The Racial Conversations in Society

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Table of Contents

Difficulties of Racial Talk
White and Black Racial Talk
Race Conversations and Change in Behaviors
Value of Race Conversations
Personal Resonation with the Values
Managerial Challenges and Opportunities Discussed
References

Difficulties of Racial Talk

Like many people, I find it difficult to talk about race. Talking about race feels dangerous because I have to be careful with what I say to avoid offending anyone. Having such a conversation may reveal me as a racist, especially if my opinion differs from that of people of other races. Furthermore, a slip of the tongue, a verbal blunder, or an honest opinion that differs from the contemporary group may make me seem less enlightened than I believe. According to Marable (2020), people may be unconscious of various biases. Not knowing some of my racial biases make me afraid of engaging in a conversation that could reveal them. Therefore, although I have friends from other races, I prefer to wait for them to open such conversations, then I can join.

In the modern fraternity, where people are willing to call out those racial differences publicly, it is a slippery path to engage in racial conversations. Lack of sufficient knowledge about thinking perspectives or mindsets of various cultures also slows me down. Younger generations of different races have outgrown some traditional thoughts in several aspects. Consequently, I might start talking to a certain group basing my perspective on an older theory and end up upsetting their emotions. In other words, I am reluctant to have race talk because I do not want to be misunderstood.

White and Black Racial Talk

I share the experience that compared to black people, white people find it more difficult to talk about race to avoid misconceptions. White people are always on the receiving end of racist experiences because most black people who have not lived with white people assume that all Caucasians are racists. Being from the majority race makes it more difficult to talk about racial differences to prevent possible discomfort. According to Marable (2020), black people are more likely to find them offensive and insensitive when a white person talks about race. The professors mention that a white person is often viewed as a representation of the whole race. Therefore, whether or not they are familiar with the black culture and know how to have such conversations, they are afraid of being attacked as a race representative.

Black people are often open to racial conversations because they mostly defend their rights. Black people, as a minority group, are not sufficiently represented in the country. Consequently, the black community frequently needs to talk about inclusion and consideration. Study shows that while black people feel like the target of racial injustices, whites feel that all races are often treated the same (Marable, 2020). Henceforth, black people feel comfortable discussing race experiences because they can relate to racial differences. White people, on the other hand, may lack the experience of racial mistreatment. They then do not find the need to talk or think about the differences.

Race Conversations and Change in Behaviors

I believe that, to some point, honest and open conversations change people’s behaviors. In the United States, comedy platforms are more likely to openly and honestly discuss racial differences. Comedians mention racial differences, misconceptions, and myths about different groups. They praise, condone, and persecute behaviors of various cultures in a funny way that do not feel like an attack. Through such conversations, the diverse audience understands the thinking groups of different cultures. People identify and accept their biases and simultaneously learn how to deal with them. Furthermore, people understand misconceptions about different races and change their behaviors to accommodate them. Most people want to converse and interact with others without offending them. Therefore, they will likely change their behaviors upon learning racial triggers to maintain peace.

Speaking about behavior change, Mulvey and Richards agree that honest and open race conversations change people’s behaviors. However, Richard adds that it is impossible to count how much behavior changes (WPSU, 2011). Honest and open conversations about race make as many changes as a sociology class would. The professors say that understanding different thinking groups help people to be more accommodative (WPSU, 2011). They slowly grow past the fears of biases and tough conversations they might not have had before. In other words, such conversations transform people’s lives through interactions by not making them so awkward.

Value of Race Conversations

Richard and Mulvey make three observable race conversation changes, including new friendships, job opportunities, and racial facilitation. Mulvey mentions that one way behaviors change is that people make friends across races, thus changing the whole community (WPSU, 2011). According to Ross and Woodley (2020), mutual cultural understanding has increased interracial marriages between Americans. Today, more black and white people can overcome their racial differences and get married. By forming a family, they increase racial conversations and reduce cultural differences. Furthermore, creating a mixed-race community helps reduce prejudices and discrimination.

Another observation is that behavior change allows people to take job opportunities that are believed to belong to one specific race. For example, blacks are now becoming police officers despite jobs being assumed suitable for whites. It was difficult for a black person to become a law enforcement officer in the past. Following slave history, becoming a police officer felt like betraying the black community. However, honest and open conversations about racial discrimination have allowed black to grow past such fear. The black people have learned to stand for their rights, including law enforcers. The third value is that people of different races also begin to facilitate other races and have difficult dialogues they might not have had without such enlightenment (WPSU, 2011). They can have race-based conversations without feeling attacked or defensive. Furthermore, people of different races learn to allow others to discuss racial injustices and discrimination without fear openly.

Personal Resonation with the Values

I significantly resonate with making new friends and taking diverse job opportunities. Growing up in a mixed-race neighborhood and attending schools with the same diversity, I have made many friends. Growing up, I realized that my parents were comfortable with people from other races and were open about racial differences. I have diverse friends, including Asians, Indians, Latinos, and Blacks. These friendships have enabled me to understand my biases and clear misconceptions of various cultures. That way, I have grown more understanding of my friends’ behaviors and reasoning. I also have a personal experience with race behavior changes from my career view.

I have witnessed more black people pursue psychology-related careers and seek psychological help. According to Felder (2021), most black people are reluctant to seek psychological help because they do not believe therapy solves mental issues. They are equally not fast at pursuing psychological-related careers and job opportunities. However, many black university students have addressed the gap in seeking mental help. Most of these students have also decided to pursue mental-related careers and jobs. Indeed, I have seen more black students become psychologists and succeed. Therefore, having honest and open race conversations, especially in the university, changes students’ behaviors and who they become in the future.

Managerial Challenges and Opportunities Discussed

One of the discussed managerial challenges is racial communication issues among whites. White people experience communication difficulties talking about race matters because they feel guilty. They carry guilt and fear of being known as racists and may not be willing to start such a conversation. From a managerial perspective, it could be challenging if the management lacks cultural diversity competence (van Knippenberg et al., 2020). Managers must have the diverse cultural knowledge to communicate and accommodate all business stakeholders. Therefore, having honest and open conversations could help people like the whites to solve their communication issues and bridge the gap of cultural diversity competence.

Cultural misunderstanding based on race misconceptions is another managerial challenge discussed. People of color that have not lived with whites assume that all whites are racists. Such misunderstandings also exist in organizations, and people of color often feel like they are targets for discrimination (van Knippenberg et al., 2020). There is also the belief that white people do not think other whites are racists. Most black people believe that white people do not consider their peers racists. On the contrary, some white people identify and confront racism among themselves. Honest and open race conversations again pose the opportunity to eliminate such cultural misconceptions. Through such conversations, people from different cultures become friends and more accommodating. Clearing such beliefs also help people to facilitate or tolerate thinking groups and behaviors of other races.

References

Felder, R. M. (2021). Coming to terms with the black box problem: How to justify AI systems in health care. Hastings Center Report, 51(4), 38-45. Web.

Marable, M. (2020). Reconciling race and reality. In E. E. Dennis (Ed), The media in black and white (pp. 11-17). Routledge.

Ross, C. L., & Woodley, X. M. (2020). Black-White identity development: Understanding the impact of personal and collective racial identity factors on interracial marriages. Journal of Couple & Relationship Therapy, 19(1), 26-50. Web.

van Knippenberg, D., Nishii, L. H., & Dwertmann, D. J. (2020). Synergy from diversity: Managing team diversity to enhance performance. Behavioral Science & Policy, 6(1), 75-92. Web.

WPSU. (2011). Sam Richards and Laurie Mulvey: World in conversation – conversations from Penn State [Video]. YouTube. Web.

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