Why are Americans so prejudiced against black people?

Question

The UK has it's racial problems but no where near the kind of predudice expressed on here by Americans. The black people I have met have been lovely people and I can't understand it.

Answer 1

I am not American but in their defence I'll say that they are less prejudiced against black people than Africans are prejudiced against  their own people .

And slavery has been dead a LONG time in the USA while in Africa it reigns unconfronted till this day so be fair and give them a break.

Answer 2

ahh yes, because black people are the perpetual victims of the US....

Answer 3

rather broad statement, i am american and do not believe in any form of prejudice

Answer 4

cuz its life!  

Answer 5

If they were I dont think theyd nominate one as thier leader..How many black prime ministers have you had in the UK?

Sorry but Europeans just dont have a moral high ground here.

Answer 6

We have an entirely different history with other ethnic groups.  While the British stole and pillaged on foreign soil, they never really suffered the effects of colonization on their own soil. The problems we've had that involved black people happened right here in the US, so it should make sense that the impact is greater on the way we see things.  

Answer 7

Actually the Blacks are the biggest racists. But nobody will say anything because they would be label as a racist.

Come on bring the Thumbs down!!!!

Answer 8

I will never understand

Answer 9

they arent, *****.

Answer 10

I'm more annoyed with African immigrants thinking there the s**t, and that there better or something!

Answer 11

Because they are always whinning about slavery. h**l i did not own slaves nor would I want one. They think that America owes them every thing. Let them get a job like every one else make a decent living, quit whinning , and get the h**l off welfare....

Answer 12

fear and ignorance...

Answer 13

I would say the same thing about the U.K. I've heard of blacks and  asians especially immigrants being discriminated all over Europe including UK.  

Answer 14

Us white folks (aka, Crackers) have lots of fear and guilt left over from the slavery days.  Some of us know that, but lots of white Americans spend a LOT of time angrily denying they feel this.  That doesn't help - the feelings are only further repressed.  

It's getting better - I've seen HUGE changes in my lifetime - and now with Obama running for President we are almost a modern nation.

Answer 15

Honestly, these are tensions streamed on from our past. Many people disagree and argue that it was slavery itself, but I can say that it was really the aftermath of slavery. Blacks weren't even seen as human, but property during the times of slavery. So of course when blacks were freed and no longer property, we were still seen as inferior to the majority of society.

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Then of course you had those segregation laws, which not only separated the races, but accommodated whites with much much better services, schools, etc.  Not only that, but we had hate crimes were whites would kill, beat, lynch innocent blacks that would go on without trials. Also, interracial relationships were outlawed. Then there was police brutality. Black students were banned from white colleges (the first colleges blacks were widely accepted were in HBCU's, Historically Black Colleges & Universities, before that it was less than 1% of the African American that receive higher educations, immigrants had better chances than we did.).

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Many of the events that I listed above have not occurred really that long ago. The major tensions really have died down around 30 years ago (c. 1970's) and when you look at it, it's really not that far back in the time line. h**l, the Ku Klux Klan held Klan rallies before Labor Day up untill the 1990's.

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It's very obvious that racial tensions and discrimination's aren't gonminorities(blacks & whites and other minortities) all suffer through this. It's sad to know, that this is what our country was built on. Stereotypes are put on us all here and many are placed into judgement. People today, are starting to say that blacks are becoming "more racist" towards white people. Of course many people are going to feel angry when they hear how people just like them were treated unkindly, looked down upon, and seen as inferior. h**l, the opposing side is taught to feel superior.

Answer 16

Not all Americans so prejudiced against black people.

Not all Americans so prejudiced against white people.

Not all Americans so prejudiced against red people.

Not all Americans so prejudiced against yellow people.

Not all Americans so prejudiced against brown people.

I am white male.

But you are white female , it get too old to hear so many white women bring up about racist stuffs.

Get over with it.

I hate no one!

I am white male and I can say why so many white women bringing up too much about races stuff over and over and over and over?

It get too old!!!!

I HATE NO ONE!!!!

Answer 17

Because of slavery, I guess. Anyway, you get most of the racists from the inbred redneck towns with poor education standards

Answer 18

There is a history here you don't have there.  Besides your premise is bad. It's like saying why are all Brits stiff?

Answer 19

tell me how you feel when you've been assaulted by a GROUP of black people.  (in america this is a common thing- a whole GROUP of black people will physically assault one single person alone.  yes, sometimes white people may do the same thing-but you see it in the media given tons of publicity and arrests- whereas its never put in the media that blacks do this all the time.  in my personal lifetime, i've known soo many people to be assaulted (both black and white people as the victim) by being "jumped" (group of people attacking one single female who is alone. and the attackers were always black.  including in my own personal case (nothing from TV this is all in the place i live and people i personally know-family/friends/co-workers- and i don't even live in a really dangerous city)

or you've lost a family member to violence from a black person.

but don't personally know a single person who's been physically assaulted by a white person.  or raped by a white person.

personally, i'm not talking about what's on tv.  i'm talking personal experience.

tell me that wouldn't impact how you feel.

many of us have the ideal that people shouldn't be prejudiced.  then grow up seeing all this violence by black people.

then how are you supposed to feel.

you can't say, you should realize bad things happen its not  just b/c they're black

but when each of the bad incidents all have that same exact common factor, yes their is something there that is going to cause you to feel some hate.

Answer 20

This question always attracts dumb *** irrational White American's that prove the askers point.

It never fails.

I don't know what the problem is. Seriously the craziest part is you can really see the affect on Blacks everywhere, the majority being loving people by nature, now have some hate or pain brewing in their hearts. Or are doing things completely immoral. Whole cultures being colonized have been set back 50-100 years.

Probably because being loving people by nature is what got them in the predicament they are in now.

I'd be tired and hurt about it too, which I am.

Like I said I don't know what the problem is, but I know the evil never prevail.

Never.

Answer 21

It is no longer such an issue of prejudices against Black people by Caucasians. It has changed to prejudices against Caucasians by Black people. I'm sure that you will, if you open your eyes, see the same vitriole that is spewed from "Caucasions" on this site being spewed by "Blacks". The parentheses are because you don't know the color of the fingers on the keyboards as they spew this rot. As a White male, go to a predominantly Black nightclub. You would be very fortunate to leave the premises without having experienced some racial provocation. Black males in America can pretty well go where they please without a lot of problems. As a White male, obtain employment at a predominently Black workplace. You will almost certainly be made to seem inferior and your work ethics will be made to seem to be foolishness. I don't witness the same for Black males. While there is certainly a majority of lovely Black people throughout the world there are also a segment who makes their livelihood from preaching this White vs. Black prejudice via a compliant US media who makes their livelihood making big stories out of little. Look through the headlines. Read the small stories along with the big ones. Love and respect those lovely Black people that you have met and try not to feed into the media hype about American prejudices. I'm not saying they're not there, just not to the extent or direction to which you have been led to believe. Thumbs down, please, to illustrate the influence that has been placed by the haters and the media to build stories and support prejudices. Love all, Hate few.

Answer 22

It's a tough, complex issue that would have to be described in pages and pages.

But, hey I'm tired of this American bashing. Race relations can be a little tense at times but much more places are more racist against blacks including places in south America like Brazil, and especially in your precious Europe. Many Europeans hate seeing black people and others such as Arabs in their countries because they feel like they're trying to take over their country, and ruin their society and culture.

EDIT: To the girl down below talking about all the times blacks hurt whites. Black on black crime is much more prevalent than any black on white crime so shut up. Black on black robbery might not make it on official statistics because a lot of it doesn't get reported. Also, many black criminals target other black criminals such as drug dealers because they know it won't get reported to cops

Answer 23

Because people are sometimes ignorant, believe stupid stereotypes, and are unwilling to change an age-old mindset.

Answer 24

Because they  are going to be the majority in 50 years time, in America, after a brief reign by the Hispanics, and they are coming to realise that the land they thought was theirs forever, is being lost forever, and they have nowhere left to go, they failed to follow their first responsibility, that of safeguarding the gift they had for their young, the land was not theirs to give away, it was their kids, and their kids, and on and on, to inherit, but they argued amongst themselves for immigration at enormous levels, and got it, and now they know it, just as the 750,000 Chinese are going to Africa every year now, they too will inherit this land, and your kids will know about it when that happens, and the third of the world the Chinese inhabit runs out of oil, and minerals...it remains a fight for survival, and the white races know that the decisions they have made, will see them extinct in a couple of hundred years, .with no place to go, to during all of this, will they be any better, or will they argue for a stop to immigration, when it might happen to them too, because of Muslim migration,  ? I wonder....

Answer 25

Well believe it or not, not all blacks are good people and loving. I worked at an appartment complex that had mostly black residents and they have called me "cracker boy," "honky," and "white boy." So a lot of this prejudiced is actually form by personal experiences. Everybody has had different experiences with them. My dad hates blacks because of his personal experience of working in and growing up in the gheto and seeing the drug abuse, dog fighting, violence, and everything else that a certain sub culture of the blacks. Not all blacks are bad, there are some really good ones out there, but there is those that are not who tend to reflect the population more because they lead in almost every negative statistic, which is never a good thing. A lot of prejudices are formed by personal experience, if you go on a college campus, you'll see blacks put on a pedistal, as well as a little more harminous race relations, even though there has been negatives on college campuses that is actually caused by both whites and blacks. Perceptions on blacks depend a lot about where you grew up especially if there is a highly concentrated area with poverty, personal experiences, reading biased perspectives, and others.

Answer 26

Why are Americans so prejudiced against black people?

That's a generalizing statement.

The UK has it's racial problems but no where near the kind of prejudice expressed on here by Americans.

How do you know it's all Americans?

I have seen  a lot of racism coming from blacks as well against whites on Answers it's a two way street not a one way.

Answer 27

Because they have stereotyped as ignorant, lazy and manipulative of the system.  The most likely to rob you, kill you, or scam you.

As if whites aren't any of the above.

But, really, why are Americans prejudiced?  Because they ain't white.  

p.s.  I'm white.