Posted on Jul 6, 2014
What did joining the military do to your ideas of race and racial stereotypes?
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For many service members, the military is the first time they are forced to come out of their comfort zone when it comes to groups outside their race and social strata.
How did joining the military impact your views of other races? How has it impacted your racial identity?
(Be candid, but obviously tact must be employed when discussing these matters.)
How did joining the military impact your views of other races? How has it impacted your racial identity?
(Be candid, but obviously tact must be employed when discussing these matters.)
Racism
Ethnicity
Posted 10 y ago
Responses: 21
I remember a conversation I had with my Drill Sergeant during basic (this happened after yet another run-in with a black soldier in my platoon)
"Cudworth, where are you from!" - "Pennsylvania Drill Sergeant!"
"Don't have many blacks where you grew up, did you!?" - "No, Drill Sergeant!"
"Are you are a racist!? Is that why you and ____ are at it again!?"
To that last question, my answer was "Drill Sergeant, I don't have a problem with ___ because he is black. I have a problem with him because he is an A$$hole!"
I think they had to reattach my arms after the number of push-ups he dropped me for.
I can honestly say that I've never had an issue with a soldier based on their race. I've had issues with soldiers of other race because of their performance, but not their race.
Thankfully the military is one of the few areas that you're not constantly hearing about race being a problem (it does happen, but all the leaders I've been around have been very intolerant of racism if it appears). Mainly I think it's because there aren't any of the "racial leaders" constantly telling people they are victims because of their race.
"Cudworth, where are you from!" - "Pennsylvania Drill Sergeant!"
"Don't have many blacks where you grew up, did you!?" - "No, Drill Sergeant!"
"Are you are a racist!? Is that why you and ____ are at it again!?"
To that last question, my answer was "Drill Sergeant, I don't have a problem with ___ because he is black. I have a problem with him because he is an A$$hole!"
I think they had to reattach my arms after the number of push-ups he dropped me for.
I can honestly say that I've never had an issue with a soldier based on their race. I've had issues with soldiers of other race because of their performance, but not their race.
Thankfully the military is one of the few areas that you're not constantly hearing about race being a problem (it does happen, but all the leaders I've been around have been very intolerant of racism if it appears). Mainly I think it's because there aren't any of the "racial leaders" constantly telling people they are victims because of their race.
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SMSgt Lawrence McCarter
The way I figure it colonel is everyone is ok until they themselves prove otherwise. Some prove it very quickly !
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For me it completely changed my perception. There is food, music, and other cultural things that before I joined I never would have seen myself participating in.
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There is only one race on this planet - the human race.
There was a line out of one of the Tuskegee Airmen movies (with Cuba Gooding Junior). One of the Tuskegee Airman, after finally being let into the (all white) Officers bar said something like, "When you get mad, you turn red. When you get sick you turn green. When you get scared, you turn yellow. And you call us 'colored'?!"
If I could wave my magic wand I would get rid of any memory of "race" as pertains to skin tone. Why don't we celebrate our ONE race? Is it because we are not strong enough to break the mold we were raised in? We all should be allowed to live somewhere where our skin tone is the least common, our height is the least common, our language is the least common. Experience the prejudice from both sides, analyze it, realize it has NO BASIS in reality and chuck it out completely.
There was a line out of one of the Tuskegee Airmen movies (with Cuba Gooding Junior). One of the Tuskegee Airman, after finally being let into the (all white) Officers bar said something like, "When you get mad, you turn red. When you get sick you turn green. When you get scared, you turn yellow. And you call us 'colored'?!"
If I could wave my magic wand I would get rid of any memory of "race" as pertains to skin tone. Why don't we celebrate our ONE race? Is it because we are not strong enough to break the mold we were raised in? We all should be allowed to live somewhere where our skin tone is the least common, our height is the least common, our language is the least common. Experience the prejudice from both sides, analyze it, realize it has NO BASIS in reality and chuck it out completely.
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