[lbo-talk] You hush up

Carrol Cox cbcox at ilstu.edu
Thu Jan 22 13:27:38 PST 2009


Dennis Claxton wrote:
>
> Hush up? Is she using black speech to say it's not about race anymore?

Having a black president we can hope will have some impact on individual white attitudes. We hope.

The problem is that the 'problem' of racism in the u.s. has almost nothing to do with white attitudes, and in any case those attitudes will not change significantly until the material grounds generating them chanmge. And in so far as having a black president createsd an illusionof "racial progress," the battle against those material grounds of racism (the economic conditions of a large portion of the black population) -- that battle will become more not less difficult. Certainly talk of the need for responsibility is objectively racist. In fact I think it is the most destructive racist speech now current in the u.s., since it acts as a barrier to seeing the reality of racial oppression in the u.s.

Remember: Racism did NOT cause slavery. Black slavery caused racism.

Racism (personal attitudes) reflects more than it causes the oppression of black people in the U.S. The first step actually to reduce racism is to free at least half and probably many more of the black prisoners in u.s. jails and prisons -- free them, and provide a guaranteed income for them.

There is no easy way to overcome racism in the u.s. The belief that there are easy ways is itself the most vicious form of racism.

Carrol



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