pudge's Journal: Racism?

I am watching the local news last night, and there's a story about Port of Seattle cops who sent "racist" and pornographic emails to each other using government computers and so on.

From the story:

One of the videos sent from an officer to a friend shows a man laughing at and making derogatory remarks about Hispanic culture and a group of Latino men who want a job for the day.

"That's the good thing about (beep). They're always willing to work," he says.
Instead of taking the men to a job, he drives up to an INS office and honks the horn.

OK, um, nothing in the video they showed, or in this quote, is racist. Maybe it was racist, but I am not going to take their word for it. It's against illegal immigrants, as best I can tell, not any race. But it gets better/worse:

We showed the video to Roberto Maestas, director of El Centro de la Raza, a Seattle non-profit that's fought for equality for minorities and the Latino community for 35 years.

"I think it's sick, tragic, dehumanizing, to make fun of people, who all they want to do is work," said Maestas.

First of all, if you want to show me a group that will say this is bad, show me one with some credibility, not La Raza, which has some racist problems of its own. Second, he didn't even say it is racist, but merely against illegal workers.

And third, you actually want me to believe that it is a bad thing for police officers to think it is funny to mock people who are breaking the law? Are you serious?

Again, maybe there were some terrible racist things in those videos or emails, but I have been presented no evidence whatsoever to believe it.

However, there was porn sent around, and that's an open-and-shut case, really, so it's not like I am saying these cops did nothing wrong. Sending around the porn was just grade-A stupid.

sending porn.... wow

[robi2106]

sure was stupid. looks like the sgts and Lts haven't been shaking up people enough.

jason

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[stoolpigeon]

it was sgts and lts doing it.

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[robi2106]

wow wow..... then that dept had deep problems running a few generations of command staff.

jason

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[stoolpigeon]

their biggest problem is stupidity. they all have cell phones i am sure. none of this should have been happening on their pcs. (ideally it shouldn't have been happening at all -- but you know better than i do, there is the ideal and the reality)

the beep

[stoolpigeon]

yeah since they've edited a part of it out - you can only guess (in other words we have no idea) what was said. it's unfortunate because dollars to donuts - it would supply the racist part you say is missing.

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[pudge]

yeah since they've edited a part of it out - you can only guess (in other words we have no idea) what was said. it's unfortunate because dollars to donuts - it would supply the racist part you say is missing.

Maybe, maybe not. For example, if he said "wetbacks," is that racist? Some say yes, absolutely, but I don't think so in this case, because the emphasis in the use of the word in this context is on what they are DOING (coming here illegally for work), not who they ARE.

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[stoolpigeon]

that's an interesting take on it. what if someone used the term wetback and you asked them, 'What is a wetback?' and they answered, 'A mexican.' Seperate from this situation - just as a hypothetical situation - would you consider that use of the term racist - since that person has equated it with a nationality rather than an action?

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[pudge]

that's an interesting take on it. what if someone used the term wetback and you asked them, 'What is a wetback?' and they answered, 'A mexican.'

It depends on the context. And I'd also think that it was a little odd: I spent a number of years in SoCal and the term almost always referred to illegal day laborers. It was still considered offensive, and I didn't use it, but most of the people who did use it IMO didn't have racist motivations.

Seperate from this situation - just as a hypothetical situation - would you consider that use of the term racist - since that person has equated it with a nationality rather than an action?

Again, depends on context. For example, what if someone said it to his good Mexican friends, jokingly? And they approved? Obviously, that is not racist.

Also, nationailty != race anyway. Even if this is as ba

Typical sloppy language

[Arker]

Latinos (la Raza rhetoric to the contrary) are not a race. They're an ethnic grouping. Some Latinos are white, some are black, some are indian, some are of asian ancestry... it's a cultural grouping, not a biological one. So no, clearly prejudice against latinos isn't racism. That doesn't mean it's not just as objectionable and inappropriate, but it's certainly not racism. Of course the news media seems to consider the ability to actually use English correctly as a negative, disqualifying one from employmen