General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Racism [View all]Glassunion
(10,201 posts)Oppression is: the the unjust (or cruel) exercise of authority or power.
If that "authority" comes from a racist (feeling of racial superiority) point of view, it is oppression.
If you are treated unfairly (unjustly) because of your race, that is oppression.
If you are belittled because of your race, that is oppression. To belittle someone is to cause that person to feel little or less, hence the inherent feeling of superiority in racism.
Being offended, insulted, embarrassed, well... that depends on the situation. But if someone goes out of their way to do that to you because of your race, that can be oppression.
Being beaten because of nothing more than your race. In my personal experience, the "they" that did it, was to put me in my place. I was doing something I should not have been doing. That was oppression. They were exercising their power (not authority) over me to dictate what I could or could not do based on my race.