Since it is relevant, I am 40 years old and black. I have a very large extended family and pretty much all of my cousins have drunk the "racism is everywhere" kool-aid and especially this past year. I have gotten into plenty of arguments with them and I finally realized it was just pointless. As well as with some friends. I think I have gone over police statistics, actual crime stats, and the world history of slavery so many times that I talk about it in my sleep but it is pointless. One of my cousins was talking about reparations and got mad when I asked him if he was going to hold the African leaders who sold our ancestors to the Europeans accountable or if he is so anti-slavery why doesn't he donate to organizations who fight modern day slavery instead of obsessing over slavery that ended over 150 years ago.

A white friend of mine has turned super woke since George Floyd and he got really pissed when I told him that he was so brave to condemn racism and thanked him because I didn't realize I was oppressed until I read his facebook posts. He then told me that he couldn't believe I would work so hard against my own people. I had a good laugh about that one, although being called a white supremacist was the best laugh, followed by when my relatives and I did our DNA/Ancestry test. I am about 20% European and also have a little Native American and Asian. One of my more militant cousins told me that i may have brown skin, but I inherited a "white personality" from my white ancestors.

Sadly in my early teens I went through a brief "everything is racism" period so I can understand how that sucks you in, plus I think it is human nature to a degree to want to be a victim about something. I remember complaining to my mom about my school not having any black history lessons and she told me that I was free to pick up a book and read on my own. My mother was big on reading and my parents taught me to learn about your culture/history and then learn about other cultures. That was eye opening because it was then I learned that every race/ethnic group has been oppressed or has been oppressors and that land conquest was as old as time along with slavery. Another thing was the fact that my grandfather never had any sort of grudge along with my other elderly relatives so I felt stupid and realized that if you look for racism everywhere you will find it.

Honestly if I had billions of dollars my reparation plan would be to buy land in any non-white majority country of their choosing and ship everyone of any race who can't shut up about how evil America and the west are. America is not a perfect country but to act like zero progress has been made (I actually heard a lady say that very little in regards to race relations has changed since 1776) really pisses me off. A little research will show anyone that if you are born in a western country you are in the world privilege group.

Sorry for the long post, but I decided from now on I can't talk to people who have that victim mindset or can't shut up about racism.