[Ethnicity Thread] Who Do You Think You Are?

[HelloRaptor]

@Luna

Look, I'm not racist, there's brown people in my ancestory.

Is there some kind of percentage of brown people you need to have in your ancestry before it's okay to say shit that only sounds racist if you're white?

[Luna]

@ThatOneDude Everyone knows brown people don't have jobs. Sorry, I don't make the rules. Oh wait, I'm white so I do.

White people have made me so afraid to compliment a black woman on anything. It's racist to mention hair or skin or anything. I gave up. I listen to my hip hop loud, I tell a girl when her weave is amazing and that I'm jelly how certain colors look sooooo good against their skin.

[Coin]

Epic story about border crossing and racial profiling. 3-2-1-go:

I lived in the U.S. for a while; about a decade, between my two stays. Like I said before on this thread, I'm Hispanic, but I'm light-skinned compared to a lot of Hispanics, especially Hispanics in San Francisco, California's Mission District, where I lived. I have blue eyes, for fuck's sake.

It was 1994 when my step-dad, Carlos, and his friend, Brad, decided to take me and Brad's son, Alex, on a half-country road-trip from S.F. to Texas by way of the U.S.-Mexico border. The idea was that we'd cross the border a few times in significant spots and generally have a good time.

Carlos had been a nationalized U.S. Citizen for over a decade by then and is also of Italian descent, so fairly pale, but had a tan, and Alex and Brad were born and bred, both Caucasian, but with tans. I was the only one of the quartet that was not a citizen; I was a resident with a green card. I had also just had a monster case of the flu (or something) and had been in bed for two weeks, so I was extra pale when we set off.

We must have crossed the U.S.-Mexico border four times, at least, and I do not exaggerate when I say we got stopped every single time, to have our car searched every single time, and border patrol asked for papers every single time.

And every single time when it came time for me to show my papers, the border guard would take a single look at me, and wave me through.

No, seriously.

I've since had my share of instances where my nationality, my race, my appearance, and my values have caused me to be on the wrong side of the law, acceptance, or both. But I'll never forgt the irony and stupidity of those officers who were so ingrained in their inability to see past what amounted to a tan or lack there of. At ten years old, I was so baffled by the utter stupidity that I never forgot the story.

[Luna]

It's all about appearances to the majority.

[Wretched]

I consider my self German-Czech and Italian. That's all my mothers side. I'm also half Bastard. Considering my father cheated on his pregnant wife with my mother. So my fathers side is a great mystery. So maybe i'm a little black? Ooh or I could totally claim 1/64 First nation. Mostly though I'm white as shit.

[MrMaker]

Tthe last time I went flying I was wearing my like, cholo lesbian couture look, so I looked like Viva La Raza complete with catseye and I'm not surprised that I went through pre-check and I got

1. RANDOMLY hand-swabbed in line, and I was the only one who was RANDOMLY hand-swabbed

2. RANDOMLY patted down at the end of the millimeter wave in pre-check. And I don't mean like, let me flim-flamsy my limp wrists on your shoulders in this half-ass achieve-nothing pat that takes 2 seconds, I mean like STEP ASIDE MA'AM, ALLOW ME TO GROPE YOUR THIGHS, I hadn't seen that much action in months, and the motherfuckers didn't even check my pockets. If you're gonna grope me at least humor me with checking my pockets.

3. So at this point I raelize, in my wondering what I did to deserve this, I forgot a knife in my carry-on since I use the same bag for everything. But my bag hasn't made it through the little X ray scanner yet so why are they fucking molesting me and what's gonna happen when they find my knife? So as soon as this woman's done tickling my labia I'm free for like, 2 seconds, until someone picks up my backpack like WHOSE IS THIS?!?!?!!?!?!

4. So I claim it and the next thing I know I have people all over me and like DID YOU PACK YOUR BAG YOURSELF IS THERE ANYTHING IN THIS BAG THAT WOULD HURT ME IF I OPEN IT. "Oh. Yes. I forgot. There is a knife. It's my father's. May I please leave the checkout so that I can ship it home?" So they let me out.

5. So I go ship it home and say fuck this, I'm going to the other goddamn side of the air port's check-in to deal with other people., and I'm going into the general goddamn line since the last few times I did that I was left the fuck alone. NOOOOPEEEE.

[Three-Eyed Crow]

@Luna said:

White people love to know they're part Native American. I don't know why, but they love it.

Everyone is 1/64 something, if you splice down enough. It's generally pretty silly.

I went on a genealogy kick a year or so ago tracing my father's side of the family, which was Americanized recently enough that records are fairly easy to come by. I'm one generation too removed to apply for Irish citizenship through descent (though my father could've, and I'm kinda annoyed he never bothered, in a 'I might have wanted to work in the EU someday' sort of way), but my great-grandmother is listed on the Dawes Roll, so I could apply for Cherokee tribal citizenship if I got my shit together. Part of me wants to do this, for obvious connection with your roots reasons, which are getting a lot more ephemeral as my family has spread out across the country. And part of me is all, 'You are a pasty-white ginger daywalker, you would seem ridic.' This probably still qualifies as a #whitepeopleproblems.

I have no idea what was going on on my mother's side of the family, which is your basic Scotch/English/palid mutt.

[Thenomain]

I was once harassed by a local cop in my upper-class neighborhood. Jealousy and cops don't mix. Man, cops, right?

Excessive poking fun at my First World Problems aside, I once had someone who was of the inner-city African American affectations once invite me to call him 'nigga'. I was extremely flattered, but there was no way in hell I was going to. I would just as likely walk into a lesbian biker bar and yell to my friend, "Yo, Dykebuster!"

It's nice to see that my accident of birth doesn't mean that other people of other minority groupings aren't just as stupidly cruel, I just wish my so called peers would cut it the fuck out and lead the change. Let stupid people be seen as being stupid, instead of it being cultural.

My name is Thenomain, and I am painfully, stereotypically self-aware.

[MrMaker]

@Thenomain Now all I'm thinking of is that Cow N Chickin episode with the Carpet Munchers biker gang.

[Thisnameistaken]

I've lived as the minority in one country and the majority in another. I've come to the conclusion that people are people no matter where you go. Someone's always going to hate you for something you can't control, but there's always going to be good folks out there who don't care and judge you who for who you are.

[Cirno]

@Luna said:

@ThatOneDude Everyone knows brown people don't have jobs. Sorry, I don't make the rules. Oh wait, I'm white so I do.

White people have made me so afraid to compliment a black woman on anything. It's racist to mention hair or skin or anything. I gave up. I listen to my hip hop loud, I tell a girl when her weave is amazing and that I'm jelly how certain colors look sooooo good against their skin.

Aside from the racism factor, there is another reason why black women would be hostile towards you.

Certain Black women are bitterly angry at you and your white female compatriots for 'stealing their men'. They believe there is a secret Conspiracy among white females to interpose themselves between the black woman and the black male.

Ironically, white males think the same thing. They call it "Miscegenation", instead of "stealing black men", however, but it accounts to the same thing.

I have always said that black women and white males should form a Consortium of some sort; with the goal in mind of Preventing Black Men From Attaching Themselves To White Females.

[Chime]

Seeking something outside your perceived demographic helps promote continued biodiversity. That said, humans are so much alike it doesn't matter much.

But daaaang I admit that mixed-anything looks very very nice.

Though I will always have a very soft spot for tall, blonde, athletic women. Take me, my sweet Valkyrie~ * swoon * ...applies somewhat to tall, blonde men too, but not as much. Usually.

Our biases can be seen as very ugly things, or we can try and recognize that they are biases-- and enjoy them where and whenever we can that won't hurt others. The world would be a miserably boring place if everyone had the same desires.

[Cirno]

@Chime

Considering how openly hostile White Americans have been (and, to a certain extent, still are) towards Afro-Americans, I understand the Black Female's frustration with the Black Male's fascination with his (supposed) Enemy.

300 years of slavery and 100+ years of segregation, et al., make a very convincing argument on their behalf. I mean, why should we want to ally ourselves with people who once peeled our skins off while we were still alive, hung us by our necks, and many other things that don't bear thinking about?

However, the Official Story is that all of those things happened In The Past, and, therefore, We Should Not Mention Them.

Here are some videos by a black woman that explain these concepts.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sb08kX6MjwM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mqoNdsul09o

She also explains why mixed-race people are A Threat To Society.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03gtsrS-lio

Amusingly, she also did a six-part video series concerning the danger East Asian females pose towards Black females, but Youtube took it down. Sadface.

@Chime said:

Though I will always have a very soft spot for tall, blonde, athletic women.

According to some black women, tall blonde athletic white women are The Face Of Evil Itself.

I'm no Christian, but, apparently, according to our black sisters, Satan Herself is a white woman.

[Chime]

@Cirno

Yep. A lot of people say a lot of things. The past is the past-- but it is really important that we all study it so that we don't have to repeat it. tl;dr it sucked and pretty much everyone did horrible stuff. Kinda makes me wary of what we're doing now that is that bad.

Do various minorities of various types and designations "deserve" some sort of assistance? I dunno. That's an ethical and psychosocial engineering question that is pretty far outside my field. Ally yourself with whoever you like! I generally do favor various types of social incentives to promote diversity and better knowledge and understanding-- but I think helping others in general is a good idea, independent of social barriers or past crimes.

Do I feel responsible for what happened before I was born? No. If people want to blame me for it, fine; that lets me know they are a dumbass that much sooner. Stupidity is one of the human universals that seems to transcend all social groups.

I do feel responsible for humans in general. We're all stuck here and should do what we can to make the world better. Sometimes that meshes with minority interest, sometimes it doesn't.

She also explains why mixed-race people are A Threat To Society.

I think being of mixed heritage is a wonderful thing-- but. I utterly loathe the concept of pride in these things. Self confidence and respect? Sure; those are good. Pride? What the hell for? Taking credit for your parents boning is absurd. Now, taking credit for being an awesome person despite whatever that you might have been through? That's great, but I've seen way too much of the former.

According to some black women, tall blonde athletic white women are The Face Of Evil Itself. 

Evil can be pretty sexy.

I'm no Christian, but, apparently, according to our black sisters, Satan Herself is a white woman.

Actually, I know some pretty entertaining Urban Fantasy / Paranormal Romance that... well, explores that. (Not the race questions, but focusing on the adventures of a female demon...) Check out Debra Dunbar's Imp series. Most entertaining.

[DamnitJim]

@Cirno said:

I have always said that black women and white males should form a Consortium of some sort; with the goal in mind of Preventing Black Men From Attaching Themselves To White Females.

Isn't there a more obvious coalition: Promoting More White Male / Black Female Hookups.

Also, I suspect there's a parallel dynamic, where some Asian males resent Asian females who date white men.

And this creates another potential coalition: Promoting More Asian Male / White Female Hookups.

In general, there should be a lot more Coalitions for Promoting More Hookups. That's my main message

[Chime]

@DamnitJim said:

In general, there should be a lot more Coalitions for Promoting More Hookups. That's my main message

Ho yez.

[Luna]

@Cirno Oh no, black people have by and large never been hostile to me. Not even the crack dealers I used to run with. (And I mean this very literally, my stupid ass used to have very sketchy friends, whom I did things to like call them Pikachu and would cry when they were mean to their pitbulls)

Black women whom I interact with frequently have especially always been good to me, nicer on levels than white women. It's crazy white internet bitches who made me afraid and when I gave up trying to be the 'good white girl according to Internet rules laid out by fat white women' my daily interactions with black people became less stiff and way more easy and fluid.

I've learned that if you're not a fucking racist, just being yourself goes a long way. I'm sure it also helps that I'm the least intimidating person ever. I'm short and fat and not stunning by any stretch.

[Sponge]

I'm half Mom, half Dad and can't be bothered to care about the rest. I'm saddened by the thought that I won't get to see a world so racially intermixed that racism doesn't make sense. "Gotta watch out for those 3/16th Dutch, 1/8th Venezuelan people! They're shifty!"

I think pride in things you aren't responsible for is silly but I think it comes from a low appraisal of one's own accomplishments. We should each realize we're individually awesome instead of taking hollow solace in the possibility that someone else was awesome.

My hobby: claiming a non-power-of-2 denominator in my ethnic make up. Really, I'm 1/5th Navajo.

[Miss Demeanor]

I don't see anything wrong in having some pride in your ethnic makeup. There's some seriously cool history and culture to be found in them. Being proud of being Dutch or Spanish or Irish isn't going to cause issues unless you're planning on becoming the next Nazi or KKK founder. Take pride in who AND what you are, both individually and as the sum of your ancestors.

(All use of you, your, or you're is meant to be empirical.)

[Coin]

@Chime said:

Actually, I know some pretty entertaining Urban Fantasy / Paranormal Romance that... well, explores that. (Not the race questions, but focusing on the adventures of a female demon...) Check out Debra Dunbar's Imp series. Most entertaining.

Ugh, you and yours with the getting me to read that damn book series.

(Is the next one out yet?)