Dr. Laura pulls the plug

[ETR3(SS)]

Originally Posted by Tchocky

It's almost like there's a cultural history behind one of these situations and not the other.

If there was no cultural history behind one, then we wouldn't have the words that we do.

Originally Posted by frau kaleun

Yeah, I can't imagine what that would be. I mean, it's not like there was any longstanding tradition of non-white people being oppressed and discriminated against, which would be the sort of thing that might lead them to see racism as more of a problem than, you know, the people who actually benefitted from it for a few measly centuries.

/sarcasm

That is part of the problem. When someone says slavery today's society automatically assumes white American master, black African slave. Never mind that the Roman Empire traded an estimated total of 100 million European and Mediterranean slaves from the formation of the Empire to its downfall. Let's compare that to US slavery with an estimated 4 million African slaves by 1860. Quite the difference. Now just because there is this large number difference doesn't make slavery any less abhorrent. Slavery was abolished in the United States though.

As a result of slavery being abolished, the Southern landowners who had relied upon slavery were resentful. Which led to a backlash by these landowners against blacks. Racism then ensued on both sides for a number of years. And we all know how the story goes from here. The fact of the matter is this; no one is trying to cover up slavery in the United States. It is taught everyday in every classroom in America as a part of our history. History, as in past. We are all Americans regardless of our skin color, and yet we have this divide because some feel the need to reopen past wounds. Some aim to belittle with words, others to guilt you with history because of your skin color versus theirs.

I guess the point I'm trying to make here is you can't have a double standard and expect to make progress. When you can hold yourself to the same standard that you expect of others, then we can move forward as one people.