JFC this is all so exhausting. I have brothers and sisters married to black people. You can tell the difference in how we are all treated when we go out to dinner or any function. We all have to worry what is in our food and the looks and comments that come with it all.
Then add that a nephew is transitioning but before that he was with women while he was still female. Why in the EVER LOVING FUCK doesn't society MIND ITS OWN FUCKING BUSINESS. I swear it's really hard not to hate people. They make the world a much harder and worse place to live.
Nov 6, 2023·edited Nov 6, 2023Liked by Stephen Robinson
I'm at work now, so I'll have to watch this later. But on a somewhat related note, I'd like to recommend the books "Funny in Farsi" and "Laughing Without an Accent." They're humorous memoirs by an Iranian woman who grew up in the States and married a French guy. (That's why she has a French last name, you see)
Edit: I forgot to mention the author's name! It's Firoozeh Dumas.
Traveling as a white guy, I have frequently had issues. Sometimes the security lines are long, the ticketing counter rarely upgrades me to first class for free, and there is often not enough room in the overhead bin for my carry-on. So I definitely know the struggles.
Years ago, I lived in Cambridge, and walking home one evening through the Commons, I was stopped by an older white gentleman who I think was a Harvard professor. He asked me if I was Indian (yes); if I was from Kerala (my parents are from there); and if I knew Arundhati Roy and whether I attended her lecture at Harvard sometime back (yes, and no, it was a busy time in my life, and her lecture wasn't on my radar). He went on and on about her and let me know I should look up and listen to X,Y,Z lectures. He told me, "be sure to listen to them and get to know your sister Indians. Good bye." And then he walked away, leaving me wondering if an old white dude just told me I'm a bad Indian. (I mean, I am, but that's not for him to decide in 2 min.)
After 44 years, when we meet other gay couples they are astonished that we made it this far. I have learned to keep my mouth shut when we get stopped by police because he's driving while Black. We look very carefully at neighborhoods before moving in, and we know we'll never be on the best-dressed list there . There have been times when I forgot about our different skin colors, but he can never forget. I have been carefully examined by TSA more often than he has despite being over 70. Maybe the TSA is trying to show their disapproval.
Nov 6, 2023·edited Nov 6, 2023Liked by Stephen Robinson
Uh. I though we figured this one out long ago. Passporting while not white will get you detained for sure and maybe arrested. Passporting with your biracial children while black, you're guilty of something and you're in jail until they figure out what.
I'm a white male and have been pulled off an airplane by TSA for test equipment was in my checked luggage. Went in the back and there were two armed TSA folk who looked sad that I was the bag owner. The TSA guy with the bag opened asked what it was and I said, as any fool could plainly see, it was a potentiostat. He asked why I didn't just rent one in town. Right, like you are going to find a potentiostat in the one tiny rental shop in Skagway, Alaska.
Call me a child of the 60s, but I recall when my mother came to me and with distress in her voice said: "your cousin thinks she's in love with a black boy!" and my reaction was "oh? What is this guy like?" and my dad's reaction was "I can't believe you just said that". I said "I'd have to meet the guy and make an assessment of all of him, not just his skin color."
I remember seeing the movie Patch of Blue as a little kid and asking my mother why people were being so mean to Sidney Potier's character and she explained "because he's black" which made no sense at the time.
The TSA agent was nice enough to me when I got pulled for extra screening once, but I got the impression from them that they thought it was a waste of time to screen me and I suspect I was the token middle-aged white guy who got picked that day so his boss could say, "See? It's totally random!"
Also I'm polyamorous. My partner (also biracial) is visibly East Asian. If I were to also date another East Asian person, I would get "oh, he has a fetish". If I were to also date someone dark-skinned, I would get "oh, he doesn't like white people". If I were to also date a white person, nobody would bat an eye, because that's the 'default'.
My youngest grands are ¼ blah. With dishwater blond hair and blue eyes, one would never know. That said, a great grand could be darker. We gotta get past this racial/religious nonsense Wonks, we really do.
I'm the product of a biracial marriage. I'm pretty obviously Not White though sometimes I can pass as "just a tan". I was pulled over for 'special screening' 9 out of every 10 flights I took after 9/11. We are not even slightly a 'post-racial society'.
Interestingly it used to be in mostly white countries that you were considerd white if one of your parents was white, because white was the norm and you don't insult a white man by saying that his son isn't white. Somehow that flipped at some point to where the non-white parts are culturally dominant. I don't get it. Either of the two, but especially the change.
Nov 6, 2023·edited Nov 6, 2023Liked by Stephen Robinson
It can take real life experience to get the message across that non-white people are treated differently than white people in identical scenarios. My lovely lady had a coworker, a 60-ish year old white woman, who was dating a dark skinned Dominican man. She would be flabbergasted at some of the stories she was told, especially the ones about being accosted by police. She grew up fairly insulated from these things in a mostly white town, like I did, but unlike her, I wasn't surprised at all. It really opened her eyes to see how her manager at Lowe's was treated. He was a Rwandan immigrant who spoke 3-4 languages but his accent and skin color made him the target of a lot of abuse from customers. They would ask to see a manager and when his response was "I'm the manager" they would say they wanted to see a "real manager".
It took things like this to open her eyes as to how things were and still are. She really had no idea.
Now we have to eat the NO-fun, UN-fun, nuggies, like a common 3rd grader in the cul-de-sacs. 3 rd world country on our way.
"Nearly 30,000 pounds of dinosaur-shaped chicken nuggets are being recalled because they may be contaminated with metal pieces, the United States Department of Agriculture said Saturday.
The recall is for Tyson Foods' 29-ounce plastic bag packages containing frozen, "fully cooked fun nuggets breaded shaped chicken patties" with a "best by" date of Sept. 4, 2024, officials said. "
Inspector: (continuing) And what is this one: Spring Surprise?
Mr. Hilton: Ah, that's one of our specialities. Covered in dark, velvety chocolate, when you pop it into your mouth, stainless steel bolts spring out and plunge straight through both cheeks.
Inspector: Then we have number four. Number four: Crunchy Frog. Am I right in thinking there's a real frog in 'ere?
This is exactly why these manufacturers require strict regulations that are enforced by an independent agency that has eyes and ears on the process at ALL times.
Deregulation is dangerous and foolish. Accidents happen and caustic covert cost-cutting is an all too common practice in the United States of Avarice.
One time I was hanging with a friend when some of his coworkers showed up and almost immediately starting throwing the n word around. I kept my mouth shut for a few minutes and finally quietly said, "My wife is black." They all immediately went silent and I'm glad my friend didn't let on I'd made it up.
Nov 6, 2023·edited Nov 6, 2023Liked by Stephen Robinson
You might want to interview https://www.facebook.com/epsteinandhassan?mibextid=ZbWKwL who has been doing off broadway theater about this subject for years, after his wife passed, he continued on in her honor, and recently developed an intense following among young Chinese women who flock to the performances based on great word of mouth about the liberating themes.
JFC this is all so exhausting. I have brothers and sisters married to black people. You can tell the difference in how we are all treated when we go out to dinner or any function. We all have to worry what is in our food and the looks and comments that come with it all.
Then add that a nephew is transitioning but before that he was with women while he was still female. Why in the EVER LOVING FUCK doesn't society MIND ITS OWN FUCKING BUSINESS. I swear it's really hard not to hate people. They make the world a much harder and worse place to live.
"Why in the EVER LOVING FUCK doesn't society MIND ITS OWN FUCKING BUSINESS. "
Power
https://planamag.com/white-supremacy-is-systemic-narcissism/
I never put narcissism together with white supremacy/racism but makes sense.
I'm at work now, so I'll have to watch this later. But on a somewhat related note, I'd like to recommend the books "Funny in Farsi" and "Laughing Without an Accent." They're humorous memoirs by an Iranian woman who grew up in the States and married a French guy. (That's why she has a French last name, you see)
Edit: I forgot to mention the author's name! It's Firoozeh Dumas.
I love those books!! Great recommendation.
Traveling as a white guy, I have frequently had issues. Sometimes the security lines are long, the ticketing counter rarely upgrades me to first class for free, and there is often not enough room in the overhead bin for my carry-on. So I definitely know the struggles.
Years ago, I lived in Cambridge, and walking home one evening through the Commons, I was stopped by an older white gentleman who I think was a Harvard professor. He asked me if I was Indian (yes); if I was from Kerala (my parents are from there); and if I knew Arundhati Roy and whether I attended her lecture at Harvard sometime back (yes, and no, it was a busy time in my life, and her lecture wasn't on my radar). He went on and on about her and let me know I should look up and listen to X,Y,Z lectures. He told me, "be sure to listen to them and get to know your sister Indians. Good bye." And then he walked away, leaving me wondering if an old white dude just told me I'm a bad Indian. (I mean, I am, but that's not for him to decide in 2 min.)
Whitesplaining is so fucking obnoxious.
(waves in old cantab)
After 44 years, when we meet other gay couples they are astonished that we made it this far. I have learned to keep my mouth shut when we get stopped by police because he's driving while Black. We look very carefully at neighborhoods before moving in, and we know we'll never be on the best-dressed list there . There have been times when I forgot about our different skin colors, but he can never forget. I have been carefully examined by TSA more often than he has despite being over 70. Maybe the TSA is trying to show their disapproval.
Uh. I though we figured this one out long ago. Passporting while not white will get you detained for sure and maybe arrested. Passporting with your biracial children while black, you're guilty of something and you're in jail until they figure out what.
https://i.imgflip.com/22710h.jpg
I'm a white male and have been pulled off an airplane by TSA for test equipment was in my checked luggage. Went in the back and there were two armed TSA folk who looked sad that I was the bag owner. The TSA guy with the bag opened asked what it was and I said, as any fool could plainly see, it was a potentiostat. He asked why I didn't just rent one in town. Right, like you are going to find a potentiostat in the one tiny rental shop in Skagway, Alaska.
Call me a child of the 60s, but I recall when my mother came to me and with distress in her voice said: "your cousin thinks she's in love with a black boy!" and my reaction was "oh? What is this guy like?" and my dad's reaction was "I can't believe you just said that". I said "I'd have to meet the guy and make an assessment of all of him, not just his skin color."
I remember seeing the movie Patch of Blue as a little kid and asking my mother why people were being so mean to Sidney Potier's character and she explained "because he's black" which made no sense at the time.
Or at any time since then.
The TSA agent was nice enough to me when I got pulled for extra screening once, but I got the impression from them that they thought it was a waste of time to screen me and I suspect I was the token middle-aged white guy who got picked that day so his boss could say, "See? It's totally random!"
Also I'm polyamorous. My partner (also biracial) is visibly East Asian. If I were to also date another East Asian person, I would get "oh, he has a fetish". If I were to also date someone dark-skinned, I would get "oh, he doesn't like white people". If I were to also date a white person, nobody would bat an eye, because that's the 'default'.
My youngest grands are ¼ blah. With dishwater blond hair and blue eyes, one would never know. That said, a great grand could be darker. We gotta get past this racial/religious nonsense Wonks, we really do.
I'm the product of a biracial marriage. I'm pretty obviously Not White though sometimes I can pass as "just a tan". I was pulled over for 'special screening' 9 out of every 10 flights I took after 9/11. We are not even slightly a 'post-racial society'.
Interestingly it used to be in mostly white countries that you were considerd white if one of your parents was white, because white was the norm and you don't insult a white man by saying that his son isn't white. Somehow that flipped at some point to where the non-white parts are culturally dominant. I don't get it. Either of the two, but especially the change.
Heavy beige is the mark of the Muslim, you know.
It can take real life experience to get the message across that non-white people are treated differently than white people in identical scenarios. My lovely lady had a coworker, a 60-ish year old white woman, who was dating a dark skinned Dominican man. She would be flabbergasted at some of the stories she was told, especially the ones about being accosted by police. She grew up fairly insulated from these things in a mostly white town, like I did, but unlike her, I wasn't surprised at all. It really opened her eyes to see how her manager at Lowe's was treated. He was a Rwandan immigrant who spoke 3-4 languages but his accent and skin color made him the target of a lot of abuse from customers. They would ask to see a manager and when his response was "I'm the manager" they would say they wanted to see a "real manager".
It took things like this to open her eyes as to how things were and still are. She really had no idea.
There are a lot of us white people who cannot grasp that someone darker skinned than us can be smarter and more accomplished.
"I'd like to see a real manager."
"I'd like to see a real bigot. Guess what -- we're both in luck!"
Where is it gonna end?
Now we have to eat the NO-fun, UN-fun, nuggies, like a common 3rd grader in the cul-de-sacs. 3 rd world country on our way.
"Nearly 30,000 pounds of dinosaur-shaped chicken nuggets are being recalled because they may be contaminated with metal pieces, the United States Department of Agriculture said Saturday.
The recall is for Tyson Foods' 29-ounce plastic bag packages containing frozen, "fully cooked fun nuggets breaded shaped chicken patties" with a "best by" date of Sept. 4, 2024, officials said. "
Chicken Surprise!
Inspector: (continuing) And what is this one: Spring Surprise?
Mr. Hilton: Ah, that's one of our specialities. Covered in dark, velvety chocolate, when you pop it into your mouth, stainless steel bolts spring out and plunge straight through both cheeks.
Inspector: Then we have number four. Number four: Crunchy Frog. Am I right in thinking there's a real frog in 'ere?
For a truly depressing spectacle, look up Jamie Oliver Nuggets on YouTube.
Or don’t do that.
This is exactly why these manufacturers require strict regulations that are enforced by an independent agency that has eyes and ears on the process at ALL times.
Deregulation is dangerous and foolish. Accidents happen and caustic covert cost-cutting is an all too common practice in the United States of Avarice.
Darn. I was hoping it would say "contaminated with dinosaur bones"
Bones are perfectly acceptable in nuggets, if ground down enough. And it's already a dinosaur
Thus is the way
This is why processed food plants need to be monitored on a 24/7 basis by federal inspectors who can hand out fines on the spot.
I can't believe anyone even eats that crap, it's awful.
/agree
One time I was hanging with a friend when some of his coworkers showed up and almost immediately starting throwing the n word around. I kept my mouth shut for a few minutes and finally quietly said, "My wife is black." They all immediately went silent and I'm glad my friend didn't let on I'd made it up.
I cannot believe normal people even use that word. It's just the worst. We ALL know better.
But people like to pretend they do not. Know better, that is.
https://planamag.com/white-supremacy-is-systemic-narcissism/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9tmgn64lM4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OeFjp6_973ID
You might want to interview https://www.facebook.com/epsteinandhassan?mibextid=ZbWKwL who has been doing off broadway theater about this subject for years, after his wife passed, he continued on in her honor, and recently developed an intense following among young Chinese women who flock to the performances based on great word of mouth about the liberating themes.