Defining Racism

Racism’s sinister word games: 
What a white-supremacist talking point tells us about modern politics

Social Justice and Racism

A couple of weeks ago we were talking about social justice and what it means. During the discussion the hackles of a conservative in the group went up. He pointed out that justice means many things to many people and what we were talking about should not be applied, because it might not be his definition. I don't want to imply that the conservative is a racist. I don't know that, but his argument is strikingly similar to the argument used by Pat Goodwin in an interview with a reporter from the Guardian.

"Pat Godwin, president of Selma, Alabama’s United Daughters of the Confederacy, on the question of whether viewers are right to assume Godwin’s expressed views are racist. Godwin replies, “Well, you have to define ‘racist’ to me. What is a racist?”

Rhetoric as Deflection

Her comment was meant to deflect. It was rhetorical. It was meant to take the onus off herself and her group and justify her stance. The conservative in our discussion group was doing the same. He was trying to redirect and scuttle the discussion by implying there can be no social justice because it means something different to everybody. Is his alternative chaos?


The focus of the discussion was well defined. The parameters were clear. We were talking about Jesus and social justice. Specifically, we talked about what Jesus had to say about social justice in Matthew 25, verses 31-46. Social justice in this context is clear. Christians are to come down on the side of the poor and oppressed. They are to be welcoming of strangers. They are to feed the hungry and clothe the naked. They are to minister to the needs of the sick and the prisoners. It seems clear that you cannot...as a Christian...minister only to your needs. There is a greater good, and we're supposed to be a part of it.

Specifically Defined

Aaron Hanlon's Article in Salon.com points out the only way to counter rhetorical arguments like Goodwin's is with a historical perspective. 

 It’s important we understand such rhetorical tactics not simply as forms of racism, but as part of an important history that parallels, and lives symbiotically off of, the history of racism: the history of denying the existence of racism. Whether it’s borrowing the multiculturalist language of discrimination in accusations of “reverse-racism,” or expropriating the term “racist” as a symbol of white pride, the perpetrators subject themselves to a double-bind: They respect the idea of race-based discrimination when they themselves feel embattled or diminished as whites, but deny the same when the victims of discrimination are minorities.“Define racism” is not an easy prompt with an easy answer, but we do have answers much better developed than Godwin’s opinion-based approach to the question. If we historicize racism, rather than treating it as abstraction or opinion, we find that racism in the U.S. is not just discrimination in general, but a history of a dominant class of European whites subjecting minorities by means of things like the theft of land, the destruction of native populations, slavery, internment, Jim Crow, voting restrictions, restrictions on access to education and home ownership, and hurtful or defamatory portrayals in entertainment and media.

It doesn't matter if you can't change Pat Godwin's mind. That's on her. It does matter that more people discover what racism is all about so a change can come about. There is more to this life than our own self interest. We can't change the past, but we can become aware and steadfast for a better future based on social justice.

Vocational Training and Autism (Update)

First Ever Program

The Hartford Courant is reporting on a test program being proposed that would offer job training for young adults on the Autism Spectrum.

There's a bill in the Connecticut Legislature that would fund job training for 100 young adults on the Autism Spectrum. The program would be run by The Department of Developmental Service and The Bureau of Rehabilitative Services over a two year period.

Some Challenges

There are several issues the program will need to address. The program will need to hire job coaches who understand the challenges of Autism. Part of the training needs to be in soft skills. Interpersonal interactions could be a weakness for the autistic worker.  And...the program needs to be much larger.

The bill funds a two year pilot program and will offer measurable results.

100 young adults barely scratches the surface. It is estimated there are over 54,000 persons with Autism Spectrum Disorders in Connecticut. Most adults lack services needed to be employed, and most adults with Autism are unemployed. Jobs are crucial as parents age and are no longer able to care for their adult children.

High Unemployment Rate

A huge majority of adults on the Autism Spectrum are unemployed. Among those with developmental issues, the rate of unemployment. According to an article in Forbes, about 18% have a job and 14% are in college. Yet, over half of those on the spectrum have IQ's that are average or above. If we were to do something about this, many more individuals would be contributing to our society instead of collecting ever decreasing benefits. By focusing on the needs of individuals, Their self-esteem and self-worth would increase, and all of us would benefit.

Racism in My Community

Chieftains and Warriors

I live in the bluest of blue states. Perhaps this is up north hypocrisy.

There's a big debate going on in my community about the mascots used for the athletic teams of the town's two high schools. One calls itself the Chieftains and the other the Warriors. The concern is the racist overtones of the two mascots and message they convey about our community's attitudes. The argument against changing the names goes along the lines of keeping tradition. "They're just names. Changing the mascots and the names will cost $100,000! There's no harm meant. One resident said that this is load of PC crap. If the majority is okay with these names, it's okay."

The names and the mascots aren't the only issue. The name of one of the student newspapers is the Powwow. The student cheering sections are called The Tribe and The Reservation. The Mascot for the Chieftains depicts a Plains Indian in full headdress. It's an image that Native Americans find offensive.

Stereotypes - Racism

Here's a definition of racism from Merriam-Webster:

1:  a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race

2:  racial prejudice or discrimination

Racism goes beyond the definition. It is evident in the language children are using on a daily basis. And, it isn't only white children. Racist language is used daily on our playgrounds. It is a form of bullying. Lola Okolosie, an English Teacher and writer in Great Britain, wrote about racism on the playground.

How white, black and brown students learn the language of racist bullying

She points out that "Children are bombarded with racist messages in the media and public debate. It's no wonder this has reached the playground." The words we use have an effect, especially when used to categorize and demean. We are teaching our children intolerance.

The Business Insider published an article last year, "11 Racist And Offensive Phrases That People Still Use All The Time." Among those words was "uppity." the example used was in reference to disparaging remarks made against Michele Obama.  

A couple years ago, Rush Limbaugh pontificated that a NASCAR audience booed Michelle Obama because she exhibited "uppity-ism." Glenn Beck even defended him, citing the First Lady's love of arugula. During segregation, Southerners used "uppity" to describe blacks who didn't know their socioeconomic place. Originally, the term started within the black community, but the racists adopted it pretty quickly.

But what about mascots? There's an enlightening essay on the CNN Website by Simon Moya- Smith titled, Native Americans: We're not your mascots. In the essay Moya-Smith says words like brave and warrior are not racial slurs, but that misses the point. "When the status of a Native American is demoted to that of a caricature, we are objectified and diminished as a people. We become entertainment, not fellow citizens. How are you supposed to take me seriously if all you see is the stereotypical image of the Hollywood or sports mascot Indian?"

What is most disturbing is the comment from a parent who excused racism because of traditions and because the majority seems to be in favor of keeping the mascots. What is he saying? Is it okay to propagate racism because we've doing it for a long time? Because it is a tradition? To him, and others like him, the opinions of the minority who are offended by the terms used don't matter. If you take his argument back to the time of Jim Crow, the lynchings of that period were justified because it was the prevailing viewpoint of the majority. A recent study found that 4,000 people were lynched in the South between 1877 and 1950. The reasons for the lynchings included political activism and testifying in court. The victims were "uppity." Lynchings continued in this country into the 1960's and not just in the south.

History of Lynchings in the South Documents Nearly 4,000 Names

Learning From Our Mistakes

What we teach our children is important. It shapes our future. When I was in high school we studied the civil rights movement. We read and discussed books like "To Kill a Mockingbird,","Native Son," and "A Raisin in the Sun." The hope was that we would expand our understanding of others and become well-rounded citizens. I'm wondering if that happens anymore. What we have here is a learning opportunity. What better place than in school. We cannot undo what we've done, but we can move forward and try to get it right from this point on.

The Homeless and the Blizzard of 2015

Historic Winter Storm Is A Real Emergency For New York City's Homeless

There are two stats that stand out in this article by Christopher Mathias for the Huffington Post. 

1. There are 60,000 homeless in New York who regularly sleep in shelters. That's about as many people that live in West Hartford.
2. There are 3,300 who sleep on the street.   

The saving grace for the homeless are Christian organizations like the Bowery Mission 

 and Trinity Lutheran Church, Trinity Lutheran has stocked enough food to feed those they serve for a couple of weeks. A lesson they learned during Sandy.

Autism and Chicken Soup

Understanding Ends Isolation

Being on the Autism Spectrum can be an isolating experience, but it doesn't have to be that way. 

The Chicken Soup for the Soul series now has an Autism Book. The publisher and editor-in-chief of the series Amy Newmark was recently interviewed by WTNH's Jim Watkins. 

"The 101 personal stories in Chicken Soup for the Soul: Raising Kids on the Spectrum create a portable support group for parents of children with autism spectrum disorder. They will see pieces of themselves reflected in the stories by other parents and also by people who have been diagnosed with autism and Asperger syndrome. This book also makes it clear that every child on the spectrum is an individual with a unique set of talents and non-neurotypical behaviors."

The Chicken Soup for the Soul company is now located in Connecticut.

http://wtnh.com/2014/08/03/chicken-soup-for-the-souls-autism-book/

Greed and extreme consumerism

Something more to ponder...
According to Oxfam, Credit Suisse and Forbes the top 1% will own more than 50% of the world's wealth by 2016.

(see more here)

The November before his death, Dr.King tied together civil and human rights with economic justice with these words: "Violence has been the inseparable twin of materialism, the hallmark of its grandeur." In other words, civil rights only addressed the tip of the iceberg. The underlying cause of brutality and psychological violence was an economic system that perpetrated and relied on economic disparity, manipulation and injustice.

Imagine what shape our economy would be in if all those who want to work had a job.

There is no link!

Vaccines do not cause Autism

There is no link. People who continue to assert the link despite decades of evidence to the contrary are putting our children at risk all for the sake of their belief in conspiracies.


The research released in 1998 was falsified and only included 12 cases. Since then there has been a review of actual, rigorous studies. They covered over 14.7 million children finding no vaccine-autism link in any cases, as recently documented by Upworthy in its "All 7 Billion" series about global health and poverty, funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.





Graphic by Adam Mordecai & NowSourcing, used under Creative Commons license.

Meanwhile, Measles is on the rise. "Measles cases in the U.S. reached a 20-year high last May. The CDC estimates that in 2013, 92 percent of measles cases occurred in people who weren't vaccinated."

Think of it this way. I drank milk the morning I got laid-off. If I used the logic of the conspiracy theorists about the link between vaccines and Autism...Milk causes layoffs.
For more information, click on this link.  Phony Anti-Vaccine Propaganda Is Killing U.S. Children