Module 2

Discussion

Does Reverse Racism exist?

Discuss what these two quotes mean to you:

"Race,' writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter, 'is an idea, not a fact.' Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason."

-Ta-Nehisi Coates, "What We Mean When We Say 'Race Is a Social Construct'," The Atlantic, May 15, 2013

"Racism is the father of race, not the child" - Coates

@Sep 14, 2020 11:45 PM

1. The root behind reverse racism is that if racism was reversed, it wouldn't have existed in the first place. While the blacks may call out discrimination against white people, by saying that it shows that you are acknowledging that there is this power supremacy showing that white people are the main holders of racism. The only way that racism can be truly reversed is that if we went into a time machine to before colonization began and erased hundreds of years of oppression. Now, with this it doesn't mean that white people can't experience racial prejudice. Stereotypes and negative connotations about white people are some examples of racial prejudice but this doesn't mean its racism. The difference between the two is that racism holds power structure (i.e.: institutional power) and integrity against a particular race. Thus, as much as racial prejudice can affect individuals, it won't allude the same effect on a social and cultural level because only when stereotypes are supported by power, it creates structural racism in which people of colour have met with throughout history.

2. The first quote describes how race does not need biology and it is an idea rather than a fact. I agree to an extent as race is in fact not scientifically proven, rather it’s a social construct. However, I do believe that humans do have geological origins to which their ancestor background is genetically connected. To illustrate, there has been a rise in companies like 23andMe which provides home ancestry testing kits where customers can receive an analysis indicating for example that they are 17% Native American 65% Asia and 5% European. On the contrary, race itself doesn’t talk about how one person fits into a category than the other but it discusses more on the person's cultural history and upbringing. How people classify into different races is based on physical features (i.e. skin colour) and also on non-biological traits such as language and religion. Thus, to conclude, I do think that race is a social construct not a biological finding but with current research done by scientists and companies advancing, these statements can be intertwined and as we look into the future, we can learn to understand what our DNA holds as to being a human.

The second quote describes how race is the child of racism and not the other way around. In my opinion, I think that the roots of race and racism comes from humans wanting to build this hierarchical structure to as per say "organise" the people in this world. Those who believe that they are superior crowns the top and those deemed are left at the bottom. From this, people create this false knowledge and they don't understand the underlying racial truth. From the years of slavery and class distinctions, racism cant be completely obliterated. However, as humans I do believe that we have a place to realise that our decisions have lasting consequences and it is our place to remedy our doings through education, awareness and effort. Whether it is through organizations like black lives matter where they spread awareness on black racism, or is to educate different ethnicities to help gain equal opportunities in all specks of life. While racism can be the father of face, these two terms are heavily dependent on our doings and what we do to flourish or inflame it.

@September 21 at 12:16 PM

Ahhh yeah, there are so many elements that make interracial relationships difficult to navigate, especially when partners are have completely different cultural and socioeconomically backgrounds. And I love your metaphor of the mountain vs the mole hole, it's a great way to explain racial prejudice vs systematic racism

Thank you for reading ___!!

@September 21 at 5:02 AM

wow im glad that my analogy made some sense haha. thank you for highlighting on the current white oppression as I do also see a current trend that many on social media platforms make memes or videos on this. Of course, this shouldn't be acceptable but I think people are losing out on the big picture which is on tackling the word racism itself. the fight is far from over and this is definitely not pushing it to the next step.

@September 20 at 6:36 PM

I'm glad you made that distinction about how white people can still experience racial prejudice. I've noticed the increasing number of racial jokes/stereotypes regarding white people growing online and in person. Each and every time I scroll into the comments there's bound to be someone claiming "reverse racism." However not only do I believe reverse racism does not exist, but that the very existence of "reverse racism" distracts and derails from the actual fight against racism.

Also, your metaphor about getting in a time machine and erasing hundreds of years of oppression was extremely witty and clever.

@September 21 at 5:02 AM

@September 25 at 9:16 AM

I agree, ___. By focusing on racism and reverse racism, we are losing out on the big picture and that's tackling racism as a whole.

I really like the comment in your original post stating that "the root behind reverse racism is that if racism was reversed, it wouldn't have existed in the first place." You argued your point perfectly and appreciate your personal insight and thoughts on reverse racism. I believe there are so many ways we can view topics such as reverse racism and you did a beautiful job at making points for both racism and reverse racism.

@September 21 at 11:52 AM

Hello ___! Your writing is beautiful and I especially loved part 2 about race being a social construct vs a biological fact--I found your research very informative and interesting. And also, your part about the reverse racism really made me think. What if there was a time machine that allowed us to erase the years of oppression and colonization? I wonder how our society would look like today, and how the power structure in our world would differ. Would the world be a better place? Worse? Or would everything remain just the same, expect with different groups in power. I wonder

@September 21 at 5:02 AM

@Sep 15, 2020 3:50 PM

I don't believe reverse racism exists, because racism is based on power, and that is something white people have always had. I think people can be prejudiced against white people, but there is nothing behind that prejudice that is backed up institutionally. Someone calling me a cracker or gringo holds no power over me. They aren't slurs that have been used to dehumanize white people. I have never been excluded from anything because of my race. The purpose of spaces that exist only for BIPOC individuals is equity, not discrimination. I think the notion of reverse racism exists because white people misunderstand when white privilege is brought up. We are quick to point out how hard our lives have been and the marginalized groups we belong to, failing to realize that none of these hardships are because of our race.

My understanding of the first quote is that humans chose to assign meaning to race, because if it were definite or fact, we wouldn't have needed to. Unlike where you are born or your sex, race does not have set constraints or qualifications. There are loose societal agreements on who can identify as what, as seen with Rachel Dolezal and more recently, Jessica Crug. Dolezal's parents outed her, and once the world saw them, it was quickly agreed she was white. But I don't really see how the world can undo, for lack of a better word, race. For example, scholarships for Black teens. If the idea of race becomes obsolete or people begin disregarding it, what decides who qualifies for these scholarships? It could be ancestry, but what of the families who don't know their ancestry, because of the trans-Atlantic slave trade or a variety of other reasons? Nationality wouldn't work either, because anyone can be born anywhere, and many Black teens would then be unable to qualify. Would the scholarships be demolished all together? This wouldn't work, because they promote racial equity. I agree that race is an idea, but it is one that has been so cemented in our society that I cannot see a fair alternative that acknowledges (racial) inequities without it.

The second quote I don't really understand, mainly because I have a difficult time interpreting figurative quotes. What am I getting is that race was created because of racism, not after as one would think. People were discriminatory to others who looked different (racist) before there were racial distinctions between people and a word for it. Race was created to half enable racism, half justify.

@September 19 at 10:02 PM

I liked how your response was short yet it was straight to the point! I resonate with your last point saying " we are all humans and the colour of our skin shouldn’t divide us" as I think that this is what needs to be understood and voiced out to many living in this world. With more awareness through schools, the media and even word from mouth, I think that we as humans learn to understand the importance of treating others with the right respect and equity.

@September 19 at 9:59 PM

Thank you for writing such a detailed and informative response. I totally agree with your points on reverse racism and how even though you can have prejudice against the whites, anything backed up with institutional power would be hard to withstand. Also, I liked how you talked about the quotes with real life examples and that made me to understand the concepts more. I enjoyed reading and understanding it a lot!

@September 20 at 2:54 PM

I'm glad my examples made sense! -I always worry I'm rambling so I really appreciate your comment :)

@September 22 at 8:29 AM

It's very interesting hearing your perspective on reverse racism, and I also agree with the fact that race is so cemented into our society that it is pretty much impossible to imagine us without it. I can't imagine a world where different ethnicities simply didn't exist. Being Chinese is such a big part of my identity, I don't think I will be me without it, and I'm sure many others feel the same. Even if our ethnic identity faces some inequalities and marginalization; it is still part of who we are

@September 22 at 8:29 AM

@Sep 16, 2020 9:58 AM

Reverse racism doesn’t exist. Like the video was talking about, white people have not gone through similar experiences as those that are black. They have not been through those situations of constant discrimination so they are not able to know what living that type of life is like.

In my opinion these quotes are very important to understand because the basic ideas behind them explains how race itself isn’t something that is biologically proven but it was an idea made by people in high power to divide people for their own benefits. At the end of the day we are all humans and the colour of our skin shouldn’t divide us or be the factor of a lack of equality within our world.

@September 21 at 12:13 PM

I loved how clear and concise your response is!

@September 21 at 12:45 PM

Your response summed up basically my opinion on these discussion topics too. It was really powerful how you mentioned white people have not experienced what black people have gone through. I would like to add that they have not gone through what people of colour have gone through because great parts of South America and Asia have been victims of colonization and enslavement too (not to the extent of black people but it is still something to take into consideration). It is also interesting how you explained the power dynamic that is caused by race as a result of racism. The concluding statement was strong too which I couldn't agree with more.

@Sep 19, 2020 12:46 AM

Does Reverse Racism Exist?

In a society, racism can be presented overtly and covertly. Overt racism can be easily observed and detected as it will take the form of hate speech, derogatory symbols, and behaviours. Covert racism however Isn’t as glaringly easy to identify. It will usually present itself as systemic racism which is woven into institutional practices, policies, and/or laws that will benefit some racial groups and oppress the others.

‘Reverse racism’ Is a term used by society’s “in-group,” the people who gain political/social/economic benefits and privileges from the current societal construct, aka white people. The increasing amount of support and attention that the anti racism movement gains, the less and less this ‘in-group’ benefits from our current society. White people in general have better access to higher education, higher earning job opportunities, and even more political opportunities. Once the system starts to change their employment equity policies so more POC, women, and LGBTQ+ peoples have more opportunities for employment, those that are advantaged by the system will feel “oppressed,” hence why ‘reverse racism’ exists. These systemically advantaged people use the claim of ‘reverse racism’ in order to maintain the present system that gives them so many economic, political, social benefits.

Therefore my answer is no, I believe that those in the ‘in-group’ claiming ‘reverse racism’ is missing the bigger picture. That just because there are certain opportunities that are now catered towards those that are less privileged doesn’t mean that the system is now ‘discriminating’ against them.

2. To me, these quotes mean that at the end of the day, all of us are human (I.e “race does not need biology) but rather that race is a social construct. When humans were put on this earth, we were all equals. There was no concept of ‘race.’ The very instant the concept of ‘race’ was formed, it divided us humans and there’s bound to be a race that gets the short end of the stick (the oppressed). That’s what I personally interpret from Coates’ quote, “Racism is the father of race, not the child.” Now when Painter states “ Race only requires some good guys with big guns,” this is the perfect quote to symbolize the society that has been built off of a group of people that hold most if not all the power. I can’t help but think about the genocide of the Indigenous peoples when the Europeans first settled here. The Europeans came with the intention of being “good guys” that were merely settling here. However they had the firepower (‘big guns’) to do what they pleased. Ultimately, these quotes represent how race isn’t something that is factual or biological, but rather something that’s created by those who hold power and control in this society.

@September 20 at 12:20 PM

Hey!

I really liked your point about how when systems enact policies to promote equity, the groups who had previously & exclusively benefited feel like they have lost or had something taken away from them -when in reality the playing field has just been made level. I 100% agree that the idea of reverse racism is used to maintain unjust systems.

On a different note -would someone be able to give their analysis of the second political cartoon? Is the statue referencing a political figure? Thanks!

@September 21 at 12:10 PM

Great response! I like how you mentioned the difference between obvert and convert racism because there is a lot of misunderstanding between how the two are related and influence each other, especially because covert racism can be so hard to detect

Thank you for sharing your thoughts :D

@September 21 at 8:11 PM

Hi ___, I said similar things as you did in response to Nell Irvin Painter’s quote. It is unsettling that it was so clear right off the bat that I was able to understand who “the good guys with big guns” were. Your connection of this to the Indigenous peoples and the Europeans is a spot-on example.

@Sep 19, 2020 11:35 AM

No, it does not. People who believe in reverse racism understand racism to mean people being rude to others due to perceived racial and cultural differences. Racism is more, it’s deeper. Racism affects every aspect of the black experience, even if it is not labeled as such. The ingrained cultural and systemic racism in the world that took hundreds of years to permeate every corner of society can’t be reversed in a manner of 60 years. If you consider the civil rights movement the end of all racism.

These quotes are addressing a problem that most of the population probably hasn’t even considered. In a similar manner that the men who started the transatlantic slave trade used race to justify the stealing and abuse of black bodies for their economic gain; police officers, government officials, and klan members need race to exist to justify the continuing abuse. If race is taken out of the equation, then what does all of this mean? How many people go around believing that racial inferiority exists but that doesn’t justify treating people as less than?

@September 21 at 12:12 PM

Yess i agree with your points on reverse racism. Racism is so much more than what most people perceive it to be, and it tends to be misunderstood! Thank you for sharing your thoughts :D

@September 21 at 12:52 PM

After you mentioned the misconception of people that believe in 'reverse racism', it made me understand how this is very popular in our society, so good job by clearing the air with that one. The fact that you stated how race was a justification of enslavement was perfect to explain the quotes because at that point in time that was the only possible reason - unfortunately.

@September 21 at 10:18 PM

I like how you mention how certain configurations use race to justify the continuing abuse of minorities. You mention the systematic racism that took place years ago, and this can not be reverse like you said. I also agree with what you had to say about reverse racism!

@Sep 20, 2020 2:11 PM

Race,' writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter, 'is an idea, not a fact.' Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason.

I believe the author is arguing that race is a social construct, rather than a biological fact. The ‘big guns’ in this quote is a metaphor for power; and in our Eurocentric society rooted in colonialism, white people are the ones with the ‘big guns’. The author states that race is only a norm enforced by those with racist power and inherent privilege in society in order to cement their control over the minorities.

Honestly, I am not too sure if I am interpreting this quote right, and I don’t really have a stance on the ‘race being a social construct’ argument. However, I am really interested in this topic and I plan on reading up on it to learn more. I'm also interested in hearing your perspective!

"Racism is the father of race, not the child" – Coates

The author argues that the concept of race was created in order to sort individuals into groups based on prejudice and discrimination (aka racism). Racism—and all its ideas and effects—was created before the establishment of race. So, therefore, race was created by racism, not the other way around. And again, I am not too sure about my stance on this matter, but I didn’t want to go into it because my discussion post is already a novel LOL

Does reverse racism exist?

To me, reverse racism is a myth because racism isn't just prejudice against a racial group. It is prejudice plus power; resulting in institutionalized discrimination and inter-generational effects of oppression. Therefore, a person of color cannot truly be racist against whites because we do not have the power to do so. As individuals, we can discriminate and mistreat white people because of their skin, but these actions won't impact their social/economic/political status.

That being said, I personally believe that racial prejudice directed at any group is wrong (but what you think of this is up to you, of course!) Anyways, here is an example of how I've seen this play out in my life:

When I first started dating my current girlfriend (let’s give her the alias of Kate), to say that my parents disapproved would be a ludicrous understatement. Sure, most of their distaste came from their homophobia, but some of it came from their horror that I was dating a -gasp- white person.

Because of Kate’s race, my parents made assumptions about her, the same assumptions they had about other white people. Without getting to know her, they assumed her to be ignorant, self-involved, and ‘bland’; and they acted on these assumptions through subtle comments and passive-aggressive behaviors, making Kate feel inferior, criticized, and written off simply for the color of her skin.

So therefore, I personally believe that it is wrong to mistreat or discriminate against any racial group because of preconceived notions and individual biases. Because no matter how much power your race is backed up by, it hurts to be subjected to stereotypes and mistreatment, especially for factors of your identity that you cannot control.

That being said, the occasional mistreatment of white people due to individual acts of racial prejudice should not be confused with the systematic mistreatment and oppression experienced by people of color. Although racial prejudice against white people hurt, it will never change our system or take away their privilege. Therefore, I believe reverse racism doesn’t exist and racial prejudices towards white people do; but racial prejudices usually don't do much in the grand scheme of things.

@September 20 at 6:53 PM

Your answer to question of "does reverse racism exist?" is so relatable to me. As someone who similarly to you, is also in a interracial relationship, and can understand the ridicule you get subjected to, racial prejudice hurts. However, if you were to compare systemic racism and racial prejudice, it's akin to comparing a mountain to a mole hill. Racial prejudice is a problem, even so, it's not the root of the problem. To change how people think/act within a society, you must change the society first.

@September 24 at 6:38 AM

Thank you so much ___ for reading this. I completely agree with you. It is sad to see even educated people support such kind of racist thoughts. Hopefully, with more awareness, things will get better, and the society will be a better place to live.

@September 21 at 4:58 AM

I throughly enjoyed reading your response especially on the question of the existence of reverse racism. I found your stance to be incredibly moving as for someone who even lives in a multiracial country, there has been countless times to where groups of individuals have been discriminated because of the so called "race stereotype". Whether it's just through everyday racism like word of mouth to even systematic racism where institutions for example in Malaysia, hire the Malays for government jobs and expats like Bangladeshis to be of poorly looked over jobs. However, comparing racial prejudice and racism is like comparing an elephant to an ant. I understand that racial prejudice for example in my case to the Malays is bad but because there is a supremacy and institutional power backed up, this shouldn't disregard what is happening among the other minority races within the country.

@September 21 at 12:21 PM

Wow, as a Canadian that honestly knows next to nothing about Malaysia, it is very interesting hearing your experience and observations on the different ways racism and prejudice take place within your country. Your response really makes me think. Thank you for taking the time to read my essay, erm, discussion post.

@September 21 at 8:01 PM

Hey ___! It’s ___.

Thanks for sharing your experience of being in an interracial relationship. Often, there is prejudice that comes with being in a relationship with an individual that doesn't share the same race as you. As a minority myself, there is always so much judgment and debate when you decide to date someone that isn’t Asian like myself. “Oh, she’s dating a white guy. She’s definitely whitewashed,” is a phrase I’ve heard one too many times. There is always some kind of blame that falls on people of colour as well and the social pressure and prejudice that interracial relationships go through is burdensome. I’m sorry you and your girlfriend had to and do go through these issues. You’re right, it IS wrong to discriminate against any racial group. Though, I believe it is important to remember and recognize that the racism towards people of colour cannot be compared with the mistreatment of white people. And you summed it up perfectly yourself: “The occasional mistreatment of white people due to individual acts of racial prejudice should not be confused with the systematic mistreatment and oppression experienced by people of color. Although racial prejudice against white people hurt, it will never change our system or take away their privilege.”

@September 23 at 7:53 PM

Hey ___! I totally forgot we had this course together too hahah. But then I remembered that our timetables are like identical

Thank you for taking the time to read my post! And I'm glad you understood my stance on white racial prejudice vs minority racism. I also found it interesting that you mentioned how minorities receive social pressure and are perceived as 'whitewashed' in interracial relationships. I remember growing up, a lot of minority kids were accused of being 'whitewashed' if they didn't fit the social standard of how their race should behave/talk/present themselves. But then; there were other times when we were told that we were 'too Asian', 'too brown', etc.

This was my experience at least, I'm not sure what these observations mean yet but it is something to think about.

Thank you again for reading my post :D

@September 23 at 10:21 AM

Hey ___!

I loved what you said about how "we can discriminate and mistreat white people because of their skin, but these actions won't impact their social/economic/political status ". This just made me very aware of the power of white supremacy. They can do the same thing to us and it will impact us on the social, economic, and political status level. This is big but we have to remember money talks. If the black community or any community can build up their economy and have a solid foundation financially they can stand up against the system that has the black community oppressed. I believe not only is the black community impacted by the white supremacy pyramid but many racial groups are. I see it has become ideal to be lighter skin in most cultures. If most cultures have the same ideals it has to stem from somewhere.

I agree with your last point that occasional mistreatment of white people should not be confused with systematic mistreatment and oppression. This confusion is deadly because it takes your eyes off those who need the mass exposure of what is happening within their communities to make a change within the society's laws.

@September 23 at 7:57 PM

Hello ___!

Thank you for your reply :) And yes, white supremacy is something that is something that has so much power over our society, yet so many people aren't very knowledgable about it--including myself. I am trying my best to learn more about this topic and already, I am shocked by how this system influence, shape and oppress minority groups in so many levels

I hope you enjoy your night! :D

@Sep 21, 2020 12:33 PM

1. I do not believe that reverse racism exists in today’s world. Looking at things from a historical perspective, white people are the ones who took it upon themselves to create a divide between themselves and black people as well as people of colour. They made the conscious decision for centuries to oppress, abuse, displace, murder, rape - basically take away everything that belongs in humanity, black people, for their own benefit. To this day I am still furious to what they black ancestors go through, and for them to claim ‘reverse racism’ is infuriating when for centuries they did much worse. One thing to get straight is that stereotypes of white people is not a form of racism because it does not cause racial inequality in society. A racial slur said towards a person of colour causes a power imbalance because still to this day, white people are still more privileged.

2 a) To an extent I can agree with the statement. From what I understand from that quote, it is saying that race is not made up of what is in our DNA- it does not have much to do with the genetic colour makeup, but more to do with the violence caused by people who instil power within themselves. Let me offer an example to explain my perspective on this statement; between India and Pakistan, there is a lot of cultural friction that has been so deeply rooted in our societies. Yes, we do belong to the same race and everything but we will never, as two nations, come together because of the violence that we have both inflicted on each other. When people with big guns come up against each other, it caused that racial inequality, but it not so simple to assume that it is a result of different skin colours. Although we have both faced the same colonial abuse, we will not have a united front.

b) “Race, is the child of racism, not the father.” What a powerful statement. We, as humans, only started recognizing race when there was a significant target of people that were coloured. If we could date back to before enslavement and colonization, and none of that happened, we wouldn’t see race as a societal issue. We would recognize that we are all different but largely view ourselves as the same species. However, now, because of the racial injustice faced over centuries, we are forced to see race as large factors embedded in our society. This quote describes how race is the result of racism, not the other way around. To take this one step further, I would like to state that it would be unfair to say that you don’t see colour now. Every person of colour has gone through their own version of oppression (even in the most minute forms) so it would only be fair to acknowledge that before treating them the same. Although this may be an unpopular opinion, it is something I am strongly passionate about.

@Sep 21, 2020 6:26 PM

1.Does reverse racism exist?

White people have never been oppressed. They are not at a disadvantage and cannot struggle because of their skin colour and race. That is their white privilege. People of colour, however, are at a disadvantage and do struggle because we live in a system and society that is designed for the benefit of white people. Which is, systemic racism.

Racism itself is the marginalization and oppression of people of colour. White people having never experienced racism to begin with is a truth that leads to the understanding that therefore, reverse racism cannot be experienced either. It does not exist.

Here is the article written by Tina Changoor. It is an insightful read and is clear to understand that reverse racism is not racism: https://ccdi.ca/blog/the-truth-behind-reverse-racism-it-s-not-racism/

The part that stood out to me in this article: “Reverse racism is not racism. Racism is not the experience of irrational fears of losing one’s socio-economic-political privileges. Rather, reverse racism is a strategy by those in the advantaged racial in-group to maintain their socio-economic-political privileges. What is concerning is the common acknowledgement and use of the term reverse racism provides validation of an experience that is not racism.” -Tina Changoor.

2. What do these two quotes mean to me?

In response to the first quote: I believe this quote means to say that race is a made-up concept (thus an “idea, not a fact”) and that when we look beyond (and not ignore) race, we realize we are all just human beings. "Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason” indicates that the reason why the concept of race is so prominent is due to colonizers (the “good guys” in society and in our biased history textbooks) and global colonization, which aimed to get rid of all races to make one or one superior race.

In response to the second quote: The main reason as to why race exists is because of racism. Racism was that made everyone differentiate their race from others’ and discriminate each other against it, even though at the end of the day, again, we are all human beings. Racism is the “father” of race because it is what made us see race and act on it in the first place. Race would not have caused racism because without racism, race wouldn’t exist at all.

PS. I am always learning. Please do share your thoughts if there is a point that I made that you do not agree with.

@September 22 at 4:59 PM

There is history behind racism, and it's a history white people inflicted, rather than endured.

I agree with your initial points especially! White people cannot struggle because of their race, and I think that's where many misunderstand. It's taken as "white people cannot struggle at any time ever" rather than "race will never be a deciding factor in what white individuals can or cannot do."

@September 24 at 1:45 PM

Hello ___!

Your discussion post really engaged me right from the beginning as I too agree with the reality of white privilege. Society fosters oppression and encourages white privilege through policies and cultural practices. This blatant systemic racism in undeniable and inexcusable.

I would though like to add a different definition of racism. You mentioned that racism is the marginalization and oppression of people of colour. And while I agree that this is an overwhelming proportion of the racism we are seeing today, racism is the discrimination directed a person on the basis of any race.

I very much enjoyed reading the article you included on the reality of 'reverse racism'. I would completely agree with you and the article that reverse racism was coined by those with privilege. I believe it is an attempt to justify cultural history that, in reality, only deserves to be criticized. I see those who use the term 'reverse racism' as simply being unable to accept responsibility for the wrongdoings in our history.

I also loved your connection between the 'good guys' and colonialism. We were consistently taught to admire colonialism and ignore any questions regarding their injustices. I too believe that racism is the father of race and that xenophobia laid the foundation between races rather than division sparking racism.

Finally, I appreciate your willingness to learn and believe we should all be welcoming to expanding our views and hearing from others.

@September 24 at 6:50 PM

Hi ___,

I really like the connection you made between the "good guys" and colonialism. From childhood, we are fed the perspective that colonialism was a great accomplishment and that people like Christopher Columbus were heroes that we should admire. The reality is that Columbus was only a "hero" to Europeans. His "discovery" of the Americas began centuries of mass genocide and assimilation of Indigenous peoples, which eventually extended to the enslavement of black peoples. The racism endured by Indigenous peoples greatly contributed to the separation by race and the harmful stereotypes that came with that (e.g. the word "savage" and its connotations).

@Sep 21, 2020 10:07 PM

Personally, I don't think reverse racism exists in our world today. Although it may seem like it is directed in ways towards racism, it is not. Racism is discrimination or injustice towards people or groups, on the facts of their relationship in a certain racial or ethnic group, usually a minority or disadvantaged group, to differentiate them from one another as inferior or superior. I think reverse racism is more so an act of racial prejudice. Racial prejudice refers to irrational or unjustifiable negative emotions or evaluations toward persons from other social groups, and it is a primary determinant of discriminatory behaviour. Discriminatory or derogative behaviours aimed on stereotypes or assumptions arising from race and or skin tone. I think reverse racism is racial prejudice more so than racism itself. Although reverse racism might be affecting individuals or socially groups, acts of racial discrimination targeted at white people are never to be condoned, but they do not have the power to affect the people to impact the social, economic and political position and privileges that they hold. Prejudice manifests in acts of bigotry and injustice against communities or people while enabled by authority.

Looking at the quote by Nell Irvin Painter, race is a social construct with no true or absolute biological factor. Nell details that society is concerned with a social construct, not a biological one, whether there are universal rules for deciding those designations and whether such a classification will change over time or across cultures. Ta-Nehisi Coates quote of, "racism is the father of care, not the child," I think this quote generally affects the history of North America and in the self-identification of its people. the notion of race has become so significant and racial designations have actually marked the distinction between life and death in certain situations.

@September 25 at 11:28 AM

Hello ___!

I first off appreciated your very clear outline of the terms: racism, racial prejudice, discrimination, and reverse racism. I think that when comparing reverse racism to racial prejudice, it is important to recognize the subject. This means seeing the differentiation between who becomes the subjects of racism and who claims to be the subject of reverse racism. These differences are often associated with privilege and the inability to recognize one's own white privilege.

I would say that there is a biological element as demonstrated by Painter when he outlines: "society has taken race beyond the biological element". However, I would completely agree with the quote and with you in that race became a social construct. I believe both quotes illustrate the division created by xenophobia and racism, not by 'race' alone.

@Sep 22, 2020 6:16 AM

1. Past few months have been an intense period of reflection and introspection when it comes to racism. The term 'reverse racism' is now frequently being used in the media, at workplaces, schools, etc. than ever before. But what is reverse racism exactly? It is merely a claim by the white people to have been victims of racism by the blacks. It is a belief that social and economic gains by the black people may cause disadvantage to the white people and might jeopardise their social status.

In my view, reverse racism is just a claim and a belief that has no evidence that whites have ever faced such discrimination. Also, it is a matter of fact that we know, if such discrimination happened against the whites, the repercussions would have been different than when a black is discriminated by a white.

2. a. "Race,' writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter, 'is an idea, not a fact.' Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason." So, what exactly is race? It is a social construct , that divides people on the basis of ethnicity, coloraturas, family background, etc. Who came up with this 'idea' of segregating people on such basis? clearly, it is the society! Such type of division is not written in any book, nor it is an unsaid rule or regulation that needs to be followed. It is an idea, an 'innovation' that people come up with. In their view, as few say, "it helps in regulating the norms of the society, of various cultures and groups". Such division often leads to conflicts and major arguments among the different groups.

b. "Racism is the father of race, not the child" - Coates. Often, people are under the impression that it is the race that leads to racism. But when we go deep into the concept of race and racism, we realise, it is the other way round! It is racism that leads to race. In other words, people's tendency to discriminate, to judge and to interiorise people leads to the social construct that separates people. In my view, the division that has taken place on the basis of colour, and other physical characteristics is only because of our racist thoughts. Had it not been the case, our society would have been more homogeneous and less socially divided, with rules and regulations equal for everyone.

@September 23 at 5:02 PM

"In my view, the division that has taken place on the basis of colour, and other physical characteristics is only because of our racist thoughts"

I love the way you were able to communicate this. As sad as it is even in 2020 these racist thoughts still prevail in our society, at this point we can only hope that the children of this generation will be raised without this kind of racism and that one day in the far (or near) future race won't have to exist.

@September 23 at 6:45 PM

I loved your connections to aspects of our society when you brought up the fact that the term 'reverse racism' is now being brought up in different places like the media, at workplaces, schools, etc. You are correct, many people want to have an upper hand when dealing with racism and use the term 'reverse racism' to justify their actions. Recently with the arising discussions about the Black Lives Matter Community, many people have turned to this term to justify their own actions and make themselves feel more secure when someone exposes their racist behaviour. Overall, I agree with your viewpoint that reverse racism is not real, it does not exist. Anyone who hides behind this term is merely unaware of the history, trauma, and segregation behind racist actions that they have never truly been affected by.

Furthermore, I loved your interpretation of the first quote. You mentioned how the term race was never something created in a book, or a rule to follow, but it is merely an idea that was created for division. I completely agree with you.

@September 24 at 6:52 AM

Thank you so much ___ for reading this, it really means a lot. I completely agree with you on the point that reverse racism is just a term people use to justify their actions and insecurity. It is merely a belief that social and economic gains by the blacks might put them at disadvantageous position. Moreover, I think such a concept of race and racism has always been a part of our society but was addressed or talked about until recently. Continuous awareness about such divisions and racist thoughts might improve the situation of our society.

@Sep 22, 2020 3:51 PM

Reverse racism does not exist. Race and racism were created by those in power (predominantly white males) in order to justify the reasons for oppressing the minority group. It is impossible to oppress the oppressor when they have not suffered systemic racism or institutional mistreatment of their race. With that being said, it is possible to be prejudiced towards white people. Prejudice is defined as a preconceived opinion on someone with no reason or personal experience, you can be prejudiced towards anyone because it is not race specific.

"Race,' writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter, 'is an idea, not a fact.' Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason." -Ta-Nehisi Coates, "What We Mean When We Say 'Race Is a Social Construct'," The Atlantic, May 15, 2013

Race isn’t scientific, it is not defined by biological features like the sex someone is born as. Race is a social construct used to justify the racist ideas that made one race inferior to the other. People who saw themselves and others alike as “superior” forced the idea of race on everyone else in order to gain power, they did this through aggressive and violent force.

"Racism is the father of race, not the child" - Coates

I believe this quote again looks at the fact that race is a social construct and a man made idea. That race was built off the idea of racism and people needing a factor in order to put those different from them below. White people wanted the power, but in order to justify the reasoning for being deserving of said power, they needed to make up the idea of race and that certain races are dumber and weaker, therefore, shouldn’t be treated equally.

@September 22 at 4:46 PM

"People who saw themselves and others alike as “superior” forced the idea of race on everyone else in order to gain power..."

I agree with this completely! Often, the people appointed as the "inferior" race are used as scapegoats to explain the multitude of issues a government has. The Shoah (Holocaust) is a great example of this.

@September 23 at 4:58 PM

"Race is a social construct used to justify the racist ideas that made one race inferior to the other"

I said this as well (you worded it way better than I did) but thought no one would understand it because of my rambling. I'm so glad to see people are thinking like I did because I was nervous my opinions would be like way different.

@September 25 at 7:51 PM

I really like all the points you made and agree with them completely. The fact that you mentioned and touched on how prejudice is different I think is very important because a lot of people tend to intertwine the meanings. Your points on how "race is a social construct" I believe are very strong and explain these quotations perfectly.

@September 25 at 9:37 PM

I really like the way you interpreted both of these quotes! I completely agree that race was created as a way to justify racism, and like you said, it was then used as a tool to gain power and to enact violence against other groups of people.

@September 25 at 10:22 PM

I like how you said "it is impossible to press the oppressor", I think it really puts the idea of reverse racism away. White people have been the oppressors for centuries now and the system structured to oppress people of colour.

I also agree that race was created as a way to justify racism.

@Sep 22, 2020 4:28 PM

The truth is simple. Reverse racism does not exist, because racism was founded and justified by the institutional oppression of non-white individuals. White people have never been disadvantaged by policies specifically made to limit them. Rather, such policies were created to give them leverage in society.

In order to achieve and maintain that power, the concept of "white" and "other" had to be defined. Race is decided by those in power to serve political agendas that would benefit from an “us” against “them” narrative. Race is not a biological fact, but a social construct. An example of this could be seen in Rwanda, where the Tutsis and Hutus identify as separate ethnic groups. These differences were fuel to a genocide. Meanwhile, in North America, they would be labelled as “Black” with disregard to their personal identity. More relevant to history in Canada, the Irish were considered to be separate from the white identity, which did include the Anglophones and Francophones.

Both quotations refer to this truth. Racism rooted in colonialism and white supremacy indicates which box to check on government forms and ultimately how BIPOC view themselves in North America.

@Sep 22, 2020 6:41 PM

No, Reverse Racism does not exist as I do not believe that it is possible for white people to experience discrimination based on the colour of their skin. As Aamer Rahman discussed, to experience Racism one must experience historic and systemic oppression, which Black people have experienced, and white people have not. White people do not experience the inter-generational trauma as a result of anti-Black racism, or normalized micro-aggressions that Black people do.
The quote "Race,' writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter, 'is an idea, not a fact.' Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason." -Ta-Nehisi Coates, "What We Mean When We Say 'Race Is a Social Construct'," The Atlantic, May 15, 2013., means to me that White people in positions of power have created ‘Race’ as an excuse to discriminate against others based on the colour of their skin. I perceive this quote to mean that the construct of Race was created to oppress others, by authoritative people in positions of power. I perceive the statement “Race does not need biology “ to mean that race is not a scientific theory, but a social construct.

I perceive the second quote "Racism is the father of race, not the child" (Coates)

to be explaining that people are racialized not because of their differences, but because of socially constructed ideas that are forced onto them. This quote to me means that that the construct of race was created as a way to justify the discriminatory views that had already existed.

@September 25 at 11:11 PM

Interesting take, ___, when you think of reverse racism is that only limited to white people vrs black people, or all POC?. I completely agree by the way, referencing Aamer's video was a useful way to strengthen your argument. Loved reading this!

@Sep 23, 2020 9:52 AM

1.)Reverse Racism does not exist because the black community creates protests like black lives matter. If you get offended by this and say all lives matter you are missing out on what is happening and why black lives matter became a movement. Black lives in America are endangered because they are being killed without a legitimate reason. Not that there is a reason to take someone's life away anyways. Black history month happens once a year and it is not in the school curriculum. So celebrating black history month does not put any other race down but gives the black community a chance to reflect on what their ancestors did.
Now, this does not mean that a black person can't show racism to other people outside their race or even within the same racial group.

2.) " Race is an idea, not a fact" This means that not every stereotype against a certain race is a fact. We all have perceived ideas of a certain race because of what society tells us. If I am on the road driving in Brampton and say wow this...... can't drive I bet many people filled in a certain race in that blank. We all have the idea that a certain race can't or is superior to other races. Society is built on white supremacy and it dictates how we perceive ourselves and others around us. We tend to believe that if you look a certain way you are better than those who don't fall under societal norms or what they perceive to be beautiful. This is not a fact that the caucasian race is superior to other races but an idea that was carried out for too many years.

2b.)A social construct is an idea that seems natural and obvious to people who accept it but it does not always represent reality, so it remains largely an invention or artifice of a given society.
The social construct of black women back in the 1800s was "the Mammy". This was a stereotype that black women were "good black mothers or a good nanny". This was something that was made up for society to believe about black women so they did not have to take care of their child. They can hand their children off to the Mammy while they relax.
Race is a social construct because society is built on white supremacy. The pyramid of white supremacy foundation is "indifference". Under this block, you will find not challenging racist jokes. The next block above that is " minimization" and under this would be " it doesn't matter who you vote for" and "get over slavery". There are about 7 blocks for the white supremacy and every block depends on the one below it fo support. If society is built on white supremacy and we acknowledge this we can quickly see how the system is constructed for the white community to be at an advantage and the other races to be at a disadvantage. White people are associated with white privilege and the black community is oppressed. As long as the Pyramid of White Supremacy still stands black people will always be at a disadvantage when it comes to getting their basic human rights.

2c.) Racism is the father, not the child because it is big and it has more control. When I think of father I think of someone who has the power and the authority to make things happen, verse a child who is inferior to his or her father.

@September 23 at 4:54 PM

I totally agree. I was scared to post my opinion on reverse racism (I also believe it doesn't exist) because I was scared people wouldn't feel the same which I know is silly but in this day I feel like everything can be taken as offensive but I'm glad we're on the same page.

@September 23 at 4:59 PM

I agree, that people do get easily offended. I think long as your intentions are good and you know you are not putting anything out that is going to hurt someone you are good :)

@Sep 23, 2020 4:52 PM

1. This is just my personal opinion, but I do not believe that reverse racism exists. People who are white have done unspeakable things to people of colour and continue to do unspeakable things to this day. White people have never had to be scared of being pulled over by police, or have had the experience of being followed in a grocery store. These are all examples of racism, so why would reverse racism exist if the target of 'reverse racism' have never experienced these things? I believe that reverse racism is a way for white people to hide the privilege they have in this society.

2. "Race,' writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter, 'is an idea, not a fact.' Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason." -Ta-Nehisi Coates, "What We Mean When We Say 'Race Is a Social Construct'," The Atlantic, May 15, 2013

I feel like this quote should be what people see when they look up the definition of race. Because it's true, race isn't a fact that only has one answer. It's an idea with multiple ways to branch out, from the first little spark. Race shouldn't be about biology because if we really want to talk about biology we would be talking about how no matter what skin colour you have, we all look the same on the inside.

"Racism is the father of race, not the child" - Coates

To be honest this quote confused me at first, it wasn't anything to do with the topic just how it was phrased. But I'm sure that was kinda the point, to confuse readers a bit if they don't fully understand. To me it means that racism doesn't come from race, in fact, race comes from racism. It's the fact that the idea of race came from the concept of racism, that white people wanted to separate themselves from coloured people so they invented the idea of race. That because they had a different skin colour and different features meant they had to be isolated.

@September 24 at 12:09 PM

Thank you so much! I was a little nervous posting because I thought it would be taken the wrong way but I'm so glad people are understanding and agreeing with me!

@September 24 at 6:59 AM

I just read your thread, and I loved the way you presented all your thoughts. The most interesting part of this was the way you presented how whites do not have the fear of being followed in a grocery store, or being pulled down by the police, which the people of colour had to go through. Hence, reverse racism is just a way to justify their insecurity and their discriminatory actions. I completely agree with you, very well written!

@September 24 at 8:20 AM

Hi ___,

I would agree with the way you have described the first quote. Race is not biology but an idea that was created. This idea has led us to believe certain ideas that are untrue. For the second quote, I think that racism stems from history and what we are taught by others. Would you agree?

@September 24 at 12:12 PM

Hey ___, I totally agree with you on the second quote. In a way it's kinda like how we were taught about the world wars, we learned about it from the 'winners perspective', we never got to learn about the other perspectives. I feel like the same can be applied to racism. I hope that makes sense sometimes I word things a bit awkwardly haha

@September 24 at 1:25 PM

Hi ___,

I like that you said reverse racism is a way for white people to hide the privilege they have in society. Although, I think a lot of the time this hiding isn't coming from a place of awareness. I think reverse racism is argued by white people who are ignorant of their own privilege and feel threatened by equality. The fear white people have of losing privilege if everyone has equal rights comes out a lot in things like reverse racism, I'm finding. Not understanding the imbalance of power paired with the fear of losing privilege is the cause for almost every instance I've heard white people argue the existence of reverse racism. In the idea of reverse racism, you think white people are hiding their privilege in a conscious act of deception, or due to ignorance?

@September 25 at 9:54 PM

Hi ___ and ___. I completely agree with what you're saying. I'd go on to add a quote from Eternity Martis' book, "How can the imaginary perceived threat to whiteness... be ripped away simply because of diversity, when every system has defended and upheld whiteness ferociously for centuries" (Martis, 63). I think that reverse racism is yet another way White people who feel threatened by equality can justify their racist (whether ignorant or intentionally hateful) words and actions.

@September 24 at 2:26 PM

Hi ___,

I think it could honestly be a mixture of both. I think those who are more hostile towards the idea of equality and use reverse racism probably are hiding their privilege and others just use it due to their ignorance or the lack of teaching they have been given on topics like racism. What do you think?

@September 24 at 8:46 PM

I agree with your opinion of reverse racism. As a white woman, I do not have to worry about being pulled over, or being followed by people due to my race. I can walk freely to do whatever I want without the fear of being murdered, I can walk away knowing that I won't be murdered. It's absolutely a way of hiding the privilege white people have.

@Sep 23, 2020 6:13 PM

1. When discussing Reverse Racism, it is important to note the difference between the terms racism and racial prejudice. Racial prejudice can be defined as "prejudice against or hostility toward people of another race or color" (Merriam-Webster). Theoretically, yes, white people can be faced with racial prejudice. However, racism as a whole cannot be applied to the white race. Racism can be defined as "a belief that race is a fundamental determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race" (Merriam-Webster). White people are at the top of the power structure, and they are seen as the superior race. An act of "racism" would not affect them and cause inferiority to other races because they are the ones who are already at the top, as they have been for years. Furthermore, many of our social structures have been built to favour white people and disadvantage people of colour, like the legal system or even our education system. Therefore, an act of "racism" towards a white person would cause no damage as society is built for their own benefit. In conclusion, Reverse Racism does not exist as white people are favoured in our society and cannot be harmed by it, but rather they can theoretically be affected by racial prejudice.

2. a) I agree with this quote, especially with the implication that race is an idea, not a fact. I believe that race is simply a concept created to further divide humans up into different categories. In our society, people are divided by virtually everything that they can identify with- religion, class, gender, etc. Race is merely another form of division used to create superiority. Furthermore, the quote discusses the fact that race does not need biology. I also agree with this, race is not something biological that can be studied within a humans body, it is merely a social construct.

2. b) I also agree with this quote. One may argue that the concept of race was created first, and then racism followed. However, as this quote suggests, racism occurred first and it is what caused the divisions of race to flourish. Racist acts towards people of a certain skin colour is what led to the separation of different races.

“Race prejudice.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/race%20prejudice. Accessed 23 Sep. 2020.

“Racism.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/racism. Accessed 23 Sep. 2020.

@September 23 at 7:59 PM

I love how factual your post is, and how you choose to include the book definitions of these topics that are often so easily confused! Great work ___ :)

@Sep 23, 2020 7:59 PM

1. I do not believe that reverse racism exists.
Many people argue that reverse racism does exist due to prejudice or intolerance towards white people. Though it is wrong for black people to exhibit prejudice or intolerance towards white people, racism involves more than just that.

As mentioned in the module, racism is a powerful collection of racist policies that lead to racial inequity and are substantiated by racist ideas. Racism involves the social devaluation, dehumanization, and marginalization of a particular race. As shown throughout history, white people have successfully and exceedingly devalued, dehumanized, and marginalized black people and even other races. Now, even after hundreds of years have passed, black people are still dealing with the effects of these terrible events, and white privilege and white superiority is still very prevalent in the world. White people cannot be oppressed as they are, generally, still the active oppressors.

Like Aamer Rahmen mentioned, the only way reverse racism could truly exist is if minorities joined together to treat white people as similarly and as cruel as they have treated minorities throughout history.

2. I believe that both Nell Irvin Painter and Coates’ quotes are connected and share the same idea. In the past, I have learned about race and how the concept of race came about. This was when I discovered that race is primarily a social construct, something that was used to categorize people based on their traits. However, this was not just a means of categorization; as Coates expresses in his quote, the creation of race was a means of creating a hierarchy and emphasizing what is superior and what is inferior. The underlying message I get from these quotes is that despite the social construct of race, we are all ultimately a part of one race, the human race; even though there are differences among us, we are all still human beings.

@September 24 at 11:37 AM

I like how you added that reverse racism cannot exist unless we were to treat white people in the ways they have treated minorities throughout history. This makes it really easy to understand that white privilege and power strongly exists and that they will never know what it feels like to be treated as inferior. I also like how you said at the end that we are all just human beings, and we all belong to the same race. Race is a confusing topic and it's easy to question why it really exists when we are all human.

@Sep 23, 2020 8:30 PM

Does Reverse Racism Exist?

I would argue that reverse racism does exist today in our society. Some people in our society who are privileged use reserve racism to maintain their wealth and position. In fact, even universities are known to have used reverse racism against students. An example of this would be when Fisher v University of Texas was brought to court. The University of Texas had created a white based scholarship. This led many individuals to file against the University for reserve racism. While the Supreme Court ruled that the University is allowed to create race based scholarships it ruled that such programs should be established to promote students diversity.

Discuss what these two quotes mean to you:

- "Race,' writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter, 'is an idea, not a fact.' Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason." -Ta-Nehisi Coates, "What We Mean When We Say 'Race Is a Social Construct'," The Atlantic, May 15, 2013

The following quotes have different meanings for me. The first quote by Nell Irvin Painter seems to suggest that there is no evidence of racism and that it is an unproven concept. In the 1940’s, the Jews were tortured by the Nazis because they were believed not to be true Germans. There was no evidence to justify this racist position and manifested into an ideology that the greatest number of people started to believe that Jews weren’t German.

An example of this can be seen in the novel they said this would be fun by Eternity Martis, the author stated that “when we turned thirteen and started going to the mall on our own for the first time, it was their families who taught me about my rights in case the police stopped me, about what stores sent security guards after Black kids''. This an example of ideology and not fact as there was a general belief of African’s being known to shoplift and cause trouble.

- "Racism is the father of race, not the child" – Coates

For the second quote by Coates, to me it means to be that racism is not something that is taught it is something that is learned. Coates appears to argue that our belief system stems from our families and their history. People and events they encounter influence how we act and behave. An example would be a child who is taught to believe that people from a country who are white and who rule their country are superior over their people. For years, the child grows up and believes that this form of colonialism is normal and they should be subservient. This form of racism has been around time immemorial and to me is expressing what that author means that ‘racism is the father race...not the child’.

@September 25 at 10:01 PM

Hi ___, while I acknowledge that there are people who believe 'reverse racism' exists, I do not think that it is a legitimate form of racism because it fails to recognize the affect institutional power benefiting White people, and history, contributes to racism. I am wondering what your definition of reverse racism is, and if you think it is possible for BIPOC people to be racist towards people who are White?

@Sep 24, 2020 1:54 AM

1) I don’t think reverse racism exists because racism is based in history and systems that have historically uplifted and supported white people. So “racism” of some kind towards white people would be more considered a racial prejudice but not racism itself. To commit an act of racism you have to hold the power that comes along with it, being the oppressor inflicting that racism. So I definitely think there is racially charged prejudice to all races including white people, but white people can’t be oppressed by racism. It’s the similar idea to the feminist movement having saying like “we hate men” and “kill all men” the only reason these jokes are allowed is because women are oppressed by men so they poke fun at their oppressors to alleviate pain. However if men, as the oppressors, made those jokes it would not be appropriate because they are already actively oppressing women.

2) For me these two quotes are helpful metaphors to illustrate why race is a social construct. I hadn’t thought about race in that way for a long time and only recently did I start understanding that race really is not as surfacely biological as one might think. When Eternity Martin said in her book how as a child she didn’t recognize the real distinction of skin colour I think I felt that way for a long time in my childhood. For someone who has never experienced racism personally these quotes are a helpful illustration of what race and racism really mean. How race is so much based on how you are perceived by others as opposed to your own view of yourself or your biological makeup.

@September 24 at 8:11 AM

Hi ___,

I would agree that racial prejudice does happen to Caucasian people but not actual racism. I do think there are events that have happened that have created reverse racism against all people. I would also agree with the way Eternity Martin illustrates race since I myself would have never thought about it in that way.

@Sep 24, 2020 9:23 AM

Personally, I do not feel as though Reverse Racism exists. I believe it is impossible for a construct to exist as the power structure has historically benefited white people. Many may argue that in an effort for Canada to become more diverse, we make it a priority within our organizations to employ diversity at all levels, which are taking away jobs from white people. This does not mean that reverse racism exists, it simply means that we are taking steps and actions to move forward as a country.

For me, the quote "racism is the father of race, not the child" means that children aren't born seeing colour or differerences, it is not until they are taught where ideas of racism begin to exist. Racism is not inherited, it is learned behaviour.

"Race, is an idea, not a fact. Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason." To me this means that race is more a social construct than a biological one, our race does not predict any of our abilities, but throughout time, patterns and behaviours have been associated with race rathe than looking at the socio-economic situations that may not allow for individuals of particular race to fulfill their fullest potential.Race does not predict our potential as individuals, limitations put on individuals are usually based on society and what it allows individuals to achieve.

Eternity Martis summed up the privilege and oppression that still very much exists today. She said that "when white people behave badly, it's an individual trait. When people of colour misbehave, it's a problem with the entire race." (Martis, 2020, p.126).

@September 24 at 7:22 PM

Wow, I couldn't have said it clearer myself. That was amazing, you got straight to the point and made sure every part was clear, understandable, and true. When people want to start believing in reverse racism they stop believing in the issues and suffering on people of colour. Thank you for expressing that as a white person, you understand that the basic white girl jokes will not prevent you from living your life because of where and what you are. Your explanation of the quotes was great, I really liked the last one, I didn't fully understand the quote myself, but after reading your response I do understand it better.

@Sep 24, 2020 11:28 AM

1. I don't think that reverse racism exists. I think that some people may confuse the terms racism and prejudice. I think that prejudice ideas, phrases or thoughts can be directed towards white people but that does not mean it counts as racism. Racism has to do with the idea of power in society, and that power is in the hands of those that are white, not black. You cannot be racist towards someone who is white because of the privilege they possess. Prejudice towards a white person will never impact them in the same way racism does towards those in a minority group. They will never be able to feel, understand or have to go through oppression due to the colour of their skin. The term reverse racism has everything do with the fact that some people support the anti-black notion, and refuse to believe that society is not equal.

2.a) I think this quote means that race is not really real. Race isn't based on facts and can't be proven by science and it didn't always exist. The terms are always changing and race is something that is hard to explain because how is it really possible to tell what race someone is and who decided it. This reminds me of the book we're currently reading and how Eternity comes from two different races and has to figure out which one she truly identifies with. I think everyone has a different idea about what race means to them and it doesn't have any set rules. Race can be defined by gun violence that shows social inequalities and effects the lives of black people daily.

2.b) I think that this quote means that racism started when the idea of race was used to justify and allow the way white people were treating black people when slavery first started. Meaning that racism came first, the the term race came after. The term race is used to justify white superiority within society.

@Sep 24, 2020 1:01 PM

Does reverse racism exist? No.

The idea of reverse racism is the result of ignorant, easily offended white people in my opinion. The idea that a statement or stereotype about white people is on the same level as racism is beyond an uneducated idea. We live in a country where being white has always privileged a person. To think you are experiencing racism because of a joke or an act of equality/equity means you are completely unable to comprehend what racism is and how our society functions. The full impact and definition of racism isn’t being considered in the idea of reverse racism. It’s completely ignoring the entire history of our massively westernized world; ignoring the history of this society built off the oppression, dehumanization, and discrimination of anyone who isn’t white. To say reverse racism exists is also completely disregarding all suffering of BIPOC.

As a white woman, I hate basic white girl jokes about Starbucks and Uggs, about white people not being able to dance or flavour food. It bothers me, but after that little amount of annoyance passes, I’m still sitting in the benefits of white privilege. That stereotype doesn’t cause me to not obtain the job I want, to not be allowed to live in certain places, or to be discriminated against and put in danger by societal institutions. That statement is only a statement for me. It’s not a brutal ideology, a tool of oppression, and a validator for violence.

The quote by Nell Irvin Painter sums up how racism came about very straightforward. White people showed up with guns and a belief in conquering, superiority, and patriotism. Racism is a way of thinking, there is no science or biology to it, only a white supremacist belief system enforced by violence.

The second quote highlights why the idea of race exists at all; the very creation of race itself was to validate and give language to racism.

@September 24 at 8:53 PM

Hi ___,

I agree with your example of being a white women. We tend to have the tasteless jokes about Starbucks and Uggs but at the end of the day, our race doesn't suppress us from doing what we want (i.e. education).

@September 24 at 11:37 PM

This is a great response. I like your point about the idea of reverse racism coming from easily offended white people. It's essentially a mockery of what racism actually is and what people of colour actually go through. Racism is more than a mere insult. At the end of the day, a white person will most likely never suffer on the basis of them being white.

@Sep 24, 2020 1:17 PM

Reverse Racism explores the idea of prejudice, on the basis of race, directed against a member of a dominant group. While the concept of reverse racism is legitimate, it fails to recognize the history of mistreatment imposed by that dominant group onto marginalized populations. Racism acknowledges the discrimination, on the basis of race or ethnicity, felt by minority populations. It is important to recognize that minority does not necessarily refer to smaller in population. Marginalized populations are also seen through a displacement of power and systems of oppression. Aamer Rahman successfully highlighted the faults in the reverse racism argument in a thoughtful and comical way. When Europe colonized the world, while stealing land, resources, and freedom of trade, they lost the “right” to be offended when others hold them accountable for their cultural history.

Through these quotes, Painter and Coates, eloquently demonstrate race as a social construct. I agree that society has taken race far beyond the biological element and extended it past skin colour. As Painter outlines: “Race is an idea, not a fact. Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns looking for a reason”. I believe this quote relates to that of Dr. Ibram X. Kendi when he explores the idea that, “the source of racism was not ignorance and hate, but self-interest”. Both of these outline race being used as an excuse for division rather than recognizing the racism engrained in our self-interested society. I also found Coates’s idea that: “Racism is the father of race, not the child” to be profound and thought-provoking. I believe Coates is successfully illustrating how defining we have allowed race to become throughout global history. He is furthermore demonstrating that xenophobia laid the foundation for division between races rather than division sparking racism.

@Sep 24, 2020 1:29 PM

1. If we define racism - in broad terms - as discrimination against a group of people based on their skin colour, then we could confidently say anyone can be racist, even if they were discriminated against too. But in an analogy that compares reverse racism to standing up to a bully, it would be silly to criticize the person standing up for themselves and rightfully demanding respect and equality. Therefore, if "reverse racism" was for the ultimate purpose of peace and equality, so be it. But if it aimed towards more discrimination and the facilitation of hate, then its unjustifiable.

2. Race, indeed is an idea, a social construct not a biological one. There is no biological basis for racial classification. As a species, we only have 0.1% variation (genetically). This means that the labels were created by people for many reasons.

Racism is what created race, discrimination and greed are what generated those labels on the basis of color. Those classifications were easy to grab in order to justify and direct hate and fulfill goals through unconscientious ways.

I found this to be a great video about the topic. It sheds some light on reverse racism. It's a rather comforting conversation to have!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSsoVjTgYJ0&list=PLbpi6ZahtOH7K3VFnC44C_YbKfdcbHA4j

@September 24 at 3:32 PM

Hello ___!

I initially agreed with with your approach to look at reverse racism from a theory vs. practice perspective. In practice, I believe the concept fails as it is used by those with power in attempts to justify their historical wrongdoings. I appreciated your analogy in relating reverse racism to bullying. I would further apply it to system of oppression. The oppressed should not be blamed for actions of desperation against the oppressor when it was their actions that caused the situation.

I additionally agree with race being a social construct. This week quotes by Painter and Coates, demonstrated race being used as an excuse for division when racism and xenophobia are the true cause that must be overcome.

@Sep 24, 2020 1:38 PM

Does Reverse Racism Exist?

I believe that reverse racism does not exist. Racism is the systematic oppression of a racial group due to the prejudiced beliefs which lead to an inherent superiority of a particular race. Throughout history, White people have been in a position of power that they have been benefiting from creating the foundations for our society. There have been countless laws, institutions, and societal norms within our society that put minority groups at a significant disadvantage. Systematically, there is no way that reverse racism can exist because our society benefits the “average white person.” There have been countless studies and everyday examples where a person is rejected for a job, renting or purchasing real estate, school applications or other day-to-day necessities due to the assumptions based solely on someone’s name sounding Black or Middle Eastern. When a White person is being assessed for this, they are not given less of a chance because of their name.

Of course, in stating this, we can still recognize that White people may deal with discrimination or prejudicial treatment. However, this is not institutionalized on a larger scale. It is commonly on an interpersonal scale, where an individual on a minority group carries unrealistic beliefs of a white person causing him/her to single out one’s “whiteness”

2. Discuss what these two quotes mean to you:

"Race,' writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter, 'is an idea, not a fact.' Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason." -Ta-Nehisi Coates, "What We Mean When We Say 'Race Is a Social Construct'," The Atlantic, May 15, 2013

Race is no longer about where one is from, but what they look like, or what box to fit them in. Race is a subjective idea that each individual has its own understanding of. This social construct can be debated endlessly because we as a society have changed the meaning into something that may never be agreed on. As for the second part of the quote, I have little comprehension of the “good guys with big guns”. I feel like there could be a subliminal message relating to the times of colonization, but during that time, most of the guys with gums were bad.

Racism is the father of race, not the child" - Coates

This quote implies that if there were no beliefs of a superior and inferior race than the term “race” would not exist because, in the end, we would all just be people. There was a point in history when someone saw another person that did not look, sound, or act like them and decided to put a different standard towards them and categorize them. But through that also came discriminatory and prejudice beliefs which in turn created races. If racism were the child of race then I feel like you would have to ignore science when it said that all people come from Africa and that the human population started with multiple races which then created conflict to create racism. We know that this is not the case, so it can only be that racism is the father of the social construct we know as race.

@Sep 24, 2020 1:41 PM

Reverse racism, in my opinion does exist, but I do not think it should. By this I mean that other people try and make it seem like reverse racism happens and it is the same, just as bad as racism, which it is not. I think Stereotypes regarding white people have no correlation to racisms, they are being discriminated against. Now is this reverse racism? Not really. Racism is something that actually happened in the past and was a big problem. It was always regarding people of colour. Racism is the injustice of people of colour based on socially constructed racial hierarchy that privilege's white people.

In the 1700s, white people did not go through slavery and were not discriminated against. They lived as they wanted to, free. Racism became a term, not because of anything white people went through, but because of what happened in history. However, I do think that there are certain individuals or groups of people who may be discriminated against who are white, but this is not, and should not be given a name that has much more meaning.

For example, if a white person were to enter a black neighborhood and was called names, spit on, yelled or sweared at, of course it is not right, and it should not happen. No one should have to listen to comments like that or get assaulted in anyway. However, I do not believe this is “reverse racism”. You would never see on the news that a black person was being “racist” to a white person. Why? Because you cannot change history.

1. "Race,' writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter, 'is an idea, not a fact.' Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason." -Ta-Nehisi Coates, "What We Mean When We Say 'Race Is a Social Construct'," The Atlantic, May 15, 2013

2. "Racism is the father of race, not the child" - Coates

The first quote to me, means that race is just an idea that has been put in our heads. That just because we are white, black, Asian, etc… does not make us different or less of another. We are all people, we are all alive, and we are all on this planet. The second part, I think means that it requires people with big hearts and drive to stand up against racism. Standing up for something as important as this shows that there are people in the world who believe in equality and that life should be shared and loved by everyone. The idea of "black and white" makes no sense because we are all people on the inside and out.

The second quote to me, means that race came before racism. Race divides people of different cultures but it does not specify race from race. Race is more about where you come from/where you live, it does not have to do with the type of person you are. Racism was created as a negative thing and was created by groups who have more power. I think is a very interesting way to put it because race did come before racism.

@September 25 at 10:55 AM

Hi ___!

All of your points were great! I enjoyed reading this very much. Regarding your discussion on reverse racism, I especially like the thoughts you wrote down. I definitely agree that people try to play victim (white people) and want to prove (for some reason I can't even make up) that we are on equal playing grounds, when the truth is that we are not. It's almost as if white people want to be oppressed, which is so insulting to POC because this has been reality their whole life.

@Sep 24, 2020 2:59 PM

1. I do not believe reverse racism exists. Most people use "reverse racism" as an answer to when someone says something offensive to white people (in my personal experiences). For example; white people can't dance, but it is not reverse racism, it is racial prejudice. Racial prejudice is discriminatory attitudes based on perceptions about someone's skin tone. So yes, racial prejudice can be conducted at white people, but it is not racism because of the systemic tie to power. For example, in Canada, white people hold a cultural power that enhances white privilege.

2. "Race,' writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter, 'is an idea, not a fact.' Indeed. Race does not need biology."

The first part of the quote I agree with. I personally believe that there is one race, the human race, and what makes us each different is our religion, ethnicity, background, and yes our skin colour. My father described it to me by saying one day, long ago, someone decided they wanted to discriminate and have power so they divided people by the colour of their skin and named the different races. That is what the quote, more specifically the line "is an idea, not a fact" means to me. As for the second part, "race only requires some good guys and guns for a reason" makes absolutely no sense to me. I have tried to figure it out but I cannot.

For the second quote, to me, it enforced that race is not real. As I said before, someone a long time ago wanted more power, so they discriminated against people that didn't look like them They made standards that were unachievable for that group of people.

@September 24 at 3:10 PM

Hey ___, I think your response to these questions is really well written. I agree that reverse racism doesn't exist and that "racism" towards white people is considered racial prejudice rather racism. I also liked your interpretation of the quotes in saying how people discriminated against people who didn't look like them. I totally agree that the root of racism's existence comes a lot from fear of anything differing from themselves. I like all your points, nice job!

@September 24 at 7:08 PM

Hey ___, thank you!! I'm glad you agree with my point on racism towards white people is racial prejudice and my interpretation of the quotes, I was afraid people wouldn't quite get what I was saying.

@September 24 at 3:37 PM

Hi ___!

I really enjoyed reading your response. I completely agree with your take on "reverse racism." When people use this term, it tells me that their understanding of racism is interchangeable with prejudice or discrimination. This misunderstanding is one of the many reasons why I believe race should be discussed more frequently in our learning spaces (ie. home and schools). It then made me so happy to read that this was a discussion you had with your father!

@September 24 at 7:06 PM

Thank you so much, I'm very glad you liked my discussion! I agree, the concept of race needs to be discussed more everywhere. Yes, my father likes to have these talks with his children to help us!!

@September 25 at 11:09 PM

Interesting take on the 2nd quote. I haven't thought of it that race is unreal, but that's a unique way to put it, for me I thought that race served mores as a scapegoat or-- in better words, a generalized term to marginalize people based on their physical/ cultural attributes, but I agree, it holds no 'real meaning' because it was founded by members of society who collectively decided their interpretations to be the truth, although, it's far from it. Thanks for sharing!

@Sep 24, 2020 3:21 PM

It is my belief and understanding that reverse racism does not exist. I believe people who claim anti-white racism exists do not have a proper understanding of what racism is, and instead see it as interchangeable with prejudice or discrimination. However, as described by Dr. Ibram X. Kendi, racism can be differentiated by the weight of its history, as it is fundamentally rooted in the racist policies that fortify racial inequity and perpetuate racist ideas. Furthermore, to claim that reverse racism exists is to ignore the disproportionate power amongst white and non white individuals.
Anthropology and Biology agree that race is merely a social construct. These two quotes thus describe how and why race has been given so much significance despite this fact. The conception of race was used to justify enslavement. The claim that race is a biological subdivision was used in order to promote the idea of an innate biological, socio-political hierarchy. However, it is important to acknowledge that although race is a social construct, this does not make it an illusion. Race has been tied to the notion of identity. It informs how we see the world, who we associate with, how we present ourselves to the world, and conversely - how the world (its people and institutions) regard us. Furthermore, if we ignore race (i.e. “I don’t see colour”), we risk negating identity and social history.

@September 24 at 7:14 PM

Hey there! I love how you tied in Dr. Ibram X. Khendi description of racism to support your point on reverse racism, it really made it concrete. I completely agree with your take on the quotes. Thank you for mentioning, "Furthermore, if we ignore race (i.e. “I don’t see colour”), we risk negating identity and social history." It is truly something that needs to be said more often when people say they don't see colour it is hurtful to hear that they disregard everything that has happened and that is still happening to people of colour today.

@Sep 24, 2020 4:47 PM

I believe that reverse racism does not exist. Aamer Rahman jokes about how reverse racism would only exist today if he had a time machine to reverse the roles between European colonizers and minority countries (Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Central and South America). While Rahman was only making a joke, I believe that what he said is very much true. Racism is strongly associated with history because history is the root cause of racism that minorities encounter today. For hundreds of years, minority groups have faced challenging experiences. The form of racism I will be using is collective experiences, to explain my reasoning. Media sources negatively characterize ethnic groups, which is one of the many experiences an individual can encounter. I once saw a tweet telling people to Google an image of “teenagers” then to Google an image of “black teenagers”. When you Google an image of just teenagers, images will pop up showing teenagers having fun and laughing. When you Google an image of black teenagers, images of mugshots will be shown. This is an example of how the media negatively portrays black teenagers as “criminals”. So the question is, why do we never see mugshots of white teenagers? This is because reverse racism does not exist and the media will only cover positive news when it comes to white teenagers, but will only focus on the negative when covering news about black teenagers.

“Race is an idea, not a fact”: To me, this quote means that race is a social construct. Colonizers are the people who divided ethnic people by colour - but putting themselves, the whites, at the top of the chain. Since then, we have been racially classified as white, black, brown, hispanic or asian, to name a few. In an article written by Jenee Desmond-Harris, she writes that “Americans embraced the idea of race to make slavery feel okay” (11 Ways Race Isn’t Real, 2014). This statement proves my point being that race is a social construct. Race, in fact, does not need biology. When we ignore the colour of our skin, we are all the same biologically. We as a society have accepted the fact that we are different due to our skin colour, which is an idea created by colonizers and not a scientific fact.

“Racism is the father of race, not the child”: From my understanding, this quote means that the social construct of race was initiated by society being racist towards one another. I do not agree with the quote as I believe that racism is the child of race. How could someone be racists towards another if there was no such thing as “race”? I think that society as a whole began to become racist towards different ethnic groups, once they were divided by their skin colour. Like I said before, we are all biologically the same - we have the same skeleton. While I believe that some individuals could have been racist towards certain individuals, I do not believe that racism occurred until the social construct of race was put in place.

@September 24 at 6:32 PM

Hi ___,

You make a very interesting point about the differences in googling "teenagers" vs "black teenagers". I've noticed something similar in media when news sources report on white vs. black criminals. When a criminal is black they are portrayed in the media using their mugshot. When a criminal is white, they are often portrayed using family photos or photos from outings, etc. This portrays them as inviting and non-malicious people, which they may or may not be, but it also separates the crime from the perpetrator. This is never or almost never done in cases of black perpetrators, which I believe fuels the negative stereotypes that surround black people.

@September 24 at 7:11 PM

Hey,

Thanks for your reply! I totally agree with what you have just said. The sad part is when mugshots are shown of black people, they are called"criminals" but in most cases, they really are not. In media, they really do portray white criminals as inviting and non-malicious but that is exactly what they are. There is so much more that we need to do as a society but we are nowhere close.

@September 24 at 7:16 PM

Regarding my response, I am not trying to make it sound like all white people are evil. I am trying to explain that when the media portrays black vs. white criminals, most times the black "criminal" is not really a criminal whereas most times the white criminal has actually committed a crime. It is just scary seeing some of the crimes that have been committed.

@Sep 24, 2020 5:28 PM

Lately, "reverse racism" has been a term thrown around as a response to lighthearted jokes about white people. You'll hear it in conversation and see it all over the internet. These jokes about white people, however, do not hold the same impact as jokes made about non-white people. Jokes about white people, as we heard in the Fear of a Brown Planet video, are jokes about a lack of rhythm, bland foods, or style (think of "Christian girl autumn") - nothing inherently harmful. "Jokes" directed at people of colour often have angry undertones, where the joke is meant to be an attack; meant to inflict harm. My take on the term "reverse racism" aligns very well with that of Aamer Rahman, who commented on how reverse racism could only exist if time were reversed and the centuries of oppression and overt racism were inflicted on white people rather than people of colour. Historically, white people have not been oppressed, and if a group of white people were oppressed, it was not due to their race. In a reading for my legal studies course, the author, Cheryl Harris, states "Those whites who are disadvantaged in society suffer not because of their race but in spite of it". People of colour, however, have suffered such damaging (which is an incredible understatement) racism for centuries that is still ingrained in our society. Systemic racism continues to put people of colour at a disadvantage while whiteness is still considered to be valuable. It is these intense social and historical disparities that create the difference in contexts when making race-based jokes. Thus, reverse racism cannot exist.

Race is a social construct. It is a concept invented by humans and can, therefore, theoretically, be undone. As a society, we have put great importance on race in relation to our identity, which might make it seem as though race is an undisputed fact. But this is supported by what? A collective agreement that these people, or their parents, or their grandparents, and so on are from x country and so they must be y race? Race requires the continued notion that it is something on which we must place great value because otherwise, it will lose importance. "Racism is the father of race, not the child" because it is a racist mindset that gives race importance. The idea of race is the product of "othering" groups of people based on arbitrary features; a mindset that has spread and snowballed over time. Racism was used to justify actions that benefited white people: enslavement. Take Thomas Jefferson for example. He believed that slavery should be abolished, but he also believed that slaves were undoubtedly a great economic asset (because, obviously, there was no cost of labour) and encouraged enslaved women to have children as a way of creating more slaves. The concept of race here comes from "othering" black people as the justification of the collective benefit of white people.

@Sep 24, 2020 6:01 PM

Reverse Racism is something I definitely had to wrap my head around because I have never heard of it before watching the video on it. However my first reaction to hearing about it was “no, it doesn't” and after thinking about it and really looking over the concept of racism based on what I know, I still believe it does not exist. Racism is prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism typically directed to individuals part of the minority group or marginalized.

After coming to terms with what racism was and the definition of it, I came to the conclusion that there is no such thing as reverse racism in my opinion. Racism stems from what happened in history, white individuals targeted individuals on the basis of their membership to a specific racial or ethnic group. It has not been shown in history that black individuals or people of color have targeted white individuals in history, mainly because they couldn't fight back and or stand up for themselves most of the time. White individuals were the majority and they had the power. So to say that reverse racism is a thing simply does not make sense in terms of what happened in history and what still happens today, unfortunately.

I also decided to look on the internet and see what I could find about reverse racism and to my expectations, I couldn't find any solid research, examples, or incidents to say that reverse racism was a thing or that anyone had claimed to have been a victim of reverse racism, (i would have been surprised if someone did claim that). When I talked to individuals who were unsure whether it excited or not and listened to them try to come up with examples, most of their “examples” were just very dangerous generalized assumptions (stereotypes one might say) about people of color, specifically the black community. So say all of this, I do not think reverse racism is a thing.

The two quotations on the other hand kind of stumped me. Took me a good while to come up with answers for them. To me, the first one is a bit confusing. The first part of it “Race is an idea, not a fact.” means to me that racism started out as an idea, an idea that people who had colored skin were inferior in every way to white individuals. The second half of the quote “Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason.” is where I'm a little stumped. It might mean that race only requires good individuals who are not racist to carry around “big guns” or have lots of power and a good reason to help the minorities or marginalized against individuals who are racist.

The second quote means to me that without racism there would not be any distinction of races. That race and recognizing and realizing that there are different races is the product of racism and unfortunate hate towards individuals of minority groups.

@September 25 at 9:25 AM

I was equally as stumped when first tackling these questions, ___.

The way I understood the "big guns" analogy, was that all it takes is a few people with power to ultimately change the social construct of a particular group of people. To me, it means that people are born with the ability to be successful, it's their circumstances and the limitations that can be put on their lives by individuals with power and privilege that can ultimately control the path of others.

What are your thoughts on this?

@September 25 at 7:03 PM

I get what you mean, ___.

I agree with you. I think that's what I was trying to get at but just had trouble putting it into words. I like the way you phrased it, it makes sense that way. Thank you.

@Sep 24, 2020 8:19 PM

1.Does Reverse Racism Exist?

I believe that Reverse Racism does not exist. I agree that a white person can be mistreated due to their race, but I would not call that reverse racism, rather I would refer to it as Racial prejudice. In my opinion, Reverse racism is just a terminology used by certain white persons when they feel like they have lost something due to it being given to a person of colour. This could be a job opportunity, status etc. Some may even argue that the Black Lives Matter Movement is an example of reverse racism. They can not accept that someone of colour has attained something that they want, and this is a product of white priviledge. The fact that one needs to call it 'reverse racism', and not 'racism' itself shows that it simply does not make sense. I believe that reverse racism does not exist because white persons have never experienced the colonialism, the stripping of culture, the loss of opportunity, the lower quality of life, the biased beauty standards or even the lack of rights that people of colour have had to experience, due to the actions of some white people themselves. Therefore, I believe that reverse racism does not exist, but rather the mistreatment towards white persons, which I would refer to as racial prejudice, does exist, but at a very minimal degree with white persons.

2. Quote #1

This quote to me, means that race is just a notion that people use to separate and differentiate humans from one another using their physical qualities. Despite it being a social construct, it is not a fact that differentiates human beings. This quote means that race merely covers the surface area of who a person is, and that you can never truly perceive who a person is based on the colour of their skin. Overall, there is so much more to a person than their race, but the 'good guys'(for example, the police) seem to forget that as they allow social construct and ideas created by people decide on how they should treat human beings based on their race.

Quote #2

This quote follows behind the meaning of the previous quote, and further goes to say that the social construct of race was an outcome of racism, and not the other way around. This quote to me means that categorizing someone by their race is an act of racism, and that individuals must aim to look beyond one's physical qualities.

@September 25 at 11:27 PM

___, I fully agree with your idea of racial prejudice instead of reverse racism. I was trying to find a way to word how a white person is mistreated and that encapsulated it. While white people might feel they've experienced racism, the fact that it's reversed in the first place proves that the idea of racism was originally targeted towards people of colour. I really like your take on this idea as I haven't seen anyone else put it that way.

@Sep 24, 2020 8:38 PM

1. Does reverse racism exist?

I do not personally think that reverse racism exists. Racism is based on oppression. As stated in the notes, racism is based on oppressing other races for the benefit of the oppressors. There are still racism in politics (i.e. ICE detention centers), the continual oppression of black people in America by police, as well as the continual oppression of Indigenous people in Canada.

2. Discuss what these two quotes mean to you:

"'Race,' writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter, 'is an idea, not a fact.' Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason." -Ta-Nehisi Coates, "What We Mean When We Say 'Race Is a Social Construct'," The Atlantic, May 15, 2013
- I agree with this quote. Race was made to be able to stigmatize and categorize people. I have learned through the BLM movement that the quote 'I don't see colour' is actually racist; I learned this from a friend of mine. He told me that I should be teaching my children that people with different skin tones exist because people do see minorities as different and by teaching your children to use their privilege to help others is important. By teaching my children that they do have privilege's because of their skin tone, I can also teach them how to use it to make a change.
"Racism is the father of race, not the child" - Coates
- This quote means to me that race has been created and taught to us.

@Sep 24, 2020 9:08 PM

Question 1

Personally, I don't think an idea such as "reverse" racism exists. To me, the word reverse is just meaningless in this context. There is no actual meaning or difference if it were divided into "racism" and "reverse racism;" racism is still racism no matter what, who, or why. Whenever we hear the phrase "reverse racism" some of us might immediately think "oh, a black person (or group) is showing a racist behavior towards a white person (or group)" but this concept is actually mistaken. There is no such thing as that. No matter who it may be coming from or to whom it is being directed, that comment, idea, thought, or manifestation is still racism.

Question 2

The message I get from these two quotes is that, essentially, the idea of "race" is nothing more than a concept created by us. The rise of distinctions and classifications of other people because of physical differences (essentially racism) has shaped what we have been defining as a "race." I really liked a quote from the movie Not Easily Broken which I think summarizes my idea pretty well. As the protagonist Dave Johnson (interpreted by Morris Chestnut) said, "You know what brother King said? He said, 'I am human first, then I am black.' There's only one race of people and that's human race."

@September 25 at 3:30 PM

Hi ___! I understand your views from question 1 however I do have a different understanding and I would like to share it to see if this may change your view.

First I would like to state that the concept of racism was to divide people . Racism came first and then the ideas of race and then our views upon race. What I understood from your question 1 (correct me if I am wrong), is that you believe that racism is just racism no matter who it comes from and I firmly believe that is not the case. We live in a white society ; all of our ideas of beauty is from the white perspective, the way out TV is portrayed is from the white prospective, most believe that the bible is from a white mans perspective; god. I say all this to go on to say that, in a white dominated society no mater what a black person or a coloured person says it is not racism, it is a prejudice, discriminatory even, but it is not racism. Racism affects coloured people in different ways such as what schools they could get into (opportunities they are allowed), the rate at which they get stopped by the police, and so many more factors. Racism affects a coloured persons everyday life and it the concept of race was for that reason - to separate humans. The concept of race and racism was to put down black people and black culture (among other coloured people). Since a black person or any other person of colour does not have the institutional backing (institutional racism), it is not racist. However I am also not saying that speaking ill of another race is good no matter which one it is. I do reply with., there is no such thing as a black person being racist.

@Sep 24, 2020 9:15 PM

In response to the first part of this discussion, I don’t think reverse racism exist, because the white race hasn’t been through the same torment, suffering, violence and abuse as the black community has gone through. While there are remarks about the white race such as “white trash” or “white people can’t dance” these do not reach the level of racism, it’s more mockery if anything. The black community has consistently been suppressed by society and the institutions, politically, socially and economically making it more difficult to succeed or live freely without judgment. The white community does not face these oppressions and challenges; in fact, most people of the white race have been privileged in this sense.

The quote "Race,' writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter, 'is an idea, not a fact.' Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason." By Coates portrays the police as the “good guys” using extreme force signified by “big guns” against minority groups as the “reason” for racial violence.

Secondly “Racism is the father of race, not the child" by Coates is a powerful statement that symbolizes the social aspect of racism. Racism was born through social construct which then divide people into their respective races. Therefore, racism came before race because the idea of racism came before we divided races.

@September 25 at 9:00 PM

I like how you brought into account privilege and agree with the role that plays in reverse racism. I also like how you mentioned examples of the kind of racism black people face in comparison to stereotypes about white people to prove they are different.

@Sep 25, 2020 9:47 AM

Does Reverse Racism Exist?

Reversed racism is not real whereas racism is real. Reversed means the same thing just flipped around which is physically impossible when there’s no history to back it up for reversed racism towards Caucasians. The definition of racism used in the module by Dr. Ibram X. Kendi was “racism is a powerful collection of racist policies that lead to racial inequity and sustained by racist ideas.” This has no connection to Caucasians, but I also believe there’s a slight bias in the definition as racism is discriminating against a race. From policies to just leaving your house Caucasians (more so men) have the most privilege in the world. Now racism can be directed toward any race it’s just not reversed as I do believe claiming “I hate white men” can create further resentment and push us further away from change but you cannot label it as “reversed”. In the book They Said This Would Be Fun they discussed the occurrence of Trayvon Martin being shot when coming home from the convenience store creating fear within the community, scared for their lives thinking “It could have been me”. Caucasians don’t have to go through that constant fear and agony holding them back from being shot, racially profiled, constant comments about their ethnicities. Along with the history behind racism, Europeans / Caucasians didn’t have to go through it, they led it. I don’t understand why Caucasians want to be a target of oppression so badly they created a false reality and now claim reversed racism is real. The biggest problem I have with this statement “Reversed Racism” is the idea they think it’s okay to make comments about minorities for instance “what if the roles were reversed or what if I said I hate your kind” because the roles are always reversed and minorities are constantly targeted. Instead of making hate comments about any race I think we all just need a little positivity in our lives and leave stereotypes in the past as it brings no improvement but only resentment.

2. What do these 2 quotes mean to you?

Based on both quotes they represent the concept of race being a social construct oppose to a genetic and biological occurrence. The first quote represents how our society has created the word “race” and it’s all based on ideas especially with no biology or science to back it up. The second part of the quote addresses “good guys with big guns”, the way I took this was through one race being more superior and having “big guns” to go after the inferior race. He labels them as good guys because they don’t see what they’re doing as wrong but only good. In our world, all people have their self-interest perceiving their moral actions as “good” even when it's disguised as hate. When looking through science the word “race” has been debunked and proven its nothing more than a category and a label. The second quote shows where the race began, the father. The father of race is racism and without racism, there would be no race. this connects back to my thoughts on the last quote that race is just a way to categorize people. Sadly, our world only labels people when they distribute negative comments and thoughts to others it’s never out of positivity without bringing someone else down. Race was only formed out of racism and a way to segregate minorities. Overall the main takeaway from these quotes is race is nothing more than an idea stemmed from hate with a lack of evidence and logic.

@September 25 at 11:31 AM

Hello,

I agree with what you said about reverse racism. The fact that there are no systemic policies backing it up, it is still inequitable to those who are disadvantaged by them. Of course anyone can experience verbal racism, however, as long as racist policies exists there will never be reverse racism or true equity, in my opinion.

@September 25 at 11:15 PM

Hey ___! This was a really valuable take on the concepts of reverse racism. I agree that there's a systematic hierarchy of power imposed on people of colour, especially black people, that disallows them to truly be in a position of racism, there no level playing filed that would allow that to happen. Loved reading this, great job.

@Sep 25, 2020 10:49 AM

Reverse Racism is a controversial term for some. Debates happen nonstop on whether it exists, or whether not. From what I’ve seen, and in my own personal opinion, it is usually white people who defend on the side that it does exist. However, it’s not controversial for me, and I don’t really think reverse racism exists for a couple reasons. First, reverse racism is defined as “prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism on the basis of race directed against a member of a dominant or privileged racial group” (Oxford Languages), and racism is defined as “prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against a person or people on the basis of their membership of a particular racial or ethnic group, typically one that is a minority or marginalized” (Oxford Languages). Notice how these definitions mention privilege, and/or minority. White people have privilege over people of colour, and people of colour are the minority in most circumstances. When a black person calls a white person “cracker” or something, although it may seem to be “discriminating”, it’s not. I think that reverse racism, if in some way it does exist, was built upon racism and is White people’s own fault. In addition, we have to look at it this way: A white person will rarely not get a job for being white. A white person will rarely get followed in a store simply for being white. A white person will also rarely face everyday discrimination, whereas people of colour, whether it be black, asian, hispanic, or indigenous, face people turning up their noses simply for having a different skin colour, culture, or accent. Now, with that being said, this doesn’t mean that POC can’t be racist. But, that isn’t reverse racism, it’s just racism. So, I do not think reverse racism exists, and I personally don’t think you can be racist to a white person. White people have privilege over all, and white people, in terms of settler colonialism and colonization, set themselves up for failure.

This quotation, to me, means that race is essentially made up. And although this may be true and it was made up at some point, as it's true it doesn’t need biology. I don’t completely agree. I don’t agree because in today's world, race means a lot to people. We identify with a race, there is so much talk about race, and for that reason I think that it’s unfair to disregard race.

3. "Racism is the father of race, not the child" - Coates

This, to me, means that race only became a ‘thing’ per se, because of racism. This comes from colonialism and ‘conquering’. In other words, someone being another skin colour did not create racism.

@September 25 at 1:54 PM

Hello ___!

I appreciate your insight regarding reverse racism and the reality of how it's used. I believe reverse racism is used by those with privilege in attempts to justify their cultural history rather than accepting historical wrongdoings. I also agree with your descriptions of racism, targeting a minority, and reverse racism, towards a member of a dominant group. This distinct difference between these two is the recognition of privilege.

I often think of reverse racism in the context of South Africa. During the time of the apartheid, the white population of South Africa was the minority in numbers but held all political power. The racism towards the Black community was not reverse racism simply because it was towards the population majority, it was racism because it was an imbalance of power being used as a tool of oppression.

I also found your points interesting when touching on systemic racism and the hinderance race places on opportunities. I agree that when Europe colonized the world, while stealing land, resources, and freedom of trade, they lost the "right" to be offended when others hold them accountable for their cultural history.

@September 25 at 2:51 PM

Thanks for replying! I appreciate you sharing your thoughts. Thanks for sharing about the time of apartheid, as well.

@September 25 at 5:34 PM

Hi ___,

I really enjoyed your opinion on reverse racism. It absolutely is people of dominant groups claiming reverse racism when they are being called out for things that the dominant group has done. For example: BLM and Blue Lives Matter. White people made Blue Lives Matter to deter attention away from the fact that BIPOC are still experiencing systematic racism. I also believe that people of other races can be racist, but it definitely isn't "reverse racism". Thanks for your insight!

@Sep 25, 2020 10:52 AM

Question 1: Does Reverse Racism Exist?

I think, when talking about racism in general, anyone in this world can experience racism whether they’re part of the white or black communities or anything in between. However, regardless of how much verbal racism happens among communities, it doesn’t beat systemic/racist policies. For instance, no matter how much verbal racism a person from a white community faces, they will still have the upper hand in terms of systemic privileges that are engraved within history. Therefore, in my opinion, reverse racism only exists if it is promoting equity (through systemic policies) to those that are discriminated against based on their race through racist policies.

Question 2: Discuss what these two quotes mean to you:

- Quote #1: "Race,' writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter, 'is an idea, not a fact.' Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason." -Ta-Nehisi Coates, "What We Mean When We Say 'Race Is a Social Construct'," The Atlantic, May 15, 2013

To me this quote expresses a lot in regards to understanding the roots or race. In that, even though the modern world views it as something to do with physicality of an individual or the country of origin of that individual, it is much more than that. To even trace back to where anyone is from it’s inevitable to unnoticed how people have evolved to survive at different climatic changes (Coates, T. (2013), Para. 10 &11). However, the significance of this quote is that, instead of focusing to pinpoint what race means, it focuses on how individuals interact with each other in discriminatory ways. In that, it has to do more with the constructed societal factors that control people’s decisions. For example, individuals’ way of thinking may have been affected by historical events such as war and all that it brought onto people’s lives, as well as having corrupted leaders such as Hitler brainwashing people’s minds. This way of thinking not only promotes violence but it also promotes discriminatory behavior such as limiting people’s rights based on their physical features. In most cases society has a huge factor in the way that we behave which explains how certain things are engraved into human behavior and why even in the modern world things such as racist policies still exist.

Citation:
Coates, T. (2013, May 15). What We Mean When We Say 'Race Is a Social Construct'. Retrieved from https://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2013/05/what-we-mean-when-we-say-race-is-a-social-construct/275872/

- Quote 2: "Racism is the father of race, not the child" - Coates

To me this quote is short but powerful. It carries a lot of meaning behind it which I really like. To me, what this quote is saying is that race exists because of racism. The significance of this is that, if people did not have the discriminatory type of mentality since the beginning, there wouldn’t be a difference in race. Instead, there would just be the human kind and everyone would have been viewed the same with the same rights and opportunities. However, since history is full of war, people can’t help but to think in hateful ways, perhaps still having the same mentalities carried through generations. This not only creates generational hate, it also corrupts youthful minds. Come to think of it, in any other circumstances, the person who was bashing the opposition might get along with them perfectly had the circumstances been different.

@September 25 at 10:15 PM

Hi ___, I would disagree with the belief that anyone can experience racism as I don't believe people who are white can experience racism. In my opinion, anyone can experience prejudice (preconceived opinion/stereotype) and maybe even discrimination (unjust treatment based on race) but the victims of racism can only be BIPOC because racism stems from the oppression of BIPOC by White people throughout history, and power and policies that have benefited White people while oppressing Black people.

@Sep 25, 2020 11:41 AM

1. Oxford Languages defines reverse racism as "prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism on the basis of race directed against a member of a dominant or privileged racial group." According to this definition, I would say that Reverse Racism does exist to a completely different extent than racism. White people might encounter collective experiences (perceptions of racism towards one's group) when they are in a minority setting including being stereotyped or given a poor reputation by the media. They may be seen as thinking they are superior when really they think everyone should be treated the same. However, in North America, I don't think white people will ever have to experience everyday racism, chronic-contextual stress, systemic racism, etc. This is because white people are seen as the superior race and society treats them as such.

2. Ta-Nehisi Coates quote about race being an idea, not a fact and not needing biology is completely accurate and it makes so much sense in my mind. I, along with many other people, have never understood why skin with simply an abundance of melanin pigments has caused so much unrest in our society. People have made this horrifying idea in their heads that because of their pigment they should be treated as less when in reality we are all equal. However, unless I am interpreting Coates' second quote incorrectly, I do not agree with his statement that "Racism is the father of race, not the child." From what I understand, this quote means that racism existed before race did just as a father exists before his child. I believe that because our society fabricated racism, it has to have come after there were different races. Racism if anything would be the product of race, just like a child is the product of the father.

@September 25 at 7:45 PM

I disagree with parts of the first half of your statement. I believe that even in situations where white people are seen as the minority race (ie in places like south Africa) they are still seen as above others. For example, during the apartheid, the ratio of black people to white people was not equal, and yet, despite being outnumbered, white people still had a social superiority over black people in South Africa. While I believe that one can be prejudiced towards white people, to compare the racism that people of colour face to what white people face is unfair to people of colour. The prejudiced statements that can be made about white people never have the ability to actually hurt the standing white people have in society.

@September 25 at 10:14 PM

I see where you're coming from, however, the definition of racism according to Oxford Languages is "prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against a person or people on the basis of their membership of a particular racial or ethnic group, typically one that is a minority or marginalized." Notice how it says 'typically one that is a minority or marginalized.' This means that racism isn't often but can be directed to someone that is of the "superior" race. I do understand that this 'reverse racism' is in no way as severe or extreme as the racism BIPOC experience.

@Sep 25, 2020 11:43 AM

I do not believe the phrase "Reverse Racism" exists. Their's Racism and Racism only. Racism was socially constructed by white people to marginalize and oppress people of colour to gain power and privileges. There are systems today that are based on racist ideas. For instance, one of the first cases of policing was from 1704, South Carolina. The "Slave Patrol" was an organised group of white men who monitored and punished black slaves. This is now what we call our modern-day law enforcement. History proved to show that nothing was made to benefit people of colour. People of colour never had power, and that is what Racism is. Phrases like "white trailer trash" and " white people can't jump" are based on stereotypes, but it doesn't contain a traumatic history, like "slave" or "monkey" does. What I'm saying is, there is a difference between Racism and racial prejudice.

'is an idea, not a fact.'

Racism has always been an opinion white people had about people of colour, but it has never been a valid accusation about who they are.

Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason."

Nobody is born racist. Racism is taught and passed down threw teachings and actions from generation to generation. We nowadays cannot view the world in black in white. Refusing to see colour is refusing to acknowledge the problem people of colour are currently facing.

"Racism is the father of the race, not the child"

Racism is what showed individuals the difference between colour. It fathered the idea of separation and superiority.

@Sep 25, 2020 11:46 AM

No, reverse racism is not real. I think the clip of Aamer Rahman's stand up explained why this is the case, clearly. It's all about the context. That is the of context of racial inequities that still exists in our societies today. This reminded me of an interview I saw on YouTube. It was President Obama on Bill Maher's show, and Bill said that atheists are the biggest minority that has no representation in America - Which I believe is sort of true. Obama countered him by saying 'is there active persecution of atheist's in America?'.

Similarly, in the clip, Aamer Rahman posits that if there was centuries and centuries of persecution and enslavement of white people, then reverse racism would've been a real issue.

The quotes and the Professor's suggestion for us to read 'Capitalism and Slavery', got me curious and I found an article by Economist Richard Wolff, which I think explains the quote perfectly:

"Many societies are structured and operate to subordinate one or more portions of their population — politically, culturally, economically or in combinations of these ways — while privileging others. Force can try to maintain subordination, but it is costly, dangerous and often unsuccessful. The preferred method has rather been (a) to develop an idea that justifies the subordination and (b) to install that idea as deeply as possible into the thinking of both the subordinated and the privileged. One such idea is 'race'."

The first thought that came to mind was how racism benefitted the people who came up with the idea. Today many countries produce cheap products by employing very cheap labor (China, Bangladesh, Vietnam). Slavery was free labor, making it very lucrative. The idea of that "natural" qualities differentiate groups of people from one another (Richard D. Wolff is emeritus professor of economics at the University of Massachusetts, 2016), was constructed to justify the system of subordination of black people.

And even though Slavery (Which was a policy justified by racism) has been abolished, the remnants (prejudices, stereotypes) of that policy remain in our institutions and the mindsets of people.

The Obama interview: https://youtu.be/RCb3CaLpfmk

Wolff, R., & Richard D. Wolff. Richard D. Wolff is emeritus professor of economics at the University of Massachusetts. (2016, April 27). How Capitalism and Racism Support Each Other. Retrieved September 25, 2020, from https://truthout.org/articles/how-capitalism-and-racism-support-each-other/

@Sep 25, 2020 11:58 AM

1. No, reverse racism does not exist. This is due to the fact that the origins of racism are rooted in systemic oppression, which white people have never been victimized by. As a white individual, I recognize my privilege and understand that we live in a system originally designed to neglect those who are “different”. Considering events taken place in Eternity Martis’ novel, and the trauma inflicted on her, I don’t see how that can be reversed. To try and justify the harm that’s been done in the past, specifically referring to content relaying information on slavery and residential schools, is unjustifiable. There is no, “it’s in the past,” as unfortunately that course of history determined the future for many individuals. White folks must hold themselves accountable and understand that we socially constructed a reason to divide ourselves from others simply because we felt threatened over differences. Actions taken at the cost of others' freedom is irreversible. However, I do believe that it is never too late to acknowledge the injustice taken place, reconcile from acts of discrimination such as those during confederation/colonization and rise against anti-racism in our society.

2. Both quotes refer to the fact that race is a social construct, created from prejudice and discrimination displayed by white people. The many forms of racism shown in our terminology reveal a variety of ways one can be racist such as time-limited life experiences, microaggressions, systemic racism, or collective experiences. However, racism itself is described as self-interest that leads to racial inequities. The terminology/definitions reveal how being racist forms this idea of race and placing people into categories to define our differences. Therefore, racism is the father, and race is the idea born from it, the child.

@Sep 25, 2020 12:03 PM

Racism alone is based on a couple of things - historical, systemic oppression, and power. When you look back in history, white people haven’t been prosecuted for the colour of their skin, so there’s no relevance in comparing their experiences to those of black, brown, or indigenous people for that matter. Something else I’d like to point out is how can people of colour be racist towards whites in a societal system that’s designed to benefit only white people? Since the beginning of time, white people have been in power and people of colour have lived under systemic forms of oppression that are structured to keep them down in society. This is something whites haven’t experienced.

Reverse racism often gets confused with racial prejudice. Assumptions and stereotypes about white people do not equate to racism. While expressions of racial prejudice directed at white people can hurt them, they do not have the power to affect their social, economic, or political locations and privileges.

Regarding the first quote, I’ve heard multiple times that race is a human invention, nothing more than something we’ve created. I’m not sure I fully understand the second part that mentions how ‘race only needs some good guys with guns for a reason’, but from what I can grasp it’s referring to a form of authority.

With the second quote, a couple of things that came up for me were that one, race is not real but that it’s a social construct. If it weren’t for racism, race would not be a thing. Race was made to set a hierarchy of people to control levels of superiority. Another thing race exists for is creating division and separation between people of colour derived from racist ideals. I would say I agree with both of these quotes.

@Sep 25, 2020 12:36 PM

In my opinion no, reverse racism does not exist. In the video Aamer Rahman talked a lot about this and made some really valid points. He put it into perspective, and I feel made it clear that reverse racism doesn’t exist. I think that yes white people can be discriminated against and a lot of assumptions can be made about them, but I wouldn’t consider this to be reverse racism.

This first quote about race not being a fact, but an idea really got me thinking. Your race doesn’t define you. Racial categories can be confusing in my opinion. Many people may look one way but identify as another. ‘Race does not need biology’ with this quote they are saying that race is not a gene, your biological make up doesn’t have to do with your race, because as we are learning we are understanding that race is a social construct. We as humans have come up with these boxes of racial identities and some may agree with them and some not.

To my understanding when Coates said “Racism is the father of race, not the child’ I feel that he was trying to say that race came from racism. Racism didn’t come from race. To me this means if it weren’t for racism then there would be no need for race. If your racist, then you are seeing someone for just their race and that’s it.

@Sep 25, 2020 1:17 PM

I don't believe that reverse racism exists. Due to dated history that has built of systemic racism, and the history of racist remarks that have turned into multiple forms, history has shown that the majority of oppressors of the race where white. To be racist towards them would mean they have something to lose as well when you call them a racist slur. When in actuality, their race was never mistreatment or discrimination against white people that create them as a minority as well. As I researched about different opinions as to whether reverse racism exists or not, I have seen arguments where people are saying “look at the definition of racism, it’s discriminating against a race.” And some arguments have challenged that by mentioning that racism occurs to minorities or certain ethnic groups that have been marginalized. However, racism is the prejudical idea that proposes that one race remains superior. The history of discrimination against other ethnic backgrounds and races have shown that the majority race was white people remaining superior. Whether it was the government, legal fields, doctors, who were allowed to enter in stores, who was taught higher education etc. And some of that racism is still integrated within institutions today, from mortality rates to education and wealth/income.

I think that this first quote means that racism is something that is taught, and not something humans are born with. Racism started out as a form of greed to one's own race, believing that they who appear superior, must be superior. As for the second quote,

As for the second quote, to me, it means that the idea of race originally just being a construct, created to make the belief of someone always being above, and below. That it's this idea where our skin tone sets the boundaries.

@Sep 25, 2020 2:48 PM

1. I do not believe that reverse-racism exists at all, because white people have been in a position of power and privilege and haven't experienced the hardships that a person from a minority group have gone through. The remarks made to white people such as 'white people can't dance' or 'white people don't know how to season their food' is not racism, but rather racial prejudice.

The first quote I believe it describes that race does not need biology, but rather it's more of an idea founded by racists/colonizers to separate people from others based on their physical features, and the 'good guys with guns' (an example of this would be the police/white people) are the people who use excessive violence against minority groups.
The second quote I believe it talks about how race is the result of racism, and was created to divide people into different groups based on the colour of their skin and how racism was justified by the oppressors.

@Sep 25, 2020 3:06 PM

Does Reverse Racism Exist?

Reverse racism assumes that all people are equal. Racism in itself, using the reverse racism theory, is a social practice that anyone can be a victim of. Which is simply not the case. Racism is not just like any other interpersonal interaction. Racism according to google ;

This plays into various everyday situations such as, employment rates, amount of pay received, likelihood to be stopped by the police, and these are just some examples. White people on the basis of their race will never be that way because we live in a white dominated society. Therefore, ‘reverse racism’ does not exist because on a structural level black (or any other colour) prejudice does not affect the rights of white people.

Note- If you profess to be “colorblind” then there is no incentive to research and think critically about racial issues. Instead this provides a reasoning to pretend racial issues do not exist.

2.Discuss what these quotes mean to you

-Race,' writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter, 'is an idea, not a fact.' Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason." -Ta-Nehisi Coates, "What We Mean When We Say 'Race Is a Social Construct'," The Atlantic, May 15, 2013

I believe he means that in order for race to exist as an idea, all that is required is for there to be people looking for a reason to label someone else as 'other.' Coates is being facetious when he says the words “good guys”, as in these guys with big guns see themselves as the good guys no matter what. They are looking for bad guys to go after. To reiterate, Coates is explaining that the idea of race will exist whether or not it is a biological reality.

-"Racism is the father of race, not the child" - Coates

When humans began identifying race they were being racist because they did not identify themselves as a small part of a larger human race. they look different than others, and then used that as an excuse to justify ill behavior. I believe this quote demonstrates that the concept of race was made by a racist. When Coates says “Racism is the father-”, It describes that racism came first and race came after.

@Sep 25, 2020 4:47 PM

I don't think that reverse racism, or racism against white people exists. While there might be some Black people who dislike White people, there is a lot of justification for them to feel that way. White people have a history of stealing from, hurting, and taking advantage of people of colour. So there are very good reasons for people of colour to dislike/not trust white people. I think that Aamer Rahman perfectly conveyed this in his video. His message in the video showed how for racism against white people to actually exist. It would require hundreds of years of pain and suffering experienced by white people, but since this has never happened it is impossible to be a "reverse racist."

Quote 1: To me this quote discusses war, most likely wars such as the Vietnam War or the Korean War. One of the big things the USA likes to promote is the military, and how their soldiers are "good men fighting/dying for our freedom." But this mentality promotes hate and racism against the people who were at war with the USA.

Quote 2: I really like this quote. I've always thought that we are one human race, and I have never understood why some consider different skin tones to be a sign of a different race. To me this quote says that race as most people think of it doesn't really exist. It was created by racist ideologies as a way to try and sow division and confusion throughout our societies. So racist thoughts gave birth to what most people think of as race.

@Sep 25, 2020 5:37 PM

Reverse racism does not exist. Reverse racism is a strategy by those in the advantaged racial in-group to maintain their social economic and political privileges. when reverse racism is acknowledged as racism, this slows down the progress of eliminating systemic racism. reverse racism is just racism, there is no difference whether it was from a black individual, white individual, etc. We don't live in a society where every racial group has equal power, status, and opportunity.

the first quote to me means that race is not real. we have grown with the idea that if you are born as a certain race, it automatically categorizes you in the social ladder of life. In my opinion, race is only a thing so that higher minorities could abuse their power against others and not feel any remorse because they were a different skin tone.

@September 25 at 7:02 PM

I totally agree with you ___ from the moment we are born we are differentiated into different groups depending on our race. I think that it unfair that our skin tone automatically effects our social ladder and where we stand in society.

@Sep 25, 2020 6:13 PM

In my opinion, reverse racism doesn't exist. Oftentimes, people will use the reverse racism myth because they actually don't understand what racism means. What stuck with me from the content this week is that we mostly understand that individual acts of racism are bad but when it comes to systemic racism, we have a hard time understanding and acknowledging it. In Aamer Rahman's comedy video, he describes a conversation he had with a white person in which they said his jokes about white people were reverse racism. Rahman then goes on to list the historical injustices inflicted on black and racialized people over centuries. Assumptions and stereotypes about white people can be considered a form of prejudice but these jokes and comments can't affect their privileges, social/economic/political location. Because they are the dominant ones with power in society, systems and policies never work against them or prevent them from pursuing their livelihoods. Racism is more than just hateful slurs or derogatory comments, it is also the policies and systems that hold power over racialized peoples.

To me Painter's quote in Coates book means race is a social construct. People awarded meaning to it in order to divide others. As for Coates last quote, to me it means that the idea of race was created because of racism, in order to justify discriminatory policies.

@Sep 25, 2020 6:16 PM

Does reverse racism exist?

What is racism? Racism is the discrimination directed towards a specific person or group of people because they are from a particular racial group. Now what is reverse racism? It is primarily the idea that white people receive the same type of discrimination a person of colour would receive. First of all, if we go back hundreds of years and take a look at where white people and where people of colour stood we would see the racism. Hundreds of years ago people of colour were considered the inferior race. They weren’t allowed to go to school, they didn’t have the same human rights as white people. Moreover, people of colour were enslaved by white people. Therefore, if hundreds of years ago the same thing thy was happening to people of colour was happening to white people, then yes reverse racism does exist. However, this isn’t the case if a person of colour says “why can’t white people dance’’ because who were mistreated? Who were considered inferior? Coloured people. White people are on the top of the pyramid of power while people of colour aren’t. In conclusion, reverse racism doesn’t exist because it tries to ignore the question of who is in power. The answer is white people have more power which is why reverse racism doesn’t exist.

2."Race,' writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter, 'is an idea, not a fact.' Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason." -Ta-Nehisi Coates

This quote is telling us that racism didn’t exist before, it is something that people over time. In fact, people created race that’s what ‘is an idea, not a fact means’. Race from the beginning, from day was fully created by us, humans. Moreover, we humans were the ones that choose to make people of colour feel less valued than white people. Racism towards people was created because there were some big white men that wanted power. This quote to me personally means, that we as humans created the idea of race which we later on used to make rules about and abuse people in our society with.

“Racism is the father of race, not the child" – Coates

This second quote is using a metaphor. In this case, the racism is seen as the father while race is seen as the child. Therefore, implies that racism holds power over race just like how a father would hold power over a child. This quote gives off father-son dynamic, in which a father controls the son. Which is just how racism controls race.

@Sep 25, 2020 6:44 PM

In my opinion I believe reverse racism does not exist, in order to be racist you would need privilege and power. Individuals that are oppressed are the people of colour. Black people were brought to a new country and were enslaved. To this day black communities are still experiencing racism through systemtic discrimination especially in policies, where white people do not experience that. With the power and privilege white people have it is not hard for them to find jobs or access resources ex.housing, compared to people of colour. Being prejudiced is different from being racist, as Aamer Rahman mentioned “a joke about white people not being able to dance has no impact on their lives”, it will not affect the power they have in society. Whereas a joke about a black person will impact their life because they are the dominant and can bring harm to them in society, reinforcing stereotypes. Although white people do hear comments towards themselves they are privileged.

The quote “racism is the father of race, not the child”(Coates) to me means race has been socially constructed, in order to cover up the discriminatory views that exist. This is the idea that white people wanted to seperate themselves from the coloured, differentiating them by skin tone, features etc. With the power hierarchy, they have created the foundation for power and privilege, hence why black people are treated differently by white people. Since they believe that they will get away from the consequences, therefore racism is an avoidable topic in their life. The ideology of racism is the reason why minority groups are being racialized. With the father being the root cause of inventing the idea of “race” is only so people have that mind set to differentiate groups.

The quote “race”, writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter,”is an idea, not a fact”. Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason” - Ta-Nehisis Coates, “What We Mean When We Say “Race Is a Social Construct”, (The Atlantic, May 15, 2013), means that race is not scientific therefore it does not need biology but instead race is a social construct, people with higher power came up with this concept and forced everyone to agree upon this and terminology of “race”. The dominant group having the power controlled and oppressed the minority group, this bringing a divide between people which causes violence to happen. With the mindset of everyone not being equal is the reason why racism is still relevant in modern society.

@September 25 at 7:13 PM

I really enjoyed reading your opinions on this discussion. In particular, I liked your connection to the Aamer Rahman video. Prejudice IS different from being racist. The implications it has on individuals with privilege are incomparable to its effects on those in the black community. Your mention of racism being an avoidable topic for those with privilege is unfortunately accurate. It made me think of how on social media, it can seem as though people make posts about black lives mattering when it seems to be "trending." After the "trend" dies down, people stop advocating. It's important that we ensure this isn't an avoidable issue, and instead continue to bring awareness in order to diminish racism.

@Sep 25, 2020 6:56 PM

1. Reverse racism does not exist. Racism is racial prejudice backed by power, and while prejudice does exist against the white community, it does not have any power behind it due to colonialism and white privilege. White children are not taught how to look "unthreatening" while engaged in a confrontation with the police, whereas Black individuals fear for their lives when pulled over by the cops. Due to white individuals being placed at the very top of the social hierarchy, they have more power and privilege than other racial groups in North America. Due to systemic racism, black individuals have higher unemployment rates than white individuals. They are also less likely to receive a post-secondary education because of financial barriers and fewer opportunities than their white counterparts.

2A) "Race,' writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter, 'is an idea, not a fact.' Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason." -Ta-Nehisi Coates, "What We Mean When We Say 'Race Is a Social Construct'," The Atlantic, May 15, 2013

This quotation demonstrates the belief of race being a social construct, which I personally agree with. An individual's skin colour and features do not constitute their intelligence, athelticism or other personality attributes. This closely falls in line with the stereotypes of how all black men are athletic or all East Asians have an extremely high IQ. According to Dr. Micheal Yudell, author of Race Unmasked, " if you make clinical predictions based on somebody's race, you are going to be wrong a good chunk of the time." To elaborate upon this statement, he and his colleagues used the example of cystic fibrosis being underdiagnosed in individuals of African ancestry, as it is typically thought to be a "white disease."

Individuals can identify with a race based on their personal experiences or political and economic standpoints. An example of this in the novel, " They said this would be fun" by Eternity Martis. Eternity was brought up in a South Asian household but chose to identify as Black and Jamaican due to her personal experiences, the racism she faced, and the trauma she went through.

Growing up in Pakistan, I never knew what race was and its implications until I moved to Canada, where I had a difficult time differentiating between race and ethnicity and what being South Asian meant in a Eurocentric culture.

2B) "Racism is the father of race, not the child" - Coates.

Living in a patriarchal society, where the father is considered the head of the family and thus has the greatest amount of power, this quote demonstrates racism's power. A father generally exerts a lot of control over the household and children. With this in mind, this quote can be analyzed in light of systemic racism. Systemic racism is defined as the policies and practices ingrained in society that promote racial groups' exclusion. This can be seen in the high unemployment rates for African Americans. A black woman can be rejected for a job simply due to her natural hair or box braids, which is deemed "unprofessional." Individuals often get denied interviews because of their names. These barriers and inequalities would be termed as systemic racism.

Systemic racism is even evident in access to sports and recreational facilities. An example of this is hockey. Hockey is a predominantly white cis-male sport that is quite expensive to play. This immediately imposes a barrier on indigenous people, people of colour, low-income and single-parent families. While there is no explicit policy banning individuals from other racial groups and backgrounds, organized hockey is catered towards cis white males belonging to middle and upper-class backgrounds. It is the way the system has been designed that promotes exclusion.

@Sep 25, 2020 7:34 PM

Does Reverse Racism Exist?

Reverse racism does not exist in our modern day, but looking at the google definition of racism : “ prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against a person or people on the basis of their membership of a particular racial or ethnic group, typically one that is a minority or marginalized” you might think so. This definition fails to take into account the social climate of our society, this is a literal definition of the word rather than an explanation of the effects and history behind it. You can’t oppressor the oppressor, which is why reverse racism doesn’t exist. White people have the power in our modern society, they have the privilege and that is why one can’t be racist towards them. Racism needs power behind it if not simply prejudice. That's why POC can’t be racist towards white people, instead they are prejudiced, but POC can be racist towards other minorities. A more in depth definition of racism includes power and prejudice. While racial prejudice is harmful, POC are not in a place of authority to disrupt white people's privilege, social or political status.

2. Discuss what these two quotes mean to you:

"Race,' writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter, 'is an idea, not a fact.' Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason." -Ta-Nehisi Coates, "What We Mean When We Say 'Race Is a Social Construct'," The Atlantic, May 15, 2013

To me this quote means that racism only requires people to believe their right and to act on those beliefs, hence the good guys with big guns. Said ‘good guys’ are only good because they believe they are. Just like the idea that white people believed they were superior.

"Racism is the father of race, not the child" - Coates

To me this quote means that racism is a natural byproduct of humans looking different from each other. It was bound to happen because every human does not look alike. That's why it's the father rather than the child. Racism created race and with race this amplified racism.

@Sep 25, 2020 8:01 PM

1. Personally, I do not think reverse racism exists. I believe there are stereotypes towards white people, but it's prejudice rather than racism; which shouldn't get confused in this context. People may argue that reverse racism exists because the term "racism" can be referred to any race, including white. Racism comes with oppression and whomever is projecting the racist acts is typically backed with "power", therefore suggesting an inferior and superior race. With that being said, racism towards other races excluding white is usually derogatory. Sometimes this "power" is systemic and comes through law, as we've seen earlier this year during the Black Lives Matter movements following the murder of George Floyd. I myself as a white person, have never felt racist acts directed towards me the same way I've witnessed racist acts towards a black person for example. I've experienced assumptions about white people that I was categorized with, but that's the most extreme I've personally dealt with.

2. The first quote in this discussion board means to me that there is a concept of separating and categorizing different races based on characteristics, traits, or stereotypes. Of course, biology does play a role in genetics and physical traits among different races, however, this quote seems to be more perspective and socially based. Essentially this quote means to me that despite biological and physical differences, race does not need to be differentiated and viewed apart from one another.

The second quote means to be that racism depends on the generational pass-down. It means to me that the "father" implements the views on race, or what's right and wrong, whereas the "child" paves the way for their own perspective. I believe this quote can be understood in different forms, but I see it as being purely generational and what is passed down to the newer generations of society. Another view I get from this quote is the "father" is referred to somebody possibly superior or of higher power, whereas the child is somebody that is more below.

@Sep 25, 2020 8:05 PM

Does Reverse Racism Exist?

No. “Reverse” racism does not exist. I think that Aamer Rahman said it right, the only possible way for reverse racism to exist is to go back in time. Racism is not simply disliking someone. It is the marginalization/oppression of people of color that began hundreds of years ago and continues to be set in place by almost everything around us. To even attempt to equate one's own discomfort to the struggles that people of color face daily is disrespectful and ignorant.

2. Discuss what these two quotes mean to you:

"Race,' writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter, 'is an idea, not a fact.' Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason." -Ta-Nehisi Coates, "What We Mean When We Say 'Race Is a Social Construct'," The Atlantic, May 15, 2013
"Racism is the father of race, not the child" - Coates

These quotes to me simply highlights that fact that people create hatred. I think that these two quotes go hand in hand. One states that race itself is a made-up idea and the other tells us where said idea came from. The idea of race did not just exist; it was derived from racism. People of the past created this idea and used it to divide. They taught their beliefs to their future generations to ensure that their sickening notions would live on and unfortunately, they did.

@September 25 at 9:39 PM

Hi ___, I liked the way you explained how race is used as a way to divide. One quote by Eternity Martis that connects to this idea is, "But I didn't see that difference as division yet- we were just different shades" (Martis, 51). This was impactful to me because she explained how as a child she recognized that others had different skin colours than her, but didn't equate difference to division. I hope that more people learn to view race like this, and acknowledge and celebrate differences rather than use it as a way to divide us further.

@Sep 25, 2020 9:12 PM

Does Reverse Racism Exist?

In my opinion, there is no such thing as “reverse racism”. It simply doesn’t exist. You cannot be racist to the oppressor as racism is both racial prejudice and racial oppression, white people are not oppressed in this society. White privilege / white-skin privilege plays a huge role in why I believe reverse racism doesn't exist. Being born white means that you were born into a system that validates and reaffirms that you are socially included. White people will always have the "easy way out" in situations, being white already puts them at a higher advantage compared to a black person or any person of color. Reverse racism cannot be justified when white people were never oppressed for their skin color, they never had to fight for their rights and privilege.

2. Discuss what these two quotes mean to you

Based upon these two quotes the main takeaway and message are focused on race and how race is a social construct that does not evolve “science” genetics and biology. In the first quote, it symbolizes how "Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason." to me the metaphor for "big guns" and "good guys" represents how power and the racial idea can be imposed as racist ideas argue that the inferiorities and superiorities of racial groups explain racial inequities in society.” As for the second quote "Racism is the father of the race, not the child" - Coate to me it represents how without forms of racism there would be no such thing as race, as racism is the prominent objective. In relations to the metaphor for “father and child” I vison it as racism is what has control of the race, as fathers' figures tend to have the most control on their child.

@Sep 25, 2020 9:17 PM

Reverse racism does not exist. This is not to say that racial minority groups cannot be racist towards other racial minority groups, I think that can absolutely happen. But reverse racism, in the context of ‘racism’ towards white people, does not exist. Racial minorities cannot be racist towards white people, because they do not hold the same institutional power that white people do in our society. Even if a white person were to be denied an opportunity or treated poorly on the basis of their race, it would not be racism, because that white person will still never be a victim of the systemic racism and oppression that BIPOC deal with on a regular basis.
These two quotes both address the fact that race, despite being deeply ingrained in our society, is a social construct that has no real definition or basis in biology. To say that "racism is the father of race, not the child" seems to me like Coates is arguing that the idea of race was born out of one group's desire to discriminate against another, rather than because of biological differences between said groups. With that said, I wonder then if the concept of racism did not exist, would the concept of race not exist either?

@Sep 25, 2020 9:22 PM

From my understanding reverse racism does not exist. According to Dr. Ibram X. Kendi, "racism is a powerful collection of racist policies that lead to racial inequity and are substantiated by racist ideas" (Kendi 2019). This means that in order for a prejudiced action or thought to be considered racist, it needs to have a powerful system that supports this hatred and self interest backing it up (eg. systemic racism). While everyone is capable of being prejudiced to others, I believe that in our world today racism is only able to target BIPOC. The video by Aamer Rahman backs up this idea, stating that racism affects BIPOC because of history. If history was reversed, and White Europeans did not colonize the world and instead Europe was colonized by BIPOC , then reverse racism could exist. However, since throughout history BIPOC have been subject to discrimination and unequal treatment with society benefiting White people in every circumstance, then it is impossible for a BIPOC to be racist towards someone who is white.

The quote by Nell Irvin Painter suggest that race is an idea that was built up by society, not a biological fact. This quote impacted me because I've never really thought about how race was constructed to justify self interest and hate. It is a social construct that was created to allow one group to benefit, while the other group was oppressed. In Eternity Martis's book, They said this would be fun, she discussed how she was perceived as Brown by her family who was from Pakistan, to Black people she was considered mixed race, and to everyone else she was considered Black. She had a hard time understanding her identity because she was viewed as a different race depending on who she interacted with. I think this idea further proves the idea that race is an idea that was created, not a fact, because it is subjective based on who you talk to.

The quote by Coates states that "Racism is the father of race, not the child." My understanding of this is that race was a construct born out of racism, rather than racism stemming from the concept of race. This makes sense to me, because I think the concept of race was created to divide and oppress BIPOC so that White people could benefit. They wanted to benefit socially, economically, and politically and already had a hatred for those different from them, so they constructed race to justify these racist ideas and create policies to support them.

@Sep 25, 2020 9:47 PM

1. Does Reverse Racism Exist?

To put it simply, no. Reverse racism does not exist. The "racism" towards white people is in no way structural, racism against black people is police brutality, unemployment, voting polls placement in black neighborhoods, ownership, lack of education because of the situation they have been put in for centuries now, white people invading South Asia, and there is so much more than I can't cover in this discussion post. If we think about it, reverse racism would be amazing because that would mean that all races have the same amount of power. It is clear that black and brown people get treated differently because of the colour of their skin and white people have not gone through any hardship similar to black and brown people as a race. I am not saying individually a white person has not gone through any hardship but white people as a whole have never experienced hardship because of the colour of their skin. They have always been the oppressor. Aamer Rahman said it best in his video "I would have to get in my time machine and convince leaders of Africa, Asia, middle east, south, and central America to do what white people did to them, to white people". Racism was started by white people and it was structured into everything, there is no way to reverse that structure.

2. Discuss what these two quotes mean to you:

"Race,' writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter, 'is an idea, not a fact.' Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason." -Ta-Nehisi Coates, "What We Mean When We Say 'Race Is a Social Construct'," The Atlantic, May 15, 2013

When I read this quote I immediately thought of the history of races. The fact is that black people were enslaved because of the colour of their skin (race) but it was also an idea that white people had based on their race. To me, this quote means that we need the higher authorities to break the race barrier, the people with power have the ability to diminish the racial issue. This means people of different races have to acknowledge their influence on this topic and act accordingly upon it.

"Racism is the father of race, not the child" - Coates

This quote is similar to the first one, people thinking they are greater than someone based on the colour of their skin is racism and that's how the idea of categorizing people based on their skin colour started. To me, this quote was difficult to understand at first but when I looked at the historical events and how they started, it became clear that racism started the idea of race.

@September 25 at 10:30 PM

Hi ___. I loved reading your post. I completely agree with the ideas you've mentioned and this quote especially resonated with me, "I am not saying individually a white person has not gone through any hardship but white people as a whole have never experienced hardship because of the colour of their skin. They have always been the oppressor." That is a great way to debunk the idea of reverse racism, because as a whole White people will never experience mistreatment based on the colour of their skin, and any prejudices towards individuals who are White will never have enough power to alter their standing in society since we live in a society that was built on oppressing Black people, while benefiting White people. For example White people don't experience racism such as being followed in a store, or being killed by police officers simply because of the colour of their skin, because society has not oppressed them.

@Sep 25, 2020 11:01 PM

Does Reverse Racism Exist?

Reverse racism ignores the reality behind the fundamental concepts of racism, which can be defined as”The marginalization and/or oppression of people of color based on a socially constructed racial hierarchy that privileges white people.” (source: ADL). Although this idea cannot correlate to the reality of racism-- especially towards black people and POC’s, for this “myth” to hold value, we must assume that racism occurs on an equal ‘playing field that all people share the same challenges, reap the same rewards, and have the same opportunities as everyone else. This type of unitarian society is more dystopian than actuality. The type of dicrimiation that those who claim reverse racism exists are more likely referring to that of racial prejudice: which may be instances of derogatory or discriminatory viewpoints/ behaviours towards a particular race (is based mostly on assumptions/stereotypes ). To summarize, reverse racism does not- or cannot exist in today’s world because there's already an imbalance of power dynamic between for ex, white people vrs black people that would disallow the minority/ targets of racism to reciprocate the bias imposed on them.

Discuss what these two quotes mean to you: "Race,' writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter, 'is an idea, not a fact.' Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason." -Ta-Nehisi Coates, "What We Mean When We Say 'Race Is a Social Construct'," The Atlantic, May 15, 2013

I believe this quote discusses how “race” is nowadays often used to label/differentiate between people, it's likely based on stereotypes, paradigms and assumptions or even certain attributes ex physical like skin tone. Race is a term created by society to distinguish/ marginalize people from one another. It’s not achieved as the basis of science and is not a monosemic term, but these days, is more fluid and variant depending on who you ask.

"Racism is the father of race, not the child" - Coates

I believe that this quotes discuss how race is the offspring of racism, the social restrictions/labels placed in order to differentiate these so called “races” anyway led to the further discriminatory practices/mindset that racists invoke in the present day. It starts off innocent, the term race serving as a term to label people based on variant attributes and characteristics. Then, these labels transform into comparison, stereotypes, assumptions, and prejudice sparking a mindset of one “race” implying-- and eventually enforcing, an ideal of superiority over others.

@Sep 25, 2020 11:14 PM

Reverse racism does not exist. Race, fabricated by the white man, exists for the sole purpose of justifying their manufactured hierarchy in which Black individuals are tools for economic gain. However, the extent of the damage does not stop at the economy. Racism’s history is more than aggressive comments; it is the systematic dehumanization of BIPOC which includes countless bloody atrocities. Racism, candidly put, was created by white people, so it cannot oppress them. So, no, reverse racism does not exist because racism has never put a white person at a disadvantage for being white.

"Race,' writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter, 'is an idea, not a fact.' Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason." -Ta-Nehisi Coates, "What We Mean When We Say 'Race Is a Social Construct'," The Atlantic, May 15, 2013

The quote above describes the concept of race as a social construct rather than a biological fact. Race as a biological differentiator gives room for prejudice, allowing claims of superiority over other races according to natural fact. These distinct categories exist for the purpose of segregating groups, or ‘races’, based on their differences. By creating these categories, the ‘other’ is born, and the ‘other’ is necessary to accomplish certain things, examples being enslavement or the disproportionate rate at which Black individuals, particularly Black men, are incarcerated. Without the distinction of the ‘other’, exploitation of BIPOC would not be possible.

"Racism is the father of race, not the child" - Coates

The concept of race has no purpose but to divide. People are racist because they need a reason to be racist. To elaborate, racism’s existence did not come about because of unadulterated hatred, but because of self-interest; there had to be a reason to dominate and exploit certain populations, so white people created one

@Sep 25, 2020 11:17 PM

My answer to that is simply no. Many people confuse 'prejudice' and 'racism.' Their one major difference is racism is systematic oppression. It is institutional, not just aimed at one individual. Saying "white people can't dance" is not racism considering it has no historic background. It is simply a term used by white people who deny their white privilege. There are plenty of Black people in suited jobs who are loved by their white friends and peers. But these deeply embedded foundations and federal laws passed by racists when racism was the norm still exist. A white person may not feel or be individually racist, but we live in a system that was designed to boost white people and neglect the pain and suffering of Black Americans. In order for reverse racism to exist, you would have to travel way back in time and erase hundreds of years of systematic oppression. So no becky, if you think me saying “you can’t cook” is racist, don’t talk to me. The definition of “race is a social construct” is that it’s a human made expression used to classify individuals. It was invented as a way to define physical differences between people, but has often been used more as a tool for oppression and violence. I personally agree with this statement because there is no biological reasoning for the term ‘race.’ There are no genes or a pool of genes common to all black individuals or white individuals. It is simply a term we as a society have created to divide one another and categorize each other to whom we identify with.

@Sep 25, 2020 11:20 PM

1. I believe reverse racism doesn’t and simply can’t exist, due to the privilege white people have had throughout history. Just like Aamer Rahman said in his reverse racism video, in order for reverse racism to exist, history would have to literally be rewritten. Black people and other minorities have been oppressed for centuries all over the world, hence if a white person makes a race-based joke regarding black people, it’s simply racist. Whereas white people haven’t had to go through that oppression, so when there’s a joke made about them there’s no deeper history or trauma behind it, and it’s simply not racist.

I agree with the fact that race is an idea and not a fact. Yes, there are people of different skin colour everywhere you go, but the actual idea of race is simply something that was made up by society, engraved in our thoughts. Race is grouping people based on their skin colour, to associate people with certain categories that have certain distinctions. In reality, race has nothing to do with human anatomy, but it’s something that society came up with to identify people more easily, and furthermore to oppress them. So while we’re all from different backgrounds and have different skin colours, the actual idea of race is simply that; an idea.

To me, the quote of racism being a father of race means that race only has meaning because racism was created. Racism was engraved into society and carried down into generations, with the outcome being that black people were systemically oppressed and white people had privileges. Racism came about when people started being dividing into categories based on their skin colour, and decided that one group was superior to the other. For the idea of race to exist, the core of that idea had to have stemmed from racism.

@Sep 25, 2020 11:20 PM

Reverse racism is usually something used by conservatives where coloured people can be racist towards them. However, this is not true, those who are in power can be racist but POC are not in power therefore can not be racist or demonstrate “reverse racism”. POC do not have enough power to damage the opportunities of White people nor are white people victims of systemic racism. Therefore, reverse racism existing in our society is not a strong argument that can be used.

The first quote by Ta-Nehisi Coates had me thinking about how once the slavery was abolished in the United States and black people where no longer enslaved, police officers as well as citizens would find any reason to complain on something they had done to where they became criminals again with no rights. The second quote, “Racism is the father of race, not the child.”, creates a really good analogy of how racism came into being before the social construct of race did. Systemic racism wouldn’t be in place as it is now without these racist ideas stemming from self-interest as Dr. Kendi states.

@Sep 25, 2020 11:21 PM

I believe reverse racism does exist because everyone is at risk of experiencing racism just like many others such as boys can experience sexual abuse similar to girls. Even though it doesn't happened often to guys as much as girls, but there is a chance. When Aamer Rahman brought up the time machine analogy between two different race and suggest that white people can experience racism from people of color, I believe it could happen because racism is a social construct formed by self interest for politicians, leaders, governments, etc. They create racists ideas and polices for their self gain and want others to support them. Additionally, if they could profit off from racists ideas and policies towards Caucasian then they will most likely treat them similar to how people of color were /are treated.

The first quote means to me is that race is created from people's ideas not from factual evidences (visual and accurate proof) which is used in court. When Painter stated "..good guys with big guns" I believe he is referring to people in power such as the governments, politicians, leaders, presidents, cops, ministers, prime minsters, etc. Their big guns are their power and influence to control and spread false information and cover up stories from citizens and medias.

The second quote means to me is that racism is taught to others, especially to children since they are vulnerable and gullible. They tend to believe what their parents, teachers, friends, adults, older people, and grandparents say to them. They are conditioned to believe their role models since they are young to understand what's the difference between right and wrong. As they grow older, they may change their view or still believe what others say.

@Sep 25, 2020 11:26 PM

1. Reverse racism does not exist. People who believe that reverse racism does exist tend to be deeply invested in their privilege and racial equality feels like oppression to them and/or they have a desire to prove that people of colour don’t have it "that bad". Racism is based on individual, historical, systemic oppression and power. Assumptions/stereotypes about white people are examples of racial prejudice, not racism. Prejudice is the perceived opinion or belief about a group not based on experience or logical reason, while racism uses prejudice to reproduce a systematic disadvantage of power based on race. The difference between people of colour making prejudiced comments about white people and white people making prejudiced comments about people of colour is that white people are the dominant group in power in all social, economical, and political spheres and what they say about people of colour could harm them in society. Reverse racism does not exist and is just a myth because it tries to ignore the fundamental question of who holds more power & privilege between the individuals/groups involved.

2. Discuss what these two quotes mean to you:

Race,' writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter, 'is an idea, not a fact.' Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason." -Ta-Nehisi Coates, "What We Mean When We Say 'Race Is a Social Construct'," The Atlantic, May 15, 2013

To me, this means that race is just a social construct and is not biological. The distinction we make between races has nothing to do with the scientific truth it was created with the purpose to justify the dominance of white people over non-white people.

“Racism is the father of race, not the child" - Coates

To me, this means that race was created to justify racism. We can see the formation of "race" in laws & policies, and also see how it can differ across time and space which proves that it was created to justify racism. This also could mean that while race does not represent the patterns of human biological diversity, scientific research demonstrates that racism, affects our biology, health, and well-being. This means that race, while not a biological concept, can have important biological consequences because of the effects of racism.

@Sep 25, 2020 11:27 PM

When trying to understand if reverse racism actually exists, I feel that it is important to go back to the definition of racism which as the google definition states,( it is the “prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against a person or people on the basis of their membership of a particular racial or ethnic group, typically one that is a minority or marginalized”) and which in turn to my understanding means that it is prejudice or discrimination, directed at someone of a different race or ethnicity where one’s belief (usually coming from someone who belongs to the majority group) enables them to think that their own race is superior. When connecting this definition to that of “reverse racism” which google definition also states (“prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism on the basis of race directed against a member of a dominant or privileged racial group”)

it is identified that some white individuals may feel that they, the majority, are able to face “racism” from those which are minorities. I personally feel it is false and cannot be done. I do agree that white individuals can be prejudiced or discriminated against by people of colour as they may uphold negative opinions about them but they cannot necessarily show racist attitudes towards them as they themselves are considered lesser than in society and thus means that in turn, they aren’t in positions of superiority where if they were to “think or act in racist ways”, their thinking would influence those in society and become a common worldview that many acts upon or use as a justification or reasoning.

In addition not once have there ever been national laws or systems put in place so that white individuals could be systematically oppressed time after time with no proper explanations or repercussions and they have also never been put in a place where they knew or understood what if was like to be a minority as they have always obtained the privilege of freedom expression and choice.

@Sep 25, 2020 11:29 PM

After watching Aamer Rahman’s take on reverse racism, I think he explains perfectly why it ceases to be possible. The definition of racism is that racist policies, born from racist ideas, lead to racial inequity. Therefore, you must be subject to inequity due to your race to experience racism. Further, reverse racism cannot exist if you are not a minority as the system was built to give white people an advantage. Rahman goes on to talk about how if he went back one hundred years and reversed the roles that, that would be reverse racism. However, we cannot go back in the past, and change the way things went. White people built systems to benefit only themselves and made every other race believe they were inferior to them, leading to objectionable events such as the transatlantic slave trade. Since they did this for hundreds of years and racism continues to happen today, reverse racism cannot be real.

Race is in fact born from racist ideas, which suggests one racial group is inferior to another. Inside we are all the same, we are all part of the human race; animals do not group themselves based on their color, they group themselves based on their species, so why do we? This grouping was directly born from anti-black racism which was used to justify the transatlantic slave trade. Race was solely created to put white people on top economically, socio-economically and pretty much on any other socially constructed establishments. To better understand what is meant by socially constructed environments, take a modern-day example being systemic racism in secondary schools. By grade nine, you are put in an academic stream, racist ideas have put black youth into the applied stream, not allowing them to go to university making them less educated.

Racism was not born from race, but the other way around, race was born from racist ideas, which form racism. The daily micro-aggressions black people have experienced have created racism. It is more other people's racist ideas which leads to the creation of racism rather the race itself, race really has very little to do with racism.

Does Reverse Racism exist?

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Discuss what these two quotes mean to you:

"Race,' writes the great historian Nell Irvin Painter, 'is an idea, not a fact.' Indeed. Race does not need biology. Race only requires some good guys with big guns for a reason."

-Ta-Nehisi Coates, "What We Mean When We Say 'Race Is a Social Construct'," The Atlantic, May 15, 2013

"Racism is the father of race, not the child" - Coates