[0] I dislike the term "race" in these contexts. In biological terms there is only one human race currently alive as far as we know. Every time I read or use it I feel like the pseudosciences such as social darwinists have won.
[0] I dislike the term "race" in these contexts. In biological terms there is only one human race currently alive as far as we know. Every time I read or use it I feel like the pseudosciences such as social darwinists have won.
This is why the colorblind approach to solving racial issues failed. All it did was make us blind to the continuing harms of racism and there for unable to change those systems and solve those problems.
Kendi expands on it in great detail in his book "How to Be an Antiracist"
Here's a TED talk version of the explanation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KCxbl5QgFZw
This is a dangerously myopic view of the development of this country and more importantly it ignores progress over the last few decades.
The fact that blacks have not achieved representational parity or wealth equity yet does not mean that that the path of race blindness was not working. By all metrics it was working, and there must be room to discuss the internal cultural issues within the black community that account for the remaining lack of progress.
Instead by silencing any such criticism we are falsely blaming whites as a demographic for cultural change that is beyond their control, and artificially forcing transfer of power and wealth from said demographic in a misguided attempt to correct past wrongs, in a manner that is fundamentally at odds with the principles of meritocracy that are critical to a functioning society. Hiring minorities for the color of their skin is no better than hiring whites for the color of their skin.
The combination of a fundamentally racist theory/policy and vicious cancellation of anyone who publicly criticizes the movement is going to lead to severe backlash. It's immoral at its core. You can't have your cake and eat it too - either racism is acceptable and we have the freedom to discuss when and where it is acceptable, or racism is unacceptable. Wordplay with euphemisms which disguise the racist nature of CRT inspired policies is intellectually dishonest and not sustainable.
https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/233136/racecraft-by...
"Race-blind" anti-racism is like "money-blind" anti-poverty programs. You can't effectively fight racism when you ignore its most fundamental product.
My comment was not on why the term is being used today but merely the fact that I don't like it, because it solidifies the racist pseudosciences in our culture in a way. It just feels wrong to me to speak the lingo of an enemy.
At the same time, as you said the term is here for a reason, so simply changing or ignoring it won't change the underlying problem.
Thinking about it, it might even be a good thing that using, reading or hearing the term stings. It reminds us of how incredibly frustrating the problem is. It appears so simple and arbitrary, is insufferably harmful and it should not exist in the first place, but here we are still.
Edit: What about the downvotes? Are people going crazy?
Having spent time in Brazil and as a luso-American, that is ridiculous. Brazil has an even bigger problem with racist police violence and extra-judicial killings than the US does!