>Freedom from certain levels of oppression and harassment being among the top as >well >as access to resources and information.
I missed your point. Are you asking White people to apologize for being White? I didn't ask to be born White, gay, male/female, rich or poor; we all have to deal with what we are dealt. > the consciousness of the city. Were they even willing to > consider a non-White mayor, and why or why not? I think you're blaming the residents of this city for a problem that is much larger than that. Why hasn't there been a female President, much less a minority President? I think this is a national/global matter. > that the city is not liberal. If the only people voting for > persons of color, then the implication is that the city is > far more racist than Brandon asserted. Is this what Jim is saying? Tsk. Tsk. People vote for candidates that represent their views. Liberals vote liberal and conservatives vote conservative...Christians often won't vote for atheists, etc. A minority candidate will be elected if their views appeal to the largest audience. I vote for people that I resonate with and a lot of factors go into that decision. To assume that race is the only factor for someone not voting for a minority candidate, that doesn't share their views, is pretty simplistic. > incorrect. If all these groups came over as Slaves, why are > only Blacks in the situation they are in? The next answer is Really? I thought that homosexuals, Mexicans, and these days, arab folk would also have issues with discrimination. It's a pretty basic human instinct to be suspect about anyone that isn't like yourself....whatever you define that to be. I take it for granted that I'll get a lot of curious looks when I'm visiting friends in the Phillips neighborhood. That's the way it goes. > were equal. American Slavery is the first time that one race > was enslaved by another, it was different and worse than any > other form that existed, and the effects still exist today, Really? What's all of that "apartheid" stuff that I hear about from overseas? The suggestion that America invented racism is absurd. There was classism and racism even in biblical times. Racism is a human, instinctual condition of being afraid of things that are different and that you don't understand. A lot of this can be solved by getting to know other cultures and people. I've known a lot of gay-bashers that have decided that we're okay after getting to know myself and friends. There's plenty of work to be done and we're sure not going to solve it through discussions on this list. Racism is bigger than any of us and I doubt it'll ever be solved; we can only hope to kept it in check through our vigilance. > (A conscientious Scots-Irish African American, who's > ancestors owned his other ancestors and who cannot trace his > African American roots too far because of the systematic > destruction of that group, but who is proud of all his > heritages nonetheless) I'm 1/4 German, 1/8 Native American, and the rest European mutt. No, I don't consider myself responsible for the Holocost. -Michael Lomker, North Loop _______________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A Civil City Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest option, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
