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From: david@fisher.UUCP (David Rubin)
Newsgroups: net.women,net.politics
Subject: Re: Discrimination and Affirmative Action
Message-ID: <669@fisher.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 12-Jun-85 08:56:11 EDT
Article-I.D.: fisher.669
Posted: Wed Jun 12 08:56:11 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 13-Jun-85 01:48:45 EDT
References: <sphinx.566> <338@unc.UUCP> <> <475@gargoyle.UChicago.UUCP> <220@kontron.UUCP>
Organization: Princeton University Department of Statistics
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Xref: watmath net.women:5749 net.politics:9377

> > In my everyday encounters with people, I treat women and blacks
> > somewhat differently from white males, that is, my knowledge of a
> > person's race or sex can and usually does affect my actions in some
> > way.  Part of the reason for this difference is my knowledge that
> > both groups suffer from deep-rooted and tenacious prejudices in our
> > society, and that this is an important factor in the life of each
> > individual woman or black.  This does not mean that I have judged the
> > individual to be better or worse merely because he or she is black or
> > female, and I don't see how it makes me a racist or sexist.
> > 
> > Richard Carnes, ihnp4!gargoyle!carnes
> 
> This used to be called "patronizing".  *I* treat everyone as an individual;
> if I don't know someone, I treat them dependent on the circumstances.  In
> a dark alley, everyone, regardless of race or national origin, is a potential
> danger.

Congratulations!  You ARE the perfect person.  Now, us mere mortals
who are honest enough to admit it realize that we are all prejudiced.
We may rationalize our biases (as a racist does), pretend our biases
don't exist (the "who, me?" bigot), or try to correct or surpress
them.  Pretending they don't exist makes them more potent.

Now maybe you do treat EVERYONE as an individual ALL the time; for me
(and those such as Carnes who are honest enough to understand their own
feelings), justness is something that must be striven for.  Frankly,
those who err and atone are far more credible than those who claim
never to have erred at all.

Now if you only would treat Carnes as an individual and stop rushing
to apply a label to him so you can treat him as part of some group...

					David Rubin
			{allegra|astrovax|princeton}!fisher!david