[ggchappell]

> racism, something that's blatant all over America (some might say, it's what defines America)

A number of replies on this, but some have, I think, understated the issue.

In all honestly, I would say the U.S. is just about the least racist country on earth. If racism is not seen to be a problem elsewhere, then it's largely because of ethnic homogeneity, not lack of racism.

EDIT: It looks like I'm being misinterpreted here. Obviously, there is racism in the U.S. It is a huge problem. We all know this.

But the reason it might seem to be a larger problem than elsewhere is because of our unusually ethnically diverse population, not because of unusually high levels of racism. Also things like our incarceration rate -- the highest in the world, by far.

To a large extent, the political boundaries of the world are drawn along ethnic lines. Where this doesn't happen: former colonies in Africa, much of Eastern Europe after the world wars, etc., etc., you often get people killing each other. Look at the Rwandan genocide, or the mess that Yugoslavia turned into when it stopped being just Yugoslavia, or the decades of troubles between India and Pakistan, or any number of other examples, to see the result.

And then note that these kinds of things are not happening in the U.S. -- not to that extent, anyway.

[richardjordan]

How can anyone possibly believe this? Not just attacking you but genuinely I find this incomprehensible.

America is a deeply racist society. It's built on the genocide of the Native Americans who are still largely kept in poverty in virtual prison camps we insultingly call reservations, by racist policies.

The legacy of racism against African Americans is still deep and real - have you any experience as a black person in the Southern states? If so then I'll respect your opinion on that topic, but as a White person who came to the US from a different country, and then lived in Texas for a few years, the levels of racism are disgraceful.

The entire hispanic ag-business-driven immigration problem hinges on institutionalized racism.

Then we don't even touch on disparities like over-concentration of poverty in minority communities, incarceration rates, under-representation in positions of power and seniority etc.

[rayiner]

> How can anyone possibly believe this?

I don't know much about Europe, but as I look at the conflicts bubbling up in the U.K. and France over Arab immigration, I am inclined to believe the lower prevalence of racism there is more a function of less racial friction in more homogenous societies than actually lower levels of racism in the culture. As far as historical racism, I don't know if we want to compare scorecards with the continent that invented colonization and the African slave trade...

That said, my point of comparison is Asia, specifically the subcontinent. I'm ethnically Bengali (first generation immigrant), and my wife is Oregonian (her family moved there in the wagon trails), of English/Dutch ancestry. If our situations were reversed, there is no way Bengali society would have accepted my wife in the way American society has accepted me. She could move there and live there for the rest of her life and she'd always be "bideshi" (foreigner).

[ggchappell]

Yes, there is racism in America. No, I have largely not been on the receiving end of it.

But I can see that African Americans often have a tough time here.

I can also see the plight of Koreans in Japan, and Muslims in much of India, and Turks in Germany, and Kurds in Iraq, even though I am not part of any of those groups, either. Racism is everywhere. All of it is disgusting, some of it is horrifying, and much of it is significantly worse than what we see in the U.S.

[richardjordan]

Those examples are somewhat extreme and don't support the premise that the US is the least racist society anywhere. You also need to separate out complicated ethnic conflicts that are largely geopolitical in nature than racist in a conventional sense.

Also muslims in India isn't racism it's inter-religious conflict which is a fundamentally different thing.

[vezzy-fnord]

Disclaimer: Not an American.

Name me one country that wasn't founded on war and violence.

The situation with African Americans is still flawed and stratified, but has undeniably improved very significantly. Primarily in that they have equal opportunities on a federal level, although obviously social class and environment still play a big role in feasibility.

I'm not sure exactly what you mean here. There are sentiments against Hispanic immigrants, but the USA also has a very large and legitimate issue with illegal immigration. You can't blame everything on racism.

Incarceration rates are horrible for the entire country, no matter what way you put it. Blacks do have the highest rates, but whites aren't that far behind. It's not just a racial issue. I'd actually say that race is a fairly low concern here, rather the main one should be that the US penal system is fundamentally broken and frequently gamed by private prison corporations.

As for underrepresentation, equal opportunity should not be confused with equal representation. There are obstacles, but lower numbers alone should not be used to make such a conclusion.

[interpares]

>In all honestly, I would say the U.S. is just about the least racist country on earth.

Even given the institutional racism evident in things like incarceration rates and educational outcomes?

[ggchappell]

Yes.

To clarify, I'm not saying that racism is not a problem in the U.S. Certainly it is.

If other countries don't have huge number of minorities in prison, then it is because (1) they don't have huge numbers of minorities, or (2) they don't have a lot of people in prison.

But in the U.S. we have both the world's highest incarceration rate and an unusually ethnically diverse population. Add to that the racism that everyone has, and we get the kind of problems you mention.

[Dewie]

> In all honestly, I would say the U.S. is just about the least racist country on earth.

Based on what?

[crassus]

The data agrees with you. Racism is particularly weak in the anglosphere, you'll experience much more if you venture outside it: http://m.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2013/05/15/a...