# We need to call out inherent racism in explicit terms **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [December 13, 2014, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-to-call-out-inherent-racism-in-explicit-terms/707083 "2014-12-13T01:40:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 1\ **Showing post:** 153
**Author:** ![Bone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bone/32/407_2.png) [@Bone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bone)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2014, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-to-call-out-inherent-racism-in-explicit-terms/707083/153 "2014-12-15T16:56:40Z")
> [@monstro](#): > > I can’t imagine that anyone would be perplexed by the idea of a 7-year-old with racist tendencies. Are you asking this question sincerely, or is this a lame attempt at a “gotcha”? Because I ensure you that a 7-year-old can be racist. Especially if their parents are too. > > What alternative explanation can you provide to account for a 7-year-old who believes a black person doesn’t feel pain the same way a white person does? It’s not a gotcha. I am sure there are 7 year old racists who probably were taught or influenced to think that way from the people around them. My question is if you think that’s the case for the participants of this study, like if there was some bias in selecting the respondents. In other words, do you think the results of this study would hold up if the respondents were from different multi-cultural environments? I only read the linked article which didn’t go into a lot of detail. This is pure conjecture but my first thought was that kids tend to associate pain with a lot of visual stimulus. The contrast of blood or bruising against skin is greater in lighter toned skin. It would be interesting to see the same study done with kids from all different races, and compare the results. In any event, the study using young kids is interesting - 7 year olds may not fit the narrative as much but my guess is that by using young kids the study is trying to isolate something inherent rather than environmentally influenced. The younger the kids being used the more it would isolate out the opportunity for environmental influences. I find this type of information much more informative and useful for discussion than talk of prominent roles in entertainment. My issue with the way this discussion came about is how it was framed. Look at the quote from doorhinge that was in the OP: > [@Why wasn't the police officer who killed Eric Garner indicted?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-wasnt-the-police-officer-who-killed-eric-garner-indicted/706271/611): > > - Are other countries police forces facing the same criminal mindset that U.S. police are facing? \*\*Acsenray \*\*translates this to accusing \*\*doorhinge \*\*of being a racist then pivots to saying that people need to call out racism as a way to agitate. While I agree with the principle that everyone should participate in calling out racism, the genesis of this incident is particularly weak given the source material. **XT’s** original point which I agree with was that calling everything racist dilutes attention in instances where there is genuine racism. Using studies of perception of others’ pain is a great example of racial disparity which I didn’t know about before. Accusing doorhinge of being a racist because he recognizes that crime is different in different countries and regions is weak shit unless there is some other evidence. Future accusations of racism from \*\*Acsenray \*\*will therefore be weakened because IMO, his ability to assess incidents of racism is poor. You recongized this with **get lives** in post #60. It is not productive to accuse every action as being racist. It’s only a matter of degree between **get lives** and \*\*Acsenray \*\*in this thread. --- _[View the full topic](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-to-call-out-inherent-racism-in-explicit-terms/707083)._