• Syrc@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    I’ve always thought being “proud” of your race, any race, is a weird concept.

    Like, you didn’t do anything to be white, or black, or asian. Why would you take pride in something you had no agency in?

      • Player2
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        1 year ago

        Given the amount of people that seem to base their whole personality exclusively using this list, it will be a long while before we can move away from these as a collective.

        • Not_Alec_Baldwin@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          Overtly stating anything about your identity is one of the dumbest and most boring things.

          I don’t care how you identify. It doesn’t tell me anything about you, and it doesn’t tell me anything about the thing. And generally, it’s considered rude to talk about a person’s identity.

          You’d be better off telling me something you’re interested in.

          John Doe (likes trains)

          There are two kinds of people… No wait, three kinds of people that care.

          1. people who are emotionally fragile, mentally ill, or otherwise can’t handle literally any friction of any kind in any of their interactions.

          2. people who are excessively polite, virtue signaling, it SJWs. These people don’t care for themselves but they care SO MUCH because they think it makes to OTHER people.

          3. people who are afraid of complaints or legal action (business, public figures, etc)

          I can count on one hand the number of times identity has mattered in a human interaction I’ve had.

          The amount of energy we waste of identity is fucking absurd considering the literal zero value or brings to the world.

          • Flying Squid@lemmy.world
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            1 year ago

            You don’t care. LGBT people are not necessarily prideful because of you. They’re prideful because of the half of America that wants them oppressed, imprisoned or dead because of who they are.

            If that’s not you, they’re not talking about you, but they are still facing a lot of homophobic people. Until that ends, pride is the correct reaction to those people.

      • fosforus
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        1 year ago

        Sometimes there’s basis for patriotic pride. As a specific example, I live next to Russia, in a free country that respects LGBT rights. I know for a fact that those rights would be completely eroded if Russia conquered us. Therefore it makes sense to take some pride in my country and the armed forces of my country who are strongly discouraging that from happening.

        • oce 🐆@jlai.lu
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          1 year ago

          So your pride is defending what you find is right, and your nation happens to be aligned with it currently. If your nation became homophobic, you wouldn’t follow it, would you?

          • fosforus
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            1 year ago

            If your nation became homophobic, you wouldn’t follow it, would you?

            No, I would not. But I’m not sure if I could be able to translate that into any action that had effect.

      • the_inebriati@lemmy.ml
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        1 year ago

        Sexuality

        When people talk about “LGBT Pride”, they’re not talking about the “a feeling of deep pleasure or satisfaction derived from one’s own achievements” definition, they’re talking about the “confidence and self-respect as expressed by members of a group, typically one that has been socially marginalized” definition.

        It’s almost like words can have more than one meaning.

          • Drivebyhaiku@lemmy.world
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            1 year ago

            I would argue otherwise. Prides have always had a political aspect and part of that was a way to get a sense of numbers. Suppression of LGBTQ identities by early “support” groups encouraged narratives of it being rare, that it is natural to be lonely and shut away without a community. If you are small as a minority you tend to be meek and hide. Gay hook up spots were designed to hide people so true numbers were often impossible to have any notion of how many people were actually there. Some were just utterly flabbergasted by the numbers when police raids caused everyone to flee at once… But the news the next morning would make it sound like there was only a handful.

            Consolidation and visibility, the understanding of strength in numbers has always been a factor of Pride. So to has been education and safety campaigns. While it has been a place to acknowledge the dead and bring hope to those who are afraid to be out it is absolutely for those at the festivities itself too.

        • Ann Archy@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          Well when they have different meanings for everyone then what good are they? I often feel like when you point out things like the OP here, there’s a moving of the goal posts, or no true Scotsman-ing, what goes for one doesn’t go for the other. It’s an interesting question, why is it ok to be proud of your sexuality, which you have no control over, but not be ok to be proud of your color of skin, which you also have no control over?

          Just redefining terms ad hoc depending on which side one happens to identify with makes the whole conversation suspect.

        • assassin_aragorn@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          I think of Pride as an acceptance of your sexuality, whatever it may be. The pride in question is a self esteem that comes from being comfortable in who you are.

      • Syrc@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        The last point could be argued, most people say/mean “proud of being their friend/brother/whatever”, and having mutual esteem with someone does take a degree of agency. It’s obviously moot if you have family ties with them but they hate you, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen people being proud of achievements of people who hate them.

        The rest I agree, it feels weird unnecessary tribalism most of the time.

        • It’s a matter of economics and quality over time. These regions have chosen to tool up for making foods and commodities that are essential to the Euro Zone and arguably the world.

          If they go out of business, the quality and availability of the product overall will certainly suffer. And it may not be so extreme as going out of business; if they miss out on a capital investment because some investor sees potential in a competitor making a product elsewhere, maybe it’s death by a thousand cuts.

          So we protect their brands. Yes, it is technically anti-competitive, for the greater good. And at the very least, for the good of the Euro Zone.

        • Syrc@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          why wouldn’t someone be able to make the same quality of cheese given the same cows and quality process anywhere else?

          They would, but the opposite wouldn’t be possible because of regulations. I feel like it’s more of a “this product has been made in a place which enforces good practices, so you can be sure it’s healthy (to a degree)”. It’s kind of like originals and bootlegs, bootlegs could be as good as good originals, but originals will never be as bad as bad bootlegs.

        • ggBarabajagal@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          It’s not just for quality, but for authenticity too, I think.

          Foods that are fermented or aged can take on a unique flavor profile, based on the unique blend of bacteria and mold and yeast in the area. Even using the same milk from the same cows and processing it the same way, cheese that is naturally aged in a cave in France might taste different from cheese that’s aged in a cave in West Virginia. Not necessarily better or worse, quality-wise, but different. Not authentic.

          Weather patterns, seasonal changes, and soil conditions are also distinct and varied in different places. The same grapes grow differently in German soil than they do in Kansas. The grass that the cows eat grows differently in different places, and this can have a significant impact on the flavors of the milk and cheese.

          I’m American, but I used to work in a fancy wine store that sold a lot of imported cheese and groceries. I imagine that in practice, PDO must seem like an annoying mix of over-regulation and jingoistic propaganda – especially to someone in Europe. But it does seem to serve a purpose, even if in an overbearing way.

          I think being proud of local food culture is more like community spirit or neighborhood pride. It’s like saying, “here’s something ingeniously delicious we created using only our limited local resources.” I don’t think of that quite the same way as “pride” about race, gender, sexuality.

          • oce 🐆@jlai.lu
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            1 year ago

            Pretty sure they could sell the bacteria/mold and produce the same climate conditions in controlled room. I’m not against quality labels, I just don’t like the territorial aspect of it. I think authenticity is a bias based on public image and imagination.

      • assassin_aragorn@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        In the abstract, yes, but when a group of people is oppressed because of one of those identifiers, it stops just being a born trait. It also identifies that you’re oppressed. Celebrating who you are with regards to that kind of trait (sexuality, sex, race, etc) isn’t a celebration of being born a certain way. It’s a celebration of self acceptance, and an act of rebellion.

        You aren’t proud of what you were born with, you’re proud of what you were born with, because some people have tried to punish you for that what.

      • Lucidlethargy@sh.itjust.works
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        1 year ago

        We can add college in there. Choice of college means next to nothing about someone’s intellect and personality. Usually it’s just rich and/or “legacy” people getting into the prestigious schools. They are almost always pushed into it, or convinced into it by others.

      • Ann Archy@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        I don’t get it. Why would one be? The whole point of pride is to in some sense feel and experience joy over the things that we like about ourselves or that stand out in a positive way. But maybe I’m missing something.

    • mateomaui@reddthat.com
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      1 year ago

      With whites you definitely have a point, but it’s a little different when whites have at various times in history attempted to erase your culture in numerous ways, including outlawing your language, clothing, music, dance, martial arts, traditional healing systems, religious beliefs, hair styles, etc, while converting you to what they believe to be valid and acceptable.

      • Syrc@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        That’s being proud of your culture though, not your race. Culture is something you willingly engage in, and you definitely have the right to be proud of it (and that includes Italian culture, Greek culture and all other types of white culture as well).

        But race? Saying “I’m proud of being black” means nothing when American black people and African black people barely have anything in common that isn’t the color of their skin.

        • mateomaui@reddthat.com
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          1 year ago

          Culture is very much tied to race and where those people came from. It still happens now. It should be obvious without explanation. It’s not at all difficult to find stories about black students sent home from school because their hair is “not ok.”

          • Lemminary@lemmy.world
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            1 year ago

            Culture is very much tied to race

            True that. Candice Ownens is the perfect example of a racist POC disowning their entire culture to not be associated with anyone but white Republicans. She’s culturally white and it’s a choice.

          • Syrc@lemmy.world
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            1 year ago

            It’s tied but it’s different. A lot of third+ generation immigrants have the same customs as locals, and you wouldn’t tell them apart if not for physical traits, for example.

            It’s also weird how stuff that used to be shamed about turned to reasons of pride. We (as in, non-racist people) realized shaming people for their hair is stupid, why would being proud of it not be just as stupid?

            • mateomaui@reddthat.com
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              1 year ago

              It’s not weird at all. If one race has systematically tried to beat you down throughout history and convince you that your race and culture are inferior, there’s all the reason in the world to reclaim respect for all that your people almost lost, and tell that race to fuck off if they don’t like it, and be proud of it. Gay pride isn’t race based, but it’s definitely a similar thing from a different direction. It sounds like you need to spend significant time sitting and talking with people of cultures that have been through it.

              • Syrc@lemmy.world
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                1 year ago

                It’s correct to demand equality and apologies for what happened in the past, but beyond it isn’t that just “pride” in being/having been discriminated?

                I would love to talk more about this with people who are directly involved in it, but even then, races/sexualities are not a monolith and that person I spoke to might have a completely different opinion from the rest. Plus I feel like you need to be very intimate with someone to have that kind of talk, so it’s not easy at all. I also comment my opinions on the internet because it’s a simple way of finding people who disagree and might give you a different point of view.

                • mateomaui@reddthat.com
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                  1 year ago

                  isn’t that just “pride” in being/having been discriminated?

                  No. I can’t imagine there’s a single person who has ever felt legitimately proud about being discriminated against in a manner you suggest.

                  Proud of continuing the traditions of one’s ancestors so they aren’t permanently lost to historic racism or diluted in the modern melting pot, via artistic expression, etc, yes.

                  You still have plenty of time to talk to people and change your viewpoint.

                  • Syrc@lemmy.world
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                    1 year ago

                    No. I can’t imagine there’s a single person who has ever felt legitimately proud about being discriminated against in a manner you suggest.

                    Sure, I didn’t think that’s what they mean, but that’s what it feels like. If it’s not the same as “being proud of your culture”, what’s the other difference?

                    Proud of continuing the traditions of one’s ancestors so they aren’t permanently lost to historic racism or diluted in the modern melting pot, via artistic expression, etc, yes.

                    But again, that’s culture. Isn’t it better to say you’re proud of what you do, instead of what you are?

              • cannache@slrpnk.net
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                1 year ago

                That’s different though, the point of gay pride is recognising that your value in society and your person ought to be respected, against a larger imposing force or hivemind so to speak, just like black pride, etc, and valuing your open expression of pride, closeted queers could just as easily argue that being in the closet is about valuing your own person on an internal level rather than how others may expect you to express yourself - ie, you may value yourself in a way different from how society does. Just like how some sex workers view themselves as tools, not sex toys but rather as healers and value themselves as such, once you dig deep down on all this, you’ll realise that gay pride is as much a “reaction” of the person to society as being closeted would be, one is preferable to individualist cultures, the other is more conformist, either way you pick your poison.

                  • cannache@slrpnk.net
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                    1 year ago

                    That’s not the point of the comment I made nor is it really a response that actually addresses the point I made, would you like to try again?

            • cannache@slrpnk.net
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              1 year ago

              People who unironically feel conflicted about being proud of overcoming or experiencing XYZ, e.g. taking a big dump or something as simple as eating an extra large McDonald’s double junior whopper, would like to dispute that pride is more often than not understanding that being ashamed of something is giving away your agency, by automatically saying, that was bad, the end, whereas being prideful at least gives you opportunity to reflect on the value of the experience itself rather than to simply paint it as inherently good or bad.

        • MBM@lemmings.world
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          1 year ago

          I always read black as “American black people”, and there there definitely is a shared culture, of having ancestors that were slaves and not knowing where in Africa they came from because the slavers didn’t care

        • assassin_aragorn@lemmy.world
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          That’s because their ancestors experienced a forced diaspora and slavery that was partially designed to destroy their sense of culture and identity. It’s a distinct group of people from Africans. Black is just how they choose to refer to themselves.

          These sociological definitions aren’t always perfect. Strictly speaking, Musk is African, but he isn’t who you usually think of as part of that group.

        • CeruleanRuin@lemmings.world
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          This is the most obnoxious pedantry I’ve ever heard. Black Americans celebrate their old world origins just as much as Irish Americans celebrate theirs. They can’t be more specific to the tribe or country because that knowledge was fucking erased. Black is the culture, broadly speaking.

    • dangblingus@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      If you belong to a group that has been historically oppressed, being proud of your race/culture is a sign of rebellion.

    • rhombus@sh.itjust.works
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      It’s weird to have pride in race if you experience no adversity because of it. Since white people don’t face the same kind of challenges white pride just feels like “I’m proud of my privilege”, whereas with black pride it’s more “I’m proud of who I am despite the challenges I face because of it”. Same goes for other things like LGBT pride, it’s celebrating who they are even if it cause them a lot of hardship.

      • Ann Archy@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        Couldn’t it be sort of an affiliation with the full history of the White Man, for better or for worse? I don’t take pride in my skin color, but it does represent a fascinating time in human history and early human migration. This is purely academic of course, no actual person who says they are “proud of being white” would ever say that or likely even be aware of the history and the science, but it could be.

        The problem lies in the definition of “pride”. You can be proud of who you are without comparing yourself to others. You can be proud of who you are without thinking less of others, or treat them as inferiors. In fact I’d say it’s mandatory but not everyone gets that.

        Not sure where I’m going with this, not arguing for or against per se, just exploring the concept because it’s complex, interesting, and sadly ever so topical.

      • CeruleanRuin@lemmings.world
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        1 year ago

        Anyway “white” is too broad an identifier to mean anything, unlike groups which have had their cultures systematically oppressed. There’s already widely accepted celebrations of “Irish pride”, “Italian pride”, “Polish pride”, etc. Not a lot of specifically “English pride” celebrations because the British empire already made that the default for centuries.

        This “pride” thing is specifically meant to mean “we survived, and continue to survive.” Anyone advocating for “white pride” doesn’t even understand what they’re talking about. There is no “white identity” to be protected because it has never been under threat of annihilation. It’s like stationing a battalion of troops around a public park in a suburb because you’re convinced that The Enemy wants to take it over. Nobody’s coming for your playground equipment.

    • Ann Archy@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      It’s all semantics either way, just treat people with kindness and respect, and then you can be proud of who you are. That said, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with being “proud” of ones features or traits. For instance, I have very blue eyes that have passed down through a ridiculous number of generations (n.b. not the exact same set), and I’m “proud” of them, in the sense that I’m glad I have them, that they remind me of my heritage and ancestry and family, and I hope that they will pass on to my offspring. I won’t cry myself to sleep if they don’t, but I think it’s “nice”.

      Is there something wrong with me feeling this way? I don’t think so. How could it be? It’s nobody’s business how I feel about my eyes. I go out of my way to treat people with kindness and respect, and I am proud of that. But also the eye thing.

      Maybe that’s the problem, perhaps we should just stop nagging and lecturing each other on our identities and preferences all the god damned time. Aren’t you all tired of it also?

      • Syrc@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        I can relate, I also have a weird hair quirk my grandma had as well, I like it and I’m glad I have it, but I wouldn’t really say I’m “proud” of it.

        Yes, in the end it’s all semantics and there’s nothing really “wrong” with it, I just find it weird, like astrology or ultras, idk.

        • Ann Archy@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          I just find it weird, like astrology or ultras, idk.

          I think you accidentally hit the nail on the head there. When you and I feel proud of our features, we are proud over the features themselves- not proud of identifying as part of the group of “all blue eyed people” or “all weird hair quirk people”.

          It’s the affiliation with, to a greater or lesser extent, some group, and that group’s interests:

          As a proud blue-eyed person, I couldn’t care less about what all other blue-eyed persons think, and unless there’d be fewer than a thousand left of us I couldn’t even conceive of any collective agenda such a group might have had.

          As a proud black person, I would be highly motivated to care about and affiliate with all other black persons, because they would share experiences with me, and to a great extent negative or hateful.

          As a proud homosexual, I would likewise affiliate with others of my kind or who have had similar experiences.

          Even as a proud Ultras member, I can see how you would affiliate like so, even if the reason for it would rest on an artificial division between some arbitrary group- belonging to Ultras is not a physical trait, it’s made up, but there at least is some rationale.

          As a proud white person? If white people were selectively persecuted, I sure as hell would affiliate with them, but they aren’t.