevent upward mobility by the enslaved races today. What it did cause was a widespread victim mentality in blacks, many of which are poor (not primarily because of slavery, but rather because of a lack of education since their culture does not promote the value of it). Is there still discrimination? Yes; however I have a hard time believing that institutionalized slavery is the root cause. As I see it, slavery is a 'poor me' aegis that is used as a tool of convenience for those who don't like or wish to look for the root cause of the wealth gap in races.
Only 7 posts in . . . . discounting the obvious 2nd post. . but WOW! I truly cannot say I am surprised Rocket River
I don't think that you can make this type of claim without empirical evidence. Perhaps you have seen some, but one should take care not to make generalized, negative claims about entire races based solely on personal experience.
You're post is actually very accurate for quite a few blacks but even the "poor me" attitude can be attributed to slavery. In other countries where slavery and major discrimination ended earlier there isn't as much of a gap. Since slavery, the black community has made major strides and i don't its just a coincedence. My parents, both intelligent people, decided not to attend college because it would be a waste of time if they wouldn't be hired as professionals after graduation. My gf's stepfather got a degree in mechanical engineering yet for almost a decade was only given drafting type jobs.
Segregation and racism, yes they're still relevant. Slavery, no. And weslinder mentioned the Great Society. That is by far more relevant today than anything else. It created a welfare state, destroyed the 2-parent home in the black community, and to this day still perpetuates a victim mentality that leaves many almost totally reliant on the government.
http://www.fumento.com/greatsociety.html It's a dated article, but it offers up a lot of statistics that show the negative effects of the Great Society. It's debatable to what extent programs such as welfare and food stamps have hurt minorities, but it can't be denied that they've had a negative impact overall. And you'll notice the author lays just as much blame(if not more so) on the Nixon Administration as it does on LBJ's, so it's definitely not right wing tripe.
BINGO. Very nice post. Blacks aren't discriminated against because of the color of their skin or because of slavery. In my opinion, it occurs due to crime, attitudes, perceptions of anger, and behavior patterns. Much of it (the response) is human nature -- instinctual -- specifically at is relates to the crime issue. And no doubt the media and entertainers play a HUGE role in this. Bill Cosby says the very same thing.
You know how a parabolic arc never actually reaches zero? It just keeps dividing itself into smaller and smaller multitudes? Well, thats kind of how the effects of slavery are felt. They diminish very, very slowly, I doubt they will ever go away, BUT, at a certain point we have to recognize the progress that has been made in terms of race/class equivalency.
This is tough to answer, as I think that slavery is not irrelevent but that it is something to study and learn from but not something that is entirely relevent either. Slavery has happened throughout history and has assisted in the building of pretty much every country and or empire, and it still goes on today in Africa etc. But US slavery was abolished more than 140 years ago, and while racism is still relevent, slavery is not so much. I don't know anyone that was a slave, or know anyone that actually owned a slave. Are there ramifications from slavery, is racism a reaction to slavery? Those topics are worthy of debate. So this is a tough poll and hard to answer, slavery is not totally irrelevent but it is not entirely relevent today either. I will say that koko had a very good post on the matter, and that there are tons of people new to this country of African origin that are doing quite well due to the emphasis put on education. This is still a country of opportunity, people choose their own paths....and sometimes they look to blame others for their misfortune and in that sense...slavery is entirely IRRELEVENT ! DD
Did YOUR parents have an impact on your life? My parents were born in the 40's ...times of RAMPANT racism. They were full grown adults when MLK was assasinated. Since they raised me, they obviously have a massive impact on how I view race relations today. For anybody to suggest the topic is irrelevant ...are themselves irrelevant. In my lifetime, I witnessed the LA riots and dragging death of James Byrd not far from my hometown of Houston. So for anybody to suggest that all artifacts of the "slavery era" have completely passes is just plain ignorant. A 1,000 examples can be provided of why the "slavery era" is not fully past America yet. But no straight faced examples can be provided to PROVE that it is not. I'm sorry but this is just plain ignorant.
Yup. Aversive racism is still rampant today. Not as spectacular as the overt variety, but unfortunately it still has negative effects and is much harder to police. All these people who believe people living in slums can just "work hard and be rewarded" need to wake the hell up.
For the record, I did vote that it had a lasting effect. I'd be an idiot to say that there was COMPLETELY ZERO lasting effect from slavery. If there were a 3rd choice "Yes, but other factors are much more important to race relations today" then I would have picked that.
