Gentleman's Agreement is a great movie. If you have not seen it, you need to. (even if you are not a movie person, Buck) ;) It is about antisemitism. Gregory Peck is a journalist who pretends to be Jewish for three months. He does it for a different preceptive on antisemitism.
This spawned a I.I. on racism, prejudice and antisemitism. During World War I and II many people were racist against Eastern Europeans and the Japanese. I know Hitler was a terrible and cruel man. But not all Germans were/are and not all Eastern Europeans were/are cruel. Hitler killed the Jews. He also killed many other people but his rage was often focused on the Jews. He hated them. How is being antisemitic any different than being like Hitler? It is not! Racism is the same no matter what color you paint it. Hate is hate. Antisemitic people may not have killed Jews but they still hate them because of their race. For that matter anyone who is racist is not any different than a cruel ruler like Hitler.
Why do people hate other people based on race and religion? Some say it is because they are different. I don't buy that. Being different is no reason to hate someone. What starts racism? When the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor many Americans hated the Japanese. I can see hating the people who bombed your country and killed many men and woman. But not hating the nationality. Not every Japanese person supported the bombing. There was no reason for prejudice. Racism is something I will never understand.
Racism is applied to any race and religion. Some people are racist and do not speak it and some boldly speak if it. I want to talk with someone who is racist. I want to ask them why they are racist and what reason do they have for it. I could go deeper into this subject but I will stop before you think I am preaching to you. There may be more to come on this topic. Just warnin' ya.
6 comments:
I'm with ya on this one girl! Just can't figure the human race.
Many times people base their ideas on petty things. It baffles me. Of course a lot of things baffle me.
Racism is a sad fact of the human condition. And it's not just racism as classically defined. We distrust and fear "the other," which can extend to anyone and everyone not of our clan... in the worst cases. The Japanese have the most racist society I've ever seen, bar none. It's institutionalized and accepted, even to this day. They have a word for it.
But it's getting better all the time, at least here in the USofA. Not so much, elsewhere.
Now THAT just made me laugh...since i'm currently reading GAI-JIN, and you get the same picture that anyone who isn't Japanese, is trash...of course their word...barbarian. But in reading the previous novel- TAI PAN...the Chinese are just as bad.
i suppose i COULD post my own I2 but it would really send the owner of this blog into a smoking orbit, so i'll refrain.
Racism comes from generations of hatred. It often comes from jealousy, and always comes from ignorance. Many Indian tribal names have to do with being “the chosen people” thinking that their tribe was better than the others and therefore they were justified in any hatred toward others. The Japanese thought this way also and everyone else was expendable. When I taught in the Lower Rio Grande Valley, I was amazed at the hatred by the Hispanics toward Blacks. In NM the Hispanics think of themselves as “Spanish” and everyone else is beneath them – hating the Indians, the Mexican Nationals, and just about all outsiders. Once I tried to have a discussion with my students explaining that they were a minority race that would feel racist hatred if they left the comfort or their little community. I wanted my students to feel empathy toward others, but they did not understand. To them, I was just a gringa teacher – an outsider.
I do think our country has come a long way. We have much more tolerance for race and religion. Yet, there seems to be a new hatred and fear (ignorance) toward Christians. And another hatred toward the rich (like that bit I saw on GMA were some think we need to take from the rich and give to the poor).
Buck: Yes our country has improved. But steps still need to be taken. I did not know that the Japanese were racist. But there is a lot that I don't know.
Jay: I would not go "into a smoking orbit" if you posted an I2. At least only for a little while. ;)
Lou: I have seen the racism between the blacks and hispanics. Living in NM (especially near Taos) exposes you to a lot of that.
Prejudice is in so many forms.
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