I trust you, do you trust me?

[Head in the clouds]

A friend sent me a link to this. I thought it was a very courageous social experiment and one of the more touching things I've come across on the net. I imagine that if there was a little more trust in the world there'd be a lot more friendship and happiness.

 

I hope you like it too.

 

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=938665246153916

 

 

[Guernsey]

It brought me to tears, thanks for posting.

 

Alan.

 

 

[Guernsey]

It was that little girl who hugged her that really choked me up.

 

Alan.

 

 

[Gnarly Gnu]

Great way to grab a few wallets!

 

 

[Teckair]

The daughter of a friend of mine thought it would be trendy to go out with an aboriginal he gave her scabies and beat her up. My son saw some aboriginals beating someone up and went to his aid and got beat up himself he now has steel plate in his face and life long injuries. The police wouldn't/couldn't do any thing about it in both cases. Time for a reality check.

 

 

[Head in the clouds]

People get beaten up by all colours of people, but it doesn't make everyone bad. There are good and bad people of all races but there's a far higher proportion of 'white' people, than of other races, who are sufficiently ignorant and phobic that they think that anyone who isn't white is dirty, dishonest or dangerous - or all three.

 

In my experience I find a higher percentage of clean, honest and gentle people among the non-whites.

 

 

[Teckair]

While that video might have nice sentiments about it. You can't just trust everybody that would not be very smart. Trust like respect should be earnt I have seen some bad stuff and it does not support your experience. Pretending something is not what it is does not help, my comments are based on behavour not color or race. I am concerned we are heading towards a them and us situation which could be really unhealthy.

 

 

[Geoff13]

The daughter of a friend of mine thought it would be trendy to go out with an aboriginal he gave her scabies and beat her up. My son saw some aboriginals beating someone up and went to his aid and got beat up himself he now has steel plate in his face and life long injuries. The police wouldn't/couldn't do any thing about it in both cases. Time for a reality check.

The sad thing is that it actually took me to this post to realise the the young lady was even dark skinned and even then I had to go back and check what the heck you were on about. It just goes to show how differently you and I saw the post. It just goes to prove that racism is alive and well in parts of Australia.

 

 

[Teckair]

The sad thing is that it actually took me to this post to realise the the young lady was even dark skinned and even then I had to go back and check what the heck you were on about. It just goes to show how differently you and I saw the post. It just goes to prove that racism is alive and well in parts of Australia.

I did not notice she was dark skinned either, if you watch the video clip right through there is a message at the end about trust and race issues. I do not believe I am a racist and I think racism has largely decreased in this country towards aboriginal people. What it really shows is you failed to understand what the video clip was about and what my point was about.

 

 

[Geoff13]

I think your point was quite explicit. And I think it was racist.

 

 

[Teckair]

I think your point was quite explicit. And I think it was racist.

I think you are wrong and branding people as racist for telling the truth is a big part of the problem.

 

 

[Geoff13]

What part of implying that someone got scabies and beat up because her partner was aboriginal was not racist. What part of implying that going out with an Aboriginal because it would be trendy is not racist. (Now I know you didn't actually say that but your post supports it).

 

And without doubt the most common theme from racists these days to to imply that because we can't see it your way we are part of the problem.

 

No Teckair I can see where the problems is here.

 

 

[facthunter]

It's pretty easy to be branded a Racist. If I said there is a problem with alcohol use by aborigines in Alice Springs , some would say that is racist. I suggest it is not if it is a statement of fact. If it is OK for an Aborigine to say the same thing? Does it make any difference ? No it shouldn't but it might get around the "suggestion" of racism..Nev

 

 

[Teckair]

Whatever Geoff I can see we are not going to agree.

 

 

[Geoff13]

It's pretty easy to be branded a Racist. If I said there is a problem with alcohol use by aborigines in Alice Springs , some would say that is racist. I suggest it is not if it is a statement of fact. If it is OK for an Aborigine to say the same thing? Does it make any difference ? No it shouldn't but it might get around the "suggestion" of racism..Nev

I agree making a statement that can be supported by facts in itself is not racist. making a statement that can be supported by facts to highlight or improve a situation is not racist.

 

Making a statement whether it can or can't be supported by facts would be racist if it is made to vilify or denigrate a certain group of people.

 

 

[SDQDI]

Well for what it's worth I'll try to express some of my thoughts in print without meaning to offend.

 

Trust...... I don't trust many people at all no matter what their hair or skin colour is, at least until they have earned it.

 

As far as percentages go indigenous/aboriginal people are overly represented in our prison populations. But why? Is it because they are worse people? I DON'T think so. I personally think it has to do with wealth, IMHO there seems to be not many indigenous people who are wealthy or have come from wealthy backgrounds which I think has a huge bearing on the outcomes. After all with white people don't we find that those from a lower socioeconomic background make up a larger percentage of inmates? It's just that 'white' people have more people that are better off (on the money side of things) to even out the stats.

 

As far as the original vid goes, it was a nice video with a good aim but personally I don't think you will change the perspective of the majority until the indigenous population gets to a similar percentage of rich v poor as the non indigenous people. Because until then they will still have the same problems that beset any person in a lower socioeconomic group and will be judged on the actions of a few. (I say a few because I don't believe that the majority of indigenous people are out to steal your stuff and do bad things but when one does do things like that we tar the whole lot with the one brush)

 

It said at the end of the video that only 13% of those asked said they trusted aboriginal or Torres Strait islander people. To me that is like asking if we trust Victorians or Americans or New Zealanders. I don't know how I would answer that question as I have had both good and bad experiences with them (indigenous Aussies) do I answer yes I trust them because of the good experiences or no because of the bad???? It goes back to my original point, trust isn't something that is given out willy nilly but is earnt (red line under earnt, is that even a word?) gradually. Only a fool would trust someone totally at their first meeting and only a fool would trust a whole group or country or race of people without exception!

 

 

[facthunter]

I don't think there is any significant difference with people of all races as to their common needs and aspirations and "worthyness". (deliberate sp error).

 

When they get fired up with hate, based on tribal or religious delineations, look what can happen. I won't quote examples . They are everywhere to be seen. Any "group" will form some kind of pecking order and have a dominating individual and someone everyone picks on. Chooks and Cows do it too. Nev

 

 

[farri]

A statement of fact is not a racist statement.

 

If I said I saw a group of aboriginals, sitting in the middle of the park, drinking wine from flagons and some of them were drunk, abusing each other and harassing people walking past! Would that be a racist comment?....I don`t think so.

 

Frank.

 

 

[facthunter]

No it isn't If you added "as they always do" you might have a little more trouble. I didn't notice she was dark skinned initially. It's not that important unless there are a lot of them, and they are all about 20 stone, male and angry looking. Nev

 

 

[pmccarthy]

The aboriginal people in Victoria were rounded up quite early and put into two locations. So most Victorians grew up not seeing aborigines. In NSW many country towns had a "blacks camp" and the kids came to school, so we sat alongside them and got to know them a bit. Only a bit, there was still a lot of prejudice. I have wondered whether attitudes are different in NSW and Vic as a result, but I don't know the answer.

 

 

[Teckair]

If what you said was true Frank then you are not a racist. The point I was trying to make is it does not matter what colour you are you cannot expect people to automaticly trust you, which was what that clip was suggesting.

 

 

[facthunter]

I did work with a lot picking fruit when I was young(er). NO problems at all. I don't think things have got a lot better. I've had some good conversations one on one with some elders. When I'm amongst them I treat them as anybody else in a mixed environment. My kids had issues (not of their making) growing up that should have been addressed but politically the people in power, just backed away from tackling the problem. Too hard basket so people were getting away with things they shouldn't have. A very even handed copper I got on with got moved on for not being politically correct. I could tell plenty but NO... . Nev

 

 

[farri]

The point I was trying to make is it does not matter what colour you are you cannot expect people to automaticly trust you, which was what that clip was suggesting.

Richard, I`m not sure that was the suggestion!...I saw that on TV a couple of nights ago (Can`t recall the channel), the young lady was interviewed later and I think it was more to attract attention to her cause than trust, but that`s only my take on it.

 

Frank.

 

 

[farri]

Too hard basket so people were getting away with things they shouldn't have. A very even handed copper I got on with got moved on for not being politically correct. I could tell plenty but NO... . Nev

When I was about 8 years old,one of my best mates was an aboriginal boy. I would go to his home which consisted of a one room home built of corrugated iron with a dirt floor. I was welcomed there and I felt comfortable.

 

A long story so I`ll try and keep it as short as possible. I play electric guitar and I run my computer through my guitar amplifier, everything sits in the same room.... Fran and I had been out and when we got back, my guitar, with a $1,500.00 unit on it was gone,everything else was still there...WE did a bit of thinking and decided it could be someone from the indigenous people who lived up the road so we went to talk to them and told them what had happened....A young kid about 7/8 years old, said, " I saw a guitar on the seat of so and so`s car"....We phoned the guy`s mother and she told us to call the police as she couldn`t handle him anymore ( he was about 17/18 years old).

 

I really didn`t want to involve the police but based on what his mother had said, I decided to call them. The cop told me he had no chance of getting my guitar back, so that was that....Next day I decided to take one of the guys who knew the young bloke, who took the guitar and go to the guy`s house....I stayed in the car while his mate went into the house and within 10 minutes a young bloke, came out, head bowed low and stood beside my door window, I said, " Are you the guy who took my guitar?" he said, " Yes, do you want it back?" to which I replied "Yes please", he went and got it and brought it out to me. ( that`s exactly how it occurred)

 

When I got home, I phoned the cop I`d spoken to the night before, he was amazed and asked if I would press charges, I said I wouldn`t so he proceeded to give me an ear full of how he was trying to uphold the law and just because I`d got my guitar back, I didn`t care about anyone else...I told the cop that these kids needed help not prison!... he continued to give me an ear full until I finally told him to do what he thought was the right thing to do....He went over there and had the kid in court that afternoon. To the cop it was just another thing to pin on this kid.... I later learnt he did prison time.

 

This kid was from another town. It turned out, he was with his mother visiting some friends just up the road, he was fairly drunk, took his mothers car, drove to the end of the road and onto our property, went into one of the drains we have here, got stuck, came to the house for help, no one about, went inside, saw the guitar, took it, then went and got a couple of mates to get the car out.

 

To me, this incident was more about the cops attitude than this young indigenous bloke, who obviously had problems, to deal with.

 

Frank.

 

 

[Teckair]

Richard, I`m not sure that was the suggestion!...I saw that on TV a couple of nights ago (Can`t recall the channel), the young lady was interviewed later and I think it was more to attract attention to her cause than trust, but that`s only my take on it.

Frank.

If you watch the clip to the end there is some text about 13 % of people who trust Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people that I thought that made it fairly clear. Until I read that I had not noticed she was dark skined. One poster on here mis-quoted me it seems it is OK to call someone a racist but to call someone an idiot is a sin.