The Delusion of Race and Ethnicity: Get Over Yourself

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AlphaLogica157's picture
The Delusion of Race and Ethnicity: Get Over Yourself

I often am perplexed by this trend of infusing one's race or ethnicity into one's identity, from people who are clearly intelligent and well informed enough that they ought to know better. After the advent of Biology, or more specifically Genetics, any such notion of racial diversity among humans was found to be nothing more than a delusion passed down from a time when Biology and Genetics did not exist. The ideology of Race, or that humans can be divided into five distinct groups, is product of the belief in the great chain of being, that God created every animal and human each according to their own kind. This idea was spread throughout the world via colonialism, where they sought to justify passing laws to discriminate against indigenous groups. They created a scale where 'Whites' are the most human all the way down to 'blacks' who are the least human.
Now in 2016 we KNOW that this is total bullshit, yet to this day I still hear of groups of people who strongly identify with their non-existent race. I always thought that, while racial diversity was bullshit, at least the concept of ethnicity had some validity, but upon examining the definition of ethnicity it was quickly revealed to me that it is really on par with race itself as collective delusion.

Ethnicity is defined as:
the fact or state of belonging to a social group that has a common national or cultural tradition.

Now according to this definition it stands to reason that ALL human beings are of same ethnic group. Because no matter where or when you live, your culture is a product of culture of the past, which is itself a product of culture of the past and so on and so on. It is only when one draws an arbitrary line of division in a historical time line do we have a 'fixed' ethnic group. Using myself as an example, my 'ethnicity' is Italian, because my ancestors immigrated(or is it migrated?) to America from there, but before Italy they immigrated from Spain, so then I am Spanish, but before that they immigrated from Asia Minor, so I'm Asain, but before that they immigrated from Africa, so I'm African. While this is not an exact timeline my point stands. But why do this at all, on what grounds can one justify drawing a line of division, 100 years back, or 500 years back, 10,00 years back? And remember, it's not one specific group or nationality that holds this delusion, but EVERYONE, all over the world.

The only answer I can come up with, as to why the collective delusion of both racial diversity and ethnic diversity persists, is simply for the fact that we as humans seek to be unique among a mass population while at the same time want to belong to some tribe for some sense of a shared experience. In my opinion, nationalism is simply tribalism wrote large, because nationalism teaches a man to be proud of things he never achived, and to hate a person he has never met.

I believe that until we as a species, break off our chains of the past, and drop any such notion of racial diversity, or ethnic diversity, bad ideas like racism, tribalism, jingoism, nationalism, all of which are different expressions of prejudice, will never go away. People will continue to practice segregation, either of the self or on others, and true unity will never be achieved.

I want to write a book on this line of reasoning but first would like some feed back if it even holds enough weight to stand in its own. So you agree/ disagree please let me know.

Thank you for your time.
-AlphaLogica

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Deforres's picture
"True Unity"
AlphaLogica157's picture
"Odd of you to say that,
Deforres's picture
"there is only one race, homo
AlphaLogica157's picture
Ah, I see my mistake. Thank
Deforres's picture
I'm currently trying to brute
AlphaLogica157's picture
I look foward to your
Deforres's picture
After reading the letter, I
AlphaLogica157's picture
What matters are there
Deforres's picture
For one, what exactly do you
AlphaLogica157's picture
Ok. I agree when you said
Deforres's picture
Culture is still a very
AlphaLogica157's picture
So after googling the
Deforres's picture
You would be correct. I never
AlphaLogica157's picture
I hear where you are coming
Deforres's picture
But, if looked at from the
AlphaLogica157's picture
I disagree but only insofar
Deforres's picture
As a matter of fact, yes.
AlphaLogica157's picture
Agreed. I will have to look
Deforres's picture
I don't know about you, but
mykcob4's picture
I disagree based on the fact
AlphaLogica157's picture
This repeated habbit you have
mykcob4's picture
The original post is a
AlphaLogica157's picture
"The original post is a
mykcob4's picture
Claiming we are all one race
Deforres's picture
"Claiming we are all one race
AlphaLogica157's picture
I appreciate your assistance
Deforres's picture
hu·man
AlphaLogica157's picture
I appreciate your posting of
Deforres's picture
Or, if your going to make an
AlphaLogica157's picture
Which in your opinion is more

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