Poll: Is it okay to pardon racism from a very old person?

[Jandau]

I understand why people do it, but no, I don't think it should be acceptable. Old people can and should adapt to the changing times. Personally, I plan on living for a LONG time. If I die before 100 I'll consider it a personal failure. If I'm lucky, I might live to see medical treatments that will extend human life way beyond 100 years of age, perhaps even eliminate aging. If I expect to live that long, I have to be able to adapt to the changing world and not live in my own little time bubble expecting everyone to tolerate me...

 

[Ekit]

I think racism is okay overall, so...

 

[x EvilErmine x]

No it isn't, and I know I'm making assumptions here but i would bet that all of you saying that it's pardonable or there is nothing wrong with it are white.

These things have all happened to me:

- I worked in an rather large and high profile shop who's customer bases is the older generation mainly. I was working in the food department. An elderly couple came in and came to my till, where upon i herd the older man say to his parter 'Make sure you check the change, that darky looks suspicious'.

- My ex lived in a rather small street with limited parking, she had no car so i always parked in the space outside her house, however when she first moved in and i was helping her a elderly lady came out of the house opposite to tell me that i couldn't park there as that was her space, even though her car was parked across the road outside her house. When i pointed this out and the fact that the space was outside my gilfriends house anyway so it did not belong to her in the first place I was admonished for being a 'Guest in her city' and that 'I should show more respect to my betters or she would get her son to come round beat me up'

I'd give more examples but it's getting me angry just thinking about them so I'm going to stop here, but i changeling anyone to defend the actions of the people i mentioned above. Racism is fucking reprehensible from anyone, old or young and people need to just pack it in.

 

[bluepilot]

Old people have to learn to get along with a variety of people...after all, you will not find many white English speaking people in the nursing homes these days.

The old people I interact with are very racist on one hand but tolerant on the other. They are from a different era, the kind of era where political correctness did not exist and they could use words which would be considered offensive by today's standards.

I know some old people who will still use words like "*****" and "Darky" to refer to certain races, but also would welcome the same person into their home and cook them a nice meal. I do not think that this is racism, but rather a difference in moral standards. In other words, they would accept someone as a human being first, and their race as an add-on. In modern times it is the opposite, the race comes first and then the person. A lot of young people may not use the same offensive language as older people, but then would also fail to show the same level as hospitality. Different times bring different expectations in behaviour.

Words change too frequently, when I was in school in the 90s, the term "Black Person" was offensive and the term "coloured" preferred. This has now switched back. Perhaps when I get old and try to say, "xxx has a large community of Black people", my Grandchildren will turn around a say, "Grandma, I cannot believe you said that, the correct term is "person of a non-white persuasion"" or something like that.

 

[GonvilleBromhead]

I always wonder about the reverse. If society was to have a massive change, and racism was to become the norm once again when we are all dribbling into bowls...would you become a racist?

After all, the only reason why we consider racism is wrong is large on account of a society telling us it is wrong.

 

[The Unworthy Gentleman]

What I'm trying to get at is that, while I don't think old people should get away with being racist simply because their old, I also think that young people should keep in mind that these people are old, and they did grow up in a different kind of world, and that it's hard to change things that have remained with you your whole life.

I think it should be expected that they know what is right and what is wrong in the world they live in, rather than let them blame it on a time gone by. There are plenty of elderly people that aren't racist because they recognised it was wrong then, to let something as wrong as racism slip because they're old and it was accepted back then is idiotic, they were bigots then and are bigots now, nothing more.

To excuse racism is to condone it, you can't just let it slide so simply.

 

[FantasticMrLP]

While I don't think it's okay for someone who is old to be racist, there is really nothing we can do to change them. The younger mind set(believe it or not) is more open to new ideas,(thats why kids go to school to learn) as such they are not likley to get stuck in their ways and get narrow minded opinions. It isn't until they are older that they tend to stick to their opinions and almost never budge.

My father is an unashamed racist, sexist, and a homophobic. He states these opinions openly to other members of his family, even though it only pushes them farther away. He knows his opinion is the minority now, but he's so opinionated and stubborn that he would rather die alone, hated, and angry than try to live a good life.

To reiterate my point. Old people who are racist is bad, but we can only wait until they die.

 

[blackrave]

no, but it's kind of hard to get old people to change their views. Don't bother, wait for them to die.

^this

Just smile and wave your head, soon it will be funeral time anyway :/

 

[JDLY]

What I'm trying to get at is that, while I don't think old people should get away with being racist simply because their old, I also think that young people should keep in mind that these people are old, and they did grow up in a different kind of world, and that it's hard to change things that have remained with you your whole life.

I think it should be expected that they know what is right and what is wrong in the world they live in, rather than let them blame it on a time gone by. There are plenty of elderly people that aren't racist because they recognised it was wrong then, to let something as wrong as racism slip because they're old and it was accepted back then is idiotic, they were bigots then and are bigots now, nothing more.

To excuse racism is to condone it, you can't just let it slide so simply.

What I was trying to get at wasn't that you should excuse them, it was that you should understand where they're coming from.

While they say that wisdom and knowledge come with age, so does stubbornness. As I said, it's completely possible for an elderly person to change their world view and understand that racism is wrong. However, for some, not all but some, it might not be so easy. Some latch onto their antiquated world views because they have had those views their whole life, in some cases that's the only thing that's been stable their whole life.

Now I'm sure we both agree that latching onto these antiquated views can have consequences, the obvious one being racism. But understanding the problem better means you are better prepared to deal with it. You can then attempt to speak with them to try and get them to "update" their views, and in the process deal with the racism.

TLR: Don't excuse them, but understand them. And once you understand them, you're better prepared to deal with the problem.