What exactly do you think the frat boys of SMU meant by “bring out your inner thug”?
As always, if your response to an opponent’s argument is giggles, that generally says more about you than about your opponent.
…Yes, lance. Yes it is.
It’s just about the only circumstance where I could see someone saying “you should cease and desist your performance” with any actual authority.
I understand that anyone call call anything they want “hella racist”, which makes it a less-than-compelling standard to me. More generally, I don’t recognize racial or cultural rights. If ethnic group X has a ritual of some kind, and members of ethnic group Y think the ritual is kind of cool and they emulate it poorly and inaccurately, group X can complain if they want and claim to be all insulted and stuff, but… whatever.
They are referring to thugs.
No it doesn’t.
Is that answer like a giggle?
This is clearly a racist event but it brings to mind a curious double standard.
Rap* music celebrates the thug lifestyle. (By thug I mean actual criminal thug, not a FOX news slur). And while there is some small amount of criticism of this, it is a condition that more or less goes unchecked. So if we are going to pool all of our modern 2015 political forces en masse against racist, stereotypical and degrading fraternity parties, should we not have the same reaction and attitude against record companies and musical artists that promote a “gangsta” lifestyle?
*Rap music, as I understand it, is distinct from Hip Hop. I have heard Hip Hop described as being political in nature and against the gangsta nature of rap music.
Is a white hip-hop artist, such as M&M, racist? Is a white hip hop fan who dresses like black ones racist? Is there no possible situation where a white person can imitate or emulate black culture and not be racist? I think that’s the first question to answer. If it’s even possible to have a hip hop party composed of mostly white people that’s not racist, then we can consider whether this particular one is. I would think they only way to judge is to go to the party and see. The ultimate test is whether a few black friends could show up and have a good time and not feel made fun of. I don’t think we can declare it racist, or not, on its face, before the event happens.
I wonder if we could use a test for this particular event - if you didn’t know the identity of the sponsors, would you find it racist? Or would you think it was just a normal hip-hop/rap event using typical language and images for one?
Emulating misogynist and classless sub cultures and dressing poorly is not necessarily racist.
You are right. It is not “necessarily” racist. It has the benefit of “plausible deniability” built in. It is the perfect tool doing B and claiming to do A.
What do I think?
I think your stance is problematic and suspicious and I doubt your motives. I think that pathologically defending racist events, attitudes and concepts that are on the “borderline” of being racist is self explanatory in motive and intent. We hardly ever see one of you guys saying: “Yes, that is clearly racist!”
Beyond calling out what I see to be clearly biased, questionable motive on your part, I have no further desire to converse with you. That is what I “think”.
I’m sure at some point in the past people would laugh at the idea that “spic” or “jap” were racial slurs, but their laughter didn’t make it not so. From my understanding, “thug” is sometimes used as a slur, and sometimes as a racial slur.
I didn’t see anyone saying they could “shout down” anyone or say they have no right to be offended.
I think implicit in your comment is an objection to the idea that there is an objective standard of racism - that we could all agree that something is racist or not.
The problem with saying there isn’t an objective standard is that one person could say it is racist, and another that it’s not, and there we are. Those who think its not could have their party and that would be the end of it.
Eminem. Or Marshall Mathers. Or Slim Shady, if you’re referring to a particular stage persona.
“Eminem” is pronounced like the candy, but is not spelled the same.
TMYK.
Why?
Don’t even start this bullshit.
My motives are exactly as I say them. I am genuinely interested in thinking about this topic. It’s people like you who shout down reasonable discussion. I’m not afraid of that kind of thing.
And who the hell is “one of you guys?” I only speak for me. I am only discussing this topic. If you want to follow me around and check my record for calling out racism when I see it, feel free. I’m not here to prove my motives or my bona fides to you.
So sad you can’t handle honest discussion. You are the problem.
Yes, thanks, that was dumb on my part. I knew that. Candy is on my mind - Halloween after all. Damn, that mistake was practically an old white grandma mistake.:smack:
My point is that “thug” didn’t start as a racial slur. And it wasn’t racial when it was applied to blacks. Some black people are thugs, and would be even if they were white. Conversely, some white people are thugs.
What we are seeing is some people saying that “thug” is a code word - a way of using a racial reference without it being overt. The only way to do that is to use a word that isn’t racial in the first place, like thug.
Maybe that’s happening. Or maybe people are simply calling other people thugs who happen to be black. Probably both. So, as usual, you have people using slurs, and people using innocent words being accused of using slurs, and it’s a big mess and we all argue about it.
P.S. “Pathologically defending?” Are you sure you responded to the right poster?
I find it really dismaying that honest, open conversation on my part got smacked by someone who “questions my motives” (with zero evidence to go on). I think that’s a big reason that racial issues make such little progress - people are so quick to judge or accuse based on nothing that other people are afraid to even talk about these things. I think that’s unfortunate.
I don’t know where you dug this up, but it is not appropriate. Don’t do it again.
[ /Moderating ]