by Martine Pauwels

Created on: December 19, 2009   Last Updated: January 04, 2010

No word looks so deep on your skin it gets under. It does not matter what ideology you have. Do you see it as a scapegoat term to point out people who do not like strangers, or do you consider it as a chauvinistic title, racism is the most loaded word in the political dictionary.

The problem with racism is that it is a term often used to downgrade and discriminate those considered to be downgrading and discriminating. Insulting people on their looks is something you may condemn, but is racism really the right term?

What is racism?

We all have a need to belong and we all categorize people to feel better. Some may claim there are human races, mostly based on body measurements and the place they come from. Cataloging people on their looks, which often indicate a foreign background, is nowadays mostly called racialism.

Before there was genetic science this was the best way to give an ethnic definition. People all over the world do this. Not only whites see themselves an ethnic group. Black and Asian people do this as well. It has nothing to do with hate and should no be a problem.

This form of racism of racialism, does not have to be problematic and we might all do it at some extant.

Are their human races?

Modern genetic science has proved that genetically seen there are no real racial differences between humans. We are just white, gold, brown and black varieties of a Labrador, to compare. Still little genetic differences between us have great impact on how we see each other. Genes define how we look and can have a huge impact on our health.

Is this wrong?

Feeling you belong somewhere is not to be condemned. The theory on looking at people to identify and to self define is a basic social need. It only becomes a problem when one group considers itself raised above the other.

We all have things we like less in another and nobody can agree with everybody. This fact we have to accept. How we respond to one and other can be a problem.

Should it be illegal?

In many European countries like Belgium racism is illegal. Even xenophobia is considered a criminal offence. Freedom of Speech does not apply all over the world and there is no general consensus.

Belgian law clearly states that it is illegal to discriminate people based on many things and race is one of them. Funny if you keep in mind that the people who made those laws are mainly the ones swearing buy science that human races do not exists.

You may wonder if expressing feelings should be illegal. Scientifically

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