I have come too clearly understand the true diversity that is The South. I always heard "oh yeah, N****rs, blah blah blah, Johnny Reb" but i never really came to terms with the reality that people actually still believe the Civil War is going on and that they need to constantly remain vigilant against blacks. ?...There's a clear indication of how ignorant people are down here. And it's pretty cut and dry for segregation around here too, white people stay out of the city more often than not, and black people never come too the country. both reasons are fear of being shot by one party or the other. It's quite eye opening too actually be living in the experience of the "durty souf". Believe it or not, this area of the country is STILL recovering from the civil war, no joke. I think its going to be quite some time before there is any sort of rebound, if any at all. Coal mines play (played) a huge part in the forming of these states after Reclamation ended, and I've driven though/been in plenty of towns that are quite good sized (caldwell-ish size) that have plenty of retail buildings, commerce areas...but NO customers. If it was a coal town 30 years ago, it is dead silent now. true story. That is also a hindering factor in the economy down here, there isn't any new money, it's all old money that slowly being siphoned out by the %80 of people on welfare, and it's kind of sad. This state itself is actually beautiful, forests, lakes (no mountains -5pts), but it cant thrive with everyone leeching off anything it has too offer.
The government doesnt really care about the South if anyone hasnt noticed on the news, etc. Not a whole lot of funding, things of that nature. I mean look when Katrina hit....THAT was a fucked up sideways mess, including the hurricane. And I know people dont like to say it, or think it, but I dont care. It happens this way because this country is still racist. Yeah, grit your teeth Left Wingers. It is. and it most likely always will be.
But it goes both ways. Being white in the south and going into any gas station, grocery store, anything with a main focus on customer service, and if theres a black person working the counter they will make you feel like you beat them everyday and owned their parents. No joke. I can walk up to the counter and be friendly as hell, ask how they are doing etc, all i get is eye-rolls, no eye contact "what do you wants" and "yeah yeah ok bye". !?! A. my family didnt even live here during slavery, B. do your fucking job and be friendly (oh wait nevermind you wouldnt get fired anyway, because then you'd pull the racist card) There's an old timer black guy who works with my dad that is supposed to wash the aircraft when it's in the hangar, he doesnt do that, hardly ever, shows up to work hammered ass drunk everyday, and sits around. Can they fire him? Nope, he's black, and they don't want a lawsuit. So, this country isn't racist anymore huh? Right. The first time I ever got a decent response from a black person at a gas station was in Mississippi on an Army base, gee wonder why they were friendly. "Un-friendly workers will be shot on sight" then in small print "unless you are sue happy". It just gets quite old after awhile, fair treatment should just immediately be ingrained into a persons mind of this time and age, but it's not because the more stupid people you have in one spot, the more stupid people will come out and ruin everything else.
Our neighbor kid, probably about 14. Real good kid, "yes sir" type of kid. Perfect speech, well dressed, just overall a good kid. He gets good grades, plays sports, hunts...but there's one fallback. The media, the news, the churches will RUIN him. as soon as he turns 19-20 and can form his own opinions, he will be so overwhelmed by the sheer idiocy down here that he will end up just like his parents, just like they did from their parents, it's a never ending cycle. "Education!" People always say, well folks the American Education system is just about as fucked up backwoods as Deliverance...and here's the best part. Its never going too change, don't wait for it, don't look. Your votes won't matter. Period.
It's really rather ridiculous and it's not only in the South. You can see it all over the country against Hispanics. The only reason I bring this up (because, contrary to assumed belief, I'm -not- even a -little- Hispanic) is because I've been on the receiving end of racist comments.
ReplyDeleteI can't tell you how many times I've had people talk around me because they think I don't understand English because I 'look' Mexican (IE: I have dark eyes and dark hair -- the fact that a majority of the world's population have these features not withstanding) and then they're utterly shocked when I not only understand what they're saying, I speak English better than they do.
I can't imagine what it's like in the South. A good friend of mine from Minnesota went down South for an internship and would message me about how rude people were toward her because she was a) from the 'North', b) white, and c) tried to be polite to everyone.
People really need to wake up and realize things aren't as pretty and neat and nice as they want to believe.
One way ticket to Europe, please! (Granted, Europe is nowhere near perfect.. but I feel they're a little more balanced in most cases).
--Caitlin
-Caitlin
I think that you are right in saying that racism will always be around. People need groups to hate, and groups to be a part in. Skin color is an easy one to pick out. Evolutionary tribal shit. We act more like our ape ancestors than we like to admit. It's depressing.
ReplyDeleteEric