Donald Trump is a textbook racist

[PeachyKeane]

Good question actually.
Are these things cultural, or genetic?
Isn't it only 'racism' if you adhere values to races, like supremacy or inferiority?

What about "but all black people like fried chicken, grape soda and watermelon!"

Is it inferior or superior? Is it racist?

How about:
"You're black, you must be able to withstand a lot of sunshine."
Is that racist?

I have an opinion on it. What do you think?

 

[Hieronymus]

What about "but all black people like fried chicken, grape soda and watermelon!"

Is it inferior or superior? Is it racist?

That's just an untrue statement.
But it's neither negative nor positive i.m.h.o.
I'm Dutch, so i probably like cheese.
And yes, i do like cheese, Dutch cheese that is.
Does that make me better or worse than a Frenchman who likes cheese that smells like satan's socks?
Well, neither obviously.

I have an opinion on it. What do you think?

I don't know.
I don't think it's racist, but it certainly has to do with ethnicity.

 

[PeachyKeane]

That's just an untrue statement.
But it's neither negative nor positive i.m.h.o.
I'm Dutch, so i probably like cheese.
And yes, i do like cheese, Dutch cheese that is.
Does that make me better or worse than a Frenchman who likes cheese that smells like satan's socks?
Well, neither obviously.

But is it racist?

I don't know.
I don't think it's racist, but it certainly has to do with ethnicity.

Would you think someone with pale skin more likely to burn in the sun? Is that reasonable?

 

[Hieronymus]

But is it racist?

Hmm... French and Dutch are probably very similar, ethnically speaking..
Most of the indigenous people in Europe are 'crossbreeds' so to speak.
either way, i didn't mean it in a racist way, although it confounds me how they can keep certain cheeses inside..

Would you think someone with pale skin more likely to burn in the sun? Is that reasonable?

It is a fact that white people, especially 'gingers' get easily sunburnt.

 

[jazzflower92]

I will bite the bullet and go through the article on a point-by-point basis.



The author of the article, Dr. Pearson, immediately attempts to establish himself as an authority that is above the average reader. "As a professor..." The reality is that no one needs to be a professor to determine whether or not someone like the president is a racist. And by the author's use of "scholarly definition," I am expecting him to provide a definition that does not match what one would find in a standard English dictionary (i.e., he has changed the definition so that Donald Trump fits his own definition of a "racist").


I cannot say I am surprised by the definition he provides. There has been a recent phenomenon in the black community where racism now means "prejudice + power." And, to no one's surprise, Dr. Pearson is a black man (Jay A. Pearson | Scholars@Duke). The only website that I can find which supports his definition of racism is SJWiki:
Prejudice plus power - SJWiki

Consider, however, which dictionaries support the actual definition of racism:

• Cambridge Dictionary - the belief that people's qualities are influenced by their race and that the members of other races are not as good as the members of your own, or the resulting unfair treatment of members of other races
• Oxford Dictionary - Prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one's own race is superior.
• Merriam-Webster - a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race
  
• Encyclopedia Britannica - Racism, also called racialism , any action, practice, or belief that reflects the racial worldview—the ideology that humans may be divided into separate and exclusive biological entities called “races”; that there is a causal link between inherited physical traits and traits of personality, intellect, morality, and other cultural and behavioral features; and that some races are innately superior to others. Since the late 20th century the notion of biological race has been recognized as a cultural invention, entirely without scientific basis.
• Collins English Dictionary - Racism is the belief that people of some races are inferior to others, and the behaviour which is the result of this belief.

In fact, I challenge you to provide one example of a reputable English dictionary that provides the same definition of racism as Dr. Pearson. Since Dr. Pearson did not substantiate half of his definition, I will operate on the definition of racism that I have just established (prejudice + power).


While I disagree with Dr. Pearson regarding "the scientifically discredited concept of biological race," I believe this statement is perfectly fine. I have no objections.


In case the reader had forgotten, Dr. Pearson is a scholar. He is at least one mark ahead of you, the reader. He, as a scholar, knows that scholars break racism into those categories. I am not so convinced. And I am not convinced mainly because Dr. Pearson forgets to provide any citation so as to support his claim that "scholars" do that. And his sentence structure suggests that all scholars break racism into those categories. Of course, we all know this is false. Yet Dr. Pearson does not even attempt to justify his claim with a citation. Seems lack a rather unscholarly thing to do.


And the examples are...nothing. Dr. Pearson fails to provide one example of President Trump expressing "bias through government orders and the presidential bully pulpit." So, Dr. Pearson fails to show "systematic racism."


It is convenient that Dr. Pearson does not list the reason why Trump though Judge Gonzalo Curiel "could not fairly arbitrate lawsuits related to Trump University." Of course, the reason has nothing to do with "structural racism." Here was the reason that President Trump provided:

“[Judge Curiel] is a member of a club or society, very strongly pro-Mexican, which is all fine,” Trump told CBS’s John Dickerson. “But I say he’s got bias.” The club Trump was referring to was La Raza Lawyers; an organization with the stated mission “to promote the interests of the Latino communities throughout the state.”

Translated, “la raza” means “the race.” Imagine the outcry if white attorneys from Mississippi, such as this author, started a a legal association called “The Race” with the stated mission to promote the interest of white, Southern communities. Hollywood stars and entertainers, such as Bryan Adams, would boycott the state in perpetuity. (Donald Trump Is Correct To Hit ‘La Raza’ Judge For Latino Identity Politics - Breitbart)
​

Trump, along with many others, believed President Obama to have been born outside of the US. Dr. Pearson attributes a racist motive to Trump, but he does not substantiate it (this is going to be a theme throughout the article). Unless Dr. Pearson can show that Trump's motivation for questioning Obama's place of birth was racist, then no one is going to be convinced that President Trump engaged in "symbolic racism."


This was a bit dishonest. Donald Trump cut one grant that went to a group who specifically dealt with white supremacist extremism. That is really not that big of a deal given the following:

The agency said the grants, awarded under the Combatting Violent Extremism program, will target "all forms of violent extremism, including the rising threat from Islamist terrorism." Spokesman David Lapan this week denied the program is now concentrating only on Islamic extremism. (Trump slashes grant for group combatting white extremism)​

So, Trump did not cut "programs to combat right-wing fascism and white supremacy" (such programs never existed). Rather, he cut one grant that went to a group based in Chicago who combated right-wing fascism and white supremacy. Regarding Peurto Rico:

The Trump administration requested an additional $4.9 billion in additional emergency funding for Puerto Rico on Tuesday in order to avoid a looming financial crisis on the island, according to Politico.​

The new emergency aid will bundle into the aid package requested by the White House last week for hurricane aid, bringing its total to nearly $35 million. (Trump seeks additional $4.9 billion in Puerto Rico aid)
​

It really does sound like Trump was stingy with the aid, huh? Very clear evidence of "institutional racism."


This really makes me question whether or not Dr. Pearson is actually the "scholar" he claims to be. "According to a growing number of mental health professionals." Who? How many? Citations? Why has Dr. Pearson left all of this out? This cannot be taken as evidence of "insidious racism" because it has not been substantiated. Regarding the Khan family, I had no issue with Trump taking them on. They were extremely disrespectful to Trump. So why would he not return the favor? If he was unprovoked then I might agree with Dr. Pearson, but he was not. But merely pointing out Trump's spat with a South Asian family does not mean he had racist motives. Again, Dr. Pearson is attributing motives to Trump. It does not prove "interpersonal racism."


Other than Dr. Pearson not providing any citations, what difference does any of this make? Trump is not the one decreasing social security for immigrant populations. He is not bullying them in school. He is not harassing them in the streets. Nothing Trump has said about immigrants is racist. And Dr. Pearson doesn't seem to think so either, as he did not make the claim. None of what Dr. Pearson said here proves "internalized racism."

Even if not everyone won't agree with you on it, at least you put it in a smart way to prove your point.

 

[Phil 1:21]

"Calling everyone you don't like a racist isn't a viable debate point." -the American People 11/08/2016

 

[Yonny Costopoulis]

What is often ignored is that racism in the United States is less about the target and more about defining what is white, and what is not white.

I believe term is BINGO! Trump response is so often based on this.

*White* Nazis and KKK marching and chanting racist slogans and carrying burning torches? Some are "very fine people". *Black* NFL players take a knee in silent peaceful protest? "Disrespecting all the men and women who have died for our great country!"

"They (Blacks) are trying to steal our (White) heritage."

Accusing Puerto Rico people of being lazy (While Trump is sitting at luxury golf resort playing golf):

Donald J. Trump

✔@realDonaldTrump
...want everything to be done for them when it should be a community effort. 10,000 Federal workers now on Island doing a fantastic job.

 

[Ygrene Imref]

But is it racist?



Would you think someone with pale skin more likely to burn in the sun? Is that reasonable?

Part of the reason the statement is ignorant is because it is based on a stereotype - that Black people like to eat fried foods, particularly chicken.

Where the ignorance comes in is in the origin of the phrase, and the operable purpose. This was a commentary about the slave food African Americans were forced to eat because of their destitution.

People will less melanin have less protection from ultraviolent radiation, so your latter statement would be reasonable.

 

[SummerMadness]

Uhm, no.
Ethnicity is a matter of descent through procreation, which is biology.Maybe you think procreation is not biological??Well, if you hadn't tripped over the term 'race' you would have read that i said "people often refer to as 'races'" or similar wording.It's recorded history, my friend.
Google it.You have no point.

May I ask what your level of biology education is? You have again repeated an incorrect statement. Ethnicity is related to culture, it is not "biological."

These people are all Hispanic, they did not pass on their ethnicity through procreation. The problem here is you are trying to attribute race to being biological, but race is a social construct.

No one tripped over anything, you are simply incorrect in your argument.

 

[mark kennedy]

I don't think Trump is a racist, he is many things but not a racist. I have a bigger problem with the way he talks about other people in derogatory terms and can't be trusted to be honest.

 

[samir]

Donald Trump is a textbook racist

Before some of you fly off the handle, it would be best to actually read the piece and respond to the specific points the author is making. It would also help that you speak in the context of the definitions provided instead of your own conception of racism.

Scholars break racism into multiple categories:

• Structural racism: Assigning social value to human populations contingent on misperceptions of inherent differences.
• Symbolic racism: Rhetoric that delegitimizes others.
• Institutional racism: Incorporating and formalizing misperceptions of differences into society through public policy.
• Interpersonal racism: Acting on such misperceptions in direct or face-to-face interactions.
• Insidious racism: Unconscious belief in and perpetuation of these phenomena.
• Internalized racism: Among victimized populations, accepting and manifesting negative portrayals.
• Systemic racism: The influence of these phenomena at multiple levels and across multiple dimensions of society.

That explains Hillary's "basket of deplorables" statement that half of Trump's supporters are racist. Using those categories, you could probably label over 100 million Americans as being racists.

 

[szechuan]

That explains Hillary's "basket of deplorables" statement that half of Trump's supporters are racist. Using those categories, you could probably label over 100 million Americans as being racists.

Then why do republicans get to label all Democrats as Communist SJW Snowflakes?

 

[Hieronymus]

May I ask what your level of biology education is? You have again repeated an incorrect statement. Ethnicity is related to culture, it is not "biological."

Actually it can mean both cultural and biological.

These people are all Hispanic, they did not pass on their ethnicity through procreation. The problem here is you are trying to attribute race to being biological, but race is a social construct.

So you keep repeating, but we can all see man of Asian decent, a woman of Caucasian (maybe hispanic / Mediterranean) descent and a man of African descent in the pictures.
And that's a matter of descent, which is biological.
Does that mean one is better than the other?
No it doesn't.

No one tripped over anything, you are simply incorrect in your argument.

No i'm not.

 

[Ana the Ist]

Donald Trump is a textbook racist

Before some of you fly off the handle, it would be best to actually read the piece and respond to the specific points the author is making. It would also help that you speak in the context of the definitions provided instead of your own conception of racism.

Scholars break racism into multiple categories:

• Structural racism: Assigning social value to human populations contingent on misperceptions of inherent differences.
• Symbolic racism: Rhetoric that delegitimizes others.
• Institutional racism: Incorporating and formalizing misperceptions of differences into society through public policy.
• Interpersonal racism: Acting on such misperceptions in direct or face-to-face interactions.
• Insidious racism: Unconscious belief in and perpetuation of these phenomena.
• Internalized racism: Among victimized populations, accepting and manifesting negative portrayals.
• Systemic racism: The influence of these phenomena at multiple levels and across multiple dimensions of society.

I don't think he's racist against textbooks...

 

[StevenBelievin]

Is that a crime?

lol

 

[StevenBelievin]

I'm sure that Trump would disagree that he's a racist, and would agree that black lives matter..

I'm also sure that most left wing liberals would tend to paint all right wing conservatives as racists.

 

[blackribbon]

I love the "Mexican is not a race!" argument as if this suddenly changes the inherent bigotry. It also flies in the face of how the police pick people out based on their skin color. I have a friend who is Argentinian, and she would often speak of people's racist statements to her thinking that because she was white, then she was not Hispanic. Hispanic is an ethnicity, but for bigots, they treat it like race. It's the same as "Islam is a religion!" argument. Yes, it is, but that doesn't stop bigots from looking at skin color and assuming people of a particular complexion are Muslim (hence the fear that many people of South Asian descent feel).

What is often ignored is that racism in the United States is less about the target and more about defining what is white, and what is not white. That's the reason you end with products labeled "Normal to Dark Skin" (systemic racism).

Anyone who looks at a Arab or Asian and assumes anything about their religion is a fool. They can be Muslin, Christian (like the Caldeans), Buddist, Hindu, and a mess load of a bunch of other religion. I would never assume and always do ask. They speak a wide variety of languages and dialects too.

Mexican is not a race. It is country with multiple cultures. Hispanic is a heritage but Latino is more specific since people from Spain are Hispanic. It also isn't a skin color since Latinos have a range of skin color from very light to very dark.

Most people aren't stupid and realize that the color of your skin doesn't mean you have one culture or one religion. To continue this stereotype doesn't accomplish anything..

 

[AirPo]

So if I were to say "My son shouldn't have to compete against Asians for a scholarship because they have an unfair advantage in math and science."

Or.

"I just need a Jew to take care of my money."

Or.

"You're black, you must be good at basketball."

You would not consider those racist comments?

I wouldn't, but then I'm old school. There was a time when racist was more nuanced the just a synonym of bigotry. That's what I think of when I hear the word racist.

 

[Goonie]

Wow, he’s that bad he’s racist about textbooks!

 

[SummerMadness]

Wow, he’s that bad he’s racist about textbooks!

I see what you did there.

But in this case "textbook" modifies "racist." But maybe it's a phrase like attorney general, so we're actually calling Trump a book.