It's Wednesday.
We might all be bored.
We're too far away from Monday to be productive. Yet not close enough to the weekend to be inspired.
But the top trending topics on Twitter right now are #blackthoughts vs #whitethoughts.
Really?
It doesn't get much dumber than this one.
More after the jump...
We live in an increasingly in-your-face society, where the Internet and social media make it very difficult to keep cultural "inside jokes" going.
Twitter seems to attract people of all backgrounds, and yet, there are divisions there -- as there are in society-- with frequent trending topics rooted in race.
That might explain how #blackthoughts, which seemed to originate as publicity topic for a mixtape of the same name, evolved into an invitation for some racists to reveal their #whitethoughts about harming or disrespecting blacks.
At the same time, black Tweeters are currently revealing their inner thoughts from a cultural perspective, and some at what could be considered the expense of their non-black friends and followers.
Here's one that isn't really as bad as the others, but gives you an idea of what's going down. Check out this prolific Tweet from @Kobes_MissTress, who is black:
@Kobes_MissTress: #whitethoughts M.Vick shoulda got 20 yrs in prison! #blackthoughts M.Vick didn't deserve all that time, its JUST a dog.
Not to be outdone, @merrypranxter, who appears to be white, Tweets:
@merrypranxter: #blackthoughts im lucky 2 live in this great neighborhood! #whitethoughts OH NO! a BLACK FAMILY moved in across the street! (never got that)
The topic is like stuffwhitepeoplelike.com, only clumsily executed in 140 characters.
I'm all for crossing the cultural divide through humor, but this train is heading nowhere good...and at a fast rate.
It's all fun and games until someone gets ordered back to Africa or, on the flip side, the punchline on old Dave Chappelle jokes flatlines at the expense of a non-black Twitterer.
I think I'm most aligned with @hnjohnso, a lonely voice of reason in this race-baiting madness, who is calling this trending topic like it is:
She tweets:
@hnjohnso I'm gonna start a #mixedthoughts tag since I'm black, white & Mexican, & feel left out of the casual racism. #WhiteThoughts #BlackThoughts
Casual racism. Sounds about right. We've heard #blackthoughts and #whitethoughts.
What are #yourthoughts?
16 Comments
FoxBrownFox said:
this makes me sad...
we're dumb. wow.
Kyra Kyles said:
Yep, nobody's winning in this one. Everyone is looking pretty, pretty foolish.
BVAX said:
Well you know..There are so many folks who love to hide behind keyboards and type ignorant things. i have SO many racist comments in threads on Twitter, Yahoo Sports, and especially You Tube. It's crazy people will take time to read a article or watch a video and then make ignorant, hateful comments. Go figure.
Kyra Kyles said:
That's true and now the ignorance is just being expressed in various new ways. I hate looking at YouTube comments for the very reason you mention, BVAX. Thanks for commenting.
namaste said:
All this shows is how much people need to have work. When you're occupied with productive activities you're not apt to act a fool or be a "victim" of the Devil's workshop.
Maybe Obama can come up with some sort of "Get-A-Life" stimulus package.
Kyra Kyles said:
I second that motion...I also liked your "library-card" stimulus package. People could be doing much better things with their time.
klactose said:
You can pretty much use the internet as a social barometer. If there is only a few sites that attract a certain crowd/respondent than perhaps the activity is niche. However if you stumble across a certain sentiment almost everywhere you go, then that is probably indicative of the sentiment being ingrained in our culture.
When people say that it's a post-racial society because Obama is in office, simply point them to the nearest web browser. The allure, disdain, curiosity, fear, and even hatred rooted in race is pervasive. You might notice that not every word I associated was negative, because I don't think everyone who makes something a racial issue is being negative. But those who walk around downplaying reality because they allegedly don't see it in their personal lives, have their heads in the sand.
Kyra Kyles said:
Agreed, klactose. And I most certainly do point people to any YouTube comment feed if they want to see the true ugliness that still exists. Since racism here in Chicago with a huge minority population isn't often as in your face, it is easy to get caught in the sand trap. As this Twitter feed shows, we still have a lot of work to do.
bignatewill said:
I have yet to fully understand why people freely express ignorance online as if it will be hidden or restricted to the ears of those closet to you, let alone why you feel it is ok to think certain things in the first place. on the other hand it is good to see the views and opinions expressed by all Gods children to one another. Its a barometer to see where we are.
Kyra Kyles said:
I think that because race is still such a hush hush topic, people don't feel free to raise points. I even saw some Twitter followers who said one thing to me and then I looked at other Tweets and saw they had written some pretty ugly things themselves. Like my dad used to say, I prefer racism you can see. It makes it easier to fight.
Papa MaC said:
The internet can definitely open your eyes to how people think outside of your own community or network of friends and family. I'm fairly well traveled so I have been to a few places where there are people like those internet bigots or even worse, and entirely out in the open; a twisted societal sentiment. I look white and I don't volunteer my full heritage to everyone I meet on a daily basis, so sometimes the bigots confide in me their racist jokes or get a little loose with the N-word when telling a story about someone black. I prefer to hear it and not react, than to make an issue of it (in the real world). I get the chance to learn how they think, at no cost but to be tolerant. On the internet, it's just more people sharing the same space with no fear of consequence.
Kyra Kyles said:
Papa MaC, you remind me of KRS-One sometimes because like our rap Philosopher, you think very deeply. Thanks, as always, for bringing an interesting perspective to the table. What's funny is I am brown and quite evidently black, but I've had people slip up in front of me and then tell me, "well, not you...you're different." Or they insult some other group like I don't realize that if I weren't around, they'd get "my" group too. Thanks for the comment.
Peter James Nelson said:
Finally, someone has reported on the popularity of Black (American) culture on twitter (if not the prettiest example). Sure it may offend some people, however if you really want to be offended, go to 4chan! Some of the tweets are genuinely funny, but I wince now and then. The use of snappy hashtags is a rising phenomenon, and like any trend experiencing rapid growth, there will be bumps in the road.
Kyra Kyles said:
Agreed, and I guess it's better to know what people think than to operate on ignorance. However, it's sad that so many stereotypes still abound. And I think I'll stay off 4chan.
Yuna said:
The internet is just an outlet for cowardly racists to show their true colors. I love youtube but It's a shame that 99% of the time the video has a minority in it, there are going to be a fair share of racists comments below the video with nothing to do with the topic at hand. It makes me sick but unfortunately thats the world we live in. I try not to get into racial trending topics on twitter because it's just stupid and nothing good ever comes from it. Being a minority of mixed race (japanese and black)I get enough flack from both of those sides without having to worry about closet racist internet 'thugs'.
Kyra Kyles said:
I am always amazed at the racism on YouTube about the silliest things...a music video, footage of a kid's birthday party. But again, better to see the racism, so you can find ways to address it. Thanks for the comment, Yuna!
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