While I think that both are foolish, I do believe that there is a difference.
Two months ago, I began sharing some of my thoughts about racism in my post Rascism : What a Stupid Idea. I plan on sharing a bit more with increased frequency, because unfortunately this is an issue that still persists around the world. It is the purpose of this post to define what I am talking about when I use the term "racism" and differentiate it from what I would call "tribalism."
While I think that both racism and tribalism are foolish mindsets for one to have, I do believe that there is a difference.
TECHNICAL DEFINITIONS
I will start by sharing the "technical definitions" of each word and then progress from there.
RACISM:
a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race
source
TRIBALISM:
tribal consciousness and loyalty; especially : exaltation of the tribe above other groups
source
While racism could be a type of tribalism, I believe that it is much more destructive and insidious. I will get into more about why I believe so in the next post, but want to share some examples of what I believe to be forms of tribalism, to illustrate the difference between it and racism.
TRIBALISM
While some people groups around the world do still exist as an actual tribe, I believe that tribalism manifests itself in many foolish ways.
It can be something as foolish as being from "the other side of the tracks" or the "wrong side of town." Certain gang mentalities can also play a role in this, but regardless of the root cause or main driving factor, I believe that this is a most foolish perspective to choose.
In situations like this, nothing else is really considered, so "race" doesn't come into play. For some foolish reason people just choose to hate the other people for something as foolish as what neighborhood they live in, or what side of town they are from.
Then, on their same side of town they fight among themselves by creating other tribal alliances. If someone is in another group, set, or gang, they are suddenly the enemy. It may simply be shown by wearing a different color or some other arbitrary sign. Personally, I think it is a terrible testimony to how lame we have become, when we are willing to fight against someone else for reasons like this.
Oh, do you like a different sports team than I do? Well, if "your team" beats "my team" I just might have to show you what's up! Somehow, people actually get carried away with stuff like that, even turning it into life and death situations.
I believe that tribalism is just another "divide and conquer" strategy to keep the "peons" fighting among themselves so they won't care what the elite upper crust is up to. After all, when the guy next door may shoot you on your way to the corner store, how much thought do you put into generational warfare slowly destroying the future of your children and grandchildren? Most likely, not much. After all, foolish tribalism and fighting with someone else who is essentially you will take up enough of your time and give you enough to deal with.
I'm not saying "the poor" need to fight "the rich" or anything like that, only that some people have managed to put themselves in far more control than others, and they frequently take calculated steps to make sure that they maintain that power. Part of this includes thinking way into the future, even generations. When many people only think about today, tomorrow, or the weekend, they are often too nearsighted to really even grasp things beyond that, which immediately sets them at a disadvantage, and tribalism is just another tactic employed to encourage such nearsightedness.
RACISM
As I mentioned earlier, racism can be seen as a type of tribalism, but I think that the real issue with racism goes much deeper than many even realize anymore. Just like the foolish forms of tribalism I mentioned above, racism can lead to a lot of hatred, violence, and even murder... if not genocide.
While many people these days are against racism, I believe that few people really understand a lot of the modern root causes for this mindset. Also, I think that many who are against racism actually believe in a lot of things that, if driven to their logical conclusions, are in fact racist.
I know that sounds kind of harsh, but I do believe it to be true. I think that racism may just be the tip of an iceberg in our modern societies, and I would rather attempt to pull that particular weed out by the roots, and destroy the foundation, rather than just fight against a symptom of the actual problem.
Feel free to share any of your thoughts so far, or you can check out my previous post by clicking the link below.
Until next time…
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