[Marxism] Racism/Ethnocentrism

["Hunter Gray" <hunterbadbear@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Widely posted October 12 2008

Like all back and forth discussions, this on RBB regarding race and racism can 
-- probably unavoidably -- become a little diffuse. One of the problems 
involved is obviously the interesting mix of cynicism with various political 
perspectives, some of which are obviously sharply critical of Barack Obama on 
ideological grounds [to say nothing of the Democratic Party in general,]

As I've indicated, I support Obama -- in the sense of critical support. I can 
appreciate all of the other perspectives. But let's not overlook the tremendous 
importance of this historical moment. If the United States [and Canada as well] 
have a still all-too-pervasive sickness, it is dehumanizing racism and that 
related and intertwined ill, cultural ethnocentrism -- the many varieties of 
alleged "cultural superiority/inferiority". Long after the initial and explicit 
[and, again I say explicit] economic foundations of these have eroded, the 
quack theological justifications ["primitive children of the Devil"] and the 
equally quack biological rationales ["inherent, genetic inferiority of 
non-whites"] -- all of this to justify genocide against the Indian nations in 
order to secure lands and resources, and the enslavement of Blacks, and the 
seizure of Mexican territory, and all the rest --, racism and ethnocentrism 
have continued with consistency, taking on and carrying their own ill-life 
forward: profound infections in our national minds and our national bodies. 
Often all of this still retains, however veiled these days, an economic 
foundation -- but these durable poisons can certainly survive purely "on their 
own" and do so in a vast number of cases. [See 
http://hunterbear.org/AMERICAN%20RACISM.htm ]

True, in the past few decades, we've come a very long way in a very short time 
toward digging much of this out, exposing it all to healing forces, 
"overcoming" -- albeit far too slowly. But, as everyone of us on these 
discussion lists knows, there is one hell of a long way to go.

When Barack Obama won the Iowa Democratic Primary, I commented on a number of 
lists: "It wasn't so long ago that we had to fight to survive at a Woolworth 
lunch counter."

But this Good War is far from over.

In Solidarity,

Yours, H.


HUNTER GRAY [HUNTER BEAR/JOHN R SALTER JR] Mi'kmaq /St. Francis
Abenaki/St. Regis Mohawk
Protected by Na´shdo´i´ba´i´
and Ohkwari'

Check out our Hunterbear website Directory http://hunterbear.org/directory.htm
[The site is dedicated to our one-half Bobcat, Cloudy Gray:
http://hunterbear.org/cloudy_gray.htm

See our Community Organizing Course [With new material]
http://hunterbear.org/my_combined_community_organizing.htm

See http://hunterbear.org/outlaw_trail1.htm

And see http://hunterbear.org/forces_and_faces_along_the_trail.htm

________________________________________________
YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message.
Send list submissions to: Marxism@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Set your options at: 
http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40archives.econ.utah.edu