Quote:
Originally Posted by DiapDealer
Well you'll be happy to know then, that that's not my view. My view has nothing to do with my generation's "moral superiority" when it comes to racism and/or slavery. It has always been wrong, and the idea that it is wrong didn't come from my ancestral or generational "distance." The idea has been present all along. There have ALWAYS been people who knew that racism/slavery was wrong; and opposed it--regardless of how (un)popular that stance might have been.
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Sure, unfortunately there have also been people who have always said
"[Insert Name] are superior to everyone else"
Exactly the same logic you are using here can be used to prove they are correct as well.
Quote:
Originally Posted by DiapDealer
This picture that some of you are trying to paint of a life where racism was some inherent trait that everyone was born with (and no one knew it was wrong) is patently false. There were people of conscience who publicly opposed it in EVERY generation. It is not a viewpoint newly sprung from the hindsight afforded by a generational/social gap. There have always been moral standards that were superior to those who held racist views. Right from the beginning.
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Tribalism
is an inherent trait, we have always been cautious of "the other" it's been built in as a survival mechanism over many years and racism is tribalism done large so it's fair to say it's at least a common trait.
It may be fair to say that tribalism has, for the main, outlived it's usefulness, but trying to deny it exists is fairly pointless, check out any sport and you will find "my tribe is better than your tribe" thinking, it doesn't even have to be accurate or stand up to any kind of logic.
Moral standards are kind of tricky, and anyone claiming "my morals are better than your morals" should be able to back it up with something concrete. I think your on firm ground here, but you're in danger of falling back to the "it's always been done" justification instead of creating an argument that stands on it's own.