Extending the discussion (
here) of violence, any student of human behavior knows that negative emotions are the precursors to violence. So, the key to stemming that violence, black-on-black, black-on-white, or otherwise, is getting a handle on the precipitators –
apathy, grief, fear, hate, shame, blame, regret, resentment, anger, or hostility. Conflict is inevitable, but how we view it - internalize it - makes all the difference. BTW, I purposely use the descriptor 'mean', rather than angry, to steer discussion inward. Besides, everybody knows why Black folks are angry (I think).
I offer that the cultural tendency to confront the physical person, rather than their beliefs, is a significant driver to the statistical disparities of conflict outcomes. In his book, “Black and White Styles in Conflict”, Prof. Thomas Kochman (
here) goes into detail on how Blacks debate the person first, followed by the issue(s). Very simply, the ‘hotter’ the words, the greater the chance of a physical outcome.
Last week I observed this tendency, in two separate business meetings, where emotions ran hot between Black business adversaries. Distracting personal challenges surfaced very inappropriately in these educated professionals. In both cases, angry or personal words appear mean-spirited and physically intimidating, although I do not believe that pre-meditated intimidation was the intention. Nevertheless, this type of exchange is too common, leading to individual and group suffering.
Of course, unique cultural character can make words seem threatening, when they are not. Contrary to any stat on Chinese-on-Chinese violence, elderly Chinese ladies talking in their native language, as I witness in the grocery store, sound as though a fight is about to break out. On the other hand, such words between Blacks can have folks looking for the exits. Blog comments by Blacks are another case in point - they get personal very quickly. In the end, not making conflict personal is the challenge for many Blacks, and one reason why meanest stereotypes and violent outcomes live on and in higher numbers.
James C. Collier
READ MOST RECENT POSTS AT ACTING WHITE... Technorati Tags: Why Are Black People Mean?, Angry Blacks, Black Violence, Attitude, Acting Black, Acting White
Just to show that I am not a knee-jerk racist-accusing zealot, I did not find this ad racist. The company may owe Ms. Campbell a fee for use of her name and diva-ish reputation, but the reference would seem clearly positive - as I have yet to meet a female who does not love chocolate. (Story here).
I try to give people the benefit of the doubt, but upon seeing this advertisement there is none. I also believe the racism accusation should be saved from use every time someone acknowledges difference. This is not one of those cases. This is some Madison Avenue racist bull-shit. I will avoid buying anything related to either of these companies in the future. I say boycott them bastards!
Last Friday, the day before the world was suppose to end, a white Alameda County Sheriff’s deputy, performed a routine traffic stop in downtown Oakland, near the 19th Street BART Station, with an amazing result. No one black was shot, arrested, beat up (or down), and all parties involved, including the officer, left the scene intact. Nearby witnesses were truly amazed with the event, although a few immediately scattered at the first sight of the deputy approaching a man driving a BMW, wearing dark glasses, baseball cap, earphones, and a chillin’ attitude.
When I heard about the article by Satoshi Kanazawa entitled “Why Are Black Women Less Physically Attractive Than Other Women? Why black women, but not black men?”, published on May 15, 2011, in Psychology Today, I definitely had a WTF moment. Not because the subject is taboo – I have written about attractiveness (here) – but because only a complete moron would title an article this way, with nothing to back it up.
Clearly, some people think that racism, roughly defined as arbitrary ethnic discrimination, is acceptable, while others think of it as the scourge. I arrive at this question because racism seems more prevalent, or perhaps it is just more confidently peeking from the shadows. Is this because it is ‘not that bad’, or even essential (God forbid).
If you have ever wondered why your tiny cell-phone can capture so much 'stuff' out of thin-air, thank the inventor of the fractal antenna - Nathan Cohen. 
Extending the discussion (here) of violence, any student of human behavior knows that negative emotions are the precursors to violence. So, the key to stemming that violence, black-on-black, black-on-white, or otherwise, is getting a handle on the precipitators – apathy, grief, fear, hate, shame, blame, regret, resentment, anger, or hostility. Conflict is inevitable, but how we view it - internalize it - makes all the difference. BTW, I purposely use the descriptor 'mean', rather than angry, to steer discussion inward. Besides, everybody knows why Black folks are angry (I think).
In the shadow of my previous post on black violence (here) and the recent killing of terrorist leader, Osama Bin Laden, perhaps it is appropriate to talk more about violence, specifically non-urban, non-black violence. On one side I feel good that the mastermind of the 9-11 tragedy is gone. On the surface, our government killed him in response to him killing many thousands of Americans and Muslims alike, under his jihadist rhetoric. However, I will always wince when governments sanction and carry-out actions to kill named individuals. It is a slippery slope to be on, considering the strangeness of bedfellows.