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I’m feeling deflated
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By (user no longer on site) OP
over a year ago
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Don’t be sorry. I’ve had a good day. It’s just that some days I feel like - shit, racism is never ever going to end. It creeps up on me sometimes. The realisation. Feel a bit ‘what’s even the point?’ sometimes. You know? I want to rant more but I know this isn’t the space for it. To be honest I’m not sure where is the space for it. But yeah.
And also, side note- we (people) don’t help when we encourage such uncritical ways of looking at things and individualise everything.
Anyway- what are you saying? How was your day? |
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"Don’t be sorry. I’ve had a good day. It’s just that some days I feel like - shit, racism is never ever going to end. It creeps up on me sometimes. The realisation. Feel a bit ‘what’s even the point?’ sometimes. You know? I want to rant more but I know this isn’t the space for it. To be honest I’m not sure where is the space for it. But yeah.
And also, side note- we (people) don’t help when we encourage such uncritical ways of looking at things and individualise everything.
Anyway- what are you saying? How was your day? "
Apt........
https://youtu.be/3Y71iDvCYXA
Winston |
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By (user no longer on site) OP
over a year ago
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"What happened??
On here??
Work??
Wish I could hug you "
Nothing bad really happened. A very ‘not that deep’ experience just made me think- shit we’re doing a really bad job teaching about this properly, we’re so constrained by certain rules that mean you can’t teach it any other way and so we’re just stuck. Completely stuck in this cycle. |
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
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"What happened??
On here??
Work??
Wish I could hug you
Nothing bad really happened. A very ‘not that deep’ experience just made me think- shit we’re doing a really bad job teaching about this properly, we’re so constrained by certain rules that mean you can’t teach it any other way and so we’re just stuck. Completely stuck in this cycle."
What would you like to teach and like us to know. We can at least spread that word that way. |
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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago
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Do you want me to blow you back up then?  sorry couldn't resist
Truth is, there are shitty people, shitty days and shitty shitty everything. All we can hope for is tomorrow being a better day. Hugs to you mr  |
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"Don’t be sorry. I’ve had a good day. It’s just that some days I feel like - shit, racism is never ever going to end. It creeps up on me sometimes. The realisation. Feel a bit ‘what’s even the point?’ sometimes. You know? I want to rant more but I know this isn’t the space for it. To be honest I’m not sure where is the space for it. But yeah.
And also, side note- we (people) don’t help when we encourage such uncritical ways of looking at things and individualise everything.
Anyway- what are you saying? How was your day? "
Rant away, Steve. This is as good a place as any. There is always a point on these issues, even if it may feel like a void sometimes. But I agree with you on individualisation: everything can be ok (or not ok) in isolation... |
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By (user no longer on site) OP
over a year ago
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"What happened??
On here??
Work??
Wish I could hug you
Nothing bad really happened. A very ‘not that deep’ experience just made me think- shit we’re doing a really bad job teaching about this properly, we’re so constrained by certain rules that mean you can’t teach it any other way and so we’re just stuck. Completely stuck in this cycle.
What would you like to teach and like us to know. We can at least spread that word that way. "
I’m just thinking today about the ways that we have very little space these days to teach about racism considering power. You know? And how racism, even on the most individual levels, reproduce/ reaffirm power dynamics/ social hierarchies. But the definitions we use and the way we are allowed to and do teach young people doesn’t consider this stuff and so therefore doesn’t challenge this stuff. Just feel like we’ve got such uncritical ways of challenging discrimination that is so dependent on the maintenance of power relations. So how do we expect it to end? How do we expect it to get *really* better? I just don’t see the things getting better ever. It it’s what it is though. Like genuinely, it just is what it is. |
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"What happened??
On here??
Work??
Wish I could hug you
Nothing bad really happened. A very ‘not that deep’ experience just made me think- shit we’re doing a really bad job teaching about this properly, we’re so constrained by certain rules that mean you can’t teach it any other way and so we’re just stuck. Completely stuck in this cycle.
What would you like to teach and like us to know. We can at least spread that word that way.
I’m just thinking today about the ways that we have very little space these days to teach about racism considering power. You know? And how racism, even on the most individual levels, reproduce/ reaffirm power dynamics/ social hierarchies. But the definitions we use and the way we are allowed to and do teach young people doesn’t consider this stuff and so therefore doesn’t challenge this stuff. Just feel like we’ve got such uncritical ways of challenging discrimination that is so dependent on the maintenance of power relations. So how do we expect it to end? How do we expect it to get *really* better? I just don’t see the things getting better ever. It it’s what it is though. Like genuinely, it just is what it is. "
I wish I understood what you meant. Could you dumb it down? Examples? |
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Well on the bright side racism although still prolific is actually on the wane overall. And that's down to our educators showing our kids otherwise from what their parents think.
Both my parents were racists. The shit sticks and its a lifetime to eliminate it.
You grow up knowing different but tainted by the shit of your parents. I was more surprised when I came to this county and found out that my Irish name got me seats at the back of restaurants, shity side of hotels, the crappy static caravans on IOW, crappy camping pitches and on and on. Who'd guessed your name would shit you up? |
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By (user no longer on site) OP
over a year ago
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If we can’t talk about the power relations that are reaffirmed by specific types of discrimination, then it simply cannot get better. if say I can’t talk about the ways that an experience I have with racism reproduces the the existing power relations/ social hierarchies, and is not JUST an example of someone being shitty and whatever else, then we’re not getting anywhere. It is examples of those things yes. But it has bigger consequences than that. It, for example confirms the feeling of unbelonging you get. The feeling that a specific aspect of your identity is altering the way most people are seeing/ treating you. And I appreciate not everyone is always necessarily seeing you that way even when we consider the thoughts and behaviours we exhibit that are a result of lots of societal shit, but it’s the way you’re generally made to feel.
I want to cite a brownmiller quote about sexual violence here and apply it to racism but I won’t because a) she’s a racist (ironically) and b) I don’t want the not all men brigade on my back. I feel like we talk about experiences of discrimination and we don’t interrogate enough the way that power does matter. We aren’t all equal. Our experiences are altered by our race more than other people’s, our gender more than other people’s etc. I’m just sick of this idea that when we talk about racism it comes back to structural racism vs individual racism but we don’t teach kids enough about how individual racism is still reaffirming the power relations/ dynamics made throughout history that create structural disadvantage for some groups (based on gender, race, sexuality, disability, ethnic group etc).
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By (user no longer on site) OP
over a year ago
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I liken it to gender sometimes (I’ll probably regret saying this bit on here but I’m in too deep) in the ways that men might experience gendered discrimination (which absolutely needs to be addressed and called out by the way) but when women experience gendered discrimination, it’s reaffirming power relations, it’s reproducing male dominance (for lack of a better term), it’s confirming the social hierarchies. I feel like with racism and sexism in this example but other types of discrimination too, we don’t teach kids about symbolic domination or like social hierarchies might be a better term. And so people have such uncritical ways of looking at these things. These things are, to them, dangerous because they make people feel sad and upset and it’s wrong, but also they’re just bad individuals and it’s ok. But society already makes you feel excluded. Already excludes you. Already makes you feel less than. Already treats you different (In terms of gender see Perkins Gilman’s essay If I were a man). And so when you experience discrimination it is a reproduction of those relations as much as it also someone being a dickhead. I can deal with people being a dickhead. I don’t care if someone says, ‘you know what Steve, you’re a c**t and I hate you because you wear your trousers too high and your hat the wrong way’. Sure it might hurt but it’s whatever. THAT, isn’t affirming my place in society. THAT is an experience with no more than individual consequences. Also that’s not discrimination but I cba to think up examples rn I’m just ranting. |
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"I liken it to gender sometimes (I’ll probably regret saying this bit on here but I’m in too deep) in the ways that men might experience gendered discrimination (which absolutely needs to be addressed and called out by the way) but when women experience gendered discrimination, it’s reaffirming power relations, it’s reproducing male dominance (for lack of a better term), it’s confirming the social hierarchies. I feel like with racism and sexism in this example but other types of discrimination too, we don’t teach kids about symbolic domination or like social hierarchies might be a better term. And so people have such uncritical ways of looking at these things. These things are, to them, dangerous because they make people feel sad and upset and it’s wrong, but also they’re just bad individuals and it’s ok. But society already makes you feel excluded. Already excludes you. Already makes you feel less than. Already treats you different (In terms of gender see Perkins Gilman’s essay If I were a man). And so when you experience discrimination it is a reproduction of those relations as much as it also someone being a dickhead. I can deal with people being a dickhead. I don’t care if someone says, ‘you know what Steve, you’re a c**t and I hate you because you wear your trousers too high and your hat the wrong way’. Sure it might hurt but it’s whatever. THAT, isn’t affirming my place in society. THAT is an experience with no more than individual consequences. Also that’s not discrimination but I cba to think up examples rn I’m just ranting. "
That makes a little bit more sense to me I think  |
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By *r laidbackMan
over a year ago
London & New Brighton |
"I liken it to gender sometimes (I’ll probably regret saying this bit on here but I’m in too deep) in the ways that men might experience gendered discrimination (which absolutely needs to be addressed and called out by the way) but when women experience gendered discrimination, it’s reaffirming power relations, it’s reproducing male dominance (for lack of a better term), it’s confirming the social hierarchies. I feel like with racism and sexism in this example but other types of discrimination too, we don’t teach kids about symbolic domination or like social hierarchies might be a better term. And so people have such uncritical ways of looking at these things. These things are, to them, dangerous because they make people feel sad and upset and it’s wrong, but also they’re just bad individuals and it’s ok. But society already makes you feel excluded. Already excludes you. Already makes you feel less than. Already treats you different (In terms of gender see Perkins Gilman’s essay If I were a man). And so when you experience discrimination it is a reproduction of those relations as much as it also someone being a dickhead. I can deal with people being a dickhead. I don’t care if someone says, ‘you know what Steve, you’re a c**t and I hate you because you wear your trousers too high and your hat the wrong way’. Sure it might hurt but it’s whatever. THAT, isn’t affirming my place in society. THAT is an experience with no more than individual consequences. Also that’s not discrimination but I cba to think up examples rn I’m just ranting. "
Its so much bigger... discrimination will never go away as long as there are people that wish for power and influence, which can only be accomplished by division and separation... the super rich can not keep their power when there's unity... thats why were continuously seeing one issue after the next too keep confusion, we only have to look over the last few years how the powerful kept us separated literally and in our mindsets with covid, it was a simple vaccinated or not and where are we now ? all that hurt, separation, confusion what did we learn apart from the fact that the super rich cashed in and the rules never applied to the rule makers... racism will never leave the mindset of an ignorant person unless creatures of another planet come to earth to live, humanity will always look at what make us different as a threat, so surround yourself with like minded people regardless who they are and anyone else that cant show love to all... fuck em not worth a crap. Sorry ive put more then a penny in this conversation, my bad |
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