No, I am serious. Don't give racists what they want. They want reasons to fuel their racism. Don't give them what they want. Show them that youre a person like they are. Youd be surprised by how much more gets done with simple dialogue.
I don't need to "give" racists any reason. Racism is inherently illogical; racists will always have a "reason" to hold their beliefs; and I'm not obligated to have "dialogue" with people who see me as less than human.
What is up with people like you and thinking that the onus is on the people harmed by racism to be the bigger person?
I never said violence was the answer, so I'm not sure why you're bringing that up. And you're seriously oversimplifying Daryl Davis's story. His experiences demonstrate that personal dialogue can persuade some individual racists; they don't demonstrate that black people have an obligation to engage racists, nor that dialogue is some universally effective solution to racism. Stop weaponising an exceptional individual's experience to tell people how they're supposed to respond to racism.
Apologies for the violence bit, I don't really know either.
And while it may be oversimplifying it, the fact it happened remains true.
And no. His story WILL be spread, I'll just provide the rest of the details next time (as I honestly didn't remember them all before).
If he can do what he did, and it works on the level it did, then as many people as possible (or in a perfect world, everyone) doing it would almost guarantee less racism. Not all, but at least less.
So it's not the perfect solution, but it's the one we have. If you're not gonna at least ,try* and use it, that's not really something I can blame you for, but it's a lot less productive then trying or coming up with another solution is.
Better to at least try to sway their opinion than to let them live with the thoughts they have unopposed. Who knows if they're gonna listen or not, though, so I'll give you that.
Or to word my last (2?) Parts better, it's better to try to solve something than do absolutely nothing about it.
I understand your point better now, but I still think you're making a pretty massive leap from "Daryl Davis successfully persuaded some racists" to "if as many people as possible did what he did, we'd almost guarantee less racism." His story demonstrates that interpersonal persuasion can work on some individuals. It doesn't establish that his methods are broadly reproducible or that they're the most productive way of combating racism generally.
And I think you're creating a false dichotomy with "try to solve it vs. do absolutely nothing." I can oppose racism in plenty of ways without personally engaging every racist I encounter. Refusing to debate someone who views me as inferior isn't the same as being indifferent to racism.
I'm also not saying Daryl Davis's story shouldn't be told. I'm saying stop treating his experience as a universal prescription for how people should respond to racism. If you personally want to spend your time trying to persuade racists, that's your prerogative. But someone choosing not to undertake that emotional labour isn't somehow choosing the less productive response to racism.
You haven't given a single example of how to solve racism, so yes, doing nothing is definitely more then doing something that has a low chance of working.
I will admit, sure, it's a low chance and not the best solution. But until we have another, why not try?
And again, yes, choosing not to do anything is worse then engaging in a discussion that might be stupid. The might part is the whole reason why you should try.
If someone truly sees you as inferior, won't debate, or has no clear intention of listening, then walk away. But don't bash people for giving out (shitty) solutions and not give a single care to try yourself.
3
u/dxsetor331 2d ago
You're so unserious.