Mary Mitchell

I've seen a lot of racism in my time, but I had an experience recently that has made me re-think a lot of the attitudes I hear regarding race.

I was at a Jewel out in Naperville, buying one item for a party I was going to. I got in the express line, the one where it's 15 items or less. The woman ahead of me had a basket full of items. Maybe a few more than 15, but no big deal, right? Well, her daughter zooms up out of nowhere with a full cart and butts in front of all of us with 1-5 items. Everyone in line is grumbling, as we now had to contend with waiting for this woman. So I spoke up. I pointed out that this was an Express line, and that what she was doing was very rude. Her response? "You're just picking on me because I'm black." (Yes, it was a black woman.) My response? "No, I'm picking on you because you are being very rude!"

There is a lot of racism, but I also see a lot of reverse racism as well. White on black is not the only racism that goes on out there.

I've been accused of racism a number of times in my life, as a matter of fact, and to my mind never fairly. One time walking down Michigan Avenue a panhandler accused me of racism because I refused to give him money. He made quite a scene and perhaps thought he could shame or intimidate me. I doubt he was interested in hearing that I simply don't do handouts. If I gave money to everyone who demanded it on the street every day I'd have absolutely nothing. Therefore I don't. Period.

There was another instance recently, though, an honest mistake. No malice intended whatsoever. I'd pulled into a parking garage on North Sheridan to visit a friend. There were no hikers in sight. Then I spotted a gentleman in a white shirt and black trousers sitting in the garage's office area. He was dressed exactly like the attendants in my building.

"What are you looking at?" he demanded angrily. "You think because I'm black that I work in some subservient job like a parking attendant?"

"Sorry," I responded. "No offense intended, believe me."

"Bullshit. You're a racist," he shot back.

"No," I said. "You're dressed in a white shirt and black pants and you're sitting in the office."

"White shirt and black pants? This is Armani. Garage people don't wear Armani," he replied.

"Yeah, well I don't read labels inside people's collars from a hundred feet away. So again sorry for my mistake. No offense intended."

He continued badgering me and I was grateful when the real attendant finally arrived. Turns out they wear blue uniforms in that building.

What struck me was the amount of rage this man obviously felt. But at the same time I wish I'd had the presence of mind to tell him to save it for a real racist who deserves to be ripped a new one.

It's days like those that I wonder if this divide will ever be healed. Then I see this effort here in the Sun-Times and I feel heartened to know someone's at least trying to get some dialogue going. For whatever good it does in the world it's worth it.

Mitch, First of all I'm no kid as I will be 76 next March.Being born in the North {Erie Pa.} and joining the army at 17 in 1948 I never knew racism until I was shipped south of the Mason Dixon line.On my first leave to Richmond Va. seeing two drinking fountains in public places, two rest rooms at bus stations,just for openers I came to know what racism was.Being born of Italian Imigrants wasn't easy either. Up north we had a little racism being called wop, dago, greaseball,ginny,ect. but it didn't come from the blacks, it came from people that looked just as white as I was.And being the only {Dago} in my outfit at Camp Lee Va. I still after 58 years carry the nick name "Il Duce" {Mussolini} lol. So I really don't need to be reminded every day about racism. As for me I'm glad not to see what I saw as a kid when I visit the south again,where I can sit with some one of a diffrent color at a resturant, or have a drink at a bar.And yes even have that person sit next to me at a movie. I am in the winter of my life now, I have raised 4 wonderful daughters and they don't know the meaning of racism.My wife and my self taught them this is a whole diffrent world that I lived in,and we don't judge people by Color,Race, or Religion. What the world is looking at right now in the middle east should open up peoples eyes, and be thankful they live in a country like ours.Racism will be a part of this world as long as people wear rose colored glasses and won't remove them, for their afraid to see what the real world is like.I will now get off of my soap box and say, Ciao. Rick "Il Duce" Ventura

In this country race is the 800 pound gorilla that no one pays attention to, and not only in this country. Look at the nightly news and you come away with the impression that an American life is more precious than an Iraqi
life.It doesn't matter how you feel about the war we must remember that all life is precious. We know that today's corporate media is in the business to make a profit and without sounding to cynical, white tragedy sells better than black tragedy. If people of color want to make the headlines get caught selling drugs or rob a store then you fit into a stereotype and that's news worthy. However, a young man killed on the streets,
who was in school, and not in a gang, and on his way to college, a good kid, that probably would not get attention on the ten o'clock news beecausse,that's"Just
another statistic". This is not true in all cases because you do have sincere people in the media like Mary Mitchell bringing these issues to the forefront. God bless her. I hope that one day that we can get over the issue of race in this country. However, as long as we see how Katrina victims are treated and how the media picks and chooses what to show on the news, I believe it was Lou Palmer who used to say, "It's enough to make a negro turn black".

I have a neighbor that is a Latino. He has his own business and works odd and flexible hours. I confided in him that I had had very little sleep lately due to a lot of overtime on my job. He replied: Now your learning to work like a Mexican. It ticked me off severely. I sometimes go 30 to 40 hours with NO sleep in order to help my family. I am a blue collar worker and not a young one. I have worked harder and longer that this man can even conceive of. I have had many jobs and as we all know; the last one in the door always has to work the hardest, unless they are the boss' kid. I mow with a push mower, he mows with a rider. I build everything myself, he needs help. The problem is his perception of white folks. He assumes that everything was given to us and that we haven't had to work as hard as Latinos. The silver spoon is only reserved for a select few white people. A lot of us unfortunately have an allergy to it. It is all about perception. Get beyond the skin color and look at the reality in front of you. There are a great many people of tremendous character in all races. Don't let yourself fall into a stereotypical trap like this man did. Despite his ignorant comments (there have been many)I still like him. I write it off to his perception of whites being molded by Hollywood and never having had a personal relationship with people of other races. Something to keep in mind when feeling slighted by someone's lack of knowledge.

If you're white, you need to realize that racism is whatever black people say it is. There IS racism today - it must be addressed, but far too often, we see these ridiculous cries of racism in the papers, or by one of the 100,000 "ministers" in the city and it makes a lot of white people (including me) ignore legitimate issues. Black people need to read the story about the lttle boy who cried wolf.

Racism. My most memorable brush with racism came from black people. And I am black myself. It was back in college, and there was a group of black students formed at the college. They wanted me to join. I didn't want to join. I didn't see the point of joining, since it wasn't my cup of tea. They kept bothering me and I finally told them to leave me alone, that hell would freeze over and thaw before I'd join their group. Boy oh boy did that open up a can of worms. I got called every single name in the book. Pick a racial slur against black people, and I got called it from black people. I was told I was trying to be white, that I was an uncle tom, that I thought I was better than them, so on and so forth. I even got serious threats of bodily harm. It was so bad I had to go to the officials at the University to get these idiots to leave me alone. All this and why? Because I didn't want to join their group.

It seems that when it comes to racism, there is plenty to be had from your own race. I mean, there are white people who get treated badly because they're of Polish decent, or Italian or whatever. They're white, but white people will be more racist towards them than any other group will.

I did have one incident this year, where I was called racist, because I am a teacher, and a white student of mine was failing because this student did not do any work whatsoever and did not study. Mom comes in, we're in a meeting with administrators, the child admits that they haven't been doing a single thing they're supposed to be doing, in essence saying "everything the teacher's been saying about me is true" and the Mom turns around and says that I'm being racist because her child is failing and her child's failure is my fault. I had another incident where I was called racist for writing up a kid who disobeyed the rules. The kid claimed that I was being racist to her because the kid told mom that I only wrote up the white kids, not the black kids, which was a blatant lie that the kid knew very well. I even had a black parent at a meeting with some white teachers that I wasn't in call me racist and demand that I be brought into the meeting. Then the principal said they'd go get me and bring me in, and oh yeah, that I was black. She very quickly said, "I DON'T WANT TO MEET WITH HER!"

In those cases, I call it what it truly is: blaming everyone else but the person who bears the responsibility. And that's honestly what a lot of "that's racist" calls are, which is why when truly racist things occur, people tend to take it with a grain of salt because it's like the boy who cried wolf.

I think that true racism whether it's between races or within races is based upon ignorance, stereotypes, hatred of what is not like them, and fear. In some cases, whites don't want to know anyone of a different race, don't want to ever talk to anyone of a different race, they just want to live in their white world and don't ever want to change that. Same goes for some blacks, some latinos, some asians.

Growing up in a smaller town downstate, where 95+ percent of the population is white, I can truly understand what Mary's frustration is, because down there, white people cry out all the time that racism is dead.

I however experienced first-hand an incident of racism that changed my life, and helped me notice racism all around me. In the late 80s, a black family moved in a few houses down from me, and they had a son my age. We had pretty similar interests, so we became pretty close friends. However, some of the other kids at school (and their corresponding racist parents) made this family's life a living hell, and they left after a year. I remember how angry I felt. It wasn't the 50's! this stuff wasn't supposed to happen anymore. But I realized then that it still did, and still does now some 18 years later...

I've been called a racist a few times, when someone has been quick to pull the race card, and it used to make me sad and a little bit angry. However, I then thought about how angry I got over that one experience of racism that I didn't even experience first-hand and all of the countless other experiences i've seen since. Many of your previous commenters were correct. I'm not black. I don't know what it's like to be black. So I'm not sure if I can really blame those people who have mistakenly called me a racist. I don't know where they're coming from. It does hurt, but I just know that if they really knew me, they'd see that it's not true.

I think the main reason that this story got so much coverage is because the victim was a frail kid who has serious medical problems already. This made the beating especially heinous. If 3 white boys had beaten up a sickly black kid, it would have been equally heinous, but I can't say whether the coverage would have been the same. The thing about racism is this; white people don't think about it unless it touches them personally. It seems that black people think about it all the time. Rev. Meeks is all over the news because he thinks Mayor Daley and other white people are intentionally making sure black kids have an inferior education. Nonsense. I know two retired Chicago Public School teachers. Ask them how their students behaved. Ask them how many parents showed up for conferences. Ask them how many kids missed 30, 40 or 50 days of school each year. Many black parents are not involved in their children's schools to the degree they need to be. And a good deal of education takes place when the kids come home from school. Did they bring books home? Is there any homework? Will anyone listen to the little ones read? There is a rather sizeable black upper class in this country. If one black person can succeed, all potentially can. It takes hard work, education, desire and opportunity. Is everyone doing their part? Or is it easier to blame racism for poverty and crime?

Racism, putting a knucklehead like Toddler Stroger over a qualified candidate like Claypool only because he is black. Is that racism? President Periaca, gassp!

What is racism?Why dont you remind white people(and see their reaction seeing that the media downplayed the test results) that their own scientists did DNA research on white people and the DNA traced back to ..guess where?A black woman from AFRICA!so in actuality whites have been racist against their own relatives!How smart is that?(I can just see the look on a lot of racists faces)I always said no matter what color, we all are the same race "the human race"Now put that in your pipe and smoke it!The dialogue is still a good one to have because it would help society understand how fear and ignorance affects our world.Read and obtain as much knowledge as you can for the good of the world no matter what your "color "is.

I am compelled to respond to Kim's comments above. Yes, the lady was being very rude and it did not matter what race she was. I am an African-American male and I am telling you right now that if this black lady had butt the line with me in it she would have known that this action was not acceptable. Race has become too convenient to use. You did this to me because I am black and you did that to me because I am black. In the Jewel case of the black lady cutting the line I want to tell everyone here that this is not racism but pure inconsideraton and possibly ignorance on the part of the black lady. And no I am not being racist toward the black lady. She needs to wait her turn in line like every other paying customer. This type of action on her part leads to unnecessary fights and verbal disputes.

In response to Mary's comments about parents' participation in their children's schooling, I have to point out that the issue she's raising has nothing to do with race and it shouldn't be defined as such. Parents of all classes and all races could and should be paying more attention to their children's schooling. And lack of participation is likely a sign of other pressing issues that for whatever reason, have taken priority in that household, be that work and bills, medical issues, or any number of concerns. Generalizations are not going to help these issues. If we are ever going to heal the chasms that exist between races and classes, we are going to have to start seeing the world through each other's eyes and giving each other the benefit of witholding judgements like those implied in that comment.

Black people have read the book, Boy who cried wolf. But how many white people have seen White's Man Burden? Im sure not that many but that is how it would feel if the shoe was on the other foot. It's also the reason why white people dont discuss racism. My theory on racism is 10% of white people are true hardcore racist, another 10% percent are sympathizers and actually acknowledge the wrongs of racism in America, the other 80% are racist by default. Meaning they know racism exist and prevents certain people from succeding, but since they are the direct benefactors of racism why should they seek change. White people are AFRAID that when a change happens they will be on the bottom. That's why the push to eliminate or stem immigration is hot. Now that Mexicans are no longer mowing grass or working in restaurants and actually have the "nerve" to aspire to me more they are suddenly not welcome here. In a few years white people will be attempting to stem the flow of Middle Easterner's also. IF white people would acknowledge that not everyone is as hateful or fearful as they are and only seek equal oppurtunity, then about 80%of white people could relax easier.

Most of what is termed racism is normal tribal behavior, and that cannot be eradicated. There isn't one society on earth where multiculturalism works in reality as it does in the happy-clappy theories, because people always care about their own tribe more than they care about the other tribes. And it's not just that us children of Europe are uniquely evil: ethnic conflict is endemic across the planet, in tons of places with no whites at all (look up the recent history of places as different as the Ivory Coast, Indonesia, and Fiji if you doubt me, folks).

Blacks make impossible demands of whites: that we should care about you exactly as we care about yourselves (in fact, you seem to want us to care about you more than we care about ourselves). It's lunacy! Generally speaking, blacks make no bones about caring about black people more than they care about whites. This doesn't bother me; I expect it, it's natural. But just as I care about my family more than I care about other peoples' families, so I care about my own people (Europeans) more than I care about other peoples. This is the way it is for me, for you, and for everyone.

We might be able to live together in peace, more or less, but we'll never live together in harmony.

To quote an obscure rap song, "Racism is the system of racial subjugation against nonwhites in every area of human relations:
Entertainment, education, labor, politics
Law, religion, sex, war and economics." (Ras Kass)

What we experience in the United States is institutionalized racism, meaning it is a system that is set up. What I hear people complaining about on this blog is bigotry. Anybody can be a bigot; whites, blacks, asians and/or hispanics. However, true racism is what really plagues this country and it is what truly has held back people of color in this country. There is a different set of unwritten rules for people of color in this country, especially in the judicial system. Anybody who chooses to ignore this fact is only fooling him/herself into believing the hype about what a great and fair country we live in.

I am a middle class black man who live in an estate. Caucasians and others come into the community to do odd jobs. They leaved their trucks unlock and their supplies out in the open. When they see me walk out of my house the panic and lock their vehicles doors and check their supplies. It strange that no caucasian complain about the billions of dollars made from contraband flowing into the black community. Talking about hand-out.Contraband create jobs for law-enforcer,jail,prision etc. Prisions are built in white communities,to create jobs. Blogers suggest that black wants hands-outs,but fail to mention that many white kids go to college on money from contraband. The only thing bkack americans want is the "glass ceiling be removed from hiring and job promotion. Remove the foot from the "bootstrap" ,and blacks will progrss over night. Progress for black invite more hatred from whites,especially now when middle,and poor white are suffering under this administration. Bigotry will always be here.

Raceism will always exist.Look at all the contraband flowing freely and uncontested into the black community. Why,because billions of dollars are being made to send white kids to college,create jobs by building jails and prisons in white communities. Where is our law enforcers? Why doesn't drugs,guns,etc flow into the white communities? Racism is alive and well,whether we bury our heads in the sand or not.

At some point, all of these posts will tend to say the same thing...and certainly across black and white views.
White people naively think that there is little racism left in this country and if black people work hard enough, they will be successful in life.
Black people tend to ignore the enormous issues in their piece of society (crime, single part families) and tend to think every issue or hurdle they face is racially motivated.
There is racism in this country...there are also double standards and overuse of the race card. Now what do we do...?

Earlier I misread Kim's comments and I want to readdress them. When a grocery store or any store has an express line that states 15 items or less, it is there for a reason. The reason is to quickly check out those customers who only have a handful of items instead of making them wait in line with other customers who have a shopping cart full of items. The black lady who butt the express line with a shopping cart full of items violated 2 rules, one written and one unwritten. The written rule of course is that the line was an express line for customers having 15 items or less and the unwritten rule is that you do not butt people who already in line because that shows complete disrespect for whoever is already in line. This happened to me yesterday in Target. An older man who had a few less items than me tried to butt me. I told him that the line started behind me and he got behind me. I am African-American and he was white. No racism just respectism.

Racism is Jon Burge electocuting Black men's testicles, choking them, burning them, suffocating them with typewriter covers, and coercing false confessions.

My experience of racism comes from the workplace where in many situations I have seen white females get jobs they are not qualified for. White women are the main benefactors of affirmative action. The impact is huge, they are taking jobs away from qualified people, especially black men. In the city of Chicago private industry can hire who they want to, their choice. Fine, I can deal with that, but give me a break when a white woman who starts off as a executive secretary ends up as a project manager with zero experience in IT or manager period. This is where I put the emphasis of leadership or lack thereof on the City Council who just sat back and kept quiet while the Bridgeport community got rich the past 10 years.

When Harold Washington died, white people in my office were seen celebrating and did not keep it quiet that City Hall was given back to them again. It made me hate Chicago at that time.

How someone gets reverse racism out of someone butting in line is beyond me.Whites (at least most of them)think racism doesnt exist so how can they always claim reverse racism?(reverse psychology)I have never heard one minority say "hey we are going to discriminate against whites while there are hundreds or yet thousands of documented cases of racism ,murder torture lynchings etc.against blacks.That is like saying I murdered someone in your family and you try to get justice that means to whites that you are "whining" because you seek justice for your mur
dered or abused family (what a joke)Just like the later poster stated rude is rude no matter what the "color"the commission of a crime should not matter .The media put the boy on the front page who was beat by his own prothesis until it was disclosed that 3 white thugs committed that violent act then it was relegated to page 13.(not newsworthy anymore?)There is good and bad in every race not like the media portrays Crimes and murders every day are committed only by minorities. In minority Neighborhoods positive things happen that the public never sees.all hell breaks out when a suburban dweller comes to the city and dies from tainted heroin then its time for "raids"to stop the drugs (why didnt they attempt to do anything about it sooner maybe lives could have been saved)so until real equality happens in our society(most people feel it never will,alot are glad to benefit from it)there will be a ever growing rumble from the "have-nots"that will probably turn into a growl then into a bite just like in the 60's,no one is advocating violence but that seems to be the next logical step seeing how so many people are oblivious to the suffering that racism imposes of our fellow man and also how it affects their own children..I can just only pray for peace and try to be the best person "I" can be,and remember to treat others like I would want to be treated.

My most recent experience of racism was when I was hired for the job at which I currently work. It is a small company (under 6 employees) and the man who owned it (who has since passed away)was racist. I know this for two reasons. There was a woman who was apparently more qualified than me who interviewed for my job at the same time I did. Because I am a white, and she was black and the owner was a racist, I got the job over her. Apparently, he was hesitate to hire me because I'm male and it is an administrative job (perhaps concerned about my sexuality). Secondly, I heard him once complain to the accountant in our office how he had been involved in many public housing projects in the sixties, but that during the Baltimore riots his car had been stolen and burned. He decided that this was because black people were ungrateful to him for all the work he had done for them. The world is no doubt better off without men like this. However, I have often wondered was there anything I could have, or should have, done differently so as not to benefit from this man's racism. Does the fact that I benefited from such beliefs make me endorse them? Am I a racist for benefiting from racist beliefs? The whole situation has just made me much more keenly aware of the vast racism that dominates are society today and the things that people who are not white must go through in order to succeed in our society were racism take many insidious forms.

I think society is a little mixed up on this issue of racism. Racism existed in the first 2/3s of the 20th century. Racism has now evolved into and become a part of player hating. It is the only way I can see it at the present time. I see whites and blacks of one group hating on on individual whites, blacks, or groups of whites, groups of blacks, or integrated groups of whites and blacks. It is not racism, but plan hatred of one another. America better had better come to grips with this issue because "a house divided against itself cannot stand."

Dana, your perception of white people is a racist one. It comes out in strength in the words you use directed at white bloggers. The other thing that is clear is your anger. I have news for you. It isn't the 1800's anymore, where a hint of color in someone's background was a cause for public shunning. I am part Cherokee and I know my family never discussed it very much until 20 to 30 years ago. I also know that being part Cherokee,I might have inherited some African blood. Not only does that not bother me, it does not bother any of my family. Your perceptions are those that the Poverty pimps expounded in the sixties and seventies. The times are a'changing, my friend. Like the white bigots, there are too many like you that continually dredge up the past as an explanation of the failures of the present. You need to give up the accusations and work on going forward, or we might as well give up any chance of having racial harmony in this country.

MY experience: when my infant child was strapped to my chest, wife and I were walking one afternoon down dearborn almost to chicago st. then, a rain of ice cubes from the 12th floor balcony came down on us, luckily none hit my daughters soft spot or head.

I looked up and saw 5 young black men throwing things over the balcony. I reported it to the security of the building. "nothing we can do-they are section 8 - they have to kill someone before they can be evicted. They are always throwing things off the balcony." I admit - I have hated black section 8 people ever since. ITs offenseve to think how hard whitesd have to work to buy a house, and struggle to pay property taxes, so The Unproductive dont have to.

SO, if we or my daughter were killed, I suppose the Black "leaders" of this city would somehow make apologies for the black kids, ie., all that single mother socioeconomic bs.

Individual responsibility: you intend the consequence of your actions. THAT is why the three Criminals of BEverly should be charged with attempted murder: because that is what