# There is no such thing as reverse racism! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [July 26, 2000, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-no-such-thing-as-reverse-racism/26850 "2000-07-26T00:49:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Lexicon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ac8455/32.png) [@Lexicon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lexicon)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2000, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-no-such-thing-as-reverse-racism/26850/41 "2000-07-27T04:38:29Z")
Weapon of choice? ? OED ? Eh? “I’d like to buy a _whoosh!_ Pat, because that just went over my head like an F-15 over Baghdad.” ---
**Author:** ![FreakFreely](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/48db29/32.png) [@FreakFreely](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FreakFreely)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2000, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-no-such-thing-as-reverse-racism/26850/42 "2000-07-27T04:44:11Z")
Yeah, well just because a Ford is a car, doesn’t mean all cars are Fords. It’s true that racism is discrimination, but not necessarily vice-versa. As it said in the first part of the definition, “a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race.” However, discrimination isn’t necessarily based on what a person believes, a person doesn’t have to be racist to discriminate. For example, the affirmative action you were talking about could be discrimination rather than racism, and usually is. Because the manager probably doesn’t know or care if what he’s doing is right. The law is the law. So it isn’t based on his racism, it’s based on him having to discriminate for the sake of the law. So step off wit dat dictionary, beotch. ---
**Author:** ![Profane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e47774/32.png) [@Profane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Profane)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2000, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-no-such-thing-as-reverse-racism/26850/43 "2000-07-27T04:47:12Z")
Oxford English Dictionary. :I got one past Lexicon, doodah, doodah: 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Lexicon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ac8455/32.png) [@Lexicon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lexicon)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2000, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-no-such-thing-as-reverse-racism/26850/44 "2000-07-27T05:04:06Z")
Okay, try to follow me here, bud… I’m not saying that all discrimination is racial. Hence the need for terms like racial discrimination age discrimination sexual discrimination species discrimination occupation discrimination height discrimination Or any other kind of discrimination you can possibly think up. Anyway, the point is that we are talking about racism. True, that in my scenario Purple is being discriminated against, but it was on the basis of race. The manager’s motivations were mentioned but only to point out that they were not in question, nor does it matter if they were. What he did was discriminate based on the race of the applicants. It was a racist act, whether or not the manager is a card carrying racist is beside the point. I didn’t mean “discrimination” in my thread, I meant “racism”, so I said racism. I don’t need you to edit my posts for me. Thanks for thinking of me though. We are both right. I am not saying you’re wrong, I am just saying that you may have missed my point. If so… It is _my_ responsibility to form readable, poignant responses, and if I failed you in this, I am truly sorry, being that I pride myself in my ability to express myself coherently. In any case, I think that we are once again saying essentially the same thing in different ways. So chill. And oh, yeah… bacdafuckup, jack, cause if you ever tell me to “step off wit dat dictionary” again, you lil faggot ho, I’ll have me a Freak BBQ, crunch your ribs and suck the marrow. Out of respect for you, I’ll use a good sauce… ---
**Author:** ![Lexicon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ac8455/32.png) [@Lexicon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lexicon)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2000, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-no-such-thing-as-reverse-racism/26850/45 "2000-07-27T05:10:19Z")
OHHHHH! That’s what you meant! Duh! I always use > **[Dictionary by Merriam-Webster: America's most-trusted online dictionary](https://www.merriam-webster.com/)** > > The dictionary by Merriam-Webster is America's most trusted online dictionary for English word definitions, meanings, and pronunciation. #wordsmatter and > **[Encyclopedia Britannica](https://www.britannica.com/)** > > Explore the fact-checked online encyclopedia from Encyclopaedia Britannica with hundreds of thousands of objective articles, biographies, videos, and images from experts. At [m-w.com](http://m-w.com), you can add a dictionary link to your browser’s shortcut bar. One click and _BAM!_ you can look up any word, and it loads almost instantly, even on a shitty 28.8 connection. My girlfriend gave me Mother Dictionary for my birthday a couple years ago, and I spend a lot of time reading it. I know, I’m a big dork. Anyway, it’s one of those huge tomes that can weigh up to 12 pounds and has something like 300,000 entries. A good dictionary test, if you’re ever going to buy one, is to see if it has “eidetic” in it. If not, get a different one. ---
**Author:** ![Minxsmom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d07c76/32.png) [@Minxsmom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Minxsmom)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2000, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-no-such-thing-as-reverse-racism/26850/46 "2000-07-27T05:16:29Z")
[small hijack] Why “eidetic”, Lex? [/small hijack] ---
**Author:** ![Weirddave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/919ad9/32.png) [@Weirddave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weirddave)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2000, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-no-such-thing-as-reverse-racism/26850/47 "2000-07-27T05:19:37Z")
I must say I agree with all of the above points. However, the problem I have is the use of the term “race” itself. Here is the root definition: > [@](#): > > race \Race, n. [F. race; cf. Pr. & Sp. raza, It. razza; all from OHG. reiza line, akin to E. write. See Write.] 1. The descendants of a common ancestor; a family, tribe, people, or nation, believed or presumed to belong to the same stock; a lineage; a breed. The problem is that that definition, which includes everyone, has been corrupted by common useage to the point that several other definitions are also valid, such as this: > [@](#): > > Naturalists and ehnographers divide mankind into several distinct varieties, or races. Cuvier refers them all to three, Pritchard enumerates seven, Agassiz eight, Pickering describes eleven. One of the common classifications is that of Blumenbach, who makes five races: the Caucasian, or white race, to which belong the greater part of the European nations and those of Western Asia; the Mongolian, or yellow race, occupying Tartary, China, Japan, etc.; the Ethiopian, or negro race, occupying most of Africa (except the north), Australia, Papua, and other Pacific Islands; the American, or red race, comprising the Indians of North and South America; and the Malayan, or brown race, which occupies the islands of the Indian Archipelago, etc. Many recent writers classify the Malay and American races as branches of the Mongolian _**Note. Above definitions from [Dictionary.com](http://Dictionary.com)**_\* So, while in the broadest sense it is inaccurate to refer to a member of a different ethnic group as belonging to a different “race”, through common useage it has become acceptable. Take a minute to ask yourself why. What we are seeing here is a perfect example of the tactics of division and seperation. Instead of recognizing that everyone is the same, let’s divide people into different groups. They’re easier to handle that way. Think about it- all human history is the story of “this group” against “that group”, “my people” against “your people”. It breaks people up into more manageable segments, and can be used to perpetrate power. If group A can sublimate group B to its will, then group A has gained power. If you can train everyone to believe that other groups really are different, than you have a system that lends itself to being malable in the hands of a few. Instead of having groups A.B, and C ( and D, and E, etc…) work together for the benifit of all, group A takes over groups B,C,D and E while group J controlls groups F,G,H and I. Once this occurs, groups A and J maintain power by exploiting the sub groups and by _keeping each sub group distrustful of the other sub groups!_ Thus no two can band together abd push one of the dominant groups out. How do you do this? One of the easiest ways is through the manipulation of language. Take a word like Race, which most simply connotates those beings who can interbreed, and apply it to everyone who looks/sounds/believes different than you do. They’re different! A different race! It’s us or them! In any society, those who chose to ponder and think things through are always in the minority to those who simply follow, and so the system perpetrates itself! I refuse to allow myself to be duped into this kind of thinking. I don’t know how many times I’ve said it. “There is no “them”, only people”. Again and again **“There is NO ‘THEM’, only people!”** I hope that it may sink in to a few of the people who hear it and spread. I eschew the petty conventions of ‘race vocabulary’. I generaly think of “racism” as ‘ethnicism’. I try to refer to people who have dark skin tone as ‘brown’.( I’m still looking for a good term for ‘white’ people. Caucasian is too unwieldy and sounds snooty, while ‘pale’ leaves out bunches of swarthy folks. In truth, I don’t think such descriptions are valid except as just that- descriptions of physical appearence) Why do I do this? Because I want people to THINK. Here’s an exercize: Imagine you are watching the news. It is announced " A 21 year old black man was shot and killed tonight downtown.". Now close your eyes and think about that. Imagine what happened. keep thinking. picture it… Done? good. Now if the color of that man’s skin in any way affected the picture you saw, you have firsthand evidence of what I’m talking about. What did you see? A drug deal? A college student? Gang violence? A young teamster going home to his wife and young son? It could be any of these things, and you know what? It dosen’t matter what shade that man’s skin is, he’s still dead. AND HIS COLOR SAYS NOTHING ABOUT THE INCEDENT! NOTHING! That’s why I say “brown” man. It makes people pause, and think, and for that second, at least, There are no preconcieved notions. Maybe, just maybe, that person will realize I’m only talking about the particular portion of the color spectrum that man’s skin occupies and nothing about the MAN himself. Those are the methods of division and seperation. I am by no means perfect. I often say “black man” or 'black part of town". It’s ingrained in all of us. But…not always. I always TRY to think. Please try to do the same yourselves. Remember- _ **THERE IS NO ‘THEM’, ONLY PEOPLE** _ Just like you and me. ---
**Author:** ![FreakFreely](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/48db29/32.png) [@FreakFreely](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FreakFreely)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2000, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-no-such-thing-as-reverse-racism/26850/48 "2000-07-27T05:28:27Z")
Don’t fuck with me Lexicon. I’ll eat your soul. And out of respect, I’ll use a good sauce. ---
**Author:** ![Lexicon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ac8455/32.png) [@Lexicon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lexicon)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2000, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-no-such-thing-as-reverse-racism/26850/49 "2000-07-27T05:29:58Z")
Because it’s not very common. When I was in fifth grade, my teacher told me that I have an eidetic memory, and I had no idea what that was. I went straight to the library and looked it up, no dice. I went home that afternoon and asked dad, he didn’t know, he told me to look it up. I grabbed the big fat red dictionary, no dice. I went to a huge bookstore and got the fattest $90 dictionary I could find. No dice. I went to the public library downtown, asked the lady, and voila! I was able to find it in the fat dictionary. You know the huge one that’s on the little rotating stand? Yeah, that one. Anyway, I just started reading it, and ever since then, I have been a vocab junkie. I consider this message board as sort of “opium den”, as many others here are just like me - Whee! So that’s why I believe that “eidetic” is a good dictionary test. ---
**Author:** ![Lexicon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ac8455/32.png) [@Lexicon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lexicon)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2000, 6:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-no-such-thing-as-reverse-racism/26850/50 "2000-07-27T06:23:02Z")
> [@](#): > > Don’t fuck with me Lexicon. I’ll eat your soul. And out of respect, I’ll use a good sauce. Don’t fuck with you? Why not? What are you afraid of? Did your teletubbies Tinky-Winky night light burn out? Are you upset because you want to suck your thumb and can’t find it in the dark? I would say I don’t want to get into a pissing contest with you, but you are a dickless ass-clown. I would say that you fuck your mother, but once again, the dickless thing. But you’re right, I won’t fuck with you. You’re not going to eat my soul now, are you? I don’t think it’ll be very filling, as I am a computer tech, and everyone knows we have no souls. ---
**Author:** ![Minxsmom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d07c76/32.png) [@Minxsmom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Minxsmom)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2000, 6:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-no-such-thing-as-reverse-racism/26850/51 "2000-07-27T06:25:42Z")
Thanks for the tip. I collect dictionaries and that’s an interesting little test for them. Just to keep on topic, I still maintain that there is no such thing as “reverse racism”. ---
**Author:** ![FreakFreely](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/48db29/32.png) [@FreakFreely](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FreakFreely)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2000, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-no-such-thing-as-reverse-racism/26850/52 "2000-07-27T06:35:59Z")
Beotch! Step up to me again and I’ll kick your ass back to grade school! That’s right, I’ll put you back in the same grade as your dad! ---
**Author:** ![Lexicon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ac8455/32.png) [@Lexicon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lexicon)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2000, 7:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-no-such-thing-as-reverse-racism/26850/53 "2000-07-27T07:02:36Z")
Ooh, that one hurt. Truly, you have a dizzying intellect. I would say “You da man!” but you’ll never be half the man your mama was. You mean if I point out that you have a baby-dick and all the guys in high school called you “Lil’ Smokey” then you will use your arcane magiks to transport me back to grade school? Is that so you can keep up with me? Okay, I get it. You _would_ need to time-warp me back to 3rd grade so it would level the playing field. Very well, I accept. Even in grade school, I was still a smart motherfucker. I was probably one of the kids you picked on because I was in the “accelerated” class, and you had to ride the little bus with tinted windows. And just to stay on topic, There is no such thing as reverse racism. Really, I promise, ask anyone who is revered as smart, and they will confirm this. And just to set the tone: Freak, see you in chat, bud! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-no-such-thing-as-reverse-racism/26850.md?page=2)