It's history, stupid

White people, particularly in the US, have a well documented history of being racist.  It's true many of those things happened a long time ago and most white people aren't like that anymore, but the history is still there.  So when someone of a darker persuasion contemplates whether a random white person is racist, I'm not surprised by it.

I don't have to like it, but I get it.  There's a history of it and history colors everything.

Crime statistics clearly show that, for such a small fragment of the population, blacks commit an extraordinarily high amount of crime in the US.  I'm not talking black on black or black on anybody else crime.  I'm talking crime in general.  It's insane the amount of crime committed by black men alone.  And it's documented.  Not just by the FBI but by anybody who's ever lived or passed through the hood.  So when the police pay extra attention to the black kid with his drawers showing, I don't blame them.  I don't automatically assume they're racist.  Statistically black kids with their drawers showing commit a lot of crimes.

I don't have to like it but I get it.  It's documented history and history colors everything.

There's no getting around it.  Most illegal immigrants in the US are Hispanic.  And most of the Hispanic illegal immigrants are darker in color and don't speak English.  Historically, Mexico and portions south have been third world shit holes run by dictatorships and drug lords.  People have been fleeing these places for decades and there's no denying that the poorest of these countries (the ones most likely to flee) are the descendants of the Indigenous tribes and not the Spaniards who colonized the place.  So the refugees tend to look a certain way.  And we DO have an open border with Mexico.  And we ARE a nation of hope to people in third world shit holes the world over.  And those people WANT to come here.  Statistically those who come here illegally cross that open border with Mexico or sail from Cuba and statistically they are dark skinned Spanish speakers.  So when someone questions a dark skinned Spanish speaker's citizenship status, I don't think they're anti immigrant.  I think we have immigration laws for a reason and enforcing those laws means addressing the group who statistically breaks the laws the most.

I don't have to like it but it is history and history colors everything.

The US is a bully.  We kicked mighty Britain's ass and won our independence and we've been arrogant ever since.  It's our way or the highway.  We tell other countries what to do.  We're the only country that has military bases in other countries.  We are not a tolerant nation when it comes to our foreign policy.  And I'm including all races here.  The US interferes with other government's elections all the time.  We bomb other countries all the time.  Then have the audacity to be offended when someone attacks us back or doesn't do what we tell them to.  Americans are the ultimate hypocrites and our feelings are hurt when other countries don't like us for it.  We have no legitimate reason to be upset people don't like us.

I'm not condoning terrorism.  I'm not saying 9/11 or any other attack since then is all our fault but we have been asking for it.  You're treated how your treat others and historically the US hasn't treated others well.

I don't have to like it but it's history and history colors everything.

Before you criticise, recognize.  Stereotypes exist for a reason.  Opinions are formed based on experiences.  You can't demonize someone for allowing history to shape them.  History shapes us all.

What you can do, what we all need to do, is learn to look to the future BEFORE we look to the past.  We can't change the past but we can build a better future.  We can't live in the past, only the present, because time doesn't move backwards.  It moves forward.

What are you doing to make your present a good one and what are you doing to improve your future?

If you don't like being stereotyped, fix the issues that created the stereotype.  Do something to get black men to commit fewer crimes or fewer Hispanics to come to the US illegally.  Change US foreign policy and admit the majority of white people are not racist.

If YOU'RE not willing to make any positive changes, don't blame history.