Ending the Slavery Blame-Game

[elleng]

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/23/opinion/23gates.html?hp

[handmade34]

1. thoughtful opinion piece

from the essay...
Mr. Obama’s (Professor Obama) mixed feelings about the reparations movement: “He told us what he thought about reparations. He agreed entirely with the theory of reparations. But in practice he didn’t think it was really workable.”

I see myself sitting in that class and listening... big questions, no easy answers, it takes a compassionate, thoughtful citizenry to make sense, consider resolutions and move on

[Uncle Joe]

2. Kicked and recommended.

Thanks for the thread. elleng.

[bemildred]

3. Good piece.

Slavery is ubiquitous throughout human history, most pre-modern civilizations were founded on it. In fact, it still goes on.

[swilton]

4. An informative article

However, focusing on the ethnography of racism is just one dimension of the social puzzle - and by focusing on this piece, it obscures how racism was and is perpetuated through the structures of global systems (i.e., capitalism. Ethnography has nothing to do with the structural persistence of racism. While Mr. Gates is to be applauded for informing us, the edification does little to resolve the manifestations (poverty, hatred, institutional incarceration) of this complex problem.

[Igel]

8. Yes, but it doesn't need "global systems."

It got along fine on fairly massive scales without capitalism, without Xianity.



Gates' op-ed piece does nothing to identify the causes of inequality, nor to remediate them. However, it does point out that some solutions are essentially non-solutions, or at least can't be reasonably argued. It also points out that some points of ethnic pride are to be debunked just as points of ethnic pride for other groups were debunked. In other words, it deals with distractions.

Eliminating distractions is good. There are far too many, of course, but until we can revamp academia and the political system we're stuck focusing on the distractions and calling focusing on essentials "misguided." No tenure there. No basis for group identity there. No calls to arms for political donations and campaigns there.

Sad.

[Doctor_J]

5. In a few years all but the upper 1% will be de facto slaves

thereby taking the racial component out of the discussion.

[Demeter]

6. Sterling Bit of Scholarship

Nothing like a few hard facts to shake out the muzzy thinking.

[Old Troop]

7. What about Arab leaders in North Africa

They often acted as the "middle-man" in transactions between Africans and Europeans.