Racists Anonymous: "Hi, I'm Bonnie, and I'm a Racist

SummerMadness

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"Hi, I'm Bonnie, and I'm a Racist"
On a September evening at the United Church of Christ in Sunnyvale, California, a dozen people are sitting in folding chairs arranged in a circle. Nearby, a plastic folding table is topped with cookies and fruit. (Coffee is notably absent.) The setup is basically that of an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, except that the group, mostly older and mostly white, isn't here to deal with chemical dependency. Rather, they have decided they want to better understand their own prejudices and take part in productive conversations about race.

Welcome to Racists Anonymous, the brainchild of the Reverend Ron Buford, the church's pastor. Buford, who is black, was fed up with attending race talks where either he left feeling angry or white attendees left feeling guilty. During the presidential campaign, he watched Donald Trump and others sow racial division, and he decided to fight back. What would happen, he thought, if we treated racism like a disease, one that all of us suffer from?
Interesting.
 

SummerMadness

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BubbaJack

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This part of the article is weird:

"Also important, Buford says, is to lower the bar for what counts as "racist." Racism here is defined as any judgment based on someone's external difference—not just skin color, but also things like gender and sexual orientation."

That's not what the dictionary says. Can we add height to that? Or weight?
 
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SummerMadness

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Anyone who thinks race is an important subject, is a racist.
You are correct. Just like anyone that thinks crime is an important subject is a criminal. Just as those that think drunk driving is an important subject are drunk drivers.
 
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SummerMadness

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This part of the article is weird:

"Also important, Buford says, is to lower the bar for what counts as "racist." Racism here is defined as any judgment based on someone's external difference—not just skin color, but also things like gender and sexual orientation."

That's not what the dictionary says. Can we add height to that? Or weight?
Race is a social construct, that's why there used to be an Irish race. For the purposes of this group, they likely wanted to address multiple forms of bigotry, not just skin color.
 
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BubbaJack

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Race is a social construct, that's why there used to be an Irish race. For the purposes of this group, they likely wanted to address multiple forms of bigotry, not just skin color.

He wants to call "bigotry" against gender "racism." Does this preacher need a dictionary?
 
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LivingWordUnity

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By liberal standards of what constitutes racism everyone is a racist.

It's overplayed, like the story of the boy who cried wolf.

So when someone actually is a racist people think it's another false alarm.
 
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SkyWriting

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You are correct. Just like anyone that thinks crime is an important subject is a criminal. Just as those that think drunk driving is an important subject are drunk drivers.

I have multiple race family members. It's a non issue.
I've been in multi-race and ultra-low minority situations
where I live and work. The problem only goes away if
you let it go.
 
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bhsmte

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By liberal standards of what constitutes racism everyone is a racist.

It's overplayed, like the story of the boy who cried wolf.

So when someone actually is a racist people think it's another false alarm.
Well racism does exist, from all races. With that said, it does seem to be invogue to claim racism, without evidence to support the same. IMO, not a productive way to move forward and quite racist within itself.
 
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SummerMadness

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I have multiple race family members. It's a non issue.
I've been in multi-race and ultra-low minority situations
where I live and work. The problem only goes away if
you let it go.
You are correct again. The Civil Rights Movement was successful because they ignored racism.
 
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SkyWriting

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You are correct again. The Civil Rights Movement was successful because they ignored racism.

Let's just say it was an abject failure compared to the LGBT methods used.
No riots, no firehoses, no mass hatred of the system, dismantling of social structures, rejection of populist values, etc.
 
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