General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Why am I always reminded here on DU that women can be abusive just like men? [View all]You are right, discussions of racism do not necessarily label "all" white people. However, discussions of "white privilege" do. Its a phrase that is used to assert privilege for every single white person regardless of their circumstances. If you are white and homeless and about to die of cancer in the streets within minutes, you are still privileged under the label.
Discussions of poverty are more interesting. I do not think that all people who are not poor get labeled without reference to their individual characteristics unless they are actually wealthy.
It is true that anyone who is really rich is often labeled as a "fat cat" and "heartless" regardless of their actions. We see this in movies and shows that have the villains as unfeeling rich person. I think among the left, we even have that feeling of bias against all people (even if they are not personally evil) who through birth, luck, or invention are part of the current system of unequal wealth distribution regardless of his actions. I have some of those biases against people I have never met but I think it may have a more objective basis. Being rich is a more objective standard for participation in an unfair system. The rich are usually the winners. However, even there, our bias are not clear. People in this country and maybe people in general also have positive bias towards very successful people with celebrity or wealth.
Turning from the specific examples to the general, I think we would have less of these particular discussions of labels if discussions did not start with labeling words or posts tried to stick to the societal problem itself in a race and gender neutral manner to the extent it is possible. Sometimes it is not because the crime or incident is directly motivated by a gender or racial enmity. However, usually it is is possible.
Violence is bad. Domestic Violence is bad. Racism is bad. In an examination of the root causes of these topics, the discussion might focus on actually causes and solutions rather than discussions of trying to exclude or point directly at only certain races and genders as the defining parameters of the social problem. Gender and racial aspects of specific cases of violence or racism might actually be discussed with less risk of being derailed by trying to determine if a discussion of a societal problem by a specific poster using labeling words is a veiled attack on a specific race or and sex based on the poster's biases rather than the factors in the actual incident being discussed.
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