- 1. Now that you have come this far, revisit the question with which chapter 2 began: Would a determined campaign by every white person in this country to be color blind—to completely ignore the race of other people—eliminate the scourge of racism and racial subordination? Or is racism so embedded in our social structures, rules, laws, language, and ways of doing things that the system of white-over-black/brown/yellow subordination would continue, as though on autopilot? Is racial subordination so profitable and familiar that society is unlikely ever to give it up?
- 2. A majority of people of color support affirmative action; a majority of whites oppose it. Why is that?
- 3. Does affirmative action reward incompetence? If so, why has the country’s productivity not slipped during the twenty-five years that the program has been in operation? And why do most large corporations favor it?
- 4. Why should a light-skinned son of a black neurosurgeon with an SAT score of 1080 get the nod over the daughter of a Ukrainian immigrant who works in a furniture factory, had to learn English from scratch, and earned a score of 1250?
- 5. If the police stop black male motorists 50 percent of the time and whites only 10 percent of the time and justify those stops by pointing out that black males commit more crime than whites, is that fair?
- 6. If a white police officer sees two young black or Latino males walking down the sidewalk with no obvious destination or reason for being there, is it OK for the officer to ask them where they are going? Is it insulting and disrespectful to do so, even if the officer asks politely?
- 7. The nation’s prisons and jails are full of minority inmates, especially young men. Is that racist, and if so, what should be done about it?
- 8. How do you feel about black jurors who engage in jury nullification? Did our system do something similar in the South when courts failed to convict white killers of black civil rights protesters?
- 9. If corporations and government agencies locate 50 percent of the biohazards (such as sanitation plants) in minority communities and 10 percent in white ones, is that fair? Suppose that land is cheaper in the minority neighborhood, so that the decision seems economically rational. Is that a good reason for locating these facilities there? Suppose that minority people have flocked to these areas because of the well-paying jobs they offer or because housing is cheaper there.
- 10. If a U.S. corporation pays a Thai woman $1.10 per hour to work a ten-hour shift in a hot, noisy factory, and the prevailing rate in Thailand is $1.00 per hour for an eleven-hour workday, is that fair? Suppose that she insists that she wants to work there? What is a fair minimum wage in a developed country such as the United States?
- 11. Blacks, Chicanos, and Asians are constantly outvoted by whites in elections, but is anything wrong with that? Shouldn’t the majority rule?
- 12. Latinos are now 17 percent of the U.S. population and outnumber blacks as the largest ethnic minority group. Where do Latinos figure into the civil rights equation? Are they more like blacks? Whites? American Indians? Asian Americans? And who decides? Should they qualify for affirmative action and other government programs?
- 13. Many of us like to think that society is less racist now than before, at least in a raw sense. But hate speech seems to be increasing in the age of blogs, websites, and talk radio. If so, what is the solution? Don’t conservative radio personalities and anonymous users of the Internet have the right to say what they think?
- 14. The British and French colonial administrators wielded power over large native populations through a variety of strategies, including co-opting local elites by giving them midlevel jobs in the colonial administration and preaching Western superiority. Now that the U.S. population is beginning to resemble that of a colonial state, with a minority of whites and a preponderance of people of color, will these same neocolonial strategies find use once again? Is this already happening?
- 15. Most people today believe that hate speech ought to be discouraged. Even if one is angry at another individual, we think it is wrong to call him by a name marking an ethnic slur (“You ____”). Suppose a rapper uses the same word. Is that hate speech? Why or why not?
- 16. What should a social activist do if his or her school or other organization refuses to hire minorities, denies domestic-partner benefits to gay couples, and refuses to explore renewable sources of energy to run its campus or building?