After taking a long look at the different stereotypes I hold against minorities that have been engrained in my mind from living in a suburban enviornment, absorbing messages from the media, and not having much direct contact with people of color, I came across one that I only vaguely remember being mentioned anywhere, either on the boards, at discussions, or with friends.

This perception is that the black male is seen as a figure that epitomizes "cool". Everything from their clothes, hair, speech, and composure are tagged with the adjective of cool or "hip" in my mind.

This perception comes across as very demeaning because it regulates the black male as someone who is only "cool", and not possesing intelligence or any other human quality.

In my mind this perception is not an overpowering force, such as the perceptions that black people are unintelligent or stupid, but it could be tied in with the absurd idea that black people are sex objects who are wild and erotic.

Just to make sure I'm not categorized as a complete racist, (stress the word complete) I want to make it clear that I'm just trying to "dish out some dirt" to see if the stereotypes are widespread (this dirt is the thoughts that spring into my mind when I first interact with a black person).

I've seen the "cool" stereotype mostly perpetuated by white males (i'm in high school) who are attracted to black males (probably not sexually though!) as people who they need to or must hang out with. They invite them to their house without establishing much of a friendship, and view them as a token object.

An example of this was when one of my friends was talking to me about a black kid from Boston who goes to our school. He was saying he had seen him play basketball and thought he was really good, but that he was a really stupid kid or in his words "He's like retarded". I had known this kid since kindergarden and was friends with him and I knew he wasn't studpid at all. Then in two weeks my friend who proclaimed my other friend as stupid, invited him over to spend the night so that he wouldn't have to make the longer commute from boston to our school. Now this can be looked at as an act of graciousness and friendship, but one has to question the motives about the invitation. I think this is an example of the perpetuation of the "cool" stereotype.

Now many interracial friendships are for real and hold real qualities, and this could be just something only I'm picking up on, but I've seen the perpetuation occur many times and I'm convinced that the image of the black male as the empitome of cool in the media has something to do with it because I'm affected by it and I think many whites (although mostly males) are too.

Besides the friendship aspect of the stereotype, there is also the reaction whites have to black people on television or in movies or video games, etc. When whites are choosing a character to fight with in a video game many times they will see the one or two black characters and proclaim them as the coolest and choose them. I've also seen this happen on TV where whites see black entertainers and think of them also as really cool.

If anybody has anything to say about any examples of this stereotype that they've come across or anything else on the topic, I'd like to hear about it.

Be Out (c) Mr. Lif

In discman: Illmatic

I'll be happy to announce that I am cool, I am wild and sexually erotic, I am hung like a horse, I am a sex object to white women, I can jump high, I can run fast, I can dance very well, I can roll a tight spliff, I am educated, I do work on computers for a living, I am smarter than most white people I've ever met, I do listen to the coolest hip hop (Grouch, Eligh, Lif, Scarub, Murs, Atmosphere, L'Roneous, Comm, Roots, Slum), I do listen to classical music (Mozart, Chopin, Vivaldi, Beethovin, Wagner), I do read books, I do like philosophy (Hermes, Pythagoras, Plato, Sidartha, Yeshua, Hypatia), I do study ancient history, I do know more about politics than upper middle class white folks, rich white folks, poor white folks and damn near everybody else for that matter, I do study the ancient orient, I do practice martial arts, I do lift weights, I do play basketball, I do play tennis, I do play golf, I do play chess, I do like a nice Martini (dry gin, shaken not stirred, lime, no olive), I do do a lot of things.

So where do I fit in your little stereotype?

>So where do I fit in
>your little stereotype?

That was unnecessary. Don't create a stereotype for yourself of not having anything constructive to say.

>That was unnecessary. Don't create
>a stereotype for yourself of
>not having anything constructive to
>say.

I thought it was very constructive! Heheh.. it made me laugh real good inside (dont wanna look like an idiot where i sit with others around)!

Stereotypes is something many come up with to
1) Make the world not seem so complicated and complex and therefore make it easier for you to look at the world (oh there goes a cool and hip young black man, that asian is onto some martial arts shit, oh look an african man with a kafka and a strange colourful hat - he's probably intellectual, look at that sexy chica - she has to love ricky martin)
2) Make it easier to classify who you want to meet
3) And of course so that you know who to avoid (if you are against a stereotype's opinion)

I too try to dig out my stereotypes. An impossible task, but just trying helps very much.

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"Most of our assumptions have outlived their uselessness." — Marshall McLuhan

maybe you have a constructive inferiority complex? I find that a lot of black people embrace "cool" black stereotypes but are quick to show just how well-rounded they are by detailing in excess all that may not fall into the "box"...don't worry, i'm here for you baby

"Forget the Dior bag, white men are the new carry-along"--Honey Mag.

"It's rude enough to be alive when no one wants you!"
Lord Farquaad

"When you fight for me, you fight for ALL black people!"
--Michael Jackson

I'd say you get a few "cool" points for the bold honesty. Other than that I guess my opinion doesn't count here since I am black and you're looking for the opinions of people who are other than black. I will say this though... its really easy for a black person to peep out the "I think you're dumb but cool" white approach more often than one may think.

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Perceptions of Black males?

go here and click on the link "watch Tokyo Breakfast":

http://stapled.lbox.org/tokyo.html
or
http://stapled.lbox.org/tokyobreakfast.asf

If you don't have a fast connection and can't view the movie, go to Yahoo and do a search for Tokyo Breakfast, it's a TV show in Japan.

oh my god, i can't believe that's a real show. i couldn't help but laugh though. i'm definitely passing this on to my people.
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See my response in the other place you put up the link - Gen. Discussion.

I grew up in a pretty much all White neighboorhoods, upon buying a house in one of the areas my family lived in..we found out that there was a still a law on the books (albeit an unenforeceable one) that made it illegal for Jews, Irish, Italians, Asians, Native Americans, Blacks, Catholics and pretty anyone who wasn't a WASP to buy property there.

So you can imagine that there was a dearth of people of color (of any sort) where I grew up.

In the middle of 7th Grade and again after 9th Grade, I switched Schools..(this happened when I started college too) Upon arriving I was INSTANTLY the coolest thing on two legs, EVERYONE wanted to be my friend.........I was COOL, I was the BLACK KID...(or at least one of 14 at my second school) people felt they could "catch" some of my coolness...they'd show me their Rap CDs, like little kids they'd show me the big speakers they had in their trunks, their Ice Cube Posters....their VHS copies of Boys-N-The-Hood, they ask me to go "Hoop" with them....etc, etc, Random women would come up to me and wax poetically about their love of Hip Hop......but after awhile....the "hype" died down.

Why?

I confused the shit out of people, the faux friends stop coming around when they can't figure out how to categorize you.

They expected a Jive Talking, Basketball Playing, Rap Music listening To, Stereotype out of movies and TV....but they didn't get that with me.

They got something else that was far different:

My parents are Braniacs (Phds both) who have a phenomenal command of the English Language, my Pop isn't even American....so guess how I talk?

Wasn't from the Ghetto, nor did I live in the poor part of town. I remember a friend's mom driving me home after soccer practice and just assuming that's where I lived (bad part of town), I recall saying... "No Mrs. Johnson I live over that way" and the strange look on her face.

Wasn't a "Fresh Air Kid" or a Foster child, as was usually the case with Black children who were in that area. GASP! A Black Kid who lives with his own HAPPY parents?! SHOCK and DISMAY!

I remember a AP History Class where the resident members of the Young Republican Club were Whispering that it must be: "Affirmative Action", I guess they figured a Black Man who is good at sports can't be smart. Imagine the looks on their faces when I got the only A...and had the highest average in the class.

Whenever we talked about current issues in class, I was always asked to give perspectives regarding the inner city/poor person....despite the fact that I told those idiots last time they asked the question that I don't have much to say on that....considering I never been there.

See..no matter what they saw/were told.....I was a Kid from the Ghetto who somehow managed to make into their neighboorhood and go to school....and I lived in poverty as well...this more of a high school thing however....people pretty much pegged me as a suburbanite in college.

Funny thing about stereotypes though.....despite being ranked in the top 10 of my class....I never won an Academic award of any significance. Besides "Most Improved Student" first semester of said AP History Class, funny...out of 1000 possible points that semester I got 997...how the eff is that Most Improved...and how did someone else get most outstanding...

Oh I know, I wasn't perceived as smart, not matter what the numbers said.

I wasn't the Class Clown they expected me to be either..I may crack jokes among friends but not in class....and was told that if I did Crack Jokes in Class.....I'd be more well liked...."You should try to be funnier around other people, and you'd have more friends".

Sucked at Basketball, although most of my classmates never found that out....seeing how I don't like to play.

Ok, I like Hip Hop.......some of it.......Tribe Called Quest is never far from my CD Player....but I like Pantera & Ani Difranco too.

Ok, I was a good Athlete Ran Track in High School and College.......damn good too.

The Sexuality? Well, I'm a fairly sexual person this is true.....I can't deny that..anyone who knows me knows that....although I don't think that sexuality is perceived the same when I don't portray other stereotypes.

I will admit that when I've dated White Women, I kind of hide that part of myself until I feel comfortable to the point of knowing that they aren't after some sort of Jungle Sex Fantasy.

With Asians/Latinas/Sistahs......I feel I can get Freaky from word go...

When I was recognized as Smart, I was quickly given the "Nerd" Label..in other words..if I am to be smart, i have to physically weak and socially inept. Hmm...never had social problems/good athlete/Bench Press 400+/ oh yeah.....I'm such a Nerd.

I won't even get into the shock of a lot of my college classmates when they learned that I had never done drugs.

I won't even get in the kids who thought I should grow an Afro or Dreds for there amusement.

In the end, I was a source of confusion for my classmates in secondary school as well as college. Upon seeing me they sought to put my in a predesigned stereotypical category, was I going to be the Joking Buffoon? The Athlete? The "Hip Hop Guy" the ladies man? Whoops none of those.........I had some of those characteristcs but not all......and I had a TON of other chracteristics that they never even thought I could have.

THIS is a testament to how hard it is to change racist attitudes, A LOT of White people only want to see Blacks in a certain way. If you don't fit the mold they'll say you're not Black, not in touch with your roots, etc, etc. In a sense, they're not ready to accept you as a Black person.

So even if the younger generation is more accepting of Blacks then the Older, we still have A LOOONG way to go.


Look at our society, a Black man who says: "I don't want people to see me as a Black CEO, I just want them to see me as a Good CEO" in other words...ignore my race...is more acceptable to most Whites then someone who says something like: "I'm a Black Man and I'm also a Black CEO...I want people to recognize that I'm also a damn good CEO and not treat me different because I'm Black" because the latter is recognizing his race and doesn't want to distance himself from it.

I see this particularly in conservative circles, where people who label something as Racism or merely state their race as part of their accomplishments are "trouble makers", "racially divisive" or "paranoid"


Anyway, I've said enough.........






Peace,







M2

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This was a solid post and definitely had a Bamboozledesque touch to it in regards to this idea of "black" representing "cool." Of course in doing so black males are dehumanized as they are reduced to a source of marketing while the depth of their character is ignored. The idea of black male=cool definitely is real. Black males give brand names cred, as well as music.

As a white kid, I think I understand why so many white teen males leech onto blacks as friends (not that they shouldn't be in the first place- but their reasoning is sketchy). Many whites are so intent on defending their love of hip hop, urban wear, etc...that they feel hanging out with blacks will give them more respect, more street legitimacy. It's like they can then say "see, I am down." It's a sad but understandable reality that whites who adopt hip hop culture do struggle for respect (although they shouldn't be so concerned with thier image).

This view of black males as some entity of coolness can be seen everywhere. No disrespect to Dilated (who I love), but don't you think having Iriscience on his side gives Ev credibility to some headz? Sad but true quite possibly...

Anyway- just some thoughts...

"I got no game it's just some bitches understand my story" - Nas

"Drink Bud Light beer with Buzz Lightyear."- RZA

"Socialism...let's hear that dirty word."-Jay Bulworth

the imperfect is our paradise - wallace stevens

of the best posts i've seen in a while. as a black woman i've been subject to some of the same. when i was in elementary school w/a bunch of jewish kids and got higher grades then they did they assumed the teacher always graded me on a curve or that i had help from someone. once they saw my mom who's fair skinned w/green eyes who holds a phd from yeshiva (one if the best jewish law schools in the country) they assumed she was half white and my intelligence had to have been passed down from a white gene. i was cool to everyone in hs and if there were alternatives motives for being a friend of mine once anyone got to know me that was out the door. the worst is now that i'm a student at an ivy league school people when it comes to social education projects about the education system in america i'm like the first person people look at to help them come up with ideas for their projects. i get questions like is public school really bad? do you feel bad haing to walk through all those metal detectors to get to class? and as always my answer is, how would i know? i've never even been to public school!!! i must say though that non-whites are not the only ones who put these kinds of stereotypes on us, we do it to. i can't tell you how many black people i met who just assume all of us were raised the same way or came from the ghetto and were the first in our family to go college. any it's good that the original poster is still in hs and realizes what's going on around him.

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What would you do if you could not fail?

Racism is: the treatment of someone based solely or partially on a preconceived idea of who they are based on their ethnic origins.
now that i've won your hearts by stating the obvious, isnt it safe to say that there is not one person who has no racist tendencies?


on the flip side of your post, i am white, during my third grade year my mom taught at a school in the inner city, i attended because 1: i had a ride there already, and 2: the school was having problems integrating, due to the extreme scarcity of white folk in the area. out of 700 i was one of maybe 10 caucasian bus babies.

anyway. upon my arrival at the school, i was accepted by everyone, whether it was good nature or some kind of uncle tom thing built in to even these 8 year old children, i dont know.
teachers loved me, but that is because i was really smart and did all my work. some friction built up between me and one kid, because he felt that the teachers were more inclined to like me because of race (not knowing that the spanish teacher was my mom, some thought she would drive me home everyday because we were both white) and i cant say that it wasnt completely. i was really innocent at the time, so i dont really recollect ever thinking about it.
anyway, i think that there was definitely some racism in a photonegative way symmetrical to what you are describing.


later, when i was beginning my sophomore year, i was the epitome of your description of the wannabe. that year though, i went to a boarding school in canada with people from something like 62 different countries, so not only did i have African-american classmates, but also African. and Caribbean, etc. not until after i left that school did i realize that my prejudices did not extend to my Senegalese(?) or South African friends. Point to ponder.

I'm cooler than Al Green in sharkskin suit with some gators.
I'm cooler than frozen quarter water and a spoon.
I'm cooler than candy painted Ford Festiva.

But does my actual coolness or percieved coolness, color my relationships with members of different ethnicities?

Yes. But it's inescapable. I can't control how others percieve me. I can just be myself, and hope that the next man has a broader experience with the Afrikan in order to understand where I'm coming from.

peace
k. orr

http://breddanansi.tumblr.com/

i see a helluva lot of this, and i wish that more white people would look inside themselves for these things, even though it may be uncomfortable. and keep looking. and think about these beliefs and how dumb they are and get them the hell out of their systems.


==**peace**==

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It can not be just white people who have stereotypes, it isn't something that have been invented by europeans. There are probably stereotypes with all other races as and nationalities as well - asian, you.. even the abourgines(?) in australia!

I've been looking critically at anybody with even abit white colour the last days only because I have started digging in the endless field of debattes on racism, prejudice and now stereotypes. And I have looked at my opinions and way of looking at the whole picture (i'm european living in spain).. I'm 100% sure you also have stereotypes, just like me and probably many many other humans.

Even if some cultures have it less than others (because different cultures have different ways of looking at life), all must have at least some. Even the neighbour village! Your enemy. Or the stereotype of a mother or uncle! I live in europe and must have a western way of thinking, but from what I know of this world even an african tribe would have created stereotypes of how the enemy tribe is. Or indians of chineese.

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"Most of our assumptions have outlived their uselessness." — Marshall McLuhan

stereotypes are our natural way to cope with the world

people do not want to live in fear, and at a young age stereotypes beign to develop to explain things ...

if i see alot of girls that don't play sports, and then i see a guy that doesn't play sports, guess what? "you throw like a girl"
if you grew up in a huge house, and you go to my house - "damn, your house is small"
and of course, what stereotypes are usually visualized as is someone watching the news and seeing black male after black male arrested and thinking "damn, are they all like that?"

the thing about racial stereotypes in america is that they have been unequally utilized... stereotypes against immigrants and african americans have been systematically used to oppress and are the reason for many current conditions (i.e. the mostly minority prescence in inner cities and jails). stereotypes against whites have not been used in this manner, so while they are the same in principle, they do not carry the same realistic weight


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white people are more afraid to discuss their stereotypes and prejudices, while brown people wave them about more freely and believe in them less, knowing intrinsically that stereotypes are all bs and hurtful. the more a stereotype has been unfairly pinned on you the more hurtful you realize they are-

given that preconception (note again, as always, that white and brown are approximate terms), i tend to be offended by comments like yours.

==**peace**==

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>white people are more afraid to
>discuss their stereotypes and prejudices

Check this quote from the post you're replying to:

"After taking a long look at the different stereotypes I hold against minorities..."

Does this disprove your point? No, and that's not what I'm looking to do. Just putting this in because your 1st reply seemed to ignore the whole purpose of the original post (at least that was my perspective).

>Just putting this in because
>your 1st reply seemed to
>ignore the whole purpose of
>the original post (at least
>that was my perspective).

On 2nd thought, maybe you were commending the original poster. I don't know, you tell me...

I'm a white kid who grew up in inner-city Cincinnati, and unfortunately sometimes I find myself thinking along those same stereotypical lines. I went to public schools in downtown Cincy, and whites were minorities. Yeah I thought that black kids were the cool ones and tried to do what they did on the playgroud - run fast, play basketball - and in the classroom - this was a somewhat selective elementary school (Sands Montessori for anyone from Cincy, no cost but had to take a placement test) and everyone was smart so I tried to be like the smart kids in class.

Being so young this probably wasn't racial - just another kid tryin to make it in a confusing new environment (school is scary). I guess I tried to emulate black kids b/c that's what I grew up with. This crippled me in high school though - I had underdeveloped skills relating to the suburban white kids who went to school there (again public school but selective - more placement tests. The school was 50/50 and is the best academic school in Cincy, public or private), and the black kids began to develop a racial identity and looked to each other for support. High school sucked - everyone had stereotypes but instead of simplifying things for me they effed it all up b/c I guess mine were backwards or something. Hmm backwards stereotypes now there's a messy concept - a "backwards" stereotype implies a "correct" stereotype... but that's off topic.

Now I'm at U. of Michigan and I've really tried to cast off these ideas - I have friends from everywhere and every color. But sometimes I catch myself falling back into old patterns - yeah subconsciously I think of the black kids as the "cool" ones. Our culture perpetuates these stereotypes, but the circumstances that create the stereotype is important too - I guess that's what I'm tryin to say.

Peace
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- Goethe

interesting topic,as much as others sterotypes of us black males have held us down,the damage done by stereotypes of ourselves have hurt us more.if we could just understand that we can achieve anything humanely possible.Hip-hop has expressed this sentiment effectively,but we need to apply it to all aspects of our society.Same for the sisters.
peace.

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Blessed be the Lord /who believe any mess they read up on the message board

...and every individual makes a choice to agree with the information that was passed down to them via the media and other people.

It is up to the individual to break these agreements. My father is a Black man and he was a negative influence but I did not think that every Black man was like my father. The negative charateristics of Black men portrayed by the media did not match the qualities of all of the Black men in my life. I rejected those stereotypes and let each person influence my perception through their actions. I even learned to look beyond those actions and consider that some Black men were imitating these stereotypes.

People love to say that society or media is to blame. They never make an effort to reject or break the agreement with society that places Black men and Black people at the bottom of the socio-political ladder. These people even perpetuate the institutionalized racism Black men and Black people experience. They become part of the problem.

"Know thyself"

"Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, "I will never leave you or forsake you". So we may boldly say, "The Lord is my helper, I will not fear. What can man do to me?"
-- Hebrews 13:5,6

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