Responses to Bell's Rules of Racial Standing
Published September 10, 2003
I've recently been doing some thinking and writing about legal theorist Derrick Bell's Rules of Racial Standing. Mike Bowen of Cobb the Blog swears by them as a roadmap to how uppity, i.e., smart, black people will be treated if they say or do anything that can be interpreted as challenging white supremacy. So far, I agree with him.
The Rules of Racial Standing
FIRST RULE
The law grants litigants standing to come into court based on their having sufficient personal interest and involvement in the issue to justify judicial congnizance. Black people (while they may be able to get into court) are denied such standing legitimacy in the world generally when they discuss their negative experiences with racism or even when they attempt to give a positive evaluation of another black person or of his work. No matter what their experience or expertise, blacks' statements involving race are deemed 'special pleading' and thus not entitled to serious consideration.SECOND RULE
Not only are blacks' complaints discounted, but black victims of racism are less effective witnesses than are whites, who are members of the oppressor class. This phenomenon reflects a widespread assumption that blacks, unlike whites, cannot be objective on racial issues and will favor their own no matter what. This deep seated belief fuels a continuing effort - despite all manner of Supreme Court decisions intended to curb the practice - to keep black people off juries in cases involving race. Black judges hearing racial cases are eyed suspiciously and sometimes asked to recuse themselves in favor of a white judge - without those making the request even being aware of the paradox in their motions.THIRD RULE
Few blacks avoid diminishment of racial standing, most of their statements abot racial condidtions being diluted and their recommendations of other blacks taken with a grain of salt. The ususal exception to this rule is the black person who publicly disparages or criticizes other blacks who are speaking or acting in ways that upset whites. Instantly, such statements are granted 'enhanced standing' even when the speaker has no special expertise or experience in the subject he or she is criticizing.FOURTH RULE
When a black person or group makes a statement or takes an action that the white community or vocal components thereof deem "outrageous," the latter will actively recruit blacks willing to refute the statement or condemn the action. Blacks who respond to the call to condemnation will receive superstanding status. The blacks who refuse to be recruited will be interpreted as endorsing the statements and action and may suffer political or economic reprisals.
- Responses to Bell's Rules of Racial Standing
- Published: September 10, 2003
- Type:
- Section: Politics
- Writer: Mac Diva
- Mac Diva's BC Writer page
- Mac Diva's personal site
- Spread the Word
- Like this article?
- Email this
Save to del.icio.us
Comments on this articleComments
Jim, according to Dictionary.com, a Nubian is a native or inhabitant of Nubia, in Eastern Africa. The common usage refers more generally to people with darker skin, as in "my Nubian queen".
Why should I write something when Unca Lou has already done it for me:
I wanna be black, have natural rhythm
Shoot twenty foot of jism too
and fuck up the jews
I wanna be black, I wanna be a panther
Have a girlfriend named Samantha
and have a stable of foxy whores
Oh, oh, I wanna be black
I don't wanna be a fucked up
middle class college student anymore
I just wanna have a stable of
foxy little whores
Yeah, yeah, I wanna be black
Oh, oh, I wanna be black
Yeah, yeah, I wanna be black
I wanna be black, wanna be like Martin Luther King
And get myself shot in the spring
And lead a whole generation, too
and fuck up the jews
I wanna be black, I wanna be like Malcolm X
And cast a hex
over President Kennedy's tomb
and have a big prick, too
Oh, I don't wanna be a fucked up
middle class college student no more
Yeah, I just wanna have a
stable of foxy little whores
Yeah, yeah, I wanna be black
I wanna be black
I wanna be black
I wanna be black
I wanna be black
yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, I wanna be black
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, I wanna be black
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, I wanna be black
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
(Yeah, yeah, I wanna be black, oh, oh)
(Yeah, yeah, I wanna be black, oh, oh)
(Yeah, yeah, I wanna be black, oh, oh)
(Yeah, yeah, I wanna be black, oh, oh)
dude, he's laughing at you, not with you.
But, but, she didn't explain about the nubians, and how all of Riverdale is gay:
Archie, alright! Archie and the
Riverdale gang were a pure and fun-
lovin' bunch. You can't find
dysfunction in those comics, because
they were just flat out wholesome.
HOOPER
Archie and Jughead were lovers.
(sips his drink)
BANKY
Shut the fuck up.
HOOPER
It's true. Archie was the bitch and
Jughead was the butch - that's why
Jughead wears that crown-looking hat
all the time: he the king, of queen
Archie's world.
BANKY
Man, I feel a hate-crime coming on
HOLDEN
He's got a point. Archie never did
settle on Betty or Veronica.
BANKY
Because he wanted them both at the
same time, you assholes! He never
chose one because he was trying to get
both of them into a three-way!
HOOPER
(pulls out a dollar and hands
it to Banky)
Here. I want you to go down to the
corner store and buy yourself a clue.
Go on.
BANKY
Eat it. Urkel.
HOOPER
I told you to watch it with that Urkel
shit. Face it, girl - Archie's a
sister.
BANKY
(getting up; to Hooper)
That's it. You.
HOOPER
Moi?
BANKY
You are marching back across the
street with me, and we're going to
pick up a shit load of Archie books, I
am going to prove to you - beyond the
shadow of a doubt that Archie was all
about pussy. Come on.
HOOPER
(sliding out of booth)
This boy is conflicted, I shall play
mother-therapist for him. You two sit
tight. We shall return promptly.
Banky and Hooper exit, leaving Alyssa and Holden alone at
the table.
Jim, I'm just posting so it won't look like you're arguing with yourself. You're welcome. ;)
But I like argueing with myself.
Shutup!
No, _you_ shutup!
Afterall, if we are going to make up arbitrary rules which have no relevance to the rest of the world, we can have a debate with ourselves.
Or at least laugh at people who believe their own propaganda.
I told you, shutup!
No, _you_ shutup.
With a readership of two, Marse Jim doesn't have much choice about talking to himself.
I told you she'd find out about our test software forums.
Shutup!
No, you shutup, because we have to obey arbitrary rules from the USAians. Otherwise they will send their guns and lawyers over here to sue us for all of our money.
Shutup!
No, I'm telling you, with their war machine going full blast, we are going to be up to our areseholes with academic arseholes fleeing the draft just like they did in the 60s. It's going to be all sorts of useless twats who think because they made a bullshit career in acedemia based on racial politics in the States, they can do the same three card monte here in the dominion of peace, prosperity and good government.
Shutup!
Seriously, tell these assholes at the border to just turn back, their bullshit won't work here.
Geezus, jumped up christ, you're just going to get her all pissed off that the rest of world matters! Just keep quiet!
No, I want to tell these buggers from the States they can't just yell and make everybody afraid. Arseholes, yes, I said arseholes. Who do they think they are?
Well, they are the USAian war machine.
NO, they aren't. They are a bunch of sookie-calf arsehole sucks, who won't be so tough when their guns are taken away from them at the border.
But what happens when you run into them into Asia or South America?
They'll be too busy shitting their pants and saying how they aren't from the States to be any bother, don't worry.
That's easy for you to say.
Trust me, too busy shitting their pants or asking for refugee status.
I told you Shut-the-geezly-up
No, I've had it with these USAians who think they can preach in other countries what they can't practise at home. They swan up here with their airs and whatnot, get married, and then go back to the States as though we just had to be grateful for their soon to be de-valued dollar. They come up for the Caribana, and then just pretend what happened, never happened.
Oh, you don't think I remember when the US dollar was worth eighty cents?
Shutup! You'll just make them feel like the rest of the world percieves them, and then they'll just get sulky, and we don't like that 'cause they'll piss in the corner.
Oh, they won't do that, they still have _some_ class, don't they?
Let the country without sin cast the first stone, buddy! ;)
The facts is that White Males are shown extreme favoritism in court.
I single-handedly stood up for my rights against impossible Odds-6 against 1. 2 Racist Judges, 3 attorneys and my former partner. Those Cowards all joined together and used their WMP and enjoyed beating this defensless Black woman down with pure Racist acts. I felt like a Slave on the auction Block.
Are their any White males or Green males or Black males or Purple males willing to take a stand against 'Hate Crimes Behind Black Robes'? Is there anyone out there willing to transfer to me some power to believe in myself and my right to continue to fight for a fair hearing and trial? Most people do not realize how horribly Black women are discriminated against in court by White superior Court Judges, especially when your opponent is their White counterpart, cousin, brother, uncle, son. ( Do a google search, it will blow your mind )
2 White Judges in Oakland , CA actually helped my former White male partner defraud me of 11 years of assets we built together ($4.5 mill). But the worst part was the humiliation, denial of my constitutional rights and civil rights that wore me down to an emotional cripple, after being assaulted by my former partner.The problem is that the Judges bullied me and frightened me so by putting me in jail (I filed a challenge for bias against the judge- contempt misrepresenting the court)that I have not gained my strength back yet.The Judges ordered me to turn over my vehicle, my ( 11 years of:) evidence to prove my case at trial, denied my right to an attorney, evicted me from my own home, allowed my former partner to have possession of my home to take the rest of my evidence and all of my personal belongings, sanctioned me with thousands of dollars in illegal judgements, placed a mutual restraining order against me, verbally abused me.
They actauuly dismissed my case due to terminating sanctions re: a deposition, yet his attorney as an officer of the court abused the rules, totally diregarded the law. They never made my opponent take the witness stand, but forced me on the stand two times, the Judges automatically believed every word he said, never making him provide proof. I can go on and on and it does get worse. I was the plaintiff, I was a victim of domestic abuse. If you can help me stop being so scared maybe I can move forward. You would never believe I use to be a real powerful woman, but just like in the Slave days Those Judges wore me down with abuse, severe and illegal punishments, sanctions finanically devestated. I just filed a complaint for conversion just to get my furniture back and my personal belongings and would like to file a suit for fraud, but I need to stand up for myself. There is actaully a group that has 2,500 signatures to remove Judge JaMES A. Richman from the Law and Motions Dept at the Alameda County Superior Court, but everyone is sort of afraid to stand up to have him removed, at least investigated. He knows nothing can take him down, so he continues to bully and abuse defenseless little peopl that have no power. Thanks for reading. I feel like I am going to cry now. Woseju
Add your comment, speak your mind
(Or ping: http://blogcritics.org/mt/tb/8251)
{hand up}
"I have a question: what's a nubian?"