-- Posted by JustWannaReadStuff at 6:31 am on July 27, 2008 We see all the time, in news, in books, TV, film, and even from friends, the persistence of "racism".  Most of us depict it as calling a black man a nigger, or such, or an oriental person to be yellow.  It doesn't matter, whatever you perceive as a racial remark is yours to believe. Now we also see two questions all the time. One is, "Why does racism exist?".  When we listen to the person's question, and their answer, (which is basically yes and no), we always see the same arguments and nothing new is really said, that hasn't been said countless times before by others. The other question is, "Does racism still exist".  Again, the argument says what most others have said before, each and every time, with the eventual conclusion of yes and no. But what if someone asked the question that no one ever asks?  What if someone asks that which may seem to have been asked before, but never has been?  What if someone asks, "Does racism exist"?  Not only in such a simple way to ask it, but also in the sense that you're asking, does it exist biologically?  Is there anything biological to distinguish me between my black neighbour and my white neighbour?  We're both humans, we're not a different species of people, nor are we lesser or higher evolved than the other, and aside from the colour of our skin, we're the same. There's nothing in our DNA as humans that suggests that we are different at all from people of different ethnic origin.  Difference of skin colour is irrelevant.  Does it matter?  Some animals of the same breed have different coloured skin, and we still perceive them to be the exact same. Also, what if the only remaining reason that we have to disciminate against others, is that we're influenced to, subtly, by those in power?  The constantly tell us that they want to bring together the gap between races and colour, yet they single out specific people of certain ethnic origin as a symbol of hate.  An example of this would be the Taliban, in Afghanistan, who we have been brainwashed into thinking that nearly every person who is brown, with a beard, and does not look well-groomed is a terrorist, and must be turned over to the authorities? There are many other forms of discrimination that are subtly handed to us by The Power, too many to go into in this post.  But consider it.  What is discimination is one of the underlying ways of dividing us from others, which starts to separate us from even our own families later on?  We all know that strength comes through unity, and numbers.  What if The Power fears this, and causes us to break ourselves apart?  Our ties with potential and former friends are broken due to separation that is not forced upon us, but dealt out by ourselves. It is pure genius.  And this is how any sense of "freedom" that we have now will be gone.  Not through force, but through our own choice, our own actions.  We are not necessarily "free", but we are free to make our own choices.  We will lose any power that we DO have, and it will go down with all of us giving it thunderous applause.  We doom ourselves through separation and the non-desire to think for ourselves, to make the effort to realize that life is not at all as it seems. We are powerful. We are strong. We are beautiful.  All of us.  Differences of ethnicity does not change this. Try not to see the ugly and poor things in others, and look for the beauty and power in those around you. While you still can. -- Posted by ElephantStone at 6:40 am on July 27, 2008 I got to the 2nd paragraph, but on the historyu channel, they said this, basically: Racism only emerged during the 18th century with colonialism. It was then that skin colour and your origins actually became important and people based decisions on that. Before then it was based purely ona  class structure, so a poor black peaseant was equal to a white peaseant. GFor instance, in Egypt black people, jet black, ruled over egypt for 75 years, no one in egypt battered an eye lid at the skin colour. Racism is only a recent in the way we think it I guess. -- Posted by JustWannaReadStuff at 6:41 am on July 27, 2008 Quote: from ElephantStone at 9:40 am on July 27, 2008 I got to the 2nd paragraph, but on the historyu channel, they said this, basically: Racism only emerged during the 18th century with colonialism. It was then that skin colour and your origins actually became important and people based decisions on that. Before then it was based purely ona class structure, so a poor black peaseant was equal to a white peaseant. GFor instance, in Egypt black people, jet black, ruled over egypt for 75 years, no one in egypt battered an eye lid at the skin colour. Racism is only a recent in the way we think it I guess. Yes, but WHY was there a class system? -- Posted by ElephantStone at 6:44 am on July 27, 2008 Quote: from JustWannaReadStuff at 2:41 pm on July 27, 2008 Quote: from ElephantStone at 9:40 am on July 27, 2008 I got to the 2nd paragraph, but on the historyu channel, they said this, basically:    Racism only emerged during the 18th century with colonialism. It was then that skin colour and your origins actually became important and people based decisions on that. Before then it was based purely ona  class structure, so a poor black peaseant was equal to a white peaseant.    GFor instance, in Egypt black people, jet black, ruled over egypt for 75 years, no one in egypt battered an eye lid at the skin colour.    Racism is only a recent in the way we think it I guess. Yes, but WHY was there a class system? ok first off, wow I said "battered an eyelid". class sytem being the remnants of the feudal system - aristocracy, middle class, working class, etc. -- Posted by oOmclovinOo at 6:45 am on July 27, 2008 to be honest i didnt even get to the third sentence