Culturally speaking, Is racism a congenital disease?
I mean we all know it's bad, but is racism like a genetic disease? Is it something you were born with? Why are some people racist and not others, even if no one around them is racist. I hate racism.
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No, racism is taught.
NO it is not a genetic disease.
What causes racism is from a learnt behaviour, children who are exposed from a very early age, through to adulthood, hear and see their parents talking about people who are different, in a derogatory manner and verbally abusing people etc, they feel are inferior, and even encouraging their child to be equally distasteful, then the children will do the same, as adults.
On the other hand some parents are very careful in what they say around their children, and are accepting & respectful of everyone, and encourage their children to be the same.
You know that people who were exposed to physical abuse of any sort, is more likely to abuse their partner and children as an adult, because it was a learnt behaviour, and it was their kind of normal as a child. Some like myself refuse to follow on with the abuse, because we did not like it or do not want to be the same as our parents, or we want to be better parents and adults.
And I hate racism too, it is necessary, we have all accept that people come in all shapes and sizes, and have different coloured skin, come from different cultures and have different ideas or beliefs.
I have Maori ancestry and very proud of this, although we did not know that we had Maori ancestry until I was a teenager, sadly when my fathers family found out they, tried to make my dad divorce mum, thankfully he defied them.
Well, many behavioral things are genetic, with environment multiplying the effect (since family members they grow up with are most likely exposing them to that same behavior). For example, anger has been shown to be linked to genes. If a person has parents that are more angry, then the children are more likely to be angry, too. In addition, because they are raised in a home where anger is a problem (if parents do not deal with it in healthy ways), then they are also more likely to develop anger problems.
But, you have to remember that all traits are inherited and present for a reason. For example, anger can serve an important purpose, such as defending one's honor, or motivating someone to make something right. (For example - It makes me angry that innocent people are being killed, so I will try to do something about it). But, the solution needn't involve barbaric or immoral acts, either.
I think racism could be genetic, in a way, more likely to develop in people with particular personality traits. And tendency toward anger could be one of them, as well as the tendency to generalize or deduce from a small amount of information (i.e. an African American person stole from me - all African American people must be thieves). Making these kinds of deductions can be important in surviving, and it doesn't mean that a person is stupid. In fact, it is a sign of intelligence to draw conclusions from observations. But, the underlying cause is ignorance.
Because if that person was more knowledgeable, they would know that there are many Black people who are very trustworthy and hard-working, as well. So, although certain character traits may be more common in people that are racist, it is a general lack of understanding that enables a person to carry this attitude. Perhaps they just need to have more experiences with good people of the race they discriminate against, and they will reject their previous generalization.
Also, I just want to add that some people are more of a "I have to see it to believe it" type, so even if they see in the media a person of another race that is good, they have to meet a person and get to know them to actually adopt the belief that they are good, and to change their beliefs. Alternatively, a person that sees people of a different race that are good in the media may not be racist, but then later come into contact with a bad person of that race in real life, leading them to become racist, if they are this type. I believe that the trait of wanting to witness things with ones own eyes is genetic, and also a sign of intelligence, and that could render a person more prone to racism.
And, finally, a tendency toward kindness and openness (openness is a facet of personality) would counteract traits to be racist - so even if a person as described above had never themselves met a person of a particular race that was not good, they would be open to the fact that they may meet one in the future. It is human nature to protect oneself, but an open person would not rule out the possibility that something they have not seen before would occur. On the other hand, a person that is sociopathic would most likely be racist.
As for people that are racist, and have been exposed personally to people of that race that were good (i.e. believe African Americans are thieves even though they have witnessed honest African Americans themselves)? That is most likely a personal problem in which they are jealous and have insecurities of their own, so they want to preserve a power over others (believing they are entitled, and that the privilege is deserved), and they most likely have an inferiority complex, themselves. I don't think that is genetic, but learned (and may not have anything to do with learning racism specifically, but having an environment or experience in which they were treated as an inferior, such as in their upbringing). Perhaps a trait toward dominance is genetic, which would contribute to this. And human beings are, in fact, animals that uphold social hierarchies. Furthermore, it's harder to break generalizations that have already been established than to convince others that have not formed an opinion yet.
Staying on this section long enough will get to you. WTF with that genocide talk by that freaky afrocentrist nut-job. The fact that he actually got applause tells me what the score is. So really blacks can't complain about racism online when they have wackos like that guy as a spokesperson, and worst of all guys like Quannel-X defending him on Fox News. Dude if you don't think they are joking, they are not. I don't take that kind of talk as a joke. Also this section is filled with afrocentrists who bring up all the bad things that white people have done, but to shine any light on their dark-side gets quickly deleted. It's really not amusing. If you are not annoyed with the way black people debate, I don't know what to tell you. Here's my breakdown of African Americans: Ghetto (80%) The normal part of their race. Uncle Toms (10%) They brag about their own success and try to distance themselves away from the majority of their race Black Nationalists/Afrocentrists (10%) - Blame everything on white people and believe if white people are gone they will exist in some kind of golden peaceful age. The latter two are the more intelligent of the black race and the ones that show up on here the most. As for white people on here - some are racist, some are not. Only a small fraction of the white race is actually racist. Some others here appear to be racist but are trolling just for fun. For the most part, I don't believe that trolling even affects black people at all. I know how egocentric they are. I don't think that words can actually hurt them. It just makes them hate us more. I for one don't personally attack people but I believe there are differences in the races and they should be talked about. What I find interesting about black psychology is that they think that they can do anything a white person can, but also that they excel in some areas like sports. In other words they think they are superior to us. I'm trying to make them understand that differences are real, and they cut both ways. It's not like black people are the master race. They have their advantages and disadvantages. Same with white people and Asian people. However their pride won't let them admit this.
No, racism is a form of discrimination.
It's like not liking someone for having bad manners, foul grooming habits or loud boisterous behavior.
Imagine if we got to a point in society (and it's getting there), where we couldn't NOT like anything about anyone - because it's "hurtful" or" insensetive". We'd all have to train ourselves to no longer be human, no longer decipher what suits our tastes or not - all in the name of being politically correct.
Here's a good one: I'm going to quit brushing my teeth and showering, then I'm going to walk around with mismatched clothing. YOU can't tell me anything about it or I'll report you to the ACLU, human resources department, school board or any other authority outfit for - DISCRIMINATION!!!!
I have the right to be a dirty, filthy slob of a human being and DAMN anyone for saying different.
. . . oh yeah, and expect a visit from Al Sharpton.
nah. its usually just taught in childhood.
children are able to obsorb things way
more than someone who is older. so if
they are taught racism, they are more
likely to remember and keep that hatred.
if it were genetic, a lot more people would
be racist and unable to break away from that
negitive reinforcement that was shoved in their
heads since childhood.
If it were genetic, a lot more people would be racist, as nobody would have been able to educate themselves and depart from their parents beliefs.
Racism is the result of racial diversity so its a human thing and an environmental thing.
You can't be born with racism.
yes, that is easily cured through drinking milk.