Combustible Lemur wrote:
Not on this board.
Not by anyone of importance. You might some people downplaying as being less a problem than it is being made out to be, but that's all subjective.
But In the broader picture that is the mentality. Even recently here posters have asked why don't people March in south Chicago. And as was noted, they do it just doesn't get reported as broadly. It's why it's so hard for the mass incarceration argument to gain traction in the drug war. People care more about soft on crime than systemic racial disparities in the justice system. It's why fox news pundits can outright say the things that they do and are still the most popular news station.
There was a a recent This American Life (link below Part 1 Act 1) about problems in Milwaukee. The police chief explained that the reason there were so many police cars in the black areas of town was because that's where the calls come from. It is a vicious, nasty cycle with all kinds of causes. My own personal opinion is that modern systemic racism is way down on the list.
There was another recent episode that included the story of
Richmond, California and their cash for felons program. While the whole thing is really good, there's a very brief observation that I think cannot be overstated. At some point, almost everyone decides to grow up and be responsible. However, when you start out so far behind, it makes it exceedingly difficult.
Of course there is also much more nuanced conversation to be had that gets very uncomfortable very quickly when behaviors on all sides have to be said out loud but by their nature make everyone defensive. Not to mention the roles of poverty, economic policy and cultural identities.
That's a lot different than "insituational and systematic racism don't exist" sarcasm
I very much recommend This American Life: Cops See it Differently
Part one and
Part two.
