Europeans (especially Western Europeans) want to absolve themselves so bad of racism and discrimination towards immigrants and Black people, in such an hypocritical way , by acting all the time as horrified by what happens in US especially with police brutality. They like to appear as more progressive in terms of racial issues, they like to say 'we are diverse and co-existing' or to compare how 'far better' the racial situation is in their countries, which seems to me so ridiculous. There is an oblivion of the fact that the present system of racism and oppression in US was started by the same British, or Dutch, or French that today act horrified with what happens in US, without considering also the fact that although they are not facing the same issue with police brutality in their own countries, they still have in place a system of oppression towards immigrants or those that simply don't have a white skin. Stop acting as though racism is isolated to America. White people are racists in every country towards and the elitism of white Western Europeans and the imperialist mentality is still very present and causing immense damage.
Felicity Wong
Aug 8, 2018How does being a second-generation immigrant influence how we experience the world? I’ve often asked this question of myself because although I was born and raised in an extremely affluent town in New Jersey, my parents come from a socioeconomically disadvantaged community in Hong Kong. They immigrated to the United States in the 80’s (my father to Europe first) to pursue their education, and our family has been here since. I have learned to recognize that I currently live a life of privilege, but my parents have not. In fact, they have risked livelihoods, opportunities, and relationships for me. Although I am more self-motivated than pressured by my parents when it comes to schooling, they have always made education a priority. They believe in living simply, practically, and frugally. They are religiously devout and continue to pass on their faith to my siblings and me every day. Are traits like these a common theme in immigrant families? Stereotypes about the “tiger mom” or strict, foreboding parenting have always existed and have been linked to Asian households, specifically. Are these stereotypes directly connected to Asian culture, or are they more related to “immigrant” culture -- the type of parenting given by people who have made tough sacrifices for the sake of the futures and education of their children?
Thanks for sharing, Rina! There's been a lot of writing about the effects of colonization, and how inherent racism is still very much present. I do think that we have to consider whether or not we're generalizing a group of people, but I agree with you that racism isn't just "American." France has definitely had a long history of anti-blackness and Islamophobia, and the UK has also had race riots against immigrants/South Asian minority groups. What do you think the country's leaders should do to address the issue of racism?