I know this is an older thread but am only just reading it and just wanted to pick up on something while i read.
<<<I think until white people like myself (at least 1/2 of me anyhow) have friends hanged in the middle of the night for the colour of thier skin, or awaken to burning crosses on thier front yards, or being told they can not sit on the bus, or drink from a fountian or even own thier own bodies...then we can understand what it is like to be a victim of racisim.>>>
There are some black people who have absolutely no experience of any of these things either. You cannot lump a whole race together, not all black people can understand racism either if they've never directly experienced it. Not like someone who has experienced it regardless of race. There will be white people, hispanic, chinese whatever who have more experience of racism than some black people. Race is irrelevant really.
And having this "history" doesn't mean they can be disrespectful. I've come across plenty of disrespectful black people who use history as an excuse to be disrespectful. Respect is a two way street and history is no excuse to be rude to others. Also not all black people have this history, just like not all white people have been blessed as you call it.
