Discrimination and Undermining Race in America

[TruthOrConsequences]

Have you ever asked yourself this: if in the US they supposedly don't discriminate people based on race, ethnic origin or nationality then why does your US passport say where you were born? How is that relevant if a naturalized citizen is supposed to have the same rights as an american-born person?
Why do they always mention 'german born' or 'colombian born' us citizen on the news if something happened to that person? Like if that person is an american who was born somewhere else? Why should it matter? Even if that foreign-born person has a small role in the news story, why do they always have to mention where they were born? Ex: So and So, a native of such country or a 'german born' immigrant So and So said or did this.

Why do they always ask about your race and sometimes your place of birth on job applications and loan applications and what not? And why is that you're only considered 'white' if you were born in the states and are of anglo/northern-european descent? Like a Latvian dude or someone who's American but born in FSU for instance is 'not white' in America? For all id purposes they'd of course be identified as 'white' or 'caucasian', but on a social level that person is considered Latvian, Russian, etc. but never 'white'. I mean white people did originate in Europe. Wtf?

So is the US a truly equal opportunity, non-racist, everyone-gets-a-fair-chance type of society? I highly doubt it. Nonetheless, it's open for debate. Prove me wrong!

[zboy1]

The U.S. is one of the most 'hidden' racist countries in the world. Sure, Americans love to promote multiculturalism, diversity and tolerance, but in reality, this is far from the truth. Yes, there are anti-discrimination laws, affirmative action quotas, and hate crimes on the laws here to protect minorities, but that does not hide the fact that the country has some serious race issues that has not been resolved: take for example, the LA Riots, Hurricane Katrina, the explosion of racist Black gang mobs, and the George Zimmerman case

Growing up in the most diverse city in the world--NY City--I can tell you the races did not get along with each other and often times conflict was the norm; in fact, just in NYC I remember Crown Heights (Jew vs Blacks), Howard Beach (Black kid killed by a group of racist Italian Americans), Korean storeowners vs Blacks, the Bensonhurst riots in Brooklyn (Group of Whites mistakenly believed a group of Black and Hispanic men walking around in their neighborhood were dating White women and were upset about it), the Tawana Brawley case (idiot Al Sharpton trying to incite a race war with this b.s. of a case) or the Abner Louima case (racist cops abuses black man with a plunger). I grew up being taunted for being an Asian all through my life by White, Black, and Hispanic racists.

And in the dating scene, racism is also very apparent in that most American White women don't want to date outside of their race, and if they do, it's usually with Black or Hispanic men. White men love to date interracially, but if they see white women out with Black and Asian men, the give dirty looks to the those couples. We may have a Black President, but that doesn't mean the U.S. is not a racist country as a whole.

[Contrarian Expatriate]

The U.S. is one of the most 'hidden' racist countries in the world. Sure, Americans love to promote multiculturalism, diversity and tolerance, but in reality, this is far from the truth. Yes, there are anti-discrimination laws, affirmative action quotas, and hate crimes on the laws here to protect minorities, but that does not hide the fact that the country has some serious race issues that has not been resolved.

And in the dating scene, racism is also very apparent in that most American White women don't want to date outside of their race, and if they do, it's usually with Black or Hispanic men. White men love to date interracially, but if they see white women out with Black and Asian men, the give dirty looks to the those couples. We may have a Black President, but that doesn't mean the U.S. is not a racist country as a whole.

Totally agree. The US is the most race-conscious society on the planet, but ironically, much of this has gone underground due to political correctness and anti-discrimination laws.

The biggest problem with this is that many people deny or downplay the significance of racism in the US in a manner that evokes The Emporer Has No Clothes. On the positive side, many people (including some whites) have seen the unfair treatment of Barack Obama at the hands of bigotry and now see racism where they did not see it before.

In some ways racism is legally controlled in the US unlike in most places, but other places seem to have less issues around the notion of race.

[TruthOrConsequences]

Zboy1, I fully agree with you. In no other country would you encounter as much racism as in the US. Certain races and ethnicities are more hated than the other and their little political correctness concept gets thrown out the window when it comes to specific ethnic groups, you know.

Yeah and they do got all these anti-discriminatory laws and what not, but there's no way for any of that shit to be enforced. Like when you apply for a job and let's say you've got a foreign-sounding name - the HR person ain't going to be like 'sorry we don't want your immigrant ass up in here'. Instead, you just won't get hired and no questions asked. And it's the same way when it comes to promotions, loans, mortgages, credit cards. They won't straight up tell you why you're not approved; they'll just not approve you.. or you just won't be the one to get promoted or what not. Basically, it's okay for them to discriminate, but they can't be upfront about it. And it's the same on a personal level. It's okay to discriminate in the US, as long as:

a) you're not discriminating against the jews or the blacks
b) you are not vocal and upfront about it


Like ladislav said on here one day. Noone will ever ask about your citizenship or if you're an American. People will always be like: where are you from originally? Or where's that name from? Or what kind of name is that? Or some other variation of the same question. And the question really is - where are you from and what is your weird foreign ass doing in my precious Land of the Free and Home of the Brave? People are always trying to size you up, especially in America, as everyone here is always in a non-stop competition mode. And having a foreign background will always get you looked down upon. Always.

[zboy1]

Zboy1, I fully agree with you. In no other country would you encounter as much racism as in the US. Certain races and ethnicities are more hated than the other and their little political correctness concept gets thrown out the window when it comes to specific ethnic groups, you know.

Yeah and they do got all these anti-discriminatory laws and what not, but there's no way for any of that shit to be enforced. Like when you apply for a job and let's say you've got a foreign-sounding name - the HR person ain't going to be like 'sorry we don't want your immigrant ass up in here'. Instead, you just won't get hired and no questions asked. And it's the same way when it comes to promotions, loans, mortgages, credit cards. They won't straight up tell you why you're not approved; they'll just not approve you.. or you just won't be the one to get promoted or what not. Basically, it's okay for them to discriminate, but they can't be upfront about it. And it's the same on a personal level. It's okay to discriminate in the US, as long as:

a) you're not discriminating against the jews or the blacks
b) you are not vocal and upfront about it


Like ladislav said on here one day. Noone will ever ask about your citizenship or if you're an American. People will always be like: where are you from originally? Or where's that name from? Or what kind of name is http://blog.reidreport.com/wp-content/u ... ez.jpgthat? Or some other variation of the same question. And the question really is - where are you from and what is your weird foreign ass doing in my precious Land of the Free and Home of the Brave? People are always trying to size you up, especially in America, as everyone here is always in a non-stop competition mode. And having a foreign background will always get you looked down upon. Always.

Yeah no kidding about the Jews! Forget about even criticizing Israel or the Jewish people, you'll end up like this guy:

[momopi]

Why do they always ask about your race and sometimes your place of birth on job applications and loan applications and what not? And why is that you're only considered 'white' if you were born in the states and are of anglo/northern-european descent?

Can you please tell us exactly which employer or bank operating in the US asked you to list your place of birth on a job or loan application? Thank you.

Job application forms can ask for your race and gender in the optional section. They do this because companies are required to file a report on the ethnic/racial compositiion of their workforce with the EEOC. You are not required to answer these optional questions. I've always skipped them and have had no trouble with getting jobs.


http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/61398
What You Can't Ask Job Applicants

"Employers must not ask any questions that require an applicant to disclose his or her national origin or ancestry, including asking applicants to provide their place of birth."

[TruthOrConsequences]

I remember that Chase kept sending me all these credit card offers in the mail last year. And I glanced over a couple of them to see what they were offering and what not. And they did ask for Country of Birth on a couple of the applications. Too bad I didn't keep them, so I could scan them and post them on here.

Also, I've been trying to locate some of those applications that asked similar background questions but to no avail so far. Granted that it's been 3-4 years since I applied at some of those companies, but I can also tell you that all those 'illegal' questions or the things that the employers are not supposed to ask their candidates is all bullshit. Back in my high school days I remember being interviewed for some retail/customer service positions and some of the hr people asked me 'Where are you from? What kind of name is that?'. Now this wasn't at like big national or regional companies, but still. There may be a plethora of laws and what not to protect your chances to get jobs/opportunities and what not, but the fact that most Americans are xenophobic and racist still hasn't changed much.

Why else would everyone in my classes always be speaking out against immigration and things of that nature? Why does someone always have to meanmug me for speaking a foreign language with my buddies in public? Why is there people who think that English should be the only authorized official language in the US? And mind you, these aren't some neo-nazi types; these people are just regular everyday Americans.. Blue-collar, hard-working types who live in trailer parks and such..

[momopi]

Chase has been aggressively expanding. I get their mailers for $300 if I open an account with them every month. I do not recall seeing "place of birth" on the application forms.

If you should receive another Chase bank offer, please see if "place of birth" is on the application form, and if so, is it in the optional section or required section. Thank you.

If you're ethnic Asian and feel that you have been discriminated against in employement, please contact the 80-20 initiative PAC and ask to speak to a legal counsel.

http://80-20initiative.blogspot.com/201 ... asams.html

[targetguy]

As an x usps employee the discrimination is reverse. Its a diverse place to work, with most of the promotions going to people of color and eeo complaints from many others. The hiring has nothing to do with test score only by diversity and managers relative and the diverse quota at the time. With one union fighting the other and 2 billion a month losses it is obvious things could be run better.

[flyingmonkey9]

I like to ask where people are from because I am truly interested in hearing about their culture and experiences. Definitely not to size them up or peg them as dirty foriegners...

[Robert77]

The US is obsessed with race and money..... everyone knows this and soon as you leave america and you go elsewhere, even mexico that's right next door, you'll see that race becomes very secondary and is barely a topic!

[ladislav]

Zboy1, I fully agree with you. In no other country would you encounter as much racism as in the US. Certain races and ethnicities are more hated than the other and their little political correctness concept gets thrown out the window when it comes to specific ethnic groups, you know.

Yeah and they do got all these anti-discriminatory laws and what not, but there's no way for any of that shit to be enforced. Like when you apply for a job and let's say you've got a foreign-sounding name - the HR person ain't going to be like 'sorry we don't want your immigrant ass up in here'. Instead, you just won't get hired and no questions asked. And it's the same way when it comes to promotions, loans, mortgages, credit cards. They won't straight up tell you why you're not approved; they'll just not approve you.. or you just won't be the one to get promoted or what not. Basically, it's okay for them to discriminate, but they can't be upfront about it. And it's the same on a personal level. It's okay to discriminate in the US, as long as:

a) you're not discriminating against the jews or the blacks
b) you are not vocal and upfront about it


Like ladislav said on here one day. Noone will ever ask about your citizenship or if you're an American. People will always be like: where are you from originally? Or where's that name from? Or what kind of name is that? Or some other variation of the same question. And the question really is - where are you from and what is your weird foreign ass doing in my precious Land of the Free and Home of the Brave? People are always trying to size you up, especially in America, as everyone here is always in a non-stop competition mode. And having a foreign background will always get you looked down upon. Always.

This is why many immigrants change their names at least while in the US to reduce this prejudice. Also, it depends on what foreign background it is. Some are less foreign than others. Most Canadians with Anglo names have little problem. Also, they reduce their accent to stand out less. It pays to blend in at least with something that is more or less common. A name like Perez or Dupont are " foreign", but no one will ask you anything much if you have those. Now, if your name is Mambratradhamanilowess, well, that is trouble.

American prejudice wall has its Achilles's heel. One is the accent thing and the name- if you have no accent and your name does not stand out as too foreign, you blend in much more. Which is impossible in many other countries.Then, if you move to another state, you can tell people that you are from the previous state or just give them the state where you grew up. Also, people in America cannot tell by facial features if a person is Jewish - they do not have an eye for it ( as say, Europeans do). They were taught that Jewish is just a religion ( which is a lie). They also cannot tell different types of Blacks apart or different types of Asians.

Anyway, there are various strategies that one can adopt to sneak into the mainstream and if you really want to be an American. But what is the reward even if you do succeed? American nationalism is dying- we are becoming more integrated worldwide and at home. Plus there is more money to be made outside of the US in many cases. And the country now runs on Chinese money.

Granted also, not every American who asks you where you are from originally or who asks you what kind of name is that is a xenophobic nativist ultranationalist- a lot of it is just innocent curiosity. The have the same curiousity when they meet people from another state who has a different accent.

Place of birth of passports is no good, I know. The same thing goes for dividing citizens into natural born and naturalized. A person who is not natural born cannot become president- they do not trust him/her. Say, if someone came to the US at age one and is now 60 and wants to run for President, he cannot. But the one who left the US at age one and went to live in Canada and came back, can.

France does not have such distinctions. A citizen of France is a Frenchman.

Anyway, changing one's name in the US does wonders to reduce prejudice and it is easy- just stop by any county court house.

At this point, prejudice in America can only be "reduced", not eliminated. It is still a society sick with the race/nationality/ethnicity virus. I just decided to leave it be the way it is. and add a few more countries to it.

Strangely enough, with all this prejudice and all, it still has one million immigrants coming in every year, the majority of them find jobs, get housing, get education etc. So, professionally it is not as bad, while socially it still sucks on a big level. But still, most of the time prejudice now is non violent and at least there are laws that you can 'try' to enforce.

I found that the Anglos are now the least prejudiced while many other ethnicities are much more.

Anyway, things are much easier if you add other countries to the US to have your social life in. Solves one million problems at one go. America is just a tool, not some ideal created by God.