There are a lot of reasons I don't think the comment is racist, in part due to the context, but....
I'm one of those people that believes that racism = prejudice + power... and that racism is so incredibly institutionalized, that we have little idea of what, exactly, minorities experience. That minorities, even in positions of authority, even with a black president... still are treated as minorities, and still live under institutionalized racism and sexism.
That said, I do not believe that Sotomayer's remark was sexist or racist. The reason for that is because Sotomayer's (double) minority status means that she does not have nearly the same power equal to that of a white male. Her comment may exhibit prejudice, but it does not exhibit racism or sexism, because Sotomayer, as a minority, does not have the power backing her that a white male would.
This is an interesting debate/discussion on racism that explains my views somewhat more. Particularly this comment, from the blog author:
The reason I reject that black people in America and other disadvantaged, oppressed, and marginalized people in the world cannot be Racist is that Racism is not just prejudice or discrimination. Though some may point to the dictionary and say “Yes, it is,” or “Yes, it can be,” I bring up another point from the Defining Racism essay: dictionary definitions are short and unambiguous, as they should be. You can’t, in a dictionary definition, include all of the discussion we’ve had here about Racism the institution, the process, and everything else. That’s not what a dictionary is for. The dictionary is a basic tool, but it is not (pardon me) ultimately definitive. And it’s not always completely correct. The dictionary isn’t free of bias or influence, and is (again, pardon me) usually put together by white people. It is a simple tool, at best, and this is not a simple issue.
More accurate definitions of Racism, ones that describe what goes on in the real world, include:
Racism is essentially a conscious or unconscious belief in the inherent superiority of one race over another\others and thereby the right by that race to use power to dominate.
Racism isn't about not liking another group - that's prejudice. I don't think the two can be conflated.
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Date: 2009-05-29 04:44 pm (UTC)I'm one of those people that believes that racism = prejudice + power... and that racism is so incredibly institutionalized, that we have little idea of what, exactly, minorities experience. That minorities, even in positions of authority, even with a black president... still are treated as minorities, and still live under institutionalized racism and sexism.
That said, I do not believe that Sotomayer's remark was sexist or racist. The reason for that is because Sotomayer's (double) minority status means that she does not have nearly the same power equal to that of a white male. Her comment may exhibit prejudice, but it does not exhibit racism or sexism, because Sotomayer, as a minority, does not have the power backing her that a white male would.
This is an interesting debate/discussion on racism that explains my views somewhat more. Particularly this comment, from the blog author:
The reason I reject that black people in America and other disadvantaged, oppressed, and marginalized people in the world cannot be Racist is that Racism is not just prejudice or discrimination. Though some may point to the dictionary and say “Yes, it is,” or “Yes, it can be,” I bring up another point from the Defining Racism essay: dictionary definitions are short and unambiguous, as they should be. You can’t, in a dictionary definition, include all of the discussion we’ve had here about Racism the institution, the process, and everything else. That’s not what a dictionary is for. The dictionary is a basic tool, but it is not (pardon me) ultimately definitive. And it’s not always completely correct. The dictionary isn’t free of bias or influence, and is (again, pardon me) usually put together by white people. It is a simple tool, at best, and this is not a simple issue.
More accurate definitions of Racism, ones that describe what goes on in the real world, include:
Racism is essentially a conscious or unconscious belief in the inherent superiority of one race over another\others and thereby the right by that race to use power to dominate.
Racism isn't about not liking another group - that's prejudice. I don't think the two can be conflated.