Can black people be racists

Answer 1

Yes, of course they can. White people can be racist to black or Asian the same way a black person can be racist towards white or Asian people.

Racism just means that you believe that one or more races are better than others. It doesn't matter what the races are.

Where people get confused is that they mistake institutionalized racism with garden variety racism. While only the prevailing group can express institutionalized racism, any group can be racist in the more generalized sense.

Answer 2

Yes, black people can be racist. Just about all the races in the world can be racist should they choose to.

Every once in a while, you hear some activist or professor say that only white people can be racist. The reason for this is that they confuse racism with discrimination. Racism means you think one or more races are better or that you hate people of one or more races. Anyone can do that.

However, discrimination requires a certain amount of authority or power. Before I can kick someone out of a store, I must first own or control that store. So if white folks are the only ones in power in an area, then only they can act out their racism using discrimination. Once minorities are put in those same positions, they can act out their racism through discriminatory means too. So puting minorities in positions of control won't reduce discrimination -- it will only change the targets of it.

Taking this even further, this also shows that not every white person can discriminate in a meaningful way. Sure, anyone can choose their own friends, but if they are not in the government, don't own businesses, and don't work in healthcare, housing, police, corrections, religion, the military or education, then how can they discriminate?