Cedric's post "Racists love to hide behind e-mails" was one we wanted to spotlight and to do a discussion of. Saturday afternoon, family issues prevented Cedric from being able to join us for this edition so hopefully we can discuss the issues raised later but, for now, we suggest that you read Cedric's post (and visit Cedric's Big Mix):
Racists love to hide behind e-mails
I enjoy all the e-mails even the racist ones because it's important to remember that even though the calander says 2005, some people are still living in the past.
One e-mail I got was about why someone needs to blog? Aren't there enough blogs already?
I went over why I started blogging in an earlier post. But since the e-mailer told me he's had enough of "uppity blacks" let me explain to him that he provides a strong reason I forgot to give props too. The fact that the blog world is so often white dominated.
So I throw down my truth here and if you don't like it, it really doesn't make a difference to me.
I was talking to Mike about it and he was really surprised because he couldn't believe some of the racists e-mails that have come in. I'd read them to him and he'd start apologizing. I told him, "Mike, it's not your problem." And it's not. He doesn't need to apologize. But I do think we all need to realize that racism is as real today as it was at any other time and probably worse now that the racists have a Bully Boy in the White House who makes them feel good about being racist.
So when I get the things about how they hope my welfare check is cut off so I won't be able to pay my electricity bill and my blog will go away, I realize that these racists are out there and they aren't going to change.
They see "black" and think "welfare."
I've never been on welfare. I've never had to. But welfare is a safety net for people. That's how it was set up. Now the idiots scream about welfare but never get that the welfare cheats are people like Wal-Mart who has employees on welfare because the company won't pay a living wage or they're the ones getting tax breaks out the wazoo.
That doesn't bother the racists.
They're too busy worrying about some woman, some black woman, who they just know found a way to "beat the system." The stereotype makes them feel better about themselves and let's them avoid facing the fact that they're own futures have been sold down the river by the people who've fed them this stereotype. They'll never wake up to the fact that corporate welfare is the issue they should be concerned about because they're too busy hating blacks to see the real world.
I asked Betty if she got any of this stuff in her e-mails and she said not really but that she thinks it's because people coming to her site know she's doing a comedy site and it's okay for a black to be funny or to be a sport's star. But if we leave that comfort zone, we quickly find that racism is alive and well.
Which is too bad because we shouldn't be each other's enemies.
But you can't persuade these people. They'll either change or not all on their own.
This isn't some kid who grew up in the forties where his elected officials and his teachers taught him racism. These are people who could have looked at the world and seen reality a long time ago. They made a choice not to. So I don't sweat those e-mails. I just know that they're out there and they've always been out there.
Hopefully, these types are decreasing in number but hate is powerful and these people feed on it. So they'll probably always be with us.
I can get depressed about that or just realize, "Okay, I know the enemy's out there."
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Cedric's Big Mix
The Third Estate Sunday Review
Thomas Friedman Is a Great Man
Kat's Korner (The Common Ills)
Mikey Likes It!
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