Trading Races

Discussion Open Forum
1

If I could ‘trade’ my race I would be

  • African American
  • White(this includes all that fall under this)
  • Asian
  • Hispanic
  • An aboriginal from your country
  • Indian
  • Middle Eastern
  • African
  • Open to what ever is the opposite of what I am

0 voters

Recently on the Oprah show[color=darkred](please refrain from your nasty comments)[/color]she did a show on two families who traded race for a day. A black and white family.

My question is, would you ever want to ‘trade’ your race? If so, what do you ‘think’ you would see? Do you think you would be the insight gained? Empathy? Clarity? What do you ‘think’ you would gain from the experience? Or do you think the experience is worthy?

2

How is that accomplished? With face paint?

3

Can you also sing jazz? It will help.

4

I would trade races only if I could be Oprah. Then I’d bitch-slap anyone who screams like a teenage Beatles fan. Oh, and I’d pull the broom outta that uptight psychologist’s butt. And Dr. Phil would have to smoke some chronic.

5

I would opt to stay the same pale shade. Mainly cause I know this skin, and can’t be bothered to learn a whole knew racial identity. :grandpa:

That, and I think All people should be proud of the race they belong to. Trying to even think of changing race seems a little suspect to me. One is what One was born as. Why change it? The ultimate form of maturity (to me) is accepting the hand one is dealt, and gettin’ on wid’it.

Surrender to the Void… :charliebrown:

6

Can you also sing jazz? It will help.[/quote]

Would really really like it if you would stop derailing my threads.

7

I would accept whatever race I were assigned and be content with it. Believe it or not, race is largely not an issue for me. I’m suspicious of people for whom it is too big an issue, whether for good or bad.

8

I think you should be more direct and just say you want the one with the biggest package.

9

Is African-American really a separate race to African? Wouldn’t that mean Australian, English, New Zealand of European descent etc are also separate races from one another?

That would make American born Chinese a different race to other Chinese… It may be interesting to be an extra-terrestial rather than a member of the human race.

10

Tee hee!

I’d like to be Thai. I notice Thai blokes don’t tend to go bald and rarely have back hair. That’d be nice. I’d also be less concerned about developing skin cancer. Of course I’d also look better in drag. Erhm, did I write that?

HG

11

Quite happy being of European descent actually. Other than that, wouldn’t mind being Chinese or Japanese.

12

I was about to write Namahottie would flip and have a field day with this thread, but then I found out she started it. :s

13

I kind of like it when you write your arse-- oops, er… --wise-crack comments. :wink: :wink: :rainbow:

14

Why would I flip and have a field day with a legit question. :loco:

Ironicly, may of those who posted said they wouldn’t change, but I think that if it was possible that many people would change their ethnicity. Women alter their looks all the time in the name of being beautiful-i.e. looking for approval/love and Men now are looking to enlarge their penises(sp?), always have been working out under the belief that women like ‘strong’ men,etc.

Michael Jackson didn’t change his skin color to become white but perhaps because he has body dysmorphic disorder, a case where a person looks completely fine, but mentally they ‘see’ themselves as ugly 24/7.

15

This may sound odd, but I never really consciously consider my own race, so I have no answer, even after considering the choices.

Why would anyone change races?

Although, this could be because I’m white, male, and American. :idunno:

16

[quote=“jdsmith”]This may sound odd, but I never really consciously consider my own race, so I have no answer, even after considering the choices.

Why would anyone change races?

Although, this could be because I’m white, male, and American. :idunno:[/quote]

Very good point but expand on that being white, male and American and why you wouldn’t. Not a flamebait question. But given the ‘ideals’ that surround those adjectives it brings something to the conversation.

17

I think that if I’m going to be proud of anything, it should be of my individual accomplishments, and not of my race. The opposite holds true as well (for me)… i.e., there is no need to feel ashamed of my race, but I may/should feel shame for my own acts that are worthy of shame.

18

[quote=“Namahottie”][quote=“jdsmith”]This may sound odd, but I never really consciously consider my own race, so I have no answer, even after considering the choices.

Why would anyone change races?

Although, this could be because I’m white, male, and American. :idunno:[/quote]

Very good point but expand on that being white, male and American and why you wouldn’t. Not a flamebait question. But given the ‘ideals’ that surround those adjectives it brings something to the conversation.[/quote]

Well, I wouldn’t say they are “ideals” really. They describe me.

I don’t know what role race has played in my life, and maybe that IS because I’m white. My dealings with other races has come down to A) where I live, and B) what I do.

A: I’m from whitebread America. The percentage of blacks in my high school was much less than the 12% of blacks in the USA; in the military, it was more like 60/40 white, but…and this gets into B) see below; in Taiwan, I’m clearly in the minority, so I feel any weirdness or discomfort is theirs not mine…

B: The things I seem to have done in my life, well, the blacks around me weren’t into them, or maybe didn’t like me; no blacks on the ski team in HS; the black guys I lived with in the Marines weren’t drinking in the rock bars, they were in the soul bars; the blacks I went to college with weren’t into the Dead or mind bending…uh…experiences; actually in Taiwan I’ve spent more time with blacks than in the US…same boat experiences, but limited.

I simply don’t think about race, because I never had to. Even in Taiwan, the “racial” experiences of being a white man are mostly passive, stares and stupid comments, and not anything that would make me think more about myself than them.

jdsoap (Ivory)

edit: this is black centered, because really I haven’t had a whole lot of close contact with other races, aside from my Taiwan experience.

19

[quote=“jdsmith”]

A: I’m from whitebread America. The percentage of blacks in my high school was much less than the 12% of blacks in the USA; in the military, it was more like 60/40 white, but…and this gets into B) see below; in Taiwan, I’m clearly in the minority, so I feel any weirdness or discomfort is theirs not mine…[/quote]So, it’s just a mental thing for you, right?

[quote]
B: The things I seem to have done in my life, well, the blacks around me weren’t into them, or maybe didn’t like me; no blacks on the ski team in HS; the black guys I lived with in the Marines weren’t drinking in the rock bars, they were in the soul bars; the blacks I went to college with weren’t into the Dead or mind bending…uh…experiences; actually in Taiwan I’ve spent more time with blacks than in the US…same boat experiences, but limited.[/quote] Did you ever invite those blacks to join you? Or just hang out with them to see why they ‘only’ went to soul bars. This is a reminder of the high school lunchroom. The blacks at one table and the whites at another. Jocks,cheerleaders, nerds, etc . As a black in all white situations, I often felt that I was to assimilate myself into ‘their’ world, i.e. enjoy topics they enjoyed talking about, listen to music that ‘they’ were comfortable with. I could count on one hand how many whites have met that have actually related to me as me and not thru skin color first.

[quote]jdsoap (Ivory)[/quote]cute :wink:

20

I was surprised to see that upon answering, I was the only one (at the time) choosing