[lbo-talk] Graeber

[// ravi]

On Mar 13, 2013, at 12:11 PM, Wojtek S <wsoko52 at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> [WS:] Good point.  I think it is more acceptable in Europe to openly
> express xenophobic and racist ideas in public, but at the same time
> there seem to be less of de facto segregation i.e. people more eager
> to interact with other ethnic groups on a personal basis. In the US,
> by contrast, you will see more political correctness in the public
> appearances, only a redneck would use a racist slur in public, while
> more "respectable" folk would use much more veiled language.  However,
> they tend to fraternize only with their own kind on a personal basis.
> 

Exactly. This is one of the things I meant by saying non-white people have multiple criteria to juggle. Do I want to live in a nation where racial tolerance is achieved via isolation or one where I might be called names (which has occurred in the USA as well) and might even face violence, but get richer opportunities for cultural and social interaction? Note also that this question is different for a non-white person in the USA considering immigration to Europe than it is for an African refugee.

My admittedly small point is that just as white Americans can discount racism because it does not apply to them, non-white Americans can weight racism (in the West), rather than treating it as a binary switch ("litmus test"), because it always applies to them.

And then, of course, London has real Indian food.

	—ravi