Go back to previous topic
Forum nameOkay Activist Archives
Topic subjectRE: Defining race on OKP
Topic URLhttp://board.okayplayer.com/okp.php?az=show_topic&forum=22&topic_id=15100&mesg_id=15184
15184, RE: Defining race on OKP
Posted by Chike, Wed May-09-01 04:45 PM
Good luck on your essay, you came up with a great idea. I don't have much to add, but your experience alone will probably give you a lot to write. One thing I do think is that, if one is not given a clear hint, there will be a vacillation of thought regarding another okp's race. When consciously considering it, one will probably recognize that the lack of info makes it impossible to conclude. But as soon as one is not thinking about race, paradoxically the okp's race will become a clear given. I'll explain:

I don't know your race, Tinky Winky, so I don't guess. Your name does not make it clear in the slightest. But if I was just going through a thread, I might assume blackness, because of the forum (I mean that in general sense, not like The Lesson, etc.). Even the conscious thought is restricting, however, because I ponder whether you're black or white - not giving thought to other possible backgrounds. That assumption is derived from another assumption - that you're from North America. Basically, assumption is piled on assumption because of context, if that makes sense.

I know that says more about how we perceive than how we communicate it, but I just thought I'd throw that in there.