MovieChat Forums > White Man's Burden (1995) Discussion > Whites would break into different minori...

Whites would break into different minority groups


In a black-majority America, white people would probably not be in the precise position that blacks are in. They would either fall into a upwardly-mobile, prosperous minority- sort of what Cuban-Americans are in the real world, or they would be the stereotypical inner-city gangsters portrayed in this silly movie.

My guess is that you'd see Russians, Irish and Italians as the most likely white minorities groups to comprise the unruly part of white America, mainly because these groups have violent tendencies and a problem with obeying the law even in the real world.

In contrast, I think Jews, Scandanavians and WASP's would probably comprise the part of the white majority that would either do well in small business world or in the arts and entertainment. These groups are successful and educated no matters where in the world they go.

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Another thing worth pointing out is the historically unrealistic notion that the New World would stay black for a long period of time, even if African settlers arrived there first. The implication is that white Europeans would simply be deferential and stay away from the continent if that were the case. No we would not.

Our military technology was second to none and was never inferior to that of the African tribes or Caribbean natives. We would just do what we did everywhere else in the world: we'd land ashore, we'd kick as$, and we'd colonize.

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Hnn, I have to disagree - not because your historic facts were wrong or anyting (they aren't), but because you're applying them to a movie society that clearly isn't based on that very history. An alternative society as it is shown in the movie automatically requires an alternative history.

In the world as we know it, white Europeans back then indeed wouldn't have stayed away. And, yes we would have had that superior military technology.

However, in the world that is presented in the movie, there is no way for us to know whether or not the European militaries were as strong back then as they were in our world. There is no way for us to be sure that the Europeans would want to settle in Northern America at all. Depending on the economical situation in the alternative Europe at that time, it is very well possible that the Europeans had either no need or no technological possibilities to go there. We also don't know about the economical situation of the alternative Africa at the time of the first settlement. Maybe in the alternative movie world, the African military was superior to the European. Maybe their nautic experience was advanced in comparison.

For example, if Europe hadn't had the Greek and then later the Roman empire, Europe might have gone down a very different road when it comes to politics, education, military, and generally society. The British and Spanish might not have been as successful as seafaring nations, wars might have been won by different sides and had different results. We might not have won any colonies but could have ended up being colonies instead. We might not have settled in Northern America and brought along slaves, but ended up being the slaves brought to Northern America by other nations.

What I'm trying to say is... Of course you can point out how this alternative reality is historically unrealistic. But, it's kind of a moot point, considering the fact that the movie shows an ALTERNATIVE reality which kinda already implies that, and nobody would expect it to be historically congruent with our history in the first place.

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If there really is this wonderful "range" among blacks that there also is among whites, then why do so many blacks in America where their skin color first, and their nationality second? They turn themselves into a block with their own fire-and-brimstone rhetoric and god complex.

Blacks are just as bad as whites in terms of putting people into blocks. So don't come to me with this rhetoric of "you only think that because you are white" nonsense.

The Germans have a saying. The guy on the other side puts his pants on, one leg at a time, just like we do. They are just as prejudiced and racist as we are. The only difference is, they have fewer elected representatives.

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@PotassiumMan

FYI, it was WHITE people who created all these racist boxes that they shoved black people and anybody else who wasn't white. Black people didn't create these stupid-a$$ color catagories---white people did it in order to justify having enslaved us, deprive us of our rights, and even the right to be treated like human beings, up until the 1960's, which wasn't all that long ago. White folks started that s***, and obviously you're not American or you would know this already if you'd bothered to read American history. (Unfortunately, even some Americans are ignorant of American history, which is pathetic.)

You don't even know what the hell you're talking about--traditionally, we put our color first because we were never seen as anything BEYOND that and we lived in a country that didn't even regard us as human, even after the 300 damn hundred years of backbreaking free labor we gave to build it. So read up on history because you spout some nonsense about why black people do this and that. Why don't you actually FIND out WHY we do certain things as opposed to just making silly,uninformed assumptions about us, which is what most racists do. Black folks are prejudiced mainly because we had to endure the brunt of racism from white people and everybody else virtually from the first damn day we were brought here in chains. You make it sound like we just woke the hell up and decided to hate white folks for no damn reason whatsoever---give me a *beep* break. We were boxed into a corner by hate and racism FROM white people---yeah, some of us may be prejudiced, but the big difference is that white people ALWAYS had the law and power to back their racism up and inforce it and shove it down the throats of everybody else who wasn't white, just because they FELT like it, plain and damn simple. And, yeah, you only think this way because you as a white person, and being a part of the white majority, have the privilege and luxury OF thinking this way---racism will NEVER affect you the way it does me as a black person,so just STFU--seriously!

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>blacks in America where their skin color first, and their nationality second?

Because their nationalities and cultures were purposefully denied to them 400 years ago when they were shipped over here like so many other piece of cargo.

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[deleted]

To Potassium man

Careful, you sound like Hitler and you know what happened to him when he couldn't win. As for the African military strategy, you need to look up a powerful ancient African King named Hannibal who was ONE of many African Kings would had an undefeated army. His strategy is still practiced all over the world (especially Europe after he invaded Rome). And I won't forget to add that there is scientific proof that humanity and civilization began in Africa where all the peoples of the world share common cells. So, if it wasn't for people of color, YOUR dumb @$$ wouldn't even exist.

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