Very interesting Christopher Hitchens collumn about the N word.

[Big Risk]

I think it's misguided to place blame for black poverty on whites of this generation. I know slavery and racism were the reasons for black poverty to begin with, but most of the people in power today have no direct hand in what happened. I don't think politicians or society willfully try to snatch away opportunites from minority communities..

if they dont help they are the BLAME.

[Cthulhu]

if they dont help they are the BLAME.

You can only blame so much, and then you have to step back and maybe realize that SOME of the responsibility rests on you.

[IrOnMaN]

Hmmm....................

[blackwisdom]

I think it's misguided to place blame for black poverty on whites of this generation. I know slavery and racism were the reasons for black poverty to begin with, but most of the people in power today have no direct hand in what happened. I don't think politicians or society willfully try to snatch away opportunites from minority communities. I won't deny that racism still exists today. I know plenty of people who act as though all black people are potential criminals, though I try to tell them when blacks commit crimes it has all to do with poverty and not with their skin color. Remember, the ghetto also consists of whites and various other ethnic groups.

People tend to lean towards things that resemble them and that make them comfortable right? Racism is so ingrained in this society that to the untrained eye, or unwanting to see it eye, it's invisible. Now onto answering to your post.

Who set up the ghettos? Who runs them today?
Who established the first prisons in the US? Who grows them faster than schools today?
Who makes the laws? Who's crimes cost tax payers more money? (rich folks' crimes)
Who sets the zones?

If you live the American Dream (nice house, car, job, money, etc) why would you want someone who you may see as less desirable (under-educated, under-employed, unenculturated to your norms, etc) coming close to you bringing your property value down, bringing their hood ass up in your grocery store, raping a T.I. song next to your precious daughter in the school cafeteria, putting Tupac pictures on their desk at work, etc?

A few groups of people control almost every aspect of our lives and most of us aren't even aware of it. They fund the schools, they make the economic boundaries, they control the media, and they create and enforce all of the laws that we are to live by.

Please don't tell me that you think that powerful people don't scratch each other's backs?

This generation could easily erase the lies in America's racist school history books, it could easily bridge the poverty gap just as easily as it widens it. The international banking industries could make things better for the people but they make it better for themselves. They'd rather grow the military industrial complex and the prison industrial complex then strive for peace. Gil Scott said, "The only thing that's wrong with peace is you can't make any money off it." They could flip the money from the prisons into the schools in order to decrease prison population. But they'd rather increase off-site work programs, take away education programs in prisons, and underfund the art programs in schools.

Ain't nothing change! This generation is as racist today as when they made genocide on the indigenous people of the Americas yesterday. I ain't trying to hear, "My ancestors did it so don't get mad at me." Fight for freedom and justice as hard and as passionate as me and I won't have a reason to be mad at you nor will I have anything to blame on you. I know white people who'd die for the cause before anybody else. I can only blame them for being part of the solution. What can I blame you for?

[blackwisdom]

You've got to be kidding me on this, right? You've lived in the ghetto, right? You've been through the worst, right? You've been told by your peers that you won't amount to anything, right? You've seen shit you couldn't bare, right? You've been around drug dealers, right? You've ran from cops, right? You've been around gangs, right? Well, I have. See, I'm one year away from completing my B.S. in Geology. I'm 20 years old, got my own apartment, got a job, doing undergraduate research in geology (received grants), and other things as well. I've been on my own since I was 18. But wasn't born in Detroit, I was born in Phila, PA, but raised in Cerro Gordo, NC (rural area, very very small town). When I came to Detroit, MI, I was like "Damn. The city looks like this. This is horrible!". I remember my first day a Detroit Public School, I have never seen so many blacks kids in my life. It was new to me. My family picked us (mother, sister, and I) for not being "ghetto" enough. I didn't speak ebnoics like everyone else did, I spoke proper english. I got picked on for that by my family and my peers. Then I realize that I don't want to be like these people because.....................they don't want to amount to anything in life (refering to the kids).

Anyway, no Blackwisdom. Some people that been through what we have been through can't mentally raise above what they are in. It's true. Calling each other the N word is just as bad as telling someone they can't make it out because either you're black or you're low income. Some people aren't mentally strong enough to overcome what they're in. I'm sorry, but it's true.

The same fuckers that picked on me when I was a kid are the same ones that didn't even finish fucking high school. Are you serious?!?!? Thanks.

It's called being institutionalized. The culture of mostly all impoverished communities is at such a low state that some of the residents get sucked in the undertow and loose the fight to try to escape it.

That statement isn't an absolute.

Did you catch that from my first post?

[IrOnMaN]

It's called being institutionalized. The culture of mostly all impoverished communities is at such a low state that some of the residents get sucked in the undertow and loose the fight to try to escape it.

Wow. I never really looked at it like that. Thanks. It sucks.

[IrOnMaN]

Ain't nothing change! This generation is as racist today as when they made genocide on the indigenous people of the Americas yesterday. I ain't trying to hear, "My ancestors did it so don't get mad at me." Fight for freedom and justice as hard and as passionate as me and I won't have a reason to be mad at you nor will I have anything to blame on you. I know white people who'd die for the cause before anybody else. I can only blame them for being part of the solution. What can I blame you for?

I agree with you on this. Now, they're trying to ban Affirmative Action. It's already been ban here in Michigan. Plus, I think they'll ban this program nation wide. And for what?

[blackwisdom]

I agree with you on this. Now, they're trying to ban Affirmative Action. It's already been ban here in Michigan. Plus, I think they'll ban this program nation wide. And for what?

People want to hire who they want to hire. Imagine if you gave birth to a business. That's your baby! How would you feel it some beurocrat FORCES you to hire a certain type of people, just cause. Some people are fair and don't mind cause they're doing it anyway, but others aren't so much fine with it.

On the flip side of it imagine how you'd feel to be an Affirmative Action hire. People mean muggin you cause you got the job cause you black. "Huh, he beat out my cousin who's suppose to have that job all cause he's black!" How do you think s/he'll be treated? It's a double edged sword.

It's suppose to balance the playing field. More black's owning multi-million/billion dollar corporations will balance the scales more effectively in my imagination.

[IrOnMaN]

People want to hire who they want to hire. Imagine if you gave birth to a business. That's your baby! How would you feel it some beurocrat FORCES you to hire a certain type of people, just cause. Some people are fair and don't mind cause they're doing it anyway, but others aren't so much fine with it.

On the flip side of it imagine how you'd feel to be an Affirmative Action hire. People mean muggin you cause you got the job cause you black. "Huh, he beat out my cousin who's suppose to have that job all cause he's black!" How do you think s/he'll be treated? It's a double edged sword.

It's suppose to balance the playing field. More black's owning multi-million/billion dollar corporations will balance the scales more effectively in my imagination.

Opps. I'm only refering to admissions to colleges and Universities, not jobs. I understand the whole job thing and what not. In my opinion and from what I see, Affimative Action helps young adults that want to go to college, but really don't have the knowledge to be admitted into the college they want to attend because they have been educated in urban schools. A certain Affimative Action programs (mainly for minorties and poor whites) helps bring them up to speed. As a result, the students do excellent in their classes and received the degrees. Because minorties grow up in urban areas, the education they receive doesn't compare to the education in the suburbs tha the whites receive. Is that fare??

[blackwisdom]

Opps. I'm only refering to admissions to colleges and Universities, not jobs. I understand the whole job thing and what not. In my opinion and from what I see, Affimative Action helps young adults that want to go to college, but really don't have the knowledge to be admitted into the college they want to attend because they have been educated in urban schools. A certain Affimative Action programs (mainly for minorties and poor whites) helps bring them up to speed. As a result, the students do excellent in their classes and received the degrees. Because minorties grow up in urban areas, the education they receive doesn't compare to the education in the suburbs tha the whites receive. Is that fare??

I'm not versed in the program. If it's to bring them up to speed and prepare them for college/university then I guess that's cool. I know some people say that that's what community college is for. I guess it sounds good?

From what I understand they need to put education programs in prisons if anywhere. Maybe it'll cut back the recidivism rate.