Is it Racially Insensitive for Whites to Discuss Problems in the Black Communities?

Yes, it’s true. There is White Privilege, there is still systemic racism, and no White person can truly know what it is like to be a Black person in America today.

That being said, can a White person acknowledging all of the above, the poverty, the educational imbalances, the effects of slavery and segregation, and so on, express a criticism of surging Black on Black violence, and gang activity without being a racist?

If a White person says something like, “Black on Black violence is just as ghastly as lynching ever was, and needs to regarded as such,” is that White person being racially insensitive?

I live in Chicago. We have just had a weekend with sixty-seven shootings. There were nine deaths. The majority, shooters, victims, and bystanders were African-Americans. Some were children. Every weekend, the news is the same.

And I must admit, the lynching analogy passed through my mind.

Am I a racist?

Lynchings were a message to the entire black population in the area: Keep your place, or end up like this.

Can you explain how street violence sends a similar message?

That is not to say that street violence is not horrendous. But if it’s analogous to a lynching, you need to make that case rather than just make an assertion.

hi not at all! What white people discuss including such things as genital cutting that continue to operate in all white countries is their business; until weve got a grasp of what reasons theyre ready to do it all of us Asians can ask the question why!

We’re not allowed to answer your question in this forum with anything but “no.”

But to de-personalize it for a moment, it is very common among white people to believe that it is justified to criticize black people, individually or collectively, for “black-on-black crime.” On any kind of close analysis, this belief that such criticism is warranted treats black people as different and inferior to white people.

If you’re really interested in educating yourself on this subject, I recommend the following reads:

Review of Ghettoside (and the actual book, if you’re so inclined).

Ta-Nehisi Coates on black-on-black crime. There are lots of entries to choose from. Here’s one at random.

Jamelle Bouie on the topic.

Certainly, to an extent, street violence can be terroristic. Talk to the cops, and this is what you’ll get. Walk in this neighborhood with those shoes, and you’re dead. You wanna talk shit to me? Talk to this gun motherfucker!

It may be directed toward individuals, or small groups, but the results are the same. And it’s still about power too.

hi when you read my post please leave a reply! Id not like to remember that whites function differently than Asians; in the sense of seeing and not reacting; Ive stories of my own in that regard that have nothing to do with politics; one is of falling on the ice in middle school and a white male seeing it and doing nothing; and in other ways Ive not the time to talk over!

Yes, it’s certainly possible, but I would caution that people are often going to misinterpret the criticism if you use meaningless terms like, “Black on Black” violence. That term has ultimately become a dog whistle, completely empty of content and nuance. Honestly, do you think gang members are killing each other because they are Black?

Probably given that most people know almost nothing about lynching, and because lynching has almost no connection to inner city crime.

I have no idea.

How is any of this related to lynching? Again, using violence to intimidate and gain power is nothign new.

The result of heart disease is also many dead Black people, but no one would connect it to lynching just because the result is the same.

I think that’s the important factor right there. You always want to remember the difference between talking with black people and talking at black people. A lot of people say they’re doing the former when they’re actually doing the latter.

Black on black violence is not sanctioned by the folks in power the way lynchings were. No, the comparison fails.

If citing facts and drawing reasonable conclusions is racist, then we might as well fold up our society and return to the stone age.

Okay then. How about the way black on black violence is ignored by the folks in power? Does that make the comparison stand?

Welllllll, the problem here is that when discussing social issues it’s not strictly about facts and conclusions, it’s also about perspective. We can all agree that certain pathologies are bad, that’s the easy part, the hard part is understanding why such pathologies are so common. What makes it racially insensitive is that we judge without understanding, and that’s frustrating to the judged, as well as seeming a bit rich since they feel we caused a lot of their problems(which isn’t exactly false, although it doesn’t explain all pathologies).

Lest I sound like a bleeding heart, that’s not to excuse those pathologies or throw up my hands. Personal responsibility always has to come first. And on that count, the change in the black community from the 1990s to today has been incredible. There are fewer excuses today, the streets are a lot safer, and our facts and figures look a heck of a lot better than they did 25 years ago. I don’t think whites really give enough credence to the fact that the black community today is in a much better place than it was. Blacks sure see it, which is why in polling they are actually a lot less pessimistic about America than whites are:

Thank you. I’ll look into these.

Black-on-black violence has to be ignored by the folks in power. The folks in power are white, and any criticism of black-on-black violence means that you are saying black folks are inferior.

Therefore nothing can be done.

Regards,
Shodan

While black on black violence is often rhetorically neglected for a lot of reasons, the issue was taken very seriously and was at the center of anti-crime efforts in the 90s, many of which were supported by prominent African-American politicians and thinkers. It worked out pretty well.

I have sixty-seven shooting victims, and a surging murder rate that says otherwise.

In Chicago maybe and some other large cities, but not nationwide. And this isn’t because blacks are going backwards, it’s police being afraid to enforce the law.

It’s racially insensitive (and racist) to blame “the black community” or any black people other than violent criminals for violent crime. If you’re saying “this is a problem, let’s try and fix it”, then I see no problem with that. If you’re saying “why are you black people always shooting each other?”, then you’re saying something racist, IMO.

What do the have to say about police policies in the 90s?