Yeah, I think I broadly agree with all of this, and I'm certainly not suggesting that we'll ever get rid of in-group bias. Whatever means we use to define those in-groups. What I was trying to point out to Will, and you seem to agree, is that there's a difference between bias and bigotry.
Racism is not simply "I feel a certain degree of …
Yeah, I think I broadly agree with all of this, and I'm certainly not suggesting that we'll ever get rid of in-group bias. Whatever means we use to define those in-groups. What I was trying to point out to Will, and you seem to agree, is that there's a difference between bias and bigotry.
Racism is not simply "I feel a certain degree of solidarity with this person because they share certain traits with me." It's "I believe this person to be inferior to me or to possess undesirable characteristics because they possess certain traits that are different to mine.
I don't think it's possible to overstate the difference between these two positions.
So the mistake I think Will was making is conflating bias and bigotry, and suggesting that bigotry is also an innate characteristic in humans. I firmly believe that this is untrue, as highlighted by the many instances where we've outgrown certain bigotries.
Bigotry is a learned behaviour. And certain version of it are baked into various cultures. As cultures change, so do the attitudes. And to suggest that this is hopeless is simply to give oneself an excuse to do nothing. If he really believed it was impossible to change attitudes, why would he have found my article arguing against anti-white bigotry worthwhile?
Yeah, I think I broadly agree with all of this, and I'm certainly not suggesting that we'll ever get rid of in-group bias. Whatever means we use to define those in-groups. What I was trying to point out to Will, and you seem to agree, is that there's a difference between bias and bigotry.
Racism is not simply "I feel a certain degree of solidarity with this person because they share certain traits with me." It's "I believe this person to be inferior to me or to possess undesirable characteristics because they possess certain traits that are different to mine.
I don't think it's possible to overstate the difference between these two positions.
So the mistake I think Will was making is conflating bias and bigotry, and suggesting that bigotry is also an innate characteristic in humans. I firmly believe that this is untrue, as highlighted by the many instances where we've outgrown certain bigotries.
Bigotry is a learned behaviour. And certain version of it are baked into various cultures. As cultures change, so do the attitudes. And to suggest that this is hopeless is simply to give oneself an excuse to do nothing. If he really believed it was impossible to change attitudes, why would he have found my article arguing against anti-white bigotry worthwhile?