Is this considered racism?

targ

Malaysia445 Posts

January 27 2013 12:29 GMT

There is this manga called Eyeshield 21, it's about American football and a pretty good read at that. One of the main themes of the manga is that the maximum running speed that the human body can attain is 40 yards in 4.2 seconds, which the main character is capable of doing. However in a later chapter he meets a black dude who can run at 4.1 seconds. The manga explains that 4.2 is the limit of the Japanese but blacks can go slightly beyond that due to superior genetic potential.

This sounds somewhat conforming to reality to me, as when I watch the Olympics the top 100 meter runners are all black.

After that I read some comments from black people on forums saying that this was racism. My initial thought was that it was strange to say that pointing out an obvious biological tendency (and a positive one at that) was racism. Hence I would like to hear your views on it, especially if you are black yourself.

MasterOfPuppets

Romania6942 Posts

January 27 2013 12:38 GMT

Random people on the internet believe they are entitled to being offended.

There's really nothing more to it than that.

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On January 27 2013 17:50 MasterOfPuppets wrote:

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No, I'm pretty sure it IS racist. You know, because he pointed out that people of different races have several different characteristics. We all know that everyone is equal and just the same as everyone else, to say otherwise is to go against innovation and modern society; you're a primitive backwards hillbilly for even suggesting that there might be a microscopic difference between people of different races or ethnicities, regardless of your intentions you're a klansman and "literally hitler".

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I love how everything ever in this day and age is either racist, sexist, bigoted or otherwise offensive even when it's an objective, indisputable, neutral truth.
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No I don't, it makes me want to punch people in the face until they stop existing.

/endrant

Wortie

Netherlands212 Posts

January 27 2013 12:51 GMT

What the comic does is the same like saying that black people have black skin due to genetics, which is the truth. People need to stop seeing racism everywhere. The idea of equality among everyone is stupid, because in reality no one is equal. We're all different. We only have to make sure that our stereotypes of the differences in some people don't affect our judgement.

targ

Malaysia445 Posts

January 27 2013 12:58 GMT

However awhile ago I read of a survey that came up with the results that there were IQ differences between races, and that DID get a large backlash of racism comments. The initial feeling that one inspired in me was that it seemed a tad racist, but after thinking carefully there really seems no intrinsic difference between that survey and this manga saying that black people run faster. So I'm not sure what to think now.

pebble444

Italy2495 Posts

January 27 2013 13:05 GMT

Careful about your words. "races" do not exist, there is only the Human race. Dogs have different Races. Humans have different ethnicity.

Shadowpostin

Germany798 Posts

January 27 2013 13:07 GMT

Well,there is a theory about the athletic ability of afro-americans.People believe that during the times of slavery,owners essentially performed selection,because the first slaves that were brought from Africa for manual labor were clearly the ones with better physical ability and stamina.People didn't understand genetics back than but they understood how breeding works and that you could get desirable traits in animals with selective breeding and since they looked down upon black Africans as such they just applied what they knew to them,I believe there are some writings of Thomas Jefferson on this.
People in different parts of the world dominate in different sports and that's a fact.It doesn't always have to do with genetics tho,I mean why are people from Ethiopia such good marathon runners?Partially because it's a poor country and there is no cost to the sport,you just run and for some people it's the only way to better their lives.
On the other hand white people dominate something like bicycle sports,tennis,curling(lolz),etc. because it just cost more and it's accessible only to those that have the financial means to start practicing it.
Tradition is also important,just look at the Mayweather family and how many top boxers they have produced over the years.
There is just a whole lot of factors that comes in and it's hard to say what is the main reason for certain people to dominate a particular sport.
I don't think the OP qualifies as racism,some people are just touchy about this stuff.

divito

Canada1213 Posts

January 27 2013 13:57 GMT

It's not racist to speak truths.

Kukaracha

France1954 Posts

January 27 2013 14:16 GMT

It could very well be racism in the sense that the original observation is not based on a scientific study. Such pseudoscience tends to look at one and only one factor, completely out of context (culture, history, social environment, etc).

It's a very "light" form of racism, like saying that Chinese people work like ants, but it's a blatant generalization nonetheless.

Be careful about causality. If you look at the sun, it may seem to be the size of a plate, but it doesn't mean it is !

Grobyc

Canada18410 Posts

January 27 2013 15:50 GMT

It's statistically true, I don't see how it's racism. I mean some people are really insecure and would take offense to it, but it's not like it's being used in a derogatory fashion. I suppose it's circumstantial, but with this context I would just roll my eyes at any black person who actually feels insulted.

SamsungStar

United States912 Posts

January 27 2013 15:59 GMT

#10

There's nothing wrong with some good ol' fashioned racism. It makes the world a more comprehensible place.

GhostOwl

766 Posts

January 27 2013 16:06 GMT

#11

On January 27 2013 22:57 divito wrote:
It's not racist to speak truths.

General opinion does not equal truth.

Back in the day, people thought the Earth was flat. That was a general opinion.

Penev

28440 Posts

January 27 2013 16:12 GMT

#12

It's not. West Africans, in general, tend to have more fast twitch muscles fibres. This doesn't mean that an Asian, European or East African can never be a 100m sprint Olympic champion but chances are it will be someone with West African roots.
The IQ thing is only statistically true (in certain countries). And besides genes, nurture is also a big factor in developing IQ.

KwarK

United States41645 Posts

January 27 2013 16:51 GMT

#13

On January 28 2013 01:06 GhostOwl wrote:

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General opinion does not equal truth.

Back in the day, people thought the Earth was flat. That was a general opinion.

No, no they didn't. Not only did they know it was round but a Greek mathematician actually calculated the circumference of the world accurately by measuring the curvature of the world by comparing the length of shadows cast at two different points a known distance apart at the same time.

Kukaracha

France1954 Posts

January 27 2013 16:56 GMT

#14

On January 28 2013 01:51 KwarK wrote:

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It's actually hard to say wether they did or did not, unless only scholars fall under the category called "people".

docvoc

United States5491 Posts

January 27 2013 19:23 GMT

#15

On January 28 2013 00:50 Grobyc wrote:
It's statistically true, I don't see how it's racism. I mean some people are really insecure and would take offense to it, but it's not like it's being used in a derogatory fashion. I suppose it's circumstantial, but with this context I would just roll my eyes at any black person who actually feels insulted.

Even more on this, black babies tend to walk earlier than white or asian babies (around 9-10 months compared to 11) according to doctors I've talked to who work in the maternity area. It isn't racism, as much as people like to say every race is equal, each race has minute differences that make them different from each other. That doesn't make these differences just for that race, there are plenty of insanely fast white guys and asian guys. That said, that was probably a statistical analysis the makers found. Eyeshield was a favorite of mine, but I don't think you should look for deeper meaning from that statement, I don't think they meant it the way you are taking it.

MountainDewJunkie

United States10340 Posts

January 27 2013 19:28 GMT

#16

Considering European colonists all the way into 19th century American slave traders intentionally bred slaves to be physically superior (for labor purposes) which has now manifested itself in the form of dominating certain sports generations later, no I don't consider this racist.

Chairman Ray

United States11903 Posts

January 27 2013 19:44 GMT

#17

This is not racist, nor is it offensive. Racism is the belief that a certain ethnicity is inherently superior or discrimination based on race. Acknowledging ethnic traits is not racist, and they are largely acknowledged as truth. For example, black people are more susceptible to sickle cell anemia but their skin is more resistant against UV radiation. These types of things we acknowledge, they don't provide any evidence of ethnic superiority, nor is anyone offended by it.

iamho

United States3345 Posts

January 27 2013 19:56 GMT

#18

I usually avoid getting involved in Internet discussions about race, because it always turns into semantics arguments with how people define "racism." I will say though that it is a bit silly to just assume that black people are better at running due to genetics. It probably has to do more with the fact that African and Caribbean countries tend to care more about the sport. For the opposite reason, there's very few top black athletes in sports like high jump and hockey, despite the fact that they reward skills that African athletes stereotypically have. It bothers me when random white Westerners on the Internet make these huge generalizations about race, and dismiss anyone who disagrees as politically correct or oversensitive. When in reality the truth about racial genetic disparities is that it is very hard to distinguish.

Dfgj

Singapore5922 Posts

January 27 2013 20:01 GMT

#19

If you have to ask, then probably not.

SlayerS_BoxxY

United States64 Posts

January 27 2013 20:04 GMT

#20

On January 28 2013 04:56 iamho wrote:
I usually avoid getting involved in Internet discussions about race, because it always turns into semantics arguments with how people define "racism." I will say though that it is a bit silly to just assume that black people are better at running due to genetics. It probably has to do more with the fact that African and Caribbean countries tend to care more about the sport. For the opposite reason, there's very few top black athletes in sports like high jump and hockey, despite the fact that they reward skills that African athletes stereotypically have. It bothers me when random white Westerners on the Internet make these huge generalizations about race, and dismiss anyone who disagrees as politically correct or oversensitive. When in reality the truth about racial genetic disparities is that it is very hard to distinguish.

This is spot on. We do NOT have an understanding of human genetics sufficient enough to make claims about one ethnic groups relative potential in any area. So to invoke these ideas may not in itself be racist, but it is an invocation of a gross generalization, indicative of stereotyping, which MAY or may not be a symptom of racist thought on the part of the manga writer.

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