> Because in the individualized psychological sense he is NOT racist, but
> like all the other motherfuckers who make up the DP leadership and
> elected officials he is perfectly willing to utilize the structural
> racism deep in u.s. life for opportunistic purposes. I can't believe
> that Nathan can't see what is happening here.
>
> More evidencd that we hamper the struggle against racism by using the
> word so often to describe individualized feelings. The DP is a racist
> institution, though most of the people who make it up at all levels are
> not personally "racist."
>
> Carrol
But the word applies to individualized feelings. The word isn't being mis-used.
I agree that the vigilance against individual racism while ignoring structural racism is a huge problem but it isn't caused by using the word the way Nathan did. It is caused by not often enough using the word the way you did.
I don't have an answer to the problem of how to stress structural racism instead of individual racism but using the word racism less isn't it. Since the word applies both individually and structurally then using it only to describe individual behaviour isn't mis-using it or over-using but under using it. The word needs to be used more but in the context of addressing structural problems.
It comes back to not wanting to label our societies structure as racist. Nathan doesn't want to do that unless he's backed into a corner. He'd rather deny the individual racism of an individual and leave it at that.
John Thornton