Race & Murder

Charles Brown CharlesB at CNCL.ci.detroit.mi.us
Mon Apr 26 10:01:39 PDT 1999


The problem with Jim H. and the others who argue like him on this thread is he thinks there is some problem of complaining about racism too much in this society or a problem of labelling non-racist events as racist. It seems to be part of his theme of fighting against "panics".

But the problem in the U.S. and elsewhere is the complete opposite: Racism is covered up, understated, denied. The mass media certainly isn't overstating the racism in the current case. So the only ones Jim H is complaining about is those on this list who have complained about the mass media understating the racism. Jim is attacking a true non-problem - the over broadcasting of complaints about racism. He is a true ideological child of Reaganism/Thatcherism. They are so expert at finding false claims of racism and so weak at finding any real racism.

Charles Brown


>>> Jim heartfield <jim at heartfield.demon.co.uk> 04/26/99 03:24AM >>>
In message <3.0.5.32.19990426020824.0084dab0 at mail.netzero.net>, Mark Rickling <rickling at netzero.net> writes

to Emma


>Can you refer me to the exact passage in which someone either implicitly or
>explicitly states that race was *the only* factor leading to the Columbine
>shootings, *to the exclusion of all other explanations*?

But Emma already quoted Maggie

The shooting took place because the
>black trench coat gang BELIEVED that blacks are inferior to whites and saw
>nazism as a way of expressing that. It was the racist concepts which drove
>the action

Maggie also suggested that the fact that the victims were overwhelmingly white did not mean that this was not a race killing - which seems a bit far-fetched to me. Racism normally implies that you think your own race is superior to other races - not that they too should be exterminated.

The desire to fit these killings into the template of race murders is sheer dogmatism. Is the difference between these killings and the Howard Beach or Rodney King attacks not obvious? It is to me. -- Jim heartfield



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