Tag Archives: racism

Does The N-word Trump All Other Slurs?

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olympicA few weeks back, one of the homeys sent me a video of an incident on a Metro train in DC. See, some wayward white man on the Green Line (notoriously known as the “Soul Train” in the area due to its propensity to run only through Prince George’s County, MD and DC), got into a kerfluffle with some riders. According to the comments, he had been rude and pushing his way onto the train; this is not an uncommon practice for anybody during rush hour in DC.

Well, apparently he pushed the wrong person and a shouting match ensued. At the point we get video we hear him refer to a woman (while being surrounded by Black people, mind you) as a “n*gger”. Multiple times. As opposed to the ass whipping you think he’d receive, folks were more like, “dog, why does it have to be all that…” I’m still baffled at the fact that he did not catch a beat down. He managed to be on the train with the most civil rights minded individuals in the DC-area, I assure you.

Anyway, when somebody asks him why he referred to her as the dreaded n-word, he shoots back with “she called me a f*ggot”. Now, on tape, we did not hear this. This doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. But we never heard it. Given the relative civility of everybody but this man I’m not completely inclined to believe him, but that’s neither her nor there. He did at some point towards the end of the video assault the person videotaping and according to the comments the police were waiting at the last station on the line for him.

That backstory is almost besides the point but I wanted to explain to you how I got to this question. Let’s imagine that somebody did call him the f-word. I’m no expert on slurs, but I’m pretty sure that’s one of the worst things you can call a gay person. It’s meant to be emasculating to the nth degree seeing as how many straight men refer to other men like that when dude is acting less than manly. Or they’re just being ignant. Either or.

But let’s say she called him a f*ggot. She likely didn’t know his sexual orientation but whatevs. That’s totes not important. She slurred him first. But what if he is gay. And hearing that offended him, so he offended her back with the n-word. Is he wrong? All those people got in their feelings (granted they’re all Black so we have some selection and location bias at work here) but what if he is gay and she shot off some gay slur so he shot back with a Black slur. Is all of a sudden he racist and therefore worse than any homophobic slur? Granted, the oppression olympics will be played forever, but can anybody really be mad if you aim one slur and they come back with another?

Confuscious says: he who strikes second, pays first.

He doesn’t really say that, I heard that in Sunday school. It’s always the n*gga who reacts who usually gets caught. But I also heard sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me. This is patently not true because I’ve seen somebody get thrown through a glass window for saying something reckless at DC Live in the late 90s.

So maybe in a technical sense, you’re supposed to turn the other cheek and let words bounce off of you and pretend you’re not human. Then you go home and punch the air like Cuba Gooding, Jr in Boyz In Tha Hood. A lot. Hopefully you’ve got a virginal Nia Long there to take the edge off after. Seriously, has that ever worked? Man shows up as his girls house mad because of social injustice and he gets some for peace? P*ssy for Peace. Ignorant? Yes. But a cause everybody can support? I think so.

The more you know. *ding*

But assuming that the guy was gay and that the woman did say that in this scenario, is he wrong for referring to her with the n-word? Does that automatically make him more wrong than the person who uses the first slur? From his standpoint, sometimes you do have to take a stand and you just lose it at times. Everybody is capable of snapping. You’ve got the power. The reaction on the train would have largely coalesced on no matter what she said to him, you should never call a Black person an n-word as a non-Black person. I think most folks would agree with that.

I’m just not sure I’m one of them. If I call somebody a wop, wetback, kike, or any of a number of ethnic or racial slurs and they respond in kind, I can’t really get my panties in a bunch can I??? Like I can’t be like, “just wait a damn minute, sir, THAT is uncalled for!”

Right?

What say you? Does the n-word trump all or am I just preaching to the choir and need to run this poll on CNN?

-VSB P aka THE ARSONIST aka MR. N*GGA AT LONDON HEATHROW WITH ME AND MY PEOPLES aka GIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIRL HE A 3

 

As Long As You Shut The F*ck Up, You Can Be As F*cked Up As You Want

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You can feel like this, my n*gga, but you can't say that sh*t, my n*gga.

You can feel like this, my n*gga, but you can’t say that sh*t, my n*gga.

The recent “flap” over New Jersey governor Chris Christie’s “controversial” use over the word boy in a speech he was giving at a Black church just proves how words can be your undoing. Granted, Gov. Christie isn’t catching too much flack for it, but still, the story that he used the word “boy” towards an African-American man made the media rounds on Twitter which is like yelling fire in a crowded room – pretty soon the fire actually exists and Brick will have killed a guy.

And Lil Wayne will have died.

To be clear, I’ve watched the clip numerous times and there’s no way you can convince me he was calling the guy “boy”.

Anyway, I’m going to make a fairly significant leap here into something that I thought about whilst picking a dandelion the other day on a particularly warm March day:

As long as you don’t say anything particularly controversial, then you aren’t controversial.

And the crowd said, “duh”. So what do I mean? Glad you asked.

Let’s paint a scenario. If I’m a white man and I never ever date another person outside of my race, or don’t really interact with other people of other races, does that make me racist?

I don’t think so. I think it just makes you white in America. That’s totally possible. Hell, if you live in South Dakota that might be your entire existence. Forever. And that’s okay. Just because options exist doesn’t mean you have to take them…right? Everybody’s got their own prejudices and biases anyway. Hell I don’t like women with one gray eye and one grey eye. The vowel change really bothers me.

But the second you utter the words, “I don’t date people of other races.” Or even, “I really don’t date Black people” then, well, congratulations, you’re a racist. And not even the fun kind like, like the kind who can appreciate Black women hugging. So here’s my point, while you might be a racist at heart, you ain’t a racist until you say some racist sh*t. Which also translates into many other facets of life. Such as?

Glad you asked.

“I don’t really want to date a handicapped person.”

I’ve heard this with my own two ears. I got what the person was saying when they said it. Hell I understand it. But you just can’t saaaaaaaaaaaay that sh*t out loud. You just can’t. No amount of volunteer work at the Special Olympics or backtracking is going to make you sound like anything but a total douchebag. Which is probably unfair since I think most people tend to be about that status quo lifestyle. Status quo kind of implies “whole” person. But, again, if you say it, you just sound like a douche.

“Those people….”

There is almost never a good way to use the term “those people…” and it not turn off somebody listening to you. And why is this? Well because 174 percent of the time that the words “those people” are being used its in order to draw a distinction between yourself and whoever it is your speaking about. This group usually includes but is not limited to midgets, Black people, immigrants of color, Muslims, gypsys, circus performers, rappers (of all colors), Asians at top tier institutions or in the hood, Black people in Europe, any and all Afrians, etc. You get the point. Any group that can and has been maligned is usually who is being referenced in the “those people…”

However, it ALSO gets used in the other direction by liberals to include (but not limited to): Republicans, Tea Party activists, gun nuts, homophobes, heterophobes, phobes, White people that don’t live in urban areas, etc. You get the point.

Everyone’s a little bit racist.

“I’m glad slavery happened, otherwise we’d still be stuck in Africa.”

I’ve heard this said as well. And you know, amid this young man’s mis-informed and utter ridiculous statement, I knew what he was trying to say. It’s just stupid, inaccurate, and insanely dangerous. Which brings a point up that, silence is golden. If you ever have to say “I don’t know how to say what I’m trying to say” then you probably need not say it. Love 40. This statement was made in one of my classes at Morehouse. By a Black dude. And he got raked across the coals for it. Rightly. You just can’t say that on television.

Which reminds me of another statement I once heard in undergrad…

“We’re all judging, but if back in the day it was common for men to take and sleep with little boys, maybe it was just okay then.”

Again, I get what he was trying to say – don’t hate the player, hate the game – but there’s just no way to make some grand statements like that ever sound okay. Condoning child sexual abuse in a historical context is going to get you the side-eye like a motherf*cker. Trust me. And no, I didn’t say that, I side-eyed the sh*t out of the cat who said that.

For more direct examples of things you just can’t say out loud, revisit the #Steubenville conversations via Twitter the past few days.

So, good people of VSB, as language can ruin your life, what are some other examples of feelings you can have all the live long day, that you just can’t say out loud for fear of reprisal?

Reprise.

-VSB P aka THE ARSONIST aka MR. I AIN’T SAY THAT SH*T aka GIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIRL HE A 3

****BTW: If you purchased and received your VSB crewneck, could you take a pic for us and send it in to contact@verysmartbrothas.com.****

The Most Racist Thing I’ve Ever Done

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There’s a belief among some educated Black (and White) people that Blacks—well, American Blacks—cannot be racist. Racism, to them, is more about power and possessing the ability to oppress than any beliefs or feelings held about other races. And, since Black Americans don’t wield enough political or financial power to oppress, we’re unable to be racist.

While I guess I see where they’re coming from, this theory is, well, bullshit. Anyone can possess any trait—positive or negative—even if that particular trait isn’t usually associated with them. We (Blacks) can be racists. Women can be misogynists. Laker fans can have integrity. Ray Lewis is a murderer, and no one seems to give a damn. The list goes on.

Anyway, I’m bringing this up because I did some racist-ass shit the other day. Super racist. Undeniably racist. Hilariously racist. So racist that it made the full transition from “racist” to “ridiculous,” causing me to even say “Damn. That was some racist-ass shit” right after it happened. And, although the story makes me laugh every time I think about it, calling it anything other than racist-ass shit would be disingenuous.

As I’m sure all of you are aware of, there are certain parts in certain cities where attempting to find food at night becomes an exercise in futility. And, by “there are certain parts in certain cities where attempting to find food at night becomes an exercise in futility” I mean “if you live in a predominately Black neighborhood, there’s a good chance that within the last year or so, a delivery boy has been robbed, shot, or stabbed within a two block radius of where you currently are.”

Restaurants located in these areas close a little earlier than those in other neighborhoods, and, most notably, you have a better chance of finding a virgin at a Delta convention than finding a place that might actually deliver food after 8pm.

A friend of mine lives in one of these areas. Admittedly, she lives in the “nice” part of the neighborhood, but lets just say that the neighborhood’s reputation precedes itself. Once, while sitting on her couch next to her while she was attempting to order a pizza, I was able to hear the person on the other end of the phone literally laugh aloud when she told them where she lives. It wasn’t a chuckle, either. This motherf*cker guffawed.

A few weeks ago, though, we had a breakthrough. We both happened to be on her porch when a small car sped to a awkward stop a few feet in front of her place. An Asian-looking man jumped out, carrying a couple pizzas and a bag of pop, walking very briskly, and dressed inappropriately (it was maybe 35 degrees and he was wearing a windbreaker, some sweats, and a hat). Basically, everything about this man—his awkward and abrupt parking, his demeanor, his attire, the way he was carrying the food, and, most importantly, his Asian-ness—screamed “delivery boy.”

Elated that we finally found a place that delivered to the neighborhood, we called out to the guy as he walked past.

Us: “Hey, where are you from?”

Him: “Huh?”

Us: “What place do you work for? We thought no one delivered to this block.”

Him: “Um, I’m not a delivery boy. I live right there. This is my food. I’m going home.”

Us: “Sorry bout that.”

Him (in his head): “F*ck you”

Him (to his Facebook page later that night): “I love the RZA, but I hate Black people”

In summary, we racially profiled the f*ck out of this guy. Admittedly, if he was White or Black and was dressed/acted the same way, we might have asked the same question. But, his Asian-ness—and us assuming that “small Asian man dressed like one of the Mario Bros” couldn’t possibly equal anything other than “delivery boy”—made our query so damn confident. Like, there was no doubt in our minds that he wasn’t delivering food. No hesitation, no nothing.

Ironically, the people being racially profiled—us for living in that area—ended up racially profiling ourselves. The circle of life and shit.

Anyway, people of VSB, I just shared the most racist thing I’ve ever done in the last year. What would be yours?

—Damon Young (aka “The Champ”)

Fight Ignorance…With Ignorance?

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I know this may come as a surprise to you, but ignorance is my favorite sport. I’m not sure how, when, or why it became so, but there’s a distinct possibility that this doesn’t make my mother proud. So when videos like this one from comedian Dave Ackerman entitled, “What do you know about Black History?” come across my inbox, I’m enthralled.

For those who can’t see the video, Ackerman dresses up in Blackface and dons Utah Jazz apparel and heads to Brigham Young University to ask white people what they know about Black History Month and Black people in general. Shenanigans ensue. Obviously the answer is not much. Even the Black people at BYU didn’t seem to know when Black History Month even was.

And the capper? He asked people if they know a Black person when they saw one, hoping that somebody would point out that he was indeed a white guy with makeup on. According to him, only 3 people made the revelation. Even the Black people he showed on camera didn’t notice. Or care. I can’t determine which one it is.

Obviously a perusal through the YouTube comments indicates that some people were offended all around by Ackerman’s audacity AND the fact that these white people in Utah had very little clue about Black History. The most telling part of the video to me was when he asked people to give their impressions of Black people and without fail, they all did…happily. And with reckless aplomb.

And you know what? They looked like my idea of what white people in Utah giving their impressions of Black people would look like. By the way the fact that a white chick actually said that Black History Month is the month that Black history started is beyond hilarious to me. Again, I enjoy and appreciate ignorance.

Ackerman’s point seemed to have been to expose how little white people at BYU know about Black people. Which might not be fair. I mean, its motherf*cking Utah. Except it is fair because we’re in motherf*cking America. But then again, it is entirely possible to live your entire life in places of this country without EVER coming into contact with a Black person without the Internet or television.

Now, these people are ignorant. Not ignant. And they are on a college campus, which speaks volumes, except it doesn’t because formal education has sh*t to do with social interaction education and exposure. Granted, if I was white, I probably wouldn’t spend much time thinking about race or Black people, especially if I lived in Utah. I’m sure there’s no reason to celebrate Black History Month there (I have no idea if they do or not). Everybody knows Martin Luther King, Jr because we all get a day off now.

But just when you think white people are a total disappointment in race relations, they do surprise you by getting some things. When the girls were asked if they’d rather date a Black guy who acted white or a white guy who acted Black, they all unanimously thought a white guy acting Black was ridiculous and stupid.

Yet, because white people do like to make sure our fistpump moments dont last too long, one of the girls stated that a Black guy acting white is classy. Wompington Whathafuckness, III. Oh, well.

The thing I took from the video, aside from the laughs I got, was the amazement at just HOW little white people know about Black people. I mean, not knowing when Black History Month is? That sh*t cray. I suppose its good that they all got in the right half of the year but still, that’s befuddling.

By the way, the fact that this comedian was in Black face doesn’t bother me in the slightest. I get it. If the ultimate goal is to truly test how ignorant some white people are, being a white guy made up as a white guy and going completely unnoticed despite the fact that he looks like a white guy made up as a Black guy, is the best way to prove that point.

So here’s my question: are videos like this necessary? Do they achieve any goal? Is there any greater good derived from something like this? If we all assume that most white people couldn’t give a flying f*ck about Blackness, and all this does is verify that, then was any progress made?

Further, was anybody surprised by how little these white (and few Black people) were unaware about anything pertaining to Blackness? What say you?

Because while I was amused, I wasn’t surprised. Nor did I care that much. La di da.

-VSB P aka THE ARSONIST aka MR. WHITEFACE BLACK GUY aka GIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIRL HE A 3

****For those in the DC area, Very Smart Brothas and Urban Cusp are teaming up to bring you a conversation entitled “Black Images and Culture in Mainstream Media” on February 22, 2012, from 6-8PM at the Washington Post building. There will feature a live panel discussion featuring very accomplished local artists, personalites, and media figures and light refreshments will be served. Be on the lookout for more information very shortly.****

Are Black Students At Duke Pissed For The Right Reason?

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I majored in sociology and I'm still gonna make more money than you pretty soon, white man.

I came across this article at Clutch Mag yesterday entitled, “Black Students at Duke Upset Over New Study Claiming They Take The Easy Way Out” that linked to a Durham, NC, Herald-Sun article about a study that pissed of Black folks from near and far. In a nutshell, two Duke professors and a grad student wrote a paper stating that Black students at Duke changed majors from more traditionally difficult majors like economics, engineering, and natural sciences to less rigorous majors (like humanities) at a higher rate than did white students. The paper was an attempt to explain why the GPAs of Black students tended to trend towards the GPAs of white students as ninjas made their way through college and is being used as a bone for opponents of affirmative action policies.

Oy vey.

The unpublished report, “What Happens After Enrollment? An Analysis of the Time Path of Racial Differences in GPA and Major Choice,” looked at the Duke freshman classes that matriculated in 2001 and 2002, in their first, second and fourth years of college.

It found that among students who initially expressed an interest in majoring in economics, engineering and the natural sciences, 54 percent of black men and 51 percent of black women ended up switching to the humanities or another social science.

By comparison, 33 percent of white women and just 8 percent of white men made the switch to majors that are considered less rigorous, require less study and have easier grading standards.

According to the paper, 68 percent of Duke’s black students but less than 55 percent of white students ended up majoring in the humanities or social sciences other than economics.

The authors of the paper suggested that the switch to easier majors was predominantly responsible for why the grade point averages of black undergraduates ultimately became similar to the GPAs of white students as they progressed through school.

The paper is included in a brief submitted to the U.S. Supreme Court by opponents of affirmative action. The court is considering whether to hear a lawsuit challenging race-conscious undergraduate admission at the University of Texas.

 

The fact that any professor intensely intrigued and/or troubled by the fact that Black student GPAs were similar to white student GPAs is problematic enough. But to take it to the next level to prove that basically Black students (and legacy kids, interestingly enough) were stepping on their cocaine to make it through is just a gotd*mn shame.
However, I’m choosing to take my feelings out of this and going to attempt to look at this somewhat objectively. And my reason is because of this line, the constant rally cry of any and all things that involve race by us, the Black people:
[Nina] Asante (president of Duke’s Black Student Alliance) wrote that the authors failed “to account for the societal, complex and institutional factors that must be considered in any attempt to delineate trends in racial differences in grade point averages and major choices, in a scholarly manner.”
I am admittedly jaded but I read that to say, “unless you have a section in your study about how slavery and the persistent effects of institutional racism f*cked us the f*ck up then your whole paper, study, and lifespace is fugazi, b*tch.”
Which, while true, does tend to obscure what are, well, facts. Look, I went to an HBCU with a stellar science program in physics and biology and a great dual degree engineering program with Georgia Tech. But let’s be real, the majority of majors at Morehouse were business. And I’m not sh*tting on business majors, but it is what it is. That was like our catchall if you couldn’t hack it in the STEM majors. And a lot of people did make that switch. I myself chose economics with a math concentration because I specifically didn’t want to feel like I was shortchanging myself. But you better believe, we had a non-math economics option and the majority of econ majors took that road.
What does that have to do with the price of dental dams at Spelman? Nothing. But if Duke is the academically rigorous school that its purported to be, and Morehouse isn’t (no shots, and if you take shots at the ‘House I’m 404 you’re whole life son) and we have a preponderance of ninjas who make the switch, then what are we complaining about at Duke? Are we mad that the story is out there or that we can’t hack it?
Look, I know the public education system that the majority of us will have to use isn’t top notch. But that’s probably largely in the inner city where it seems like most of us aren’t exactly coming from anymore. And I’d bet money that most of the Black students at Duke aren’t exactly coming from southeast DC, the south Bronx, the west side of Atlanta, or Compton. Most are probably suburban children and/or private school kids. So their education is probably better than what a lot of us received at various stages (except for you bougie ninjas). Yet and still, many of us can’t hack it.
Now, if you ask me, that’s the study that needs to be looked into. When you control for socio-economic status, are these same Black students not able to cut the mustard? If not, are we going to blame racism and slavery for that? And that’s a real question. Seeing as Duke is a private school and considered an elite institution, I’m guessing their application process is itself more rigorous and they are accepting students who would likely meet a higher education standard. This is my assumption. Anybody can feel free to correct me if I’m wrong.
So what the hell is really going on then? I’m not insisting that that Black students aren’t as smart. Far from it. But perhaps some of these students learned a lesson that I learned at Morehouse really early on: game the system. The goal is to graduate. So maybe some of these ninjas are taking the path to least resistance and banking on the school attached to the degree to be able to take them far. Hell, isn’t that what many white people do anyway? Just because those white students aren’t changing majors doesn’t mean they’re excelling either. So if I’m beasting out with my English degree with a 3.9 and you’ve got a 2.7 in biology, and we all know that grad schools and the like care about your GPA, then perhaps I will feel like I’m winning.
I don’t know. And I don’t like the implication behind that either. Maybe we can blame hip-hop and this hustler mentality of dong what you need to do to get where you think you’re trying to go. Or maybe a lot of those kids don’t want to be STEM majors anyway (whole other discussion about that) and are thinking business and wall street or what most of us do…law school. Which if I’m not mistaken, wouldn’t require a STEM degree.
My point here is that while there are probably other factors involved, playing the slavery card (how I’m reading it) isn’t probably accurate. Maybe playing the “I get money, I-I get money” card is. Which means that some of those protests might be a bit ill advised. I can understand why Black people are up in arms. On its face, it sounds messed and politically motivated, but that doesn’t mean that what they’re stating didn’t happen. We just don’t like the implications behind it, even if maybe, just maybe, they’re accurate.
The paper’s authors — professors Peter Arcidiacono and Kenneth Spenner, and graduate student Esteban Aucejo — write that their work calls into question other studies that play down the academic difficulties initially experienced by those who benefit from race-conscious admissions by saying that such students eventually catch up with their nonminority peers in GPA.
Just wanted to add that I do think the authors here have some racial issues of their own to deal with (and I’m aware that Duke has a somewhat sordid history of racial issues in general).Clearly they’re not proponents of affirmative action, except their inability to see the forest for the trees (as academics) is a bit scary because at the end of the day, we DO end up with a lot more minorities with degrees which is better for society. Like your point was to intentionally disprove any benefit from race-conscious admissions without acknowledging that it might be harder to get into these schools than actually graduate? Sitchoazzdown.
But forget their reasons, and back to the actual findings. What say you? Thoughts?
Should we be mad about these findings? Should we be protesting studies like this? Or should we acknowledge that there’s truth there and then determine what the solution is, should one be necessary? Are these folks just not on our level?
Inquiring minds would like to know.
Sorry for the length. Heheheheh.
-VSB P aka THE ARSONIST aka MR. YOUR STUDY IS FUGAZI EVEN IF ITS TRUE SON aka GIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIRL HE A 3