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Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Race - The Power of An Illusion

How Much Do You Really Know?
The new immigration reform law that was recently passed in Arizona got me thinking again about the state of race relations in America and the scary ramifications of this law.

Arizona law: In order to solve a crime, police are legally allowed to profile. It's just that they can't racially profile. They can make demands for papers. But they cannot make those demands solely on the basis of race. It also requires that the police demand identification from all people "where reasonable suspicion exists that the person is an alien who is unlawfully present in the United States" So then, what does an illegal immigrant in Arizona look like? 

Race is one of those topics where we all think we are experts. But, I bet if you asked 10 people to define race or even name the races you would likely get 10 different answers. The topic of race is chock full of contradiction, assumption and myth. 
I was also sent a link today from A 2003 PBS series called "Race - The Power of an Illusion" The series examines the question "what is race?" A simple question-you might think. In reality, there is an assumption that the people of the world can be divided biologically along racial lines. This is False! There is actually not one single characteristic, trait or gene that distinguishes all members of one so called race from members of another race. 
Please watch this video
Still don't believe me?

Take the Test (click link below)
The Arizona law is probably unconstitutional and will be challenged in the courts. We should all take a look in the mirror and ask ourselves how this happened and what kind of country do we really want to live in. It's up to all of us to make a difference!
I'm Just Sayin
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1 comment:

Cindy said...

I got 4 right on the test, good food for thought. How different our society would be if everyone looked(and were treated) exactly the same.