All three regimes were successful, until the end of their
reign, at maintaining their authority over the group of people to which they
were persecuting. While African Americans were deemed citizens of the U.S., the
rights they possessed, especially in the South, were far and few between. Violence
and oppression dominated the American South during this period of social
discrimination towards African Americans. Jews living in the line of fire for the rising
Nazi regime of Germany were subjected to inhumane treatment for years during
Hitler’s time in power and 6 million Jewish lives were lost due to his horrible
application of racial discrimination. Nonetheless, years after the world
acknowledged the immorality in persecuting a group of people solely based on race;
South Africa applied that very racist ideology towards its persecution of black
Africans.
So, who wins? Who was the best at dominating and subjecting
a group of people to such harsh punishment for merely their physical and
culture make-up? Quite frankly, I think there is something a little twisted in trying
to determine a winner. All of the regimes were guilty of such abysmal social crimes;
thinking about who may have been the most successful seems sadistically silly. It’s
actually rather depressing to even think about. In my opinion, there can’t be a
winner of a game that consists of demeaning, patronizing, and harming a group
of “other” people, only losers.
What do you think of this idea of the “most successful”
racist regime?
I, too, had never thought of such a question before it was asked last Thursday, and even then, I did not think it would have such an impact on our conversation. It's hard to say whether or not there is actually a regime that was the most successful. Why would one want to analyze the brutality used against others? On one hand, the deciding factor could be quantitative, but on the other hand, the particular strategies that were used to oppress these groups of people and maintain a separation of power could also contribute to the grading rubric. However, I do not think there is a winner at all. I do not see the point in deciding who was the most successful at dehumanizing others. Each of these regimes had a particular goal at hand, and it is sad to say that each was successful at accomplishing those goals for a period of time. So, there is no winner. I guess it's a tie.
ReplyDeleteIt is a little strange to attempt to determine a winner due to the nature of the acts. All three "overtly racist regimes" were unfortunately successful in different ways. The South African Apartheid's longevity, though terrible, is impressive in a way. Nazi occupation was able to annihilate a significant number of Jews so I guess in terms of quantity they were successful. The Jim Crow South was able to perpetuate a system that for a while was accepted and maintained. In terms of who "won" I agree with you that when the winner is being judged on actions such as these, there is no winner. Every regime was unfortunately successful at accomplishing their goal for some amount of time and obviously they all have impacted history.
ReplyDeleteIn order to answer this question in honest, first, we would need to determine what exactly it is that we mean by success. Duration, number of victims, number of perpetrators, geographic area, psychological impact, etc. are all factors that could potentially be taken into account and measured up against one another. I agree with Taylor in feeling that an analysis of these regimes in terms of their "success" is extremely problematic, reductionist, and counterproductive.
ReplyDeleteFor me personally, I found the presentation to be useful in its introduction to a new conceptual term, the "racist regime". In light of this new concept, I have find myself trying to compare and contrast the differences between the three "racist regimes" covered in the book with more modern genocides such as those in Sudan and Rwanda. Historically, what changed? How can we differentiate these atrocities categorically; why do we as a globally community continue to stand by, content to watch and wait to see what will happen?