Skin Deep
by Anne Loucks
The other day I was briefly lectured because I had described someone as Asian when I did not remember her name and wished to specify her. Apparently, it is not PC to even mention someone's race, which makes little sense. I don't get it. People look different, and describing them by their visual differences makes plenty of sense. For me, using race is no different than saying someone has red hair or green eyes. Really, I would never take offense if someone called me a pasty white girl, which I am. Such visual differences are unimportant, as there is no value judgement attached to them.
For instance, nobody should ever call black folks by the N-word because it has terrible judgements and connotations attached. However, if I say someone with dark skin is black, then I am merely stating a fact which has nothing to do with said person's value. I am not calling them smart or dumb. I am not saying they are good or evil. I am merely describing their physical attributes.
Even Martin Luther King said we should judge people based on the "content of their character." Behavior is the important thing. Someone who intentionally shoots a happy healthy baby in the head is a terrible person, regardless of their race, sex, age, or religion. We should not get preoccupied with what folks look like, but what they do.
Actions speak louder than words in every circumstance. Always watch what people do instead of listening to what they say or paying attention to what they look like. A CEO will almost always speak well of his company's prospects, but if he is selling stock options, look out. My favorites are the ones who act exactly against their stated principles.
Affirmative action is a racist policy, adopted to counteract racism. At first, it might have made a certain amount of sense, as the practice assumes those who judge potential applicants are racist. Now however, it is a little silly. Racism is basically over in America. We have a majority-elected black president. I do not wish to see folks who are better get rejected in favor of those who are worse, simply because of the color of their skin or their sex. At this point, affirmative action is terrible, ridiculous, and bigoted. Anyone who says different is ignorant at the least and a liar at the worst. People who say they fight racism but engage in affirmative action are still racists.
I called a girl Asian to specify her within a crowd. Maybe the ultra politically correct would have called her the skinny dark-haired student. Neither description is racist, however, and mine was far less of a mouthful. Actions and facts transcend race, sex, age, and religion. The sooner we realize this, the better.
