Nick Cannon under fire for "Whiteface" in new album's cover

[Fed. Pac. Chairman Devin]

This is pretty funny.

I do wish that people would drop this idea that being white automatically means being privileged. It's such a white middle-class-and-upwards thing to think.

Ummm... being white automatically does mean you're privileged, all things equal and relative to non-white people. At least in the United States.

I have an idea. Why don't you come to my hometown? That way you can lecture all the white people, many of whom live on less than a grand a month about how privileged they are.

Your reading comprehension is so, so bad.

You said being white makes you privileged didn't you?

[Eraserhead]

This thread is on page three already why exactly?

[dead0man]

And Nick Cannon's a FF for doing something he knew would be offensive to many.

Seriously?  People that do things that they know are going to be offensive are FFs?  Really?  Wow.

It's like, the definition of freedom fighting in many cases, dude... especially in America.  We have somehow gotten to a society where the commoner feels they are granted the right to not be offended.  It's awful, and we need the brash and unfiltered amongst us to point the middle finger to the world and yell [Inks] in a crowded mall. 

So burning a Koran on a grill or a cross in a front yard is freedom fighting?

[Fed. Pac. Chairman Devin]

No one is punishing white people, jesus christ.

I would call being treated like the only one who can be racist a pretty serious punishment. Plus when was the last time a black person was charged with a hate crime for defending himself?

[Fed. Pac. Chairman Devin]

And Nick Cannon's a FF for doing something he knew would be offensive to many.

Seriously?  People that do things that they know are going to be offensive are FFs?  Really?  Wow.

It's like, the definition of freedom fighting in many cases, dude... especially in America.  We have somehow gotten to a society where the commoner feels they are granted the right to not be offended.  It's awful, and we need the brash and unfiltered amongst us to point the middle finger to the world and yell [Inks] in a crowded mall.  

So burning a Koran on a grill or a cross in a front yard is freedom fighting?

How offended people get by that would probably depend on where you are.

[MaxQue]

No one is punishing white people, jesus christ.

Plus when was the last time a black person was charged with a hate crime for defending himself?

Oh, wow. You're sure you're L-WA? Perhaps other letters would be appropriate.

[Flake]

-there is racism
-it works both ways
-mostly disadvantages non-whites

[Fed. Pac. Chairman Devin]

No one is punishing white people, jesus christ.

Plus when was the last time a black person was charged with a hate crime for defending himself?

Oh, wow. You're sure you're L-WA? Perhaps other letters would be appropriate.

Why because I made a reference to something that happened to me? Plus im from Eastern WA. We are more like Idaho than the rest of the state.

[MaxQue]

No one is punishing white people, jesus christ.

Plus when was the last time a black person was charged with a hate crime for defending himself?

Oh, wow. You're sure you're L-WA? Perhaps other letters would be appropriate.

Why because I made a reference to something that happened to me? Plus im from Eastern WA. We are more like Idaho than the rest of the state.

To you? I'm sorry then. It sounded like a veiled jab about Trayvon (or whatever was his name) trial.

I didn't thought of that possibility (didn't through there was minorities in Eastern WA). I'm very sorry about what happened to you, but it's not a reason to deny than most wealthy people are white (most wealthy people are white, but reverse isn't true. Most white people aren't wealthy).

[Fed. Pac. Chairman Devin]

-there is racism
-it works both ways
-mostly disadvantages non-whites

I am not contesting that.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

I wonder if this will jeopardize his career with Nickelodeon.

nice pun in the thread title btw.

[Fed. Pac. Chairman Devin]

No one is punishing white people, jesus christ.

Plus when was the last time a black person was charged with a hate crime for defending himself?

Oh, wow. You're sure you're L-WA? Perhaps other letters would be appropriate.

Why because I made a reference to something that happened to me? Plus im from Eastern WA. We are more like Idaho than the rest of the state.

To you? I'm sorry then. It sounded like a veiled jab about Trayvon (or whatever was his name) trial.

I didn't thought of that possibility (didn't through there was minorities in Eastern WA). I'm very sorry about what happened to you, but it's not a reason to deny than most wealthy people are white (most wealthy people are white, but reverse isn't true. Most white people aren't wealthy).

Thank you. There are actually wuite a lot of Hispanics here. Several farm towns have only Hispanic-majority precincts. One town is even 98.3%! But anyway this happened while I was in East STL. Can you tell me if this sounds like a hate crime to you? I was walking the streets with my gf. Some black football players showed up and started threatening us. One threw a punch at me, I ducked and hit him back. A group of people formed around us and one guy came to help me. When the fight was over the cops showed up and arrested me. Also yes I know that most rich people are white. But that does not mean all Whites are privileged.

[Simfan34]

Lief, lest you pride yourself too much on your non-white-ness, remember you're a pure Aryan. Yes, the good old king on one side of your background even styled himself the "light" thereof, that's how much.

But don't mind me, I'm just oppressed compared to super-privileged people like Bushie, and white members of the ruling class like Obama, Susan Rice,  Eric Holder, Condoleezza Rice... of course listing names is inane, but it's a device to show how ludicrous a statement that the "ruling class is white" is.

But then, Lief is just being silly. We're the sillier ones for getting worked up about it.

[Lief 🗽]

Well I'm white, so I don't know why I would pride myself on being something that I'm not?

And no, the people who are rejecting a pretty well accepted sociological framing of inequality are the silly ones.

[Lief 🗽]

No one is punishing white people, jesus christ.

Plus when was the last time a black person was charged with a hate crime for defending himself?

Oh, wow. You're sure you're L-WA? Perhaps other letters would be appropriate.

Why because I made a reference to something that happened to me? Plus im from Eastern WA. We are more like Idaho than the rest of the state.

To you? I'm sorry then. It sounded like a veiled jab about Trayvon (or whatever was his name) trial.

I didn't thought of that possibility (didn't through there was minorities in Eastern WA). I'm very sorry about what happened to you, but it's not a reason to deny than most wealthy people are white (most wealthy people are white, but reverse isn't true. Most white people aren't wealthy).

Thank you. There are actually wuite a lot of Hispanics here. Several farm towns have only Hispanic-majority precincts. One town is even 98.3%! But anyway this happened while I was in East STL. Can you tell me if this sounds like a hate crime to you? I was walking the streets with my gf. Some black football players showed up and started threatening us. One threw a punch at me, I ducked and hit him back. A group of people formed around us and one guy came to help me. When the fight was over the cops showed up and arrested me. Also yes I know that most rich people are white. But that does not mean all Whites are privileged.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Privilege_(social_inequality)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_privilege

From your story it's not clear if they attacked you because you were white or what, so it's not clear if that's a hate crime.

[Simfan34]

Well I'm white, so I don't know why I would pride myself on being something that I'm not?

And no, the people who are rejecting a pretty well accepted sociological framing of inequality are the silly ones.

The ruling class is wealthy. That is the only meaningful distinction one can make. Race-obsessed leftists are barking up a very wrong tree. It's inane to act as if race, gender, or anything else presents a greater barrier than wealth to anything. Or do you believe black people remain impoverished because of white racism as opposed to say... self-defeating social norms?

[Lief 🗽]

Or do you believe black people remain impoverished because of white racism as opposed to say... self-defeating social norms?

Yes?

Obviously wealth presents a greater barrier than race, gender, orientation, whatever. But acting like those other barriers and inequalities don't exist alongside wealth inequalities is ignoring actual real societal problems.

[Simfan34]

Or do you believe black people remain impoverished because of white racism as opposed to say... self-defeating social norms?

Yes?

Obviously wealth presents a greater barrier than race, gender, orientation, whatever. But acting like those other barriers and inequalities don't exist alongside wealth inequalities is ignoring actual real societal problems.

Yes, but it's far smaller. If you do think black poverty is the result of white racism then clearly you're discounting the effect of social norms and poverty.

It's interesting, that perhaps most of the people who endorse this view seem to be those suffering with "white guilt", that is, those most removed from it (and black experiences). It is rampant at my university. Conversely, from my experience, those who least agree with such sentiments are the minorities who've achieved success... because they know that their mere experience discounts it.

[Gustaf]

This is pretty funny.

I do wish that people would drop this idea that being white automatically means being privileged. It's such a white middle-class-and-upwards thing to think.

Ummm... being white automatically does mean you're privileged, all things equal and relative to non-white people. At least in the United States.

But all things aren't equal. Which was my point. It's one thing to discuss structural issues, it's another to go to the extremes some people are here.

Plenty of white people draw few benefits from their white privilege because they have other things holding them back, like gender or poverty. It's a bit offensive to pretend as if they're all part of some privileged power group.

[Gustaf]

This is pretty funny.

I do wish that people would drop this idea that being white automatically means being privileged. It's such a white middle-class-and-upwards thing to think.

Why not?  It's an automatic streak of sympathy from the ruling class.

That's not what it is, it's the opposite, which is my problem. People in the ruling class are trying to spread the guilt by acting as if the vast majority of the US population, which is white, is all part of their privilege. It's a way to feel more comfortable. Since blatant racism will be more common among poorer whites it makes it even easier to shift all this blame onto someone else. It allows people to enjoy their privilege, pretending to be aware of it and smugly place the responsibility somewhere else.

If you want to say that specifically white rich people are heavily privileged, go ahead, I agree.

[TheDeadFlagBlues]

Or do you believe black people remain impoverished because of white racism as opposed to say... self-defeating social norms?

Yes?

Obviously wealth presents a greater barrier than race, gender, orientation, whatever. But acting like those other barriers and inequalities don't exist alongside wealth inequalities is ignoring actual real societal problems.

Yes, but it's far smaller. If you do think black poverty is the result of white racism then clearly you're discounting the effect of social norms and poverty.

It's interesting, that perhaps most of the people who endorse this view seem to be those suffering with "white guilt", that is, those most removed from it (and black experiences). It is rampant at my university. Conversely, from my experience, those who least agree with such sentiments are the minorities who've achieved success... because they know that their mere experience discounts it.

From my experience, those who are most concerned about the deleterious effects of racism are relatively affluent and well-educated people of color. There is definitely such a thing as a Black elite in cosmopolitan places like New York, DC, LA, Atlanta and Chicago but these are exceptions to the rule and the members of the Black elite know this.

Have you ever been outside of the New York metro area? You'll quickly realize that race is a tremendous barrier that will prevent people from treating you with respect and dignity that is a precondition for "success" - whatever that means. Regardless of what you'd like to believe about the concept of the American meritocracy, it's myth.

edit: I tried to post this long thing about why it's fallacious to act as if poverty and social norms can be separated from "White racism" but it didn't go through. I think you're knowledgeable to understand this argument without me saying anything.

[Mordecai]

This is one of those situations where not paying any attention to it is probably the best thing to do.