How would you explain racism to someone who was born blind?

This answer to this question is simple: I wouldn't.  I have read quite a few posts in which the author claims that they wouldn't tell the blind person because they would be better off not knowing racism or some other noble cause along those lines, but the answer is so much simpler than that.  I wouldn't tell them because there'd be no need.  Everyone, blind or not, experiences racism.  Racism has little to do with skin color and everything to do with cultural identity.

Here's an example we see in the media all the time.  An upper-middle class white women is walking down the street at night.  She sees a young black man dressed in urban clothing and gets frightened, often times shown by a tightening of her grip on her purse or crossing the street to avoid him.  Imagine if this black man was wearing a business suit.  Would she have had the same reaction?

The reason this woman reacts with fear is because the man is dressed in a way that she identifies with black culture, not because of his skin.  Racism occus when we make these cultural associations.  A blind man can't see, but he can still hear the way people talk and experience the way they act.  Vision is just one of the ways we make judgements on people without ever meeting them.

   

I just answered this Featured Question, you can answer it too!

Hey Xanga, I have a very serious problem. I'm fucking crying because of how stupid I am.

Okay, so my girlfriend was supposed to come over to my house today because I was going to go take her to a movie. She lives about 20 minutes away, and the movie we were supposed to see started at 4:15, which was in about 40 minutes. I figured "cool, I'll just play Pokemon while I wait".

So I'm playing Pokemon, and having a pretty damn good time. Anyway, she finally does show up, except she's crying as she walks into my room. Instead of doing the right thing by comforting her, I half-focus on my game and her. She starts telling me her cat died, and just as she was getting into it, I get into a random encounter in my game.

A shiny pidgey. Holy shit. (For those of you who don't know/care, shiny pokemon have less than a 1/1000 chance of appearing). I stare into my screen in amazement, yelling "holy shit, YES", interrupting her mid-story. She sobs more, and she starts to yell "You don't even fucking care! YOU JUST WANT TO PLAY YOUR FUCKING GAME!" I'm still looking at my screen, still focusing on catching my shiny pidgey, when she walks over, and tosses the game against the wall. I run over and pick up my DS hoping that nothing has changed on screen, and quickly noticed that she broke it. My system and my shiny pidgey, gone forever.

I start screaming every obsenity I know, and started flailing my arms around. I didn't know she was behind me, and appearantly I backhanded her in the face while I was being a dumbass and swinging my fists around. She yells out "FUCK YOU", and runs out of my house in tears.

What have I done? I've fucked up so badly, and I need to know how to approach her. I don't want a game of Pokemon to be respoinsible for ruining my best relationship ever.

A few hours later I got another knock on my door and opened it. Promptly I got a faceful of spit as her brother comes storming in yelling "WHAT THE FUCK IS YOUR PROBLEM?" at me.  The guy pulls a knife out on me. This guy is fucking insane.  I did the only reasonable thing:  Pulled out my GBA and Leaf Green and challenged him to a pokemon battle.  So I got in one little fight and my mom got scared and said "You're moving with your aunt and uncle in Bel-Air."  I whistled for a cab and when it came near the license plate said fresh and had a dice in the mirror.  If anything I could say this cab was rare, but I thought nah forget it, yo homes, it's Bel-Air!  I pulled up to a house about 7 or 8 and I yelled to the cabby "Yo homes, smell ya later."  I looked at my kingdom, I was finally there. To settle my throne as the prince of Bel-Air.

Today is my birthday :D

(14:23:20) GoNCState209: happy birthday satan
(14:06:54) J-Killa: you're sixteen! =D
(14:30:51) CAroLinEc 2 7: HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
(13:45:20) The Jackal: Happy 16th Birthday Scott!!!! [guess who remembered?]
(15:01:53) surfsAntigua90: happy birthday on satan day
(15:02:13) FuLtOnAtOr2000: Happy Birthday!!!!
(15:34:16) FriENdLYfeRReT03: HAPPY BIRTHDAY
(16:13:19) Wendell FU se: happy burfizzle my nigizzle
(15:58:51) GBpacker2201: Happy Birthday Scotty!
(15:58:51) scoTt2404: You're posting this stuff?  Get a life.
(20:23:45) quats111: HAPPY B-DAY

Last one was Sublime.  Easy, I know.  I decided not to go with the official band symbol this time and try something a little more... abstract =P.

Hint:


You know the drill, guess the band based on the given hint.

(Note:  Picture made on photoshop.
Double note:  If Anna doesn't get this I'm giving up on all of you =P.)