How do African Americans feel about white American culture?

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My professor told us about her black friend who went to Haiti and they thought she was white.

It's a bit odd to think about how recent the idea of race is and how people define themselves in different areas and time periods.

I'm a white American but it would never be what I would call myself if someone asked me what I am. Probably not first, second, or third. I'd define myself along national lines and say I'm an American, which is another recent development for humanity.

I would never restrict myself to only white media on purpose so the other way around just seems so limiting.

There aren't a lot of people in the US who really do that, though. You have to go make an effort, really go out of your way to even begin to avoid the dominant culture.
 
i dunno, maybe we should rank our preferences for white, black, asian, and brown culture from best to worst. who wants to go first?
 
Why is skiing and snowboarding a white persons only thing?

I went up to the mountains a few weeks ago and I just said to myself, "God, this really is such a white persons sport...".

I have been doing the skiing and snowboarding thing for like 2 decades now, and I have always kind of realized it, but just now it hit me like a rock.


Like seriously, the way this is portrayed in movies and tv is dead on.
Because it happens mostly in Colorado, and rich parts of new York

Mostly white parts.

Sheeeooit, if we had snow and mountains down in Miami id go ski
 
Why is skiing and snowboarding a white persons only thing?

I went up to the mountains a few weeks ago and I just said to myself, "God, this really is such a white persons sport...".

I have been doing the skiing and snowboarding thing for like 2 decades now, and I have always kind of realized it, but just now it hit me like a rock.


Like seriously, the way this is portrayed in movies and tv is dead on.

It's a class thing that is racial because of institutionalized racism and reasons going all the way back to slavery. Those are expensive sports.
 
Because it happens mostly in Colorado, and rich parts of new York

Mostly white parts.

Sheeeooit, if we had snow and mountains down in Miami id go ski
Yeah, but even a lot of vacationers go to each, and its always a sea of upper middle class and upper class white people.

Is it price of admission being so high, a cultural thing or what?
 
You're talking about Go-Gurt and stuff? That stuff is basically candy. It's all artificial.

You want some Greek or Bulgarian white culture. That's the real stuff.

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Of course, with how many of these high quality yogurt brands are making their stuff in upstate New York nowadays, you might have an argument in saying it now belongs to America as well.

Anyway, these white cultures are really healthy and everyone should appreciate them, including African Americans.
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I make my own culture.

I don't get all the mayonaise jokes. Is it an attempt to find a counter to the "black people like fried chicken" stereotype?

What do people eat with mayonaise besides sandwiches
I've seen it used as a dip for fries but that is more popular over in Euroland.
 
Wow... Ummm. I don't know what to say (lol).

Almost impossible to avoid it when so much media content is made by White people. Don't know how anyone can do so. Don't understand how you got the idea that it's even possible.

Sure. But it's a matter of degrees, isn't it?

There must be people who go out of their way to say, support African American musicians because they want to see them get more opportunities.
 
I'm a white dude and I honestly don't know what white culture is.

That isn't to say I'm downplaying racial differences or am against equal representation in media, but I legitimately don't know what it is, haha.

I mean really me either ...what kind of question is this
You guys should probably make an effort to be around people that aren't white, especially if it's not in a public place.
 
Yeah, but even a lot of vacationers go to each, and its always a sea of upper middle class and upper class white people.

Is it price of admission being so high, a cultural thing or what?

The bold.

It's similar to some white people thinking that black people can't swim or don't like swimming. When really, it's because black people didn't have the luxury of growing up around swimming pools that they had access to.
 
I've always wondered this.

I get the feeling that most? many? almost all? only a small percentage? try to avoid it.

Between music, movies, TV, etc the overall impression I have is that African Americans feel that they are better off sticking with entertainment, media, etc made by other African Americans.


Do you avoid books written by white people? Only vote for black politicians?

What about video games? Movies? Restaurants? etc?

I'm asking out of interests sake. I don't think either way is better than the other and firmly believe that provided what you do doesn't hurt others then you should live your life what ever way you want to.

I hope this thread is just people answering the question and not people judging how others choose to live their lives.

Didn't 2 Sony execs get into a lot of hot water jokingly assuming Obama does just this ?

Honestly, this thread is disgusting. So it's ok to joke about everyone's culture now ? Or is it just white people ?

Someone on this page said white culture is Meth and Crocs shoes. Seriously ? If I made a similar comment about black culture that'd be cool right ? Yeah fucking right.

The double standard in today's society is disgusting.
 
Almost every mainstream American thing is white culture as a product of whites being the majority.

bullshit

No, it's an everywhere thing.

also bullshit

So then at what point will black people be considered white?
I agree with this. But isn't this the big picture? Becoming white shouldn't be the measure of progress. It should be recognizing and respecting minority cultures, and not treating people differently based on perceived cultural differences.

Why did you ask a silly question if you already knew the answer?

How come both black people and white people name their kids after people in the Bible, but whereas you have to be a white kid to be named David, you have to be a black kid to be named Ezra?

this post has got to be kidding but I don't really get the humour

assuming you were serious, there's famous Jewish people named Ezra. Ezra Miller, Ezra Koenig.
 
Sure. But it's a matter of degrees, isn't it?

There must be people who go out of their way to say, support African American musicians because they want to see them get more opportunities.

Yeah, there's people who do support media/businesses made by African Americans due to that reason (alongside them making content that's good in their opinion), but doing so doesn't mean automatically avoiding everything made by White people.
 
Yeah, there's people who do support media/businesses made by African Americans due to that reason (alongside them making content that's good in their opinion), but doing so doesn't mean automatically avoiding everything made by White people.

I know :)

That's what I was originally trying to ask, to what degree do people do this if at all.

Once again I didn't make my question clear from the start, totally my fault.
 
Honestly, this thread is disgusting. So it's ok to joke about everyone's culture now ? Or is it just white people ?

Just white people. Because they own and control everything. That's what you do. You make fun of the people in power because it's all you can actually do to them.
 
Why did you ask a silly question if you already knew the answer?

Ummm...because what I perceived the answer to be wasn't the point? I was getting the perspective of the person I talking to? That we both arrived at similar conclusions is the product of discussion.

Maybe you shouldn't be so quick to label posts "bullshit" if you're not sure what's being talked about.
 
I know :)

That's what I was originally trying to ask, to what degree do people do this if at all.

Once again I didn't make my question clear from the start, totally my fault.

Mine is strictly with fiction books. I will maybe once a year read a fiction book written by someone white but I generally only read non white ones. I also don't buy books written by white people unless I know them.
 
I have a question
Its a question about Jewish persons. Hope I'm not crossing that invisible line, but,

How come Hollywood has such a large representation of Jewish people? In the actual country they make up a small percentage of the population, yet in film and comedy, especially comedy, there are a lot of Jews.
 
Post-racial America will never exist as long as "white culture" and "black culture" are separate things.
Nonsense. Its not culture that is the point of separation, it's institutional discrimination, racism and personal biases. There are sharper cultural differences between various European Americans groups then there are between black America and WASPs. Jewish Americans have their own distinct culture, and while American anti-semitism was no joke in the 30s,40s and 50s, today, there are no significant social or institutional barriers between American Jews and the rest of white America.
 
For the past 3.5 years, yeah.
Before that it was Massachusetts for 28.5

Connecticut, unlike New York, is part of New England though.
Even though the southwest corner may as well be part of New York >.>

I love how almost everyone I know from Connecticut tries to act like they are not part of the tristate area.
 
Why would I want to segregate which cultures I expose myself to?

Some people might want to support people who they feel represent them. Seems understandable to me.

Mine is strictly with fiction books. I will maybe once a year read a fiction book written by someone white but I generally only read non white ones. I also don't buy books written by white people unless I know them.

Thanks for answering!
 
Ummm...because what I perceived the answer to be wasn't the point? I was getting the perspective of the person I talking to? That we both arrived at similar conclusions is the product of discussion.

Umm... you could say the same thing about my question?

Maybe you shouldn't be so quick to label posts "bullshit" if you're not sure what's being talked about.

haha thanks for the snarky advice
I really wanted you to link the two disparate quotes and not respond at all to one of them.
 
I love how almost everyone I know from Connecticut tries to act like they are not part of the tristate area.

I was confused as heck when I moved down here (I'm fairly central in the state - Meriden. Originally from Northampton, Massachusetts). Since I always figured, hey Connecticut's part of New England. But, no, it may as well be knock-off New York over here >.>
 
Can't really avoid white culture in the US, but I make it a point not to watch anything that doesn't have at least one POC. Someone has to look like me or one of my friends. My little group is like a United Colors of Benneton ad so lots of room to work with. I could really bitch about the representation of people who are not black, white or Hispanic, but that's a whole other giant post. I come from a really diverse community so only seeing white people do anything is weird to me. I read white authors, but I noticed that I am more inclined to read white females if I read a white author. This has changed a lot since high school and college where you kind of have to read old white dudes pretty much the entire time. I crave experiences that aren't "white guy" stories. Not because I have anything against white guys. It's just been a while since an author who was a white dude held my attention.
Games are another issue. It's hard to find games that fit that mold. If I play first person games I prefer the character wear gloves so that it is more believable to me.
White culture is just kinda bland to me. The CBS of cultures if you will.
 
You can support the people that represent yourself without segregating cultures.

Semantics then?

If you go out of your way to support one thing then you of course you support the other options less. Is that "segregation"?

Can't really avoid white culture in the US, but I make it a point not to watch anything that doesn't have at least one POC. Someone has to look like me or one of my friends. My little group is like a United Colors of Benneton ad so lots of room to work with. I could really bitch about the representation of people who are not black, white or Hispanic, but that's a whole other giant post. I come from a really diverse community so only seeing white people do anything is weird to me. I read white authors, but I noticed that I am more inclined to read white females if I read a white author. This has changed a lot since high school and college where you kind of have to read old white dudes pretty much the entire time. I crave experiences that aren't "white guy" stories. Not because I have anything against white guys. It's just been a while since an author who was a white dude held my attention.
Games are another issue. It's hard to find games that fit that mold. If I play first person games I prefer the character wear gloves so that it is more believable to me.
White culture is just kinda bland to me. The CBS of cultures if you will.

Thanks! Great to hear a detailed opinion.
 
Umm... you could say the same thing about my question?

haha thanks for the snarky advice
I really wanted you to link the two disparate quotes and not respond at all to one of them.

You were the one responding merely with bullshit, adding nothing constructive on your own. We'll forgive you, it's not like we think everyone has the time to engage in lengthy forum discussions.

It really wasn't all that snarky, it was decent criticism. People should be allowed to flounder through conversations and discussion. It's okay to not have a strong foothold, and not every question you pose with be framed correctly to the conclusions you'll eventually arrive at.
 
Honestly, I've recently become increasingly aware of how "white" TV and hollywood movies are, and I'm... tired of it would be a strong word. Maybe just yearning for something different. Not to the point where I go out of my way to watch Empire though. It's still impossible to avoid though, like this thread has made blaringly obvious.
 
It's weird, but as a white kid growing up, I think I probably watched more shows centered around black Americans than shows based around any other ethnic group. Family Matters, The Jeffersons, Sister Sister, Smart Guy, Hanging with Mr. Cooper, Fresh Prince. So much stuff out there covering a fairly wide range of scenarios.
 
People should be allowed to flounder through conversations and discussion. It's okay to not have a strong foothold, and not every question you pose with be framed correctly to the conclusions you'll eventually arrive at.

Thank god for this!

It's like people are absolute geniuses when it comes to picking you apart for not being perfectly concise but then when it comes to recall they are only capable of remembering the mistakes you made and nothing else. Effective in debating but not very helpful to discussion.
 
Honestly, I've recently become increasingly aware of how "white" TV and hollywood movies are, and I'm... tired of it would be a strong word. Maybe just yearning for something different. Not to the point where I go out of my way to watch Empire though. It's still impossible to avoid though, like this thread has made blaringly obvious.
This is why when people complain and say "how come black people do BET and their own awards" they expose their ignorance. Theyre unwilling or unable to see dozens of tv programs or movies with all white casts through a racial lens, yet they're annoyed by black themed content.
 
America's history of systemic economic disenfranchisement of people of color means that, at least from a media production standpoint, white culture is often synonymous with the frivolous indulging of bourgeoisie concerns and the reaction to that ultimately empty cultural perspective, whether it be coming of age stories in afluent suburban areas, spiritual and intellectual rebellions against the corporate neoliberal status quo, or economically secure people looking for actual human connection in the anti human connection mess that is the modern middle and upper class America.

That isn't to put a judgement on this cultural perspective (indeed, all of these things are legitimate concerns). Nor does it mean that there aren't alternative, potentially subversive "white" cultures (Poor, rural white cultures being some good examples). However, the fact that fact that the dominant white culture portrayed in media as described in the previous paragraph became the mainstream culture portrayed by Holywood and television studios means that, in a way, middle and upper middle class white culture is the default perspective for media production in this country, and hence why it's seemingly invisible to many Americans.

I suppose what many people mean when they refer to "white" culture is a perspective in which of some degree of economic prosperity is assumed to be the default, starting position of those people portrayed in the cultural production. In this way something like Friends would be the whitest possible cultural production, a bunch of twenty and thirty somethings whose primary concerns are romance and other more petty concerns despite the fact that living in Manhattan is goddamn expensive and would be a burden to anyone not sitting a bunch of assumed material resources (nevermind the cultural baggage that comes with living in an area of racially concentrated poverty).

And yes, this "white culture" is a distortion of reality. Obviously, the vast majority of white people have to worry about money, and there are plenty of racial minorities who have achieved material affluence in this country, but the history of this country as a society in which the rules, both written and de facto, have been designed to reward whiteness means that there are generations upon generations of independent cultural production in which economic and societal status have come to be conflated with a particular racial perspective. Even if all the different races in this country were to achieve economic and legal parity, the sheer cultural inertia of hundreds of years likely means that "white culture" will be something very real and tangible for decades to come.

So yeah, that was a pretty meandering post, and I don't think that nails the issue down entirely by any means (I didn't even touch how political and historical narratives and perspectives can have racially influenced points of view), but I think that's one of the points of entry at the very least.
 
White people don't have culture... Unless you mean their appropriation of dilution of others'

What an absolute moron.

Also goes to show how many closet racists we have here at GAF, of course those pathetic enough will pull out the "you can't be racist against white people" excuse.

Good to see who the idiots are in this forum.
 
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