it's not rasism if you are white

[Natkat]

I want to talk about something who annoyes me pretty well but also make me look like a whiny person, or a privileged f*ck to mention.
----
Racism is bad no matter what, but I feel kinda wierd when the topic gets up.
-
I am white, and I live in denmark where I would say the majourity are white as well, I lived here my whole life, im born here, I speak 100% fluent and my dad is danish, BUT! my mom is norwegian (the country right above) and I do have norwegian citizianship because it just was more easy for me some years ago.
My mom is also white, She also speaks the languarge 100% and been here for many years.

From the view of people who don't know us we look 100% danish but tecnically my mom is a imigrent, and I am not a citizian of this country even when I lived here the whole life.

it dose not infect me that much because the countrys are so close, Only that I can't vote and theres a few situation where I need to fill out extra papers ex on starting a education, but it infect me somethimes when people are being rasist.

Somethimes people say stupid stuff like: "lets trew all the imigrents out of this country, back to where they belong" when I then point out my mom is infact also a imigrent and ask if they think it fair to trow her out? they say "it dosen't  count you're white, I where talking about the middle-east people"

or when some coloured people talk about rasism they experience because there of another skin colour and I want to mention something I experience (ex, on the paper I had to fill or something) they they say: "yeah it must be soooo difficult being norwegian " they really do not take me serious as all. somethimes people even say im not a imigrent. or that I really am danish.
I guess it suposed to be some kind of a compliment? but it dosen't really feel like that it just feel like people saying.
"your not being discriminated, because you look so daim white and nobody would really discriminate you"

true I am white (well cant deny it), and I dont get discriminated by my skin colour the same way people with other skin colours do here, I do not feel like a imigrent all the time, but must admit theres many times I dont feel like a non-imigrent either.
but its not really the point,

the point is
I still get the same discrimination of "all imigrents should just go back to there country where they belong"
but its not being taking seriously cause aperently "my kind dosent count so it shouldnt really matter for me. but it dose!

for the clever people reading this, what is this called? dose it even has a name?
is it rasicm, or opposite rasism? or rasism for coloured people who also infect white people?
or am I just a whiny?
-----

[peky]

just whiny...


beside few countries as are as financially sound as Norway, not a bad place to be sent to... Danes and Norwegians are both Viking descendants, same ethnic group..so no racism there...

More important when the Danes speak about throwing the immigrants out they usually speak about the people with brown skin (Hispanics, Turks, north Africans, Indians, etc) no the pretty cousins of the north....LOL

[Shantel]

I understand how you have made the racism comparison, but I think the real crux of the problem there is a growing sense of nationalism. The Danes are obviously getting sick and tired of their mid-east immigrants and it more than likely has everything to do with the fact that their religious and cultural differences does not allow them to assimilate into Danish culture so they tend to live in separate enclaves and refuse to become real Danish citizens and try to change the country to suit them. Naturally the native born Danes are going to resent them and want to send them away. This is a problem throughout western Europe and it is happening here in the US as well but on a lesser level so far. Nationalism is what gave Adolph Hitler a foothold for his political party in Germany as he called for a purified Germany. We may be seeing a resurgence of that thing in Europe. So it's not racism so much as a surge in nationalism and it may not be good.

[Natkat]

The Danes are obviously getting sick and tired of their mid-east immigrants and it more than likely has everything to do with the fact that their religious and cultural differences does not allow them to assimilate into Danish culture so they tend to live in separate enclaves and refuse to become real Danish citizens and try to change the country to suit them.

I think its opposite as its pretty difficult to become a danish citizian and getting a job if you are forregianer, thats why most people who find a bf/gf from another background move to sweden insteed.

[Natkat]

just whiny...


beside few countries as are as financially sound as Norway, not a bad place to be sent to... Danes and Norwegians are both Viking descendants, same ethnic group..so no racism there.

So if im british and say all amaricans are f*cked up and should just go back to where they came from, its not racist because its the same descendants?

[Jamie D]

There are differences between "racism," "bigotry," and "prejudice."

Racism is the belief that "race accounts for differences in human character or ability and that a particular race is superior, or inferior, to others."  Or "a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race."

Bigotry is the "stubborn and complete intolerance of any creed, belief, or opinion that differs from one's own."

Prejudice is an "irrational attitude of hostility directed against an individual, a group, a race, or their supposed characteristics."

Racial prejudice is sometimes called "racism."

A nation-state, protecting one's borders, citizenry, or cultural heritage is not necessarily "racist," "bigoted," or "prejudiced."  It is a fundamental right of any country.

[Padma]

I was on the receiving end of a lot if this as a kid, because I grew up Jewish, among a lot of anti-Semitic people (my dad was beaten up at school for "killing christ"). It's all a matter of degree. If you're being excluded because of your nationality or race, that's racism, but it's likely to impact a lot less on you than on someone who's more obviously from a different culture or part of the world, because the xenophobia that's behind racism is a "fear of the outsider" - people fear difference.

So I have sympathy for what you're experiencing, but would encourage you to help others who are experiencing it worse than you, as they are likely to have less support in your adopted country than you are, especially if they're of a different skin colour.

I'll just add here that it's been very apparent over the last few years that, once again, in times of financial austerity and uncertainty, people become more bigoted and xenophobic - so there's more racism, homophobia, transphobia and so on than when people feel well-off and expansive/inclusive. Here in the UK it reminds me very strongly of the 80s, when we had our big recession and suddenly there was more racism and classism and queer-bashing etc. It's very, very familiar.

[amZo]

A nation-state, protecting one's borders, citizenry, or cultural heritage is not necessarily "racist," "bigoted," or "prejudiced."  It is a fundamental right of any country.

True. Lebanon is a good example.

[Natkat]

I don't see how it fair no matter race to say people should just be trown out of the country for no paticular reason beside that they hate them.
Sure if people do not follow the rules when they get here but usunally when people make a statement of "all imigrents" they also refern to those second generations (like me) who grew up here and lived here the whole life and its not easy for anyone no matter where you come from, to be deportated to a country if you grew up in another.

If you're being excluded because of your nationality or race, that's racism, but it's likely to impact a lot less on you than on someone who's more obviously from a different culture or part of the world, because the xenophobia that's behind racism is a "fear of the outsider" - people fear difference.

The discrimination about specially middle east people are pretty huge and sure I do not experience anything near the same amount as they do, I am still that privilegde, but I just wonder if that mean I dont experience it at all? because I dont feel so.
I live in a area with alot of imigrents from middle east and africa but I have been to school half an hour outside my area and both because I went to school outside and because im white, I get to hear the ignorance comments alot of times about imigrents or people from my area, back in time I also had friend who did not dare/had there parrent permission to visit me because it was a "bad area" I lived in.

I usunally stand up from people when they dont expect it, when they then find out I actually live in this area, or that I did not pass the imigration and those details, then they say this dosen't infect me anyway, that they where not talking about someone like me, but it still infect me.

its abit like passing and not passing, when I did not pass I experience alot of transphobia everyday, now when I pass I experience less because I can go out without people would notice BUT that dose not mean I dont experience transphobia at all, and somethimes I feel the worst kind of transphobia is when people dont know you are trans and just tell you how bad transgenders are, and if you say you are trans then they tell you. "I didnt mean you, you look like a normal boy, I mean those men who dress like women and go to the women toilet"
-

[amZo]

When I was a kid, one day I needed to clean out my piranha fish tank. I got the idea if I fed them just prior, I could put the piranha in my gold fish bowl while I cleaned their tank.  I cleaned the tank and came back to find a bunch of gold fish with half their faces bitten off. I never knew if just one piranha did it or all of them, I just never did this again.

--------------

Just wanted to finish my point (had to get my kids ready and off to school this morning  )....

I think it's important that people understand the rational underlying people's fears, I'm not a big believer that there are huge percentages that hate for no particular reason, it's a little more complex than that.

I do feel there are some cultures that should never mix. I'm a live and let live kind of person, I wish nearly all people well, but there are some I wish it at a distance.

I recently read an article or two on countries like Denmark and Norway experiencing urban blight for the most part the first time in their history. I don't feel it's rational to hate ALL immigrants due to something like this, but neither is turning a blind eye IMO. I tend to prefer moratoriums on immigration and allowing adequate assimilation of existing immigrants. I can't imagine mass deportation ever working anywhere, the country either lives or dies with the current crop of citizens.

I get a sense you feel both insult and guilt in your current situation? I suggest just focus on being a good neighbor, if your neighbors trust you, that's 90% of one's battle right there. 

[Natkat]

I get a sense you feel both insult and guilt in your current situation? I suggest just focus on being a good neighbor, if your neighbors trust you, that's 90% of one's battle right there. 

Guilt is not really the word I would put, it more like I can say something offend someone ells but I cant say I find it offensive myself and to me thats dosen't make sense.
-----

[amZo]

Guilt is not really the word I would put, it more like I can say something offend someone ells but I cant say I find it offensive myself and to me thats dosen't make sense.
-----

I see what you mean. But I feel that way at times in general and even here on Susan's (actually, especially here at Susan's at times). There are things I often see as essentially axiomatic but others can find offensive. In the U.S., all we ever seem to hear is we need a good long discussion on race... but if you try, you're attacked. Most women say they want a sensitive man, but it seems they gravitate to the exact opposite and then complain about it.  It's weird.     

(sorry for going on a tangent!)

[Natkat]

I see what you mean. But I feel that way at times in general and even here on Susan's (actually, especially here at Susan's at times). There are things I often see as essentially axiomatic but others can find offensive. In the U.S., all we ever seem to hear is we need a good long discussion on race... but if you try, you're attacked. Most women say they want a sensitive man, but it seems they gravitate to the exact opposite and then complain about it.  It's weird.     

(sorry for going on a tangent!)

The world is wierd
like humans