Dear Editor,
Over the years, I have read a few letters in this publication that seem to imply that racism is demonstrated by only one particular group in our society.
These letter writers are either confused about the definition of racism, or they are doing nothing more than playing the race card as a means of silencing or getting their own way at the expense of others.
We all know that, in fact, racist attitudes are not exclusive to any one racial, ethnic, or cultural group and in a multicultural society, we sometimes have to deal with prejudices that are tolerated or endemic to some of the cultures we immigrants come from, but are antithetical to Canadian values and principles.
From the British and French who first colonized this country, through the constant influx of refugees and immigrants in the 19th and 20th centuries from every European country, to the current welcoming of Syrian refugees and large numbers of Asian newcomers, we have always faced the challenge of helping new citizens transcend any prejudices they may have been exposed to in their cultures of origin.
We have embraced the concepts of tolerance, respect and inclusivity that define our Canadian society.
And we should all understand that, far too often, we confuse what could be called ‘culturism’ with racism — a confusion that exacerbates whatever problems we might encounter trying to encourage better understanding of and communication between various ethnic/cultural groups.
The first most important point in this regard is that we do not learn our values and ways of thinking and behaving by way of the colour of our skins — we learn them from our cultures.
And while racism is a despicable human attribute, ‘culturism’ is very common and often justifiable. Cultural practices that are accepted in some cultures can be unacceptable, condemned, or even illegal in others.
We should be extremely careful in using the terms racist and racism.
These are powerful terms that can either be used in a positive way to expose and solve problems, or in cynical ways to hide and deepen them.
We should not shy away from addressing and challenging authentic instances of racism, but we should also make sure that we are not manufacturing racism-related issues where none actually exist.
And we should have little patience with claims that are, in fact, based on disagreements and problems we might have with certain cultural beliefs and practices, as opposed to ones that are related to real racial prejudice and intolerance.
And we should also recognize that racism is not incubated in the petri dish of just one society or culture — it can be cultivated in every part of the world and in the minds of many different people.
Jewish theologian Abraham Joshua Herschel once waned that: “Racism is man’s greatest threat to man — the maximum hatred for the minimum of reason.”
We should heed his warning and think carefully about the reasons we might be tempted to apply the terms racist or racism to any person or situation.
Ray Arnold
Richmond
