A Brief Synopsis of Racism (Particularly of the American Variety)
Racism is the belief that some people are inherently better than others, based usually on skin colour nowadays; it’s varied, however, in the past, and even today it depends on more than simple skin colour. Minorities and allegedly “racially inferior” others face injustices from the legal system, are subjected to segregation due to the capitalist economic system favoring racial elites (on top of heavier hits such as starvation/malnutrition and homelessness), and socially are considered outcasts, ridiculed at best and murdered by racists at worst.
Racism has commonly been used to divide the poor and working class, so instead of facing the capitalist robber barons who reap the means of production and are legally entitled to the products of the workers’ labour, some sections of the poor will turn against others for being relatively socially and/or legally privileged over others or unfounded biases.
As I’m American, I’ll talk about American racism, since I only know vaguely about racism in other countries, let alone continents. In America, “white” people of German or English descent are at the top of this racial caste system. Russians, Italians, and Irish people are now considered white, but are still subjected to harsh stereotypes; at points, they were not, and had a rough time assimilating in America. They’re still commonly thought of, at least jokingly, respectively, as dirty communists, violent mobsters, and religious extremist terrorists. Eventually, the majority white Anglo-Saxon protestant (WASP) population collectively figured, more or less, it would be better for them to allow these groups under the fold of whiteness, to create a more rigid barrier of “us” and “them”, than to allow those considered non-white to form a union powerful enough to overthrow the bonds of racial tyranny.
Racism, at its root, is founded upon violence; whether that is personally lynching people or, say, leaving them to die from lead poisoning in their water supply. Racism, in and of itself, is unjustified and must be dismantled.
I found that Shane Burley of @gods-and-radicals wrote a wonderful article which briefly explains the roots of racism in Heathenry, with proper sources. See also this post, which shows that historically, tenants of the old faith were actually pretty ethnically tolerant people.
What Should Anti-Racist Heathens Do?
Given the above, if one truly opposes racism, one must fight it. Racism must be denounced where it is spoken, it must be smitten where it is practiced, and those who oppose racism must give the victims a hand up. If racism isn’t destroyed, it will triumph, and senseless suffering will continue. If one professes faith in Odin, one must listen to others; if one professes faith in Loki, one must respect and befriend those viewed as monsters by society; if one professes faith in Thor, one must wield a hammer to smash the enemies of all the common people
I’m assuming when you speak of closed cultures, it is from the perspective of a whining white person who wants to wear a Plains warbonnet, and feels personally offended that you cannot do so without being called a racist. Again, I’ll let others explain why, as this point has been addressed to countless other people feeling this way countless times.
http://thetwistedrope.tumblr.com/post/149400030842/unpopular-opinion-about-cultural-appropriation-in
http://everydayfeminism.com/2015/06/cultural-appropriation-wrong/
http://thepaganstudygrouppage.tumblr.com/post/90901509745/i-dont-understand-how-a-religion-can-be-closed
http://racerelations.about.com/od/diversitymatters/fl/What-Is-Cultural-Appropriation-and-Why-Is-It-Wrong.htm
izzy806
tangentwithtanner
origamiaround
yousharknotpass
andulkaphoto
