>>Racism= race prejudice + power.
>
>Agreed. But as TW implied,
>"power" is difficult to define.

Maybe to you. But to me, it feels pretty clear. -- all of its manifestations.

>>Because, in this country, people of
>>color do not have (I
>>shuld say it to be
>>clear) _institutional power_ people of
>>color are _incapable_ of being
>>racist.
>
>That's flat-out wrong. Of course,
>people of color don't share
>the same amount of "institutional"
>power that affluent white men
>have, but it certainly exists.

So, if we put power on an "you don't have as much as I do, but you have _some_" then everything is chill? What about your personal power/privilege? I have found, especially since 9/11, that even my power to speak is being taken away from me since it isn't popular. What I am to do? Am I to pretend that even compared to the poorest white person, I have some power he doesn't have? It ain't class we talking about, it's cultural imperalism and hegemony. But I guess class gives you some way to feel included and divests you of the need to think about it on the strange real/not real level on which race plays -- and all the things that come along with it.

>The African-American Church has a great
>deal of power.
>AND, in my opinion, that power
>has been used many times
>in a racist way.

Let's be honest: Christianity is racist AND has been used, is used as a vehicle to futher white cultural thought and behavior. now, inasfaras racism in Black churches, I don't see it because Black churches work on a bunch of different levels. Even though I don't espouse Christianity, I do know the importance of Black churches in its ability to bring people in the communities together and provide a kind of refuge from the our racist society.

Are you Black? Were you born and raised in Black churches?
I am and was. And I am very critical of said chuches for my own personal reasons, but power? Racism? *ha* Hmmm... Martin didn't know, did he?

>That's one example, but there are
>many. Our society conditions
>towards racism, and it conditions
>everyone.

No. I don't agree with this. Our society perpetuates racism, but the people within that society conditions all of us to "know our place" within the scheme of perpetuated racism. And again, how we are conditioned into/around/towards racism is _extremely_ different. Please, start to understand that racism is not received by people of different American cultures the same and resist going for the easy, universalistic proclamations.

>So we all (including people of
>color) have a to fight
>it in others and in
>ourselves, because we're all susceptible.

Yes and no. I am not fighting internal racism because I don't have any. I might have to fight internal bigotry or race prejudice, but I have no racism because no power is given to my utterances for my race prejudice to affect YOUR life. Now, when I start publishing on a larger scale, I will have to rethink this. I will have to be a bit more responsible than I am now... but until that moment, I am powerless to affect your life through any race prejudice I might have. And that is the power I am talking about.

White people have to work _very hard_ at undoing their racism and even SEEING their racism because they are in a society that also makes them very blind to it.

But our work, in working against racism, is not the same nor is it rooted from the same spot. However, hopefully, we can see ourselves moving in the same direction.

>>And it is no sin for
>>people of color not to
>>like or to even hate
>>the dominant culture from time
>>to time.
>
>I, of course, disagree. For
>the reasons above, along with
>my respect for freedom, common
>sense, solidarity, etc.

One always has the right to dislike and hate someone who has unfair, one-way street ways of affecting one's life to their detriment. Whatever your words. And see, this is yet another place where you can't understand me because you have not yet realized that we are coming from two different places. Once the realize that, perhaps you will grow into realizing something you can't seem to realize right now...

>>At least I
>>don't think so because that
>>kind of emotion is _healthy_.
>
>Yeah, MC Ren. What a
>healthy person :-).

????

>I'm assuming you at least would
>condemn acting on hatred, right?

I'm afraid we are conditioned to not act out on it even if we wanted. But people will do what they will do. And it certainly doesn't stop white people from acting out on their... um... I don't think it's really hatred... fear... But, I guess, we aren't really talking about that, are we?

*winks*


Peace,

Q

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^*********^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

"americans are gross!" -utamaroho

Uplifting thoughts:

"We are the end result of our ancestors prayers as they died. We you are the sum total of their answered prayers."

"I am because we are; we are because I am."

"falling in love with somebody's soul...their essence their personality their walk their talk the way they speak and smile...no matter what the physical outer body is..male or female...is a temptation i hope i am never foolish enough to resist." - Hot Damali