What is Racism?

If you go out onto the street, and ask strangers what racism means they can spit out a cookie cutter answer that will appease most people. But what does racism really mean? Is racism just the absolute hatred of another race?  Or is it something that is practiced everyday in our cities and on our streets? The answer is both. Racism is defined as the hatred for and against another race, but it is also something that is practiced everyday, by everyone. Even if we don't necessarily mean to. There was a blog post made by the D&C about racism and all that it entails. And in this blog post they have made several key and important points about the racism that we have today and whether or not it is racist or if it is considered to be normal. They bring up these important points. 

Is it racist for a restaurant wait staff to let a Latino couple who arrive early for the dinner rush wait until everybody else has been served?
I do believe that it is wrong and racist for a wait staff to let a Latino couple, who purposefully arrive early wait until everyone is seated and served. Just because the couples skin tone is different from others around them I feel like that shouldn't be the reason that they were made to wait. I could see if they arrived late and it was extremely busy, but since they arrived before the dinner rush I don't see a legitimate reason as to why they would have to wait, that to be is an example of racism. 

Is it racist for a white man to forbid African-American nurses from holding his newborn baby?'

I find this scenario extremely racist. Just because the nurse has a different skin tone than the husband/father doesn't mean that the nurse is going to give the new born baby some kind of incurable disease. This example is a racist attitude that has gone back since the liberation of the slaves after the civil war.

Is it racist for a white prospective police officer to be passed over in favor of an African-American because the city is trying to diversify its police force?

In this scenario I don't feel that this is racist. If both officers have the same qualifications and are both up to have the job, then I feel that there should be more diversity in the force. If there is more diversity in the force then there will be less of a chance of racism. And if they make it more diverse they are ensuring that racism is less and less likely. 

Is it racist for a person (of any color) to tell race-based jokes? (Is it worse if it's a white man telling the joke? Is it less of a problem it it's a black man?)

This example is iffy for me. Of course any race-based joke is horrible and shouldn't be told, but on the other hand, they get told and sadly it is an everyday occurrence. But it seems to be that the race-based jokes are deemed more racist when they are uttered out of the mouth of a white people, I don't know if it is because whites seemed to dominate others more, or if it is because it just seems less racist when coming from the mouth of the person for is the same ethnic background as the joke. Race-based jokes seem to go over better when said by a person of the same background, rather than a person of a different back ground. 

Is it racist for anyone, regardless of color, to use the "n"word. 

I personally think that it is racist to use to "n" word no matter what. But as society generally sees it, it could go both ways. If a white man says the "n" word then a whole issue comes up about racism and everything gets blown up, while you travel in some neighborhoods and the "n" word seems. to be, in a way, a term of endearment, or a greeting.    

Many people have different opinions about these questions. And you know what? That's OK, because we are human and humans naturally have differences of opinions, that what makes us human. My opinions might not be the same as yours, and we might not see eye to eye on everything but I decided to share 

them anyways.