A deeper examination of the sheer joy of Oklahoma students chanting about hanging n*gg*rs from trees
Racism is like money. It changes hands. It shape-shifts and finds itself a new carrier, a new account, a new way to express itself in changing times, but it never actually disappears. Suppressed racism is no less real than money in a savings account, but rest assured, suppressed racism always has a way of telling on itself—sometimes in the most despicable, hurtful, and shocking ways.
let me clear—racism is dangerous. It’s not funny. It’s not just words. It’s not kids being kids. It’s not playful. This is shit is real and it’s dangerous.
Racism is the fundamental dehumanization of an entire ethnic group. This dehumanization has consequences. When college students on a bus chant about not letting n*gg*rs into their fraternity, but instead “hanging them from trees” it not only reveals the heart of those singing it, it gives us a real clue into how easy and even joyful it is for them to imagine lynching.
Too many take great joy in causing pain and terror. To them, murder is just another form of entertainment. There is a sociopathic/psychopathic lack of empathy for anyone they choose to dehumanize. Once dehumanized, the “other” is then nothing more than a plaything.