Race/Ethnicity
Questions 141-150
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THE
QUESTION:
R150: What qualities do residents of the United States have
that seem to produce such a dislike from other cultures?
POSTED APRIL 3, 1998
C. Morand, 31, Windsor, Ontario, Canada
ANSWER 1:
Throughout history, residents of major empires have tended
to be offensive when they travel outside their boundaries. The United
States is an empire. The main troublesome characteristics are
arrogance ("I'm from the empire, and you're a primitive") and
xenophobia - the fear of that which is different ("It's not like
home. What's wrong with these people? Isn't there a MacDonald's
around here someplace?"). Americans tend to assume their customs are
good and right, and everything else is distasteful, undeveloped or
silly. The British do it, too, having only recently lost their
imperial status. The French do as well, though their empire faded
long enough ago that they're starting to come back to reality. Japan
isn't doing so well on this front, either. It's just an empire
thing.
POSTED APRIL 4, 1998
Will H., 48, white, Dallas, TX
FURTHER NOTICE:
It is a generalization to say that Americans think they
are superior to other cultures. America is other cultures. If
we are superior, it is our diversity and tolerance that make us this
way.
POSTED APRIL 4, 1998
PTHOLOGY, 24, male, white, American
<PTHOLOGY@AOL.COM>
Detroit, MI
FURTHER NOTICE 2:
I think the only edge American culture has over the rest
of the world is that it's a very new culture - only 200 years old or
so. (And was built through the genocide of Native Americans, by the
way.) The Constitution grew out of what was, then, the current
thinking about how a society could best be organized. This contrasts
tremendously with European cultures and Asian cultures many thousands
of years old. The United States had the benefit of a fresh start, in
a sense. I'm a student of finance, and one problem with old cultures
is that they're more rigid and not as adaptable; the traditions are
very powerful, even those that have their roots in extremely old
customs (e.g. local governments built up around agrarian economies
but still in force today). The United States is a very work-focused
culture rather than a spiritual-focused or quality-of-life focused
one. (For instance, the standard two or three weeks U.S. vacation is
far shorter than what many European nations accept.) As trade and
transit become more international, one wonders whether the rest of
the world will become more U.S.-like, or vice versa.
POSTED APRIL 6, 1998
N.P., 35, African-American male
Philadelphia, PA
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THE
QUESTION:
R149: Why is it that when meeting a white person for the first
time in a social setting, within five minutes they are asking you
what you do for a living? When meeting a black person for the first
time, this doesn't seem to happen.
POSTED APRIL 3, 1998
Jas, 42, black
<starlites@aol.com>,
Pensacola, FL
ANSWER 1:
It's just a polite conversational subject, generally
considered a safe, non-controversial topic - like the weather, but
more personal. It's also a way of gauging your social standing (which
is connected to your job and income in this country) and of getting
to know you better.
POSTED APRIL 4, 1998
Colette, white
<inkwolf@earthlink.net>,
Seymour, WI
FURTHER NOTICE:
Maybe it's a more Southern thing, but I find the same
thing when meeting other black people in social situations. I also
ask others, black or white, what they do for a living. I find nothing
objectionable in it, just that it's something more to talk about.
POSTED NOV. 16, 1998
Siobhan, black
<siobhan_101@hotmail.com>,
Baltimore, MD
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THE
QUESTION:
R148: What does the word "Chaldean" mean?
POSTED APRIL 3, 1998
Rain, Dallas
ANSWER 1:
I urge someone who knows the answer to this question to
please respond! Neither myself nor any of my coworkers know the
answer, and we are quite curious.
POSTED DEC. 4, 1998
24, San Francisco, CA
FURTHER NOTICE:
Chaldean is a nationality. The people are from Iraq, but
from a certain village in Iraq. Some are from Baghdad or Tel Kef. All
from Iraq, though. They are Arabic, but to be more specific, they are
Chaldean. Chaldean is also the language they speak. Not all Arabs are
Chaldeans, but Chaldean is the nationality of some Arabs.
POSTED MARCH 23, 1999
Chaldean, Troy , MI
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THE
QUESTION:
R147: Why is it that Arabic people I meet and went to school
with talk bad about the United States and how great the Middle East
is? If it is so bad here, why stay?
POSTED APRIL 3, 1998
Cory C.
<rdwgs97@aol.com>
Dearborn, MI
ANSWER 1:
If you have ever been outside your country, away from a
place where everyone has the same culture, accent and language, you
would understand what those Arabians are going through. I do not
think they are "badmouthing" the country, but that they are not
pleased with the way they are being treated. I am African, and in the
eyes of most of Americans (black and white) I have met, I am
"stupid." I remember telling some Americans my GPA, which is
currently a 4.0, and I was asked to prove it by showing my result
slip. Can you imagine how that made me feel? Have you ever witnessed
Americans laughing at minorities like Haitians and Cubans because of
their accents? This country is economically better than the Third
World, but there is no place like home.
POSTED APRIL 13, 1998
Ifeyinwa
<ifebigh77@hotmail.com>
Miami, FL
FURTHER NOTICE:
I used to date a Jordanian woman who was a student here. I
hung out with many foreign students as a result, many of whom
criticized the United States while working and earning their degrees
here. It comes down to a general resentment of the United States that
is quite strong in the Middle East. In these countries, it is often
seen as a "sell out" to visit or study in the United States, which is
seen as a great enemy. You are sort of seen as a traitor to your
country. I think that out of guilt, people often compensate by
denigrating the United States while they are here. That way, they
don't feel like they've sold out and abandoned their own
identity.
POSTED JULY 22, 1998
Dan
<danielrand@hotmail.com>,
Staten Island, NY
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THE
QUESTION:
R146: I am a librarian at the Federal Way Regional Library in
Federal Way, WA. Today we were asked how many Muslims there were in
Washington State. Could someone help us with this question?
POSTED APRIL 3, 1998
Metha R., Federal Way, WA
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THE
QUESTION:
R145: Why do most young black teens feel reverse prejudice is
a way to solve prejudice? I would like to hear a response to this
question from the persons responsible for reverse prejudice, not
role-models. Basically, we need young blacks in this discussion.
POSTED APRIL 3, 1998
Austin, 19, white male
<richj@provide.net>
Belleville, MI
ANSWER 1:
Your words sound more like an accusation than a question.
You talk about what "most young black teens feel," but you don't know
most young black teens, and probably, you haven't discussed this
subject deeply with all the ones you do know. So you're assuming a
lot before you even formulate your question. You might try something
like: "There seems to be a lot of reverse prejudice among black
teens. Is this widespread? What is the thinking and feeling behind
it?" Then too, you may find "reverse prejudice" is a loaded term that
may not be universally accepted, or even be understood in the same
way from group to group.
POSTED APRIL 4, 1998
Will H., 48, white, Dallas, TX
FURTHER NOTICE:
If I slapped you in the face, how would you react? I
realize this is an extreme example, but it's made to get you to
realize a simple point: African Americans have been mistreated in
this country hundreds of years. To this day, whites benefit from the
color of their skin. It pains me that what people are referring to as
reverse racism is really a false interpretation of the anger and
frustration blacks feel toward whites because of institutionalized
racism. In other words, it is reactionary and to be expected. Not to
say that it's right, but people express their anger and frustration
in many ways. While on the surface, it may appear childish and
"uncivilized," one must always consider the root cause of such
behaviors.
POSTED JUNE 22, 1998
M.T., 27, black male
FURTHER NOTICE 2:
Why do you assume young blacks even feel this way? I for
one (a young black professional female) don't believe there is such a
thing as reverse discrimination. The way I see it is
an-eye-for-an-eye, and whites will never, ever know what it feels
live to be discriminated against because of race. When whites feel
misused, they can complain all they want, but it doesn't erase the
fact that at the end of the day, 99.99 percent of the time they will
look out for whites and whites alone.
POSTED JULY 17, 1998
L.W., 24, black female, Detroit, MI
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THE
QUESTION:
R144: Why do blacks repeatedly say "you know what I'm saying"
(pronounced "you know wam sayin' ") in a single paragraph?
Chris P., white
<kiss123@mediaone.net>
Jacksonville, Fl
ANSWER 1:
Not all African-American people say this. But "you know
what I'm saying" is another way of saying "are you with me?" It's not
limited to African-American culture, either. I hear similar words
being used during a conversation whether I am speaking English to an
English speaker or Japanese to a Japanese speaker, etc., several
times in a conversation.
POSTED APRIL 6, 1998
Kara H. African-American, Tsukuba, Japan
FURTHER NOTICE:
I don't know who you have been talking to, but I would say
that it is simply a habit of that person and not a rule of speech for
all black people. I have several black friends and can honestly say
that I have never heard any of them use that phrase constantly in a
conversation. On the other hand, I had a white friend who followed up
everything she said with "do you understand." When I asked her if she
thought people didn't understand her, she said that it was just a
habit.
POSTED APRIL 6, 1998
Michelle V. 32, white
<MVroman@prodigy.com>
Detroit, MI
FURTHER NOTICE 2:
First, not all black people use the phrase, and second, it
is just slang used in much the same way that some people say '"OK"
several times during conversation.
POSTED APRIL 6, 1998
Lisa, Black, Smyrna, GA
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THE
QUESTION:
R143: What is the "correct" way to refer to a black person
(knowing they are not all "African American"). What about
Asians/Orientals?
POSTED APRIL 3, 1998
Martha, white, Birmingham , MI
ANSWER 1:
Regarding Asian/Oriental, the word "Oriental" refers to an
item from the Orient, while "Asian" refers to a person from the
region (Japan, China, Vietnam, Cambodia, etc).
POSTED APRIL 10, 1998
Carly, 21, Lawrence, KS
FURTHER NOTICE:
I think it would probably be OK to ask what a person
prefers to be called. I am black, which is fine for me. I have a
friend who prefers to be called African American. I have some white
neighbors who, when discussing other people who happen to be black,
still use the term "colored." I choose not to be offended by this, I
think, because I know who I am. However, I know a lot of black people
who do choose to take offense at that term. But, in these times of
political correctness, I think you should ask individually.
POSTED NOV. 16, 1998
Siobhan
<Siobhan_101@hotmail.com>,
Baltimore , MD
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THE
QUESTION:
R142: After spending a lot of time in university libraries, I
noticed that disproportionately more Asians used the elevators, even
to go down just one floor. Though I haven't looked into the matter
since then, I've always wondered about it.
POSTED APRIL 3, 1998
Ken Welch, 36, white
<WelchK@hmt.de>, Yorba
Linda, CA
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THE
QUESTION:
R141: I recently saw a newspaper photo of an anti-racism
demonstration in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, in which an
African American carried a sign reading "Racists rot and burn in
hell." Isn't this demagoguery?
POSTED APRIL 1, 1998
Joseph S. 35, white, Tokyo (12-year resident of Japan)
<shaules@rikkyo.ac.jp>
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