dagwoman said:
First of all, that's a huge racist generalisation. Secondly, if you were in their position, hearing comments like the ones you've made, and prejudice from other white people, you'd be hate filled too. The degradation, cruelty and lack of respect they've had to deal with over the past decades causes a lot of depression, which sadly can result in drug abuse. The reason “80% of the drug addicts/drunks/criminals are from this single racial group” is simply because of where you live. If you went down south the vast majority of people making up this demographic would probably be white. The place you live is not a good representation of Aboriginal people as a whole, as many people in Redfern live in poverty, and this is not the case everywhere.
You said “im not going to instantly judge any Aboriginal as a criminal the second i see them” then, “but i will have my prejudices towards them before i get to know them personally”. You’ve just completely contradicted yourself. And then you went on to imply your racism is acceptable just because many people in your area are equally racist.
You need to get out of your cloistered, racist world and look around. Do some reading, start with 7 Stages of Grieving.
And as for the genocidal comment, it was not a joke, no decent person would find it funny, it was in absolutely horrible taste considering the history of Australia over the past 200 years.
ok firstly i apoligise, i shouldnt have typed up that comment that my sleep deprived mind thought up after 4 hours of extreme frustration at a group of people outside my house.
i understand how the people living in my area generally are economically disadvantaged and are more likely to turn to crime, but there is clearly a disproportional amount of Aboriginal people who turn to crime compared to non Aboriginals. There are plenty of asian/white/non aboriginal families also living in the area. The percentage of Aboriginal criminal/drug addicts/alcholics ect in my area is probably +four times as much as the percentage Aboriginals compared to the entire population. yes i will admit that they may be due to discrimination they may have had throughout their lives.
thinking that someone is a criminal is not the only type of prejudice. if i see an Aboriginal person on the street i will likely take more notice of them, their friends, their state of mind, their clothing, how much of a threat they appear to be etc compared to a non Aboriginal person. I wont instantly label them as a criminal but i will judge them more than i would a non Aboriginal.
Im not the type of person to just openly insult someone for no reason or start any trouble without being first provoked, but i will take more notice of an Aboriginal person due to my past experiences with them. I have honestly tried to think of them like everyone else but that is extremely difficult after growing up in my area. After receiving so much disrespect from them it is honestly hard to not view them in a different light, and thats it, i simply view them differently. i generally try to keep out of their way and am not going to openly insult them, swear at them, physically assault them for no reason like so many of them have done to me. i dont believe my views of them have thus far had any impact on their lifestyle/mindset as i am probably one of the most passive people i know and dont openly express me views towards them.
i dont go to a school near the area i live, but i have found that many of the students at my school also have similar views towards Aboriginals. I know racism isnt acceptable, but from the experiences that my friends and i have had with Aboriginals in particular, it is difficult to not develop an opinion about them (especially if theyre outside your house and swearing for 4 hours in the middle of the night while you are trying to study)
again i apoligise to anyone i may have offended, that comment was not highly thought out,i was in a bad mood and i should keep my views to myself. any person who is deserving of my respect will receive it, but that will take a little longer for Aboriginal people in particular. that may be considered racist but i honestly cannot help it after 15 years of bad experiences with the ones in my area.
and lastly im not white, i find that assumption extremely racist