White People = Racist, apparently

[Justforfun000]

To pose a question, would anyone here move into a black community?

'

To be honest? No. For two major reasons...

One., I choose to move into a gay village because I feel more comfortable, and the acceptance level is a given. I DO know what it feels like to be a minority...

Second, I would have no reason to do so. If you mean this in a way though like, "In order to have the best location for you economically and conveniently to your work", or some major point in favour of doing so, then I would not REFUSE to do so just because it was a black community.
I would probably feel a little out of place and concerned about the reaction towards me as reverse-racism is sometimes suprisingly common.

The point is that even though I personally have never thought of black people as inferior to me, or ever personally disdained them in any way, I know that this does not make me immune to attitudes directed MY way.

[Justforfun000]

I should also qualify, when you said "black community", I was thinking of two major places that were in my own experience. Down in Halifax. Nova Scotia, we have two areas called Cherrybrook and North Preston and they are practically ALL black, very poor neighbourhood, and many places are literally shacks.

So based on my own childhood experience, I pictured my moving in that kind of isolated community.

If you were thinking of a much larger city, maybe a huge modern suburn, I would say almost right away, I probably wouldn't think much of it, but yet why would it be a 'black community'? What is keeping the people NOT of colour out? See?

You can't help but speculate about such things. In general as I said, I have no problem with any people. I just worry if they'll have a problem with me.

[Havok]

Knife
Oni Koneko Damien
You guys can call bullshit all you want. You don't know me or anything about me or how I grew up or lived my life and that is fine, and I'm not really inclined to go into them here, or anywhere for that matter, but what Oni said is about as close as you can get...

Then either your experiences are just short of unique for your age...

Yes. Very unique.

[Big Phil]

To pose a question, would anyone here move into a black community?

American black: No
Any other black (Ethiopian, Nigerian, Jamaican, British, etc.): Yes

The difference? Foreign born blacks don't have the same sense of entitlement as American blacks, nor do they have a chip on their should the same way American blacks do. You see this to some degree with 2nd and 3rd generation (poor) Hispanics as well (the sense of entitlement and anger against the "man").

[General Zod]

To pose a question, would anyone here move into a black community?

Define "black community". If you're talking about some ghetto in Jersey or South LA, you couldn't pay me enough. Then again I wouldn't want to move into a community of trailer trash or KKK wannabes either.

[Havok]

To pose a question, would anyone here move into a black community?

Define "black community". If you're talking about some ghetto in Jersey or South LA, you couldn't pay me enough. Then again I wouldn't want to move into a community of trailer trash or KKK wannabes either.

So you equate black communities with trash and racist killers? Nice Zod.

Yes, I know what you mean, this is just a good example of white fuckers like us being racist without even knowing it.

[ArmorPierce]

Well I'm talking about a black community in general. The community can be black for whatever reason. East Orange, NJ comes to mind. back until the 60s population was split between black and white. Now, there are some nice sections with real nice houses/buildings. Some poorer parts but actually looks pretty nice. My professor has lived and has his law office there for most of his life. What most people would consider the ghettos, but he gets along there just fine and he got the money to move but chooses not to.

As for me, yes I would and have and would consider it again. Only problem I have is when I'm walking with a black girl, a lot of black people I don't know, mostly older black guys, starts staring mad hard and a couple will make snide remarks "brotha, brotha, brotha, she's with a jehova witness..." whatever that means. I do get the same from white people too, just not as obviously. Most often from Italians. I guess because some assume that I am Italian.

I'm just curious to hear the responses and the reasons why.

[General Zod]

So you equate black communities with trash and racist killers? Nice Zod.

Yes, I know what you mean, this is just a good example of white fuckers like us being racist without even knowing it.

Perhaps you should pull your head out of your ass and go back and read what I said. Why the fuck else would I ask AP to clarify what he meant by black communities? Specifically because there's several kinds and he could be talking about any of them.

[General Zod]

So you equate black communities with trash and racist killers? Nice Zod.

Yes, I know what you mean, this is just a good example of white fuckers like us being racist without even knowing it.

Perhaps you should pull your head out of your ass and go back and read what I said. Why the fuck else would I ask AP to clarify what he meant by black communities? Specifically because there's several kinds and he could be talking about any of them.

Ghetto edit: Alternatively, AP could have asked if you'd live in a "white" community. That's about so fucking vague as to be useless and denotes anything from redneck trailer trash to upper class gated neighborhoods.

[Spin Echo]

To pose a question, would anyone here move into a black community?

Define "black community". If you're talking about some ghetto in Jersey or South LA, you couldn't pay me enough. Then again I wouldn't want to move into a community of trailer trash or KKK wannabes either.

So you equate black communities with trash and racist killers? Nice Zod.

Yes, I know what you mean, this is just a good example of white fuckers like us being racist without even knowing it.

Predominantly black communities in general are marked by higher poverty rates than predominantly white communities, which in turn lead to higher rates of crime. I wouldn't say taking a crime rate into consideration whether you'd want to live somewhere is racist. I'll agree that Zod's wording is rather crass though.

[Turin]

Define "black community". If you're talking about some ghetto in Jersey or South LA, you couldn't pay me enough. Then again I wouldn't want to move into a community of trailer trash or KKK wannabes either.

So you equate black communities with trash and racist killers? Nice Zod.
Yes, I know what you mean, this is just a good example of white fuckers like us being racist without even knowing it.

Predominantly black communities in general are marked by higher poverty rates than predominantly white communities, which in turn lead to higher rates of crime. I wouldn't say taking a crime rate into consideration whether you'd want to live somewhere is racist. I'll agree that Zod's wording is rather crass though.

I'm a white guy living in a mostly black neighborhood and I knew exactly what Zod was talking about. In West Philadelphia where I live, the violent crime rate has even had a very unfortunate spike of late (which the community is trying to get a handle on). But fuck me if I'd ever live in a completely-burned-out-ghetto in North Philadelphia again.

[Oni Koneko Damien]

So you equate black communities with trash and racist killers? Nice Zod.

Wow, strawman much?

It's nice that you also completely gloss over the fact that 'black community' is so damn vague that it could refer to anything from an upper-class, affluent neighborhood that happens to have a majority black population, to a shitty, inner-city ghetto. Zod was just illustrating this and showing that, yeah, there are cases where you couldn't pay him enough to be in a 'black community'.

The ironic thing here is that it's just as racist to generalize 'black community' because it assumes that all 'black communities' are essentially the same, or similar enough, that you can answer the question without further elaboration. Protip: Not all black people act the same way or form similar communities, just like white people.

To answer AP's question: Yes, I have lived in a 'black community' several times. Ranging from a rather shitty ghetto suburb outside of Reno that, like Zod said, you couldn't pay me to live in again (we moved out shortly after my brother nearly got jumped for being a white kid walking alone down the street in the middle of the fucking day), to a semi-shitty mid-to-lower class neighborhood in Chicago, to a relatively decent neighborhood in Milwaukee.

I understand that, shock of all shocks, black people can be just as varied in communities as white people.

So my answer is 'Maybe'. I might choose to live in a 'black community', I might not. The issue is my decision would not be made on the basis of whether or not they're black, but rather whether or not it's a shitty community.

I"m betting that both sides are right here in their own way. Not that I'm trying to throw up a Golden Mean fallacy here....let me explain..

I agree, which is why I chose the examples I did.

In the university example, the blacks involved came from mostly affluent middle to upper-class families, most having their own cars, decent money from home and/or a steady job... and they're bitching about being oppressed and trying to intimidate anyone who is not black out of a university center deliberately set up for the sole purpose of helping them and other minorities get accepted.

Yeah, racism is all over the place, it fucking sucks, I've seen what it can do to some good friends of mine, and I'll fight just as viciously for them as I will for anyone else I care about. But I'm not going to let that blind me to the fact that an awful lot of people are insular, clique-ish, selfish whiney, tribal assholes regardless of race.

[Master of Ossus]

To pose a question, would anyone here move into a black community?

Define "black community". If you're talking about some ghetto in Jersey or South LA, you couldn't pay me enough. Then again I wouldn't want to move into a community of trailer trash or KKK wannabes either.

So you equate black communities with trash and racist killers? Nice Zod.

Yes, I know what you mean, this is just a good example of white fuckers like us being racist without even knowing it.

Fuck you, asswipe. He specifically said "If you're talking about some ghetto in Jersey or South LA..." with the implication obviously being that THOSE NEIGHBORHOODS are comparable to a community of trailer trash or KKK wannabes. What is unreasonable about this? THEY'RE FUCKING GHETTOS.

This is why I hate self-righteous "advocates" for repressed groups: they always create things to be unhappy about and then whine about some random -ism when people call them on their bullshit, rather than addressing the actual issues in constructive ways.

Edit: To answer AP's original question, I agree that I wouldn't move into some ghetto. Since I'm not legally allowed to ask about the racial background of a neighborhood I was moving into, I don't think it would matter, but I hope that if I did have information that a neighborhood is predominately black then I would move in there. I can't claim to have actually done it in the past, though, unlike some of the others who have posted above me. I don't know of many predominately black, upper-middle class neighborhoods where I live.

[RIPP_n_WIPE]

To pose a question, would anyone here move into a black community?

I had an apartment in a black neighborhood in downtown Albany for a year when I was in college. I didn't really have any negative experiences with it, other than the usual stuff you'd have anywhere in a crowded area like Albany, kids running all over the place and loud music on Fridays.

Was it Arbor Hill? That's like the only black neighborhood I know of in Albany.

[Havok]

Like I said, I know what Zod meant by his post, my point is that you have to make the equation and ask the question at all. AP didn't ask if you would live in a black ghetto, he asked if you would live in a black community, and what was the first question? Is it a violent ghetto?
If the question was asked if you would live in a white community do you think you would get a response "Is it full of white trash?" "Is it a KKK community?" No, you wouldn't.

[General Zod]

Like I said, I know what Zod meant by his post, my point is that you have to make the equation and ask the question at all. AP didn't ask if you would live in a black ghetto, he asked if you would live in a black community, and what was the first question? Is it a violent ghetto?
If the question was asked if you would live in a white community do you think you would get a response "Is it full of white trash?" "Is it a KKK community?" No, you wouldn't.

Since you have a poor grasp of the English language, go read this.

1: a unified body of individuals: as a: state, commonwealth b: the people with common interests living in a particular area; broadly : the area itself <the problems of a large community> c: an interacting population of various kinds of individuals (as species) in a common location d: a group of people with a common characteristic or interest living together within a larger society <a community of retired persons> e: a group linked by a common policy f: a body of persons or nations having a common history or common social, economic, and political interests <the international community> g: a body of persons of common and especially professional interests scattered through a larger society <the academic community>

How the fuck is describing a community by color an even remotely useful term dumbass? There's so many variations it's practically worthless without clarification.

[Oni Koneko Damien]

Like I said, I know what Zod meant by his post, my point is that you have to make the equation and ask the question at all. AP didn't ask if you would live in a black ghetto, he asked if you would live in a black community, and what was the first question? Is it a violent ghetto?
If the question was asked if you would live in a white community do you think you would get a response "Is it full of white trash?" "Is it a KKK community?" No, you wouldn't.

Good god you're a fucking moron, aren't you?

Do you know why one can make the equation to ask the question at all? BECAUSE THAT EQUATION EXISTS IN REALITY YOU FUCKTARD! Violent, hideous ghettos whose populations are overwhelmingly black exist. They exist in numbers and sizes great enough to affect other cultures and have a huge impact on nationwide crime-rates. Their existence has had an undeniable (and rather harmful) impact on popular culture.

There is nothing wrong with assuming something so inextricably associated with 'black communities' that has that much of an effect on so many things would form a meaningful percentage of any topic relating to 'black communities'. And since these ghettos represent pretty much the worst examples of 'black communities', it is entirely reasonable to as if that is what was meant when you are asked if you want to live in one, because quite honestly your life could depend on the answer.

Trying to associate that with asking if a 'white community' is a KKK stronghold is the height of asshattery for several reasons. First off, Zod isn't black, thus his life would not nearly be at risk as that of a black person's there. Second, the actual KKK represents a pathetic minority among 'white culture'. Ask yourself honestly, what has influenced popular culture more? Themes extending from the KKK or themes extending from life in a ghetto? Third: If I were asked if I wanted to live in a 'white community' I *would* ask if it were a trailer-trash shithole, because they do make up a noticeable percentage of 'white communities'. So congratulations on making dishonest accusations you small-minded piece of shit.

What the hell is your deal? If your eager quest to stamp out racism you're obviously desperately trying to look for it in places it doesn't exist, up to the point where you're accusing Zod of being racist because he asked an entirely reasonable question.

Seriously, pull your head out of your ass. Racism is a problem, but you pointing your finger and screaming shrilly at someone asking a reasonable question does nothing to solve it.

[Covenant]

Ugh, not one of these litmus test questions again.

I was ready to move into Chicago's Chinatown to be closer to my job a bit back and I'd definately move into a neighborhood full of black people or other minorities. I worked at a company that specialized in social awareness for the Black Muslim community in America, where the owner of the company was directly related to Louis Farrakahn (however his name is spelled), a majority of the work was with CAIR, and where my work schedule was dictated by the Islamic lunar calendar. I was also the only white person in the company, with my immediete co-workers not being black either. One was Mexican, another was I think some South American people (only saw her once) one was Chinese, one was Malaysian.

Honestly, is that tolerant enough for folks? I'm whiter than printer paper, do I need to join a rally to prove my "not a racist" credentials to people? When does it end? I just know that I don't like it when people assume ME to be racist, based on the color of my skin.

The question is loaded, and it's a ridiculous question that you shouldn't even ask. Moving into a 'black' neighborhood that's nice, near my job, and is tolerant of me would be absolutely fine. Was that stated? Were you just fishing for a kneejerk reaction? Would you move to a 'white neighborhood'? I know I wouldn't--the term is loaded, it conjures up KKK images. Would you move to an 'evangelical neighborhood'? I wouldn't do that either, as I'm just as likely to be harassed. How about an 'old person neighborhood'? Need I even explain why this might be damaging to my social network?

There's a lot of questions at play. It's also nearly genre blindness not to realize that when you say 'black neighborhood' you're implying 'urban poor'. It's an unfair characterization of black people to say that they're poor, but I wouldn't say it's an unfair characterization of communities that are nearly without other members (not mexicans, chinese, or other immigrant groups). Most nice places have a white folks community in them, yeah, because most people are white. Most places in general have a lot of white people in them for the same reason. It's just a fact. It's more unusual to find communities without any of them than communities with a mix of other groups and mostly white folks.

Can you think of any 'specific' communities/neighborhoods that are of only one color or culture that are not generally cruddier or wedged into a big giant city? Is there like a community of really rich Koreans that live in a nice part of Hawaii and don't have any white people or native Hawaiians around? Maybe an upscale part of Florida that's 100 percent Cuban? White people are not a culture group. Polish or Germans or Greeks or Irish are a culture group, and you can find little communities of those in cities, and they are generally crappier than actual suburbs. I don't think using this question to sniff out racism is useful or helpful or even correct in it's thought process.

[Oni Koneko Damien]

The ironic thing is that the term 'black community' itself is racist. The very idea the entirety of culture displayed by one race can be segregated from all others by the generalized term '<insert skin-colour here> community' implies that *all* members of that race share certain cultural/psychological characteristics that separate them from other genetic sub-groups of humans, which is the basis of racism

[Master of Ossus]

Like I said, I know what Zod meant by his post, my point is that you have to make the equation and ask the question at all. AP didn't ask if you would live in a black ghetto, he asked if you would live in a black community, and what was the first question? Is it a violent ghetto?

Which is precisely why he asked for clarification, you moron. Asking "What sort of a community are we talking about, here?" is not racism. There ARE black communities that ARE ghettos--merely saying "black community" doesn't specify anything about the socioeconomics of the place. Just as there are predominantly white communities that are essentially ghettos (although, the stereotype is that they're not part of the inner city).

If the question was asked if you would live in a white community do you think you would get a response "Is it full of white trash?" "Is it a KKK community?" No, you wouldn't.

But that's precisely the issue he brought up. There are white communities that are made up of trailer trash KKK members. And, frankly, if you asked me if I would live in a white community I would say "No," (even if you discounted the fact that I'm a minority and may not be ALLOWED to live in one) without needing any more information than that, since the ONLY communities that people describe as being "white" are ones that are unconscionably racist and have erected out-and-out racial barriers to entry for minorities.

[NeoGoomba]

Was it Arbor Hill? That's like the only black neighborhood I know of in Albany.

That'd be it, actually. But the quality of housing seemed to not just stay in Arbor Hill. The housing right up against Pearl St. and the Empire Plaza all seemed to be the same. It was a great location to live for getting to campus and driving around Albany, since its right near the hub of most major roadways in the area.

[Master of Ossus]

The ironic thing is that the term 'black community' itself is racist. The very idea the entirety of culture displayed by one race can be segregated from all others by the generalized term '<insert skin-colour here> community' implies that *all* members of that race share certain cultural/psychological characteristics that separate them from other genetic sub-groups of humans, which is the basis of racism

I don't think the term "black community" has anything to do with any culture you're ascribing to people who live in such a community, but honest-to-god has to do with race (and there are neighborhoods in which an incredible majority of residents are black, here). On the other hand, saying a "white community" DOES refer to the culture of segregation in such communities. I guess the difference is that a white community is seen as being deliberately exclusionary whereas the black community would probably be willing to let non-blacks move in, but is simply almost exclusively black because of socio-economic conditions. I don't think that that has anything to do with psychology, genetics, or even necessarily the culture that exists WITHIN THE COMMUNITY (although, given context, I suppose it could) as opposed to elsewhere in the country, but rather to American culture as a whole which has set up these neighborhoods.

In short, I don't see why saying "black community" is racist when referring to a specific neighborhood.

[Schuyler Colfax]

I stand by my assertion: Barring *very* rare circumstances, when you are fifteen you have jack-shit in terms of experience with real-world issues. Judging from what Pwnage has been saying and how he's been saying it, he probably has not... no, definitely has not had those experiences. And I see no reason to believe you had at that age either.

My point is that you are in no position to say that.

[Big Phil]

A little experiment here; is this police brutality or is this justified?

http://break.com/index/driver-gets-taze ... slow1.html

[General Zod]

A little experiment here; is this police brutality or is this justified?

http://break.com/index/driver-gets-taze ... slow1.html

How is that even remotely relevant?