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Locker Room
"It’s just as racist as any other city when it comes to who’s dating whose daughter."
By Anyi Howel
I don’t understand why people seem so shocked over the racial stereotypes in the 49er locker room tape.
While the outrage is politically correct, I don’t think it’s genuine.
The content of the training tape is completely understandable given that we live in a locker room nation, where in public, we put on a game face, and certain behaviors are frowned upon. People living in America, especially people of color, understand the notion of this jawbreaker nation, where on the outside it’s sweet and everyone is equal and free, but at the core, there’s a sour flavor.
When I see television reports that try to downplay racial profiling and police insensitivity towards minorities, I laugh on the outside because they paints a picture that’s not accurate. But as I look at the real picture, thinking about all those times I’ve been targeted without probable cause, it’s depressing. Police misconduct or mistreatment are a part of the African-American experience, regardless of what the analysts and police officials may say to the press.
The young people I talk to are increasingly becoming disenchanted with how America operates because we see the inconsistencies of the country’s messages and practices, both past and present. For instance, the city of Berkeley is all this liberal, tofu, toes out, the love is free, so you love me type of activity – but that’s the attitude on the surface. It’s just as racist as any other city when it comes to who’s dating whose daughter.
It’s hard to tell what’s real. At some point, I think the racism is just as false as the open-mindedness – it’s all learned behavior.
On one hand, we basically all experience pain and love and all of that, regardless of our ethnic differences. On the other hand, I myself have certainly told a racial joke…or twelve. When I made those jokes, it probably wasn’t genuine. But it seemed okay at the time, because of the space I was in, which allowed me to make those comments without feeling guilty.
It’s kind of like when you stink in the locker room. The solution is as simple as understanding how our American society operates with conflicting ideals, and how we play into that as individuals. So that way when we’re getting funky, we’ll know when to hit the showers.
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