Can you be a racist while rooting for a player of a different race?

[Spider-Dan]

From part of a recent discussion I had elsewhere:

Lifelong, committed racists cheered for Jackie Robinson or Bill Russell because it helped their favorite team win.

Rooting for a player because they help your team and not caring what his skin color is the very definition of NOT being racist.  Switching from rooting for the Dodgers to the Yankees because of Robinson is being a racist.

A person who rooted for a black player on his favorite team, but insisted that schools must remain segregated and prevented blacks from buying in his neighborhood... was still a racist.

This is rooted in a common error: the idea that if I have one black friend, I CAN'T be a racist, because racists uniformly hate all members of that race.  Strom Thurmond, the U.S. Senator from South Carolina and 1948 Presidential candidate for the States' Rights Democratic Party (Dixiecrats), ran on an explicit platform of racial segregation.  And as a 22-year-old, he also impregnated a 16-year-old black girl who worked for his father.

If devoted racists like Strom Thurmond (not to mention countless slave owners) can bring themselves to have sex with a black woman, rooting for a black man on a ballfield is minor in comparison.  That does not somehow absolve them of their racist acts.

[pondwater]

In light of a Black Democrat losing the last Senate seat last night to a "supposed racist", I guess it's time to keep the race card going around the table. Let's see here, Trump=racist, DeSantis=racist, Kemp=racist, Hyde-Smith=racist, and finally Kavanaugh=gang banging rapist racist. I think we see a trend here and it's more about politics than it is about anyone being racist. Anyhow, keep that race card and division alive and well. It might work out for you eventually or you might just get Trump elected again.

[Fau Teixeira]

In light of a Black Democrat losing the last Senate seat last night to a "supposed racist", I guess it's time to keep the race card going around the table. Let's see here, Trump=racist, DeSantis=racist, Kemp=racist, Hyde-Smith=racist, and finally Kavanaugh=gang banging rapist racist. I think we see a trend here and it's more about politics than it is about anyone being racist. Anyhow, keep that race card and division alive and well. It might work out for you eventually or you might just get Trump elected again.

if the hood fits

[Dolphster]

Interesting question from Spider-Dan.  It will be interesting to see what the responses are.  I have no idea how to answer it because I've just never been able to wrap my brain around the concept of racism enough to even grasp the basic reasons for it, much less the subtler nuances that Spider-Dan put out there in regards for rooting for an individual.  I guess I was just lucky to have grown up around kids of every background and played sports from a very young age with kids of every kind of background so thinking like that was just never part of the equation of my growing up. 

[Dave Gray]

Yes, absolutely.  You can no doubt be a racist and still like a black person or black people, in general.  I think these things are established.

There are different levels of racist.  There are people who legitimately hate blacks, for example.  But then there are people who maybe only blame them for the downfall of morality, but have a black friend at work who they think is a credit to them.  And then there are people who like blacks in general, as long as they stay in their lane, don't take over their neighborhoods or date their daughter.

Pardon the pun, but it's not a black and white issue.

[masterfins]

IMO public figures are too easily labeled "racists" in the current society, just to push forward a political viewpoint; because the word racist has such a toxic connotation.  In reality racism is the belief that your race is superior to another race.

Some people are bigots, some are prejudice, and some discriminate; but that doesn't necessarily make them racists (although these terms are usually the basis in racism).

So, sure you can root for a white player and still believe your black race is superior to that of the white player, which would make you a racist.

[CF DolFan]

In light of a Black Democrat losing the last Senate seat last night to a "supposed racist", I guess it's time to keep the race card going around the table. Let's see here, Trump=racist, DeSantis=racist, Kemp=racist, Hyde-Smith=racist, and finally Kavanaugh=gang banging rapist racist. I think we see a trend here and it's more about politics than it is about anyone being racist. Anyhow, keep that race card and division alive and well. It might work out for you eventually or you might just get Trump elected again.

I wholeheartedly agree with you but that isn't where Spider is going with this.

I absolutely think you can be racist regardless of who you root for. In fact I believe we all have varying degrees of racist emotions and that no one thing automatically cancels the other. It's easy to think we are not racist because its so easy to compare ourselves to someone who is worse and fool ourselves into thinking we are good. That's not hard to to do. The truth is I think many people secretly hope their family doesn't date outside their race or culture but would give mouth to mouth to save a person of a different race or nationality to save their lives. Does that make them racist or does saving the opposite cancel it out?  It's hard to say with any accuracy in my opinion.

[pondwater]

if the hood fits

How does Hillary's hood fit? Kind of funny how Hillary said "they all look the same" in reference to black people. Which is clearly a racist statement. However, I didn't see her getting raked over the coals, but since she is a Democrat I guess it's OK.

Yes, absolutely.  You can no doubt be a racist and still like a black person or black people, in general.  I think these things are established.

There are different levels of racist.  There are people who legitimately hate blacks, for example.  But then there are people who maybe only blame them for the downfall of morality, but have a black friend at work who they think is a credit to them.  And then there are people who like blacks in general, as long as they stay in their lane, don't take over their neighborhoods or date their daughter.

Pardon the pun, but it's not a black and white issue.

I disagree with your "levels of racist", it's just blurring the lines. People can have preferences in life and not be a racist. It's true that as we are all the same, but it's also true that we are all different culturally. Not better, not worse, just culturally different. If is someone chooses that they don't want to be around something they don't find appealing or don't understand, it doesn't make them a racist.

IMO public figures are too easily labeled "racists" in the current society, just to push forward a political viewpoint; because the word racist has such a toxic connotation.  In reality racism is the belief that your race is superior to another race.

Some people are bigots, some are prejudice, and some discriminate; but that doesn't necessarily make them racists (although these terms are usually the basis in racism).

So, sure you can root for a white player and still believe your black race is superior to that of the white player, which would make you a racist.

I agree. Also, if people are labeled a racist every time they utter a common everyday word (i.e. monkey or hanging). Then the term racist will be so broad and general that it won't have meaning anymore. It's already like that to some extent. And the more the left keeps incorrectly accusing and labeling people as racists for political games, the worse it will get. And even after all of these Democrats started throwing out the race card, they still lost. 

[pondwater]

I wholeheartedly agree with you but that isn't where Spider is going with this.

I absolutely think you can be racist regardless of who you root for. In fact I believe we all have varying degrees of racist emotions and that no one thing automatically cancels the other. It's easy to think we are not racist because its so easy to compare ourselves to someone who is worse and fool ourselves into thinking we are good. That's not hard to to do. The truth is I think many people secretly hope their family doesn't date outside their race or culture but would give mouth to mouth to save a person of a different race or nationality to save their lives. Does that make them racist or does saving the opposite cancel it out?  It's hard to say with any accuracy in my opinion.

I don't know where he's going with this. I could be wrong, but it's a moot point anyhow, because judging from everyone's answers, there is no answer. The opinions are so diverse and personal that no one is going to change anyone else's mind. Not to mention all this racial bullshit gets real old rather quickly.

There are too many variables and trying to guess who's a racist and who's not seems like a bad game to play. So what's the point?

[Spider-Dan]

The irony of MLK's civil rights movement is they were so successful that now everyone agrees that "racism" is bad.  I mean, you have literal KKK members insisting they they aren't racist... right before they call the interviewer a n****r and threaten to "burn you out" of the country.

No one wants to be called a racist, even if they clearly support the supremacy of the white race over others.  And so, this standard of "I can't be a racist if I have a Dak Prescott jersey" or "I can't be a racist if I think Rihanna is hot" standard is created.  It's ridiculous.

[CF DolFan]

I mean, you have literal KKK members insisting they they aren't racist... right before they call the interviewer a n****r and threaten to "burn you out" of the country.

Hahaha ... I think you are confusing crazy people and racism. Most people do not fall in the extremes. Well at least I didn't used to think so.

[pondwater]

The irony of MLK's civil rights movement is they were so successful that now everyone agrees that "racism" is bad.  I mean, you have literal KKK members insisting they they aren't racist... right before they call the interviewer a n****r and threaten to "burn you out" of the country.

No one wants to be called a racist, even if they clearly support the supremacy of the white race over others.  And so, this standard of "I can't be a racist if I have a Dak Prescott jersey" or "I can't be a racist if I think Rihanna is hot" standard is created.  It's ridiculous.

I think everyone in this thread pretty much agrees with this post. However, I'm wondering what the point is. You're saying that someone can still be a racist if they use the excuse that "I can't be a racist because I root for Dak, I fucked Rihanna, or I have black offspring/family. By the same token though, someone could say or do something that could be interpreted as racist and that person not be a racist.

Anyhow, I think on some level, most people think that they are better than the average other person. It's called the the better-than-average effect and it's pretty much normal in most humans according to studies. If that's what you call supremacy, I'll have to disagree on that point. So, to continue, first you'll have to define EXACTLY what you consider a racist actually is.

[masterfins]

Hahaha ... I think you are confusing crazy people and racism. Most people do not fall in the extremes. Well at least I didn't used to think so.

Here lies the problem, where is the line that once you go over it you are a racist?  It's easy to call the person marching down the street in a hood advocating that blacks move back to a Africa is a racist.  Or the person that says blacks aren't as smart as whites is a racist.  But most people are somewhere in the middle.  What one person clearly would define as racist, I may consider that person prejudice, or a bigot.  When these discussions come up I'm always reminded of the old PSA commercial with the little boy talking to his grandfather and asking what prejudice meant.  When the grandpa asked why he said one boy was his black friend and another boy was his white friend, and his grandpa replied he was prejudice.

[pondwater]

Here lies the problem, where is the line that once you go over it you are a racist?  It's easy to call the person marching down the street in a hood advocating that blacks move back to a Africa is a racist.  Or the person that says blacks aren't as smart as whites is a racist.  But most people are somewhere in the middle.  What one person clearly would define as racist, I may consider that person prejudice, or a bigot.  When these discussions come up I'm always reminded of the old PSA commercial with the little boy talking to his grandfather and asking what prejudice meant.  When the grandpa asked why he said one boy was his black friend and another boy was his white friend, and his grandpa replied he was prejudice.

Actually that PSA was incorrect in my opinion. Prejudice is a preconceived judgment or opinion. Saying a friend/athlete/criminal is a black/white/Jewish guy is just a description of the person you're referring to.

[MyGodWearsAHoodie]

When the grandpa asked why he said one boy was his black friend and another boy was his white friend, and his grandpa replied he was prejudice.

i don’t recall that exact ad.  but that can be taken to an extreme too.

New employee:  I was told to help Dave but i don’t remember most people’s name.  Do you know who he is.

Me: He is the tall black dude.  I think he is outback on the loading dock.

new employee: Thamks (and leaves)

a supervisor who overheard the exchange: What you just said is extremely racist.  And she warned me that if it happens again I would be fired.

Later I told Dave what happened he thought the supervisor was nuts for considering my comment racist.  It was simply the most obvious way to describe him so the new employee would know which coworker was him.

If the kid has two friends and they are different races, race is probably the easiest way to identify them.  And is no more prejudice than using short vs tall, or the one wearing a blue shirt vs the one in a stiped shirt.