For those who don’t know, I am most definitely addicted to Twitter. I’ve got over 3300 followers and I tweet several times daily. If you’re not familiar with this particular social network, let me explain a couple of things. Most tweets are public, but people do have the option of making their stream of tweets private. Twitter allows sitewide searches of public tweets.
I have a program called TweetDeck which allows me to have several columns open with various data pulled from Twitter. One of them lists search results for four terms: interracial, diversity, multicultural, and biracial. I use this column to find individuals to connect with as we grow our Interracial Family Organization name in social media. Tonight, I saw a tweet pop up that said: “Call me a hater but interracial relationships piss me the **** off.” So, on my personal Twitter account, I decided to respond. Since she asked the general public to call her a hater, I felt obliged to do so.
As a sidenote so that you understand what you are reading, each image is a tweet. The tweets that include “@karennduh” are directed at the person who made the comment about interracial couples. Tweets that include “@katjrobertson” are directed at me. Tweets that do NOT include “@” with a name after it indicate a general statement which is not directed toward anyone in particular.
This is how the conversation went:
I’m sure everyone is thinking what I asked myself after I stopped responding: “Why?” lol I really don’t know why I even let things like that annoy me or why I even engaged in that conversation, but sometimes I honestly can’t help it. I get sick and tired of hearing statements like that. Interracial couples piss you off? Just by EXISTING?? That is ludicrous. This is sad on multiple levels… the first being that this is a young lady (and I use the term “lady” VERY loosely) that I would estimate to be somewhere between 18 and 20 years old. I don’t KNOW that for sure, but I’m guessing by the way she acts, and the fact that other people on her Twitter list are in that age range. This is the generation coming up behind us… and it is pathetic.
I won’t get into how disgusted I am that this otherwise pretty young woman has such a nasty personality and how blatantly her mannerisms reflect a horrible lack of self respect, but just the realization that there are so many people who feel the same way… that interracial families consist of individuals who are weak, aren’t doing anything productive with themselves… that our children are useless, etc. What disappoints me even more is that I noticed at the beginning she was actually tweeting with a biracial teenager who laughed it off and said something to the effect of, “Oh well then you must really hate me then,” to which this girl replied:
Seriously, people… I know you can’t talk ignorance out of a person but that doesn’t stop me from wishing there were some way to get through to people so that they understood how stupid this is. What difference does it make who ANYONE is with?
“Ain’t yo daddy kkk?”
I just don’t even know how to respond to that except to be highly frustrated knowing that after all of these years… after all the movements for civil rights for everyone… after all the strides so many people have made to ensure integration, get us closer to equality, and remove laws restricting interracial marriages, we still haven’t moved all that much in the minds of people like this – the same tired mentalities that ran rampant in prior generations are raising the generations that are coming up now and while it may seem better on the surface, the prejudice is still alive and well.
oh wow, I don’t know how you did that I would have had to go to the hospital with high blood pressure. I totally agree with you on so many levels. Being with a native man I have always got slack for it too. But yeah this young lady needs to grow up. Great post Kat
Thanks Lisa :) It’s unfortunate that people still feel this way, but after all is said and done there really isn’t anything we can do to change someone’s mind. Some people are content in their own hate.
She wasn’t even trying to make any sense.
I can’t believe you called her a chicken head…rofl
That really got her riled up.
hehe :) Yeah, I probably shouldn’t have done that, but hindsight is 20/20. I don’t maintain that I handled the situation 100% correctly … but I can’t say I didn’t enjoy calling her that LOL She’s an idiot.
This just shows how stupid and ignorant some people can be… It is sad to think that these are who we are leaving the future up to. Tsk tsk It’s definitely time for change.
I agree. It’s totally time for a change. I’m still baffled about how interracial couples just BEING together can “piss” someone off. How can it possibly be that serious??
She obviously doesn’t know her head from her a$$. An intelligent conversation is one thing, but she doesn’t seem to exhibit any intelligence.
After all these years, you are right. But I guess some people just want to keep themselves down. Gives them something to bitch about anyway.
it amazes me that all she could resort to was calling you fat and ugly and in very vulgar ways. For those types of people their options don’t even matter because in reality they don’t have one.
people resort to physical attributes when they dont have something real to say. “you’re just ugly”
Well, i can fix ugly but you cant fix ignorance.
I was laughing SO hard when she came out with that one. Ugly? What is this, 3rd grade?? And furthermore, I am FAR from ugly :) hehe
wow. you would think by the year 2010 people would be a little more TOLERANT of skin colour and other ridiculousness. I seriously rolled my eyes at her. WTH. She needs to grow up!
What is that phrase? “Beauty fades, dumb is forever”? How the hell do people in this day and age, with a bi-racial POTUS act like this? She’s black and what? She thinks the black race needs to stay pure or something? That’s just as bad as those dumba$$ white supremicists wanting to keep the white race pure.
God made us all the same. We all bleed the same. The only difference between the races is that some people tan easier than others. Good Lord! This is NOT what Dr. King wanted for this world.
Ignorance IS NOT bliss. It’s annoying to those of us who know that we should be ONE race…the HUMAN RACE.
Yeah, definitely very ignorant. That’s too bad that she acts the way she does. That kind of attitude is NOT going to get her far in life.
Still, you have to pick your battles. Her ignorance was apparent from the first tweet and, having pointed that out with the reply, you should have stopped.
Hard to let a discussion go, I know. #potkettleblack
I hear you … really, I do. lol However, in this case that actually WAS me “refraining” as much as possible. I’m pretty passionate about my family and that really had my blood boiling. I admit that it didn’t do much good to engage her, but sometimes things just are what they are. I probably should have thought more about it before responding but I didn’t. lol You’re right though… but that certainly was easier said than done! haha
LOLOLOLOLOLLOL!
Wait.. didn’t you tell me not to let those internet convos get to me?
It does make me sad. She makes me sad for her.
Kat, you’re the greatest. I am glad you are on my team!
it’s sooooooo hard not to get sucked in!!! Ya’ll know I’m always getting into some kind of debate online….
WOW! And the best thing is that she is calling YOU ignorant. I have never read anything more ignorant than her twitter stream. WOW!
I don’t know…5-10 years from now she might find love with a white or asian or some other non-black man & see the ignorance of her youth.
I would not have believed it if I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes… So sad that we are in the 21st century and some still want to take us back to a place in time where we refuse to go again…
Wow, just wow. I mant to comment on this he first time I read this but you know how eaily distracted I am. LOL
It’s shameful how some minority women react to interracial issue and families. But I think reactions like this has more to do with their internal issue then anything IR families can ever do. Her wrong assumption on your racial background clearly shows not only her ignorance but also her insecurities. Keep your head up and continue providing a voice and presence online!