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Old 11-06-2007, 03:49 PM   #2
DanaC
We have to go back, Kate!
 
Join Date: Apr 2004
Location: Yorkshire
Posts: 25,964
Quote:
Setting yourself apart as a group is counterproductive, it plays into the hands of the opposition.
That would make sense as an argument if hitherto well accepted and respected groups of socety had decided to separate themselves in that way. Actually Gay Pride is e response to the fact that they were already separated off from and by society and singled out as worthy of moral opprobrium purely on the basis of their sexuality.

They didn't single themselves out, they were singled out by the rest of society. LIkewise the Black Pride movement was a response to a particular cultural norm which sent a message, loud and clear, to anybody with dark skin that they were less than those with white skin. Again, they did not choose to separate themselves from a previously harmonious situation. They were separated off by both de facto and de jure segregation and treated as second class (and earlier as less than human) citizens.

When society, government and law all tell black people that their legal status, intelligence, capability and culpability and even attractiveness is dicated by their skin colour/racial heritage and that to be considered truly competant, culpable, intelligent and beautiful they need to be white or of European descent, then it is a reasonable and appropriate response to attempt to redress that. You cannot bring the see saw back into balance if you don't apply weight to the other side.
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