Don't worry ken, I'm not getting all worked up over it: it is an interesting thing to talk about.
I am hardly an expert on race theory: it is a huge area that I have only just started getting into. Describing race as a social construct is not a way to defeat racism, it's more of a way to define the debate.
Many people believe that "they" are different from "us," and that they cannot fully integrate into "our" society because they are genetically different. If people can begin to understand that there is not a biological reason why one race is better than another, then it makes people examine why they don't want their daughter dating a whatever.
It isn't about denying racism: it's about getting down to the real issue. I'm not the best person to describe it; when I get back to my own computer I'll find some really interesting articles. The idea that "we" were different from "them" leads to "we" are better than "them" and all sorts of pseudoscientific theories to back it up,We have then been left with these ideas.
The thing that struck me when I first got into this was that, if we as a society created racism, then there must be a way to defeat it. Not overnight, but gradually. It isn't some insurmountable, impossible problem. I'm beginning to sound like a Hallmark card and I've got a brand new DS Lite looking at me, so I'm gonna shut up now.
Comments
I am hardly an expert on race theory: it is a huge area that I have only just started getting into. Describing race as a social construct is not a way to defeat racism, it's more of a way to define the debate.
Many people believe that "they" are different from "us," and that they cannot fully integrate into "our" society because they are genetically different. If people can begin to understand that there is not a biological reason why one race is better than another, then it makes people examine why they don't want their daughter dating a whatever.
It isn't about denying racism: it's about getting down to the real issue. I'm not the best person to describe it; when I get back to my own computer I'll find some really interesting articles. The idea that "we" were different from "them" leads to "we" are better than "them" and all sorts of pseudoscientific theories to back it up, We have then been left with these ideas.
The thing that struck me when I first got into this was that, if we as a society created racism, then there must be a way to defeat it. Not overnight, but gradually. It isn't some insurmountable, impossible problem. I'm beginning to sound like a Hallmark card and I've got a brand new DS Lite looking at me, so I'm gonna shut up now.