Dare To Ask Talk And News About Our Differences - This topic has 15 replies, 16 voices, and was last updated 17 years, 8 months ago by
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- Why, despite the fact that many Asian businesses are run in black neighborhoods (beauty supply stores, restaurants, liquor stores, etc.) is there such animosity between Asians (Japanese, Chinese) and blacks? Conversely, East Indians seem to get along better with blacks. In fact, I live in a very well-to-do neighborhood, with 60 percent of the population being black and the other 40 percent a mixture of whites and East Indians.
Also, why do many Asians act more racist toward blacks than whites do? It seems acceptable among some of them to show blatant racism toward blacks - racism that the average educated white person would never do, at least on purpose. It appears that they view blacks as beneath them, although many of them find economic opportunities in black neighborhoods. Is the "model minority" complex that is prevalent among the Asian race preventing them from seeing the plight of blacks, a fellow minority?
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Name : Kristina, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Christian, Age : 20, City : Washington, State : DC Country : United States, Occupation : Transcriber, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class,Asians in general are a racist bunch, but then again, so are a lot of other groups. This sounds very petty, but I assure you, at least in a general sense, it's true.In Asia, skin color is very important. You'll notice that Asians come in many shades, even within one group (such as Chinese). Dark skin automatically labels you as something lower or inferior, because in the old days, this meant you were a laborer in the fields, exposed to the sun. Light skin means you're rich, or at least upper-middle class and out of the sun. It's incredibly, embarassingly stupid, but true.
Whenever the subject of race comes up at family gatherings, I'll be sure to hear some kind of comment on skin color. One of my cousins is an avid swimmer, and he often receives comments on his dark skin, in the negative realm. On the other hand, I'm rather fair-skinned, and whenever my grandmother gave me compliments on my fair skin, I wouldn't accept them.
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Name : Sarah-C28152, Gender : F, Race : Asian, Religion : Agnostic, Age : 24, City : San Francisco, State : CA Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class,I've lived in Japan for 20 years and have never felt any racial prejudice because of my yellow skin. Yes, of course it's true Asians have racism toward blacks; my mother and grandmother say, ' If you come back home with n****rs, I would force you to go out of the house.' I cannot understand why people, even my mother, who have never been wronged by blacks, have strong racism against them. It's because people around us do, so we do.But, I want you to know that my generation in Japan (including me) have no prejudice toward blacks or any other race. It's because we don't have reason to. Please do not be so disappointed about the problems. The number of people who do not have racial prejudice is increasing, I can say.
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Name : Yayoi, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Asian, Age : 21, City : New York, State : NY Country : Japan, Occupation : Student, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,Make a list of the general behaviors and attitudes held in high esteem in most asian societies (i.e. regarding modesty, education, ect). Then list the general (yes I am asking you to make a generalization, people do that, even asians) behaviors held in high esteem amongst blacks in america. See if the list looks the same or very different. Next, individualy judge the specific behaviors or attitudes on their individual merits. This is the process that people use to judge others, individualy and as groups. You can use this method to predict the attitudes that any person who has not made a conciouse effort to not do so, will have toward another group. Of couse we all tend to attribute our own attitudes and behavior as superior, no matter who we are, regardless even of contrary evidence. There are two ways out of this, one is to degenerate into subjectivism, thereby avoiding making judgements at all (all opinions become equal). The other is to try to be objective in your judgements, and judge on an individual basis, this is best. That is the answer to your question.User Detail :
Name : Jason31270, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Atheist, Age : 34, City : detroit, State : MI Country : United States,Asian racism is something that I thought was well known. Thats just old world garbage that will eventually work its way out of asian culture thanks to every new generation. Skin colour racism in the same race was once easily seen in whites too in much the same 'labourer' viewpoint as with asians. Thats why centuries ago there were powdered wigs, women 'powdering their noses' and every man woman and even child that could afford it would wear white makeup to lookless 'lower class'. Whites grew out of it and so will asians. Just let it happen on its own, change occurs quicker if it isn't forced on people. That is if forced change can be avioded, and in this situation it can. You can either grin and bear it or you can vocalize objections but I think they will have the same effect.User Detail :
Name : Allan31418, Gender : M, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Catholic, Age : 22, City : Halifax, State : NA Country : Canada, Occupation : Student, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,I think its pretty rare myself...I have never experienced this, seen it or committed it. However, I know it happens because I was taught racism by my parents. Not in any malicious or overt way at all. Just in a very matter of fact way. The only time it came up overtly was when us kids were all told that we would not get our inheritance and would be disowned if we ever married a black or white person. But what do you expect from a culture where the normal every day word for Caucasoid is 'white ghost/devil' and for Negroid is 'black ghost/devil'? Its only because we Mongoloids are so small & 'passive' that there hasn't been more trouble and violence. We were brought up to be afraid of you bigger, meaner people!User Detail :
Name : Ken Lim, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Asian, Age : 43, City : Cupertino, State : CA Country : United States, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper class,This may a little provocative for this forum, but I'll give it a shot. The politically correct implication we often hear in the mainstream media is that all minorities are allied against the white race in terms of idealogies, etc. In reality, nothing is further from the truth. It's been reported that in California, there are now more Asian/Caucasion marriages than Asian/Asian marriages. I think you are under the impression that since African-Americans and Asians are both minorities, that they have more in common in terms of a common opressor, etc. This is simply not true. Also, the few people I've known in my life who were half Asian and half white have identified themselves as white. And having lived in San Antonio for 13 years (my ex-wife is part Hispanic), I've known many who are half Hispanic and half white, and every one of them have identified themselves as white. This could be a partial answer to you question.User Detail :
Name : Anonymous, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Age : 42, City : Louisville, State : KY Country : United States,An asian friend of mine pointed out that asian racism is subtly different, in that its more about caste system and economics. In asian countries people who are poor are at the bottom of society and looked down on, and they perceive blacks as on the bottom. Many of the older asians come to this country with that attitude and will display even moreso that whites who have lived in this country forever.User Detail :
Name : Sherman, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Christian, Age : 34, City : Richmond, State : CA Country : United States, Occupation : Contractor, Education level : Technical School, Social class : Middle class,As opposite as black and white may seem, Asians and Blacks are the real extremes. Asians are conservative and regard openly expressing emotions as improper. The past generations did consider to be superior than Blacks, but also, the past generations were not nearly as educated and open as this generation. I would say, the animosity you feel in your neighborhood is actually due to many Asians' ignorance and fear. There is such a drastic difference between Asians and Blacks; it is hard to communicate well with people you don't understand. Despite the differences, believe me, things are changing quickly and i'm confident this kind of discrimination will die soon.User Detail :
Name : Kayla, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Asian, Age : 17, City : Banff, State : NA Country : Canada, Occupation : student, Education level : High School Diploma, Social class : Middle class,I came across this web page. The Asians that post here for the most part live in the US, but the level of racism and anger they display towards blacks is incomprehensible. http://goldsea.com/Air/Issues/issues.htmlUser Detail :
Name : Cindy31950, City : New York, State : NY Country : United States,Unfortunately, asians are quick to assimilate and turn their back on their own culture and try desperately to be accepted in the white mainstream. I've never understood that. Minorities should be more unified though, sad it can't happen.User Detail :
Name : G, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Christian, Age : 17, City : Columbus, State : OH Country : United States, Occupation : High School Student, Education level : Less than High School Diploma, Social class : Middle class,I don't think Asians are racists at all but some blacks have to be more careful about the things they do and the way it affects their image and reputation.User Detail :
Name : Asian, City : NY, State : NY Country : United States,Yayoi you have said it really well.:) Younger Asians have no prejudice against blacks, and I have a really great African-American friend. I treat her just like my other Asian-Americans or white friends. I don't consider her anything less, I consider her an equal.:) I think we (Asians) need to better inform and educate our parents and grandparents to treat blacks as equal w/o prejudice.User Detail :
Name : Kathy, Gender : F, Race : Asian, Age : 22, City : San Jose, State : CA Country : United States, Occupation : Artist, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,The harsh and simple truth is that East Asians are racist, just like everyone else. It should hardly be surprising. Every ethnic group harbors racism of some kind. I think one reason why East Asians might seem more blatant about it is that they never had to deal with it so much in their own country. There was never asian-black slavery in China or the other East Asian countries, so there were never any strong movements against racism either. Asians just didn't have to deal with racism of the kind found in America, since their countries were so homogeneous, to the extent that there are very few whites and blacks in their countries. Also the preference for fair skin runs deep in Asia. I don't know if it's simply coincidental, or some sort of effect of white imperialism, but it's true, many asians think that white skin is desireable and attractive. It's just in our history and culture. I personally don't care, and a lot of my friends, who are young asian americans, are very liberal and open about it as well. I can not say the same for people of earlier generations though. It seems that by the Asian standard of beauty some white features, like long, sharp features, high narrow noses, and lighter complexions are just considered beautiful. Therefore, East Asian people discriminate against blacks based on their looks. I personally hope that it is only the old, conservative Asian people who do this. They have very little concept of racial relations and accepting people as individuals. Another thing is the clash between East Asian (confucian) ideals and values and black culture (as I see it). East Asians tend to hail education, intelligence, and reserve as the ultimate qualities people should strive for. The Chinese people that I know mostly think about gaining success and elevating socio-economic status through education and hard work. Therefore Asian people tend to care a lot (sometimes too much) about strict education and socioeconomic status. I do not mean to generalize, and I admit I do not have that much contact with black culture outside of a lot of what I see in the media, but it seems that a lot of black people are lacking in these two things. Therefore, Asian people don't respect blacks as a people. They think blacks and stupid or at least complacent and lazy.User Detail :
Name : Jonath, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Asian, Age : 19, City : Boston, State : MA Country : United States, Occupation : Student, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Lower middle class,It's true that Asians can be a racist bunch and that the situation is getting better with the new generation, but those are not reasons for Asians' racist attitudes. Just because Asians value fair skin does not mean that they would intentionally disrepect someone with a darker skin color just because of skin color (unless that someone was a younger relative--it's a hierarchal thing). Asian cultures are collectivist. For example, they don't like anyone who 'rocks the boat' or stands out. In other posts, I've read that most black people like to 'stand out' in order to 'rebel' from the European culture that has suppressed them for so long. So actually, it's more an issue of co-cultures clashing rather than skin color. It's pretty simple--Asians are extremely ethnocentric and they are more concerned about class rather than skin color. So if someone acts in a manner that traditional Asians perceive as tasteless, Asians will not respect that person and will think of that person as lower class. In addition, in Asian cultures it's OK to treat people who are below you like crap. The people who are at the bottom of this hierarchy expect this type of treatment. It's just their way of life.User Detail :
Name : Paula25139, City : Johnson City, State : TN Country : United States,
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