Chapter 86 Black person.Whites and Indians

Values ​​from culture and class, like air, are imperceptible but the driving force behind behavior. In 1955, a young black man traveled from a big city in the north of the United States to a small town in the south. As a result, he was beaten to death by a group of white men because he whistled at a white woman in the street. This is certainly a tragic example of racism, but this white man probably died without understanding that his actions could be serious enough to be beaten to death.Although he was born in the United States as a black man, he can feel the situation of being discriminated against, but he grew up in a big city in the north, where the racial boundaries are not so obvious, and whistling to a beautiful white girl is nothing, the big city in the north His values ​​allow him to do so.But the small town in the south still has the value norms of the southern towns. The innocuous behavior in the north has become careless in the south. Although this black man died of racial discrimination, it can also be said that he died of the invisible value norms.

An American Indian child may walk through the wilderness without leaving a trace, and after he has gone through the wilderness remains the same, it is difficult to know for sure if someone has just walked through it, but a white child does not. Similarly, he either kicked stones, or picked flowers and folded leaves, leaving a lot of marks. Indians and whites have different values. Indians identify with nature and consider themselves a part of nature. They adopt a harmonious and cooperative attitude with nature.In the white man's values, nature is regarded as an object to be conquered, and leaving a mark on this world is one of the goals of their life.Two different values ​​govern the behavior of a Native American child and a white child walking across the wilderness.

Values ​​from culture, race, class, and family are like air. Although we are often not aware of their existence, they are one of the driving forces that guide our behavior.