Current Events > If you find out someone is racist, do you immediately terminate the friendship?

(+) Yeah! (+)

I know I must be stupid for trying to generate a good discussion on CE of all places, but I'm curious. Let's assume for the sake of discussion you care about this person on a personal level.

A person can be nice/sweet as hell, strike all the right qualities on your personal "good qualities to have" list, but then you one day find out they don't like a specific group of people because maybe they've had nothing but bad experiences with that particular group. Do you immediately discard them from your life or do you try to get this person to realize that what they're saying is racist? If they don't listen initially, what do/would you do then?

I don't think I'd cut them off initially. I'd rather try to work it out with them first. Some people are less racist than others. Racism is racism and not okay in any fashion, but I think the "less racist" people you have a better chance of getting through to.

truthfully try and work it out the point I would give up is when they see the others as lesser beings and tries to think of a reason to justify harming others or suppressing their rights
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Racism doesn't automatically mean hate.

SaithSayer posted...

Racism doesn't automatically mean hate.

Lmao

To answer TC's question I'd just get them to understand that what they're saying is racist, yeah
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lmao
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I wouldn't terminate the friendship because i'm not an attention seeking crybaby. I'd just tell them to stfu and then we drink a beer and watch some footy or something.
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ColdOne666 posted...

I wouldn't terminate the friendship because i'm not an attention seeking crybaby. I'd just tell them to stfu and then we drink a beer and watch some footy or something.

You don't have any friends anyway
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No, not if it doesn't pollute our relationship and doesn't become an obnoxious recurrent pattern in the person's public or private behaviour, or doesn't turn into constant hate speech.

Trying to police people's intimate thoughts is gravely wrong on the other hand. Something the histrionic left and its high horse do-gooding morality would love to be able to do.

And yes, racism, while a very questionable, one could even say WRONG trait, is unfortunately inherent to human nature, whether we like it or not. Sometimes the darker side overcomes what Lincoln called the better angels of our nature :(
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If you find out someone is racist, do you immediately terminate the friendship?

No. Depending on the intensity and social conventions, it might still be salvageable under the right conditions. I might try to encourage them to rethink their perspective, but I'm not going to toss them to the curb just because they think differently. If we get along, I can still work with that and micromanage my social circle when needed. However, there is a limit and I'm not always charitable towards someone who's frequently abrasive towards people in my circle. Sometimes it's just not worth the trouble.

Similarly I've actually been friendly acquaintances with people who admittedly found homosexuality abhorrent and toxic. Sometimes the peace was kept because they never knew I was gay. Other times they simply did not care enough to demonize me for it even if they thought negatively about it. To the latter it's like I smoked cigarettes and they would prefer I stopped, but were willing to still socialize with me despite that.

You know, being mature...
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Learning posted...

ColdOne666 posted...

I wouldn't terminate the friendship because i'm not an attention seeking crybaby. I'd just tell them to stfu and then we drink a beer and watch some footy or something.

You don't have any friends anyway

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dJN-tk1i9U" data-time="
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depends. I mean if they are truly racist I probably can't be bro level with them tbh
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Nope
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No, because everyone is racist to some degree.
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How racist? Casually racist, or flamboyant? That is to say, do they talk about it nonstop, and just bitch about people of a particular race? If they do, then I'd get sick of hearing it and ask them to cut it out. If they just keep it to themselves, and only speak about it when asked, then it's whatever.
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