Like, i can’t genuinely understand why I see so many post and memes about things like: “White people things that black people enjoy” “Black people things that white people should try” “Thing that Asian people should make others do”
It feels like people in the U.S. the moment they see someone skin color they immediately make sweeping generalisations about them (which sounds super racist to me but OK), which also makes integration more difficult, because instead of an interesting mixture of cultures it makes for immovable blocks of stereotypes
Am I just seeing a small bubble of content or missing something or what? Please explain it to me
You can’t understand this? You just did it yourself…
There is a difference between race and nationality.
Most self-aware European
Edit: Well shit
“Americans” are not an ethnicity. Talking about the culture of a country is nothing similar to attaching innate characteristics to a person based on origin/skin color/etc.
Different category, same categorical error.
Yes, text book case of how transparent projection is to us when we do it.
lol!
Yeah really… because cultural divides and prejudice are a uniquely American thing! /s
So a tiger ate your friend and your brain goes Lion = Bad
That why humans tried to avoid predators for… the entire human history.
But the brain also does this for humans and skin color… so here we are… 🤷♂️
I’m Canadian and have known some very racist Canadians. In fact, the most racist man I ever knew was a Canadian. Far as I can tell, racism is everywhere and always an ignorant thing.
As an American that moved to Canada it was eye opening that a lot of racist Canadians direct the energy Americans point at black folks toward Native Americans. Canada absolutely has a problem with some deep seated racism.
Sadly, I’ve seen it aimed at pretty much anyone who’s of a different race. I don’t know how Canada compares to other countries that way, but I’ve definitely seen way too much of it in Canada.
A mix of cognitive bias and systemic racism
But also stereotypes exists and can be true to some degree, often just cultural
America is a nation of immigrants and mixed cultures. In the early 1900s, there was great pressure to acculturate to the “American” way of doing things. Immigrants changed their names, clothes, foods, and language to match the “mainstream.” There was a push to build a “colorblind” society.
By the 1960s-70s, younger people began to realize that “acculturation” really meant erasing cultural heritage and acquiescing to white, Anglo, male-dominated culture. So there was a movement to preserve, celebrate, and empower differences between people.
This gave rise to the Black Power movement, creation of the term “Hispanic” and the Latin American ethnicity, Women’s Lib, Gay Pride, and even the rise of pizza delivery chains (which was regarded as a somewhat exotic ethnic food at the time).
That tension continues in the USA between recognizing and celebrating cultural differences, and becoming a melting pot of many cultures becoming one.
That tension continues in the USA between recognizing and celebrating cultural differences, and becoming a melting pot of many cultures becoming one.
This is the crux. It’s a uniquely American take on how you deal with a country that has seen dozens of waves of immigration (starting with the illegal immigration of colonization) from many different places over a fairly short timeframe. American culture is kind of like a fork, with a unified base that has integrated but very distinct tines (bear with me… combining the “melting pot” and “salad bowl” tropes is HARD!). At their best, memes and jokes like that can be an invitation to genuine dialogue. At their worst… well… not that. A lot depends on who is putting them out and with what agenda in mind.
Statistically, most European countries seem to be estimated at somewhere between 80%-90% “white,” likely to mean “of exclusively European extraction beyond any sort of family memory,” and I wager the vast majority of those people are from the core borders or frontiers that might well have shifted in the last few centuries. America hasn’t had that sort of percentage for over 40 years, and even then the white population was more “assorted crackers.” Even back into that era, most areas will have had at least two and likely three to five statistically significant populations that would have been visually and culturally distinct (not that this in ANY way implies that these groups were treated equally by the power structures… OMG far, far, FAR from it). These people don’t have to give up their distinctiveness to remain American, and when considered in good faith, particularly by those who mostly live in the base of the fork, the sorts of things you’re describing can be more celebratory than divisive.
I’m not going to suggest Americans are particularly good at multiculturalism (another understatement), but we’ve been at it a long time and specific practices and trends have grown up around it. The balancing act of racial and ethnic awareness without descending into judgment is probably one of the more complicated aspects of navigating American culture, regardless of whether you were born to it or looking on from the outside. So much so, in fact, that certain small-minded people think we should just snap the tines off the fork and pretend the nub was always a spoon.
The melting pot idea was all over news and media back in late 70s and 80s. Gen X has forgotten what it was like when America was great and not this demon filled hellhole that was elected.
America wasn’t great, it was just a lot cheaper to live in.
The economy tanked when Nixon kept paying for the Vietnam War by printing money without raising taxes. That and the Arab Oil Embargo of 1973 crashed the American Dream. Jimmy Carter hired Paul Volker to fix things. Jimmy got kicked out before the plan started kicking in and Reagan got the credit. Then Ronnie turned the money spigot on extra high for the rich and that’s how it all went to hell.
US compartmentalizes based on race. It’s apparent in essentially all of the media they export to the rest of the world.
Historically American society operated based on a race based caste system and the consequences of that echo into the present day.
And they do it even if there’s not much difference between people. When I lived in Scranton I’d get asked what ethnic group I was a part of - Irish, Italian, Polish, Lithuanian, Welsh, etc.
To someone who didn’t grow up there I didn’t know what they were asking, but there was still in the early 00s different parts of town for different communities.
This all stopped when a significant Hispanic population moved in, and they stopped being Poles or Estonians and became “American” and the newcomers weren’t.
The US is way more racist than you would think. Also extremely uptight. It isn’t the greatest place like people would have you believe, that’s just hype. Something that America does excel at.
Who is telling you it’s the greatest place? I would say anyone doing that would come off like an idiot for a variety of reasons
This is a very common thing that is said by too many people, politicians, artists, business people, the news, government. It’s like a virus of denial. America is famous for ramping everything up to 1000. Over the top bullshit. And yes, they are complete idiots.
Maybe my question should’ve had the caveat “who isn’t an obvious extreme idiot”
anyone doing that would come off like an idiot for a variety of reasons
That probably covers at least half the population of the US.
Absolutely not but cool go ahead and tell us how we’re all stupid
At least half does not mean all of us.
I get so sick of people getting defensive over things that may not apply to them.
There are a LOT of stupid Americans. There are a LOT of racist Americans. There are a LOT of sexist Americans. There’s are a LOT of anti-LGBTQ Americans.
I’m an American and I don’t identify as any of the above, but I’m not so insecure to lash out at people who point out what is obviously true.
If most Americans actually WERE smarter than people think we are, we’d be in a different political position right now.
Americans are generally shitty, and those that aren’t need to work twice as hard to change that. Denying it just lets it continue.
100% correct.
I’m more than fucking sick of generalizations. You’re preaching to the fucking choir here with your apologia for it so it’s fucking useless
Sorry. Didn’t mean to hurt your feelings.
No, you meant to shove the blame for the existence of idiotic americans onto those who find your rhetoric to be garbagey bullshit
Most Americans do not live in or near a big city. We tend to live in small towns that have a majority of only one or two ethnic groups. My town has whites and latinos but very few black people. I personally know only two black people and neither one lives near me. The only Chinese people I know are the ones who operate the Chinese restaurant in town. My experience is not unique.
80% of Americans live in urban areas
It’s not American thing - it’s a human thing. We tend to group people into us and them.
But also, stereotypes don’t come from thin air. There’s usually atleast a hint of truth to them. However, where people go wrong with this is when they apply it to individuals. It doesn’t work that way. These are group differences. When speaking of individuals there’s a greater differences to be found within a group than between them.
Active Divide and Rule.
Last thing the government need is people using social media to realise we have more in common than differences, which social media naturally does.
So it’s managed.
You’re referring to jokes that were commonplace until like 15 years ago. I’m not sure where you’re seeing that constantly but I almost never do.
