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I also think that people mistake racism for recognition of privilege. And then get offended by being called out on it.
In a similar vein I remember choosing to walk around HCM city in Vietnam and being constantly accosted by taxi drivers because being white was a good signifier for being (relatively) wealthy, and so they assumed I would want a ride. It was annoying for me, but I could understand why they would do it.
I can think of two acts that I think were genuinely racist, one also in Vietnam where my friend took me to see her Grandparents, who asked in ignorance if I bleached my arm hair (they had, as far as I know never seen someone with blonde arm hair), and a more recent stereotyping where a waiter in India repeatedly refused to serve me a dish because he was certain it was too hot (spicy) and I should order something else (I didn't and it wasn't).
Both are so abnormal, that I could likewise laugh them off, and certainly don't make me think that I was hated for my skin colour.
branwen-
Are either of those occurrences racism though? It depends on whether your definition is simply "being treated differently or with prejudice because of perceived ethnicity" or whether it also involves a power dynamic, underlying belief in superiority, or negative discrimination.
I don't think the first instance is racism even with its mildest definition - if they never met anyone blond before then it's a fairly logical if slightly personal question. The second - sure it's based on stereotype and yes it was a form of discrimination although not particularly negative. The waiter maybe didn't want you to have a bad experience. -
In a similar vein I remember choosing to walk around HCM city in Vietnam and being constantly accosted by taxi drivers because being white was a good signifier for being (relatively) wealthy, and so they assumed I would want a ride. It was annoying for me, but I could understand why they would do it.
The same psychology is at play when a Cambridgeshire Police officer stops a driver for being black. In the cop’s mind, he’s just filtering for out-of-town individuals. You were profiled. Obviously the context is different and important.
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I guess the point I was making was it's hard to argue against with out his lived experience.
I'm not saying he thinking anti white racism is as big other types of racism.
hoefla
miro_o
mi7rennie
Well it's certainly not my experience. I can't think of any time that, as a white man, I've felt myself the victim of racism, and I've travelled pretty far and wide in my time. OK, the secretaries in the Bangkok law firm where I spent 6 weeks doing work experience all claimed I looked like Elvis Presley, despite the fact I don't - apart from being white and having (in those days) black hair. Other than that - and I chalk that up as an amusing anecdote rather than a sign of racist oppression - I can't think of a single instance where I've felt that I've been treated in a negative way due to the colour of my skin.