Ok so idk if this is the most appropriate place to post this, but are the extreme views and statement we see on these platforms really just “bots” and “internet noise” are these genuinely the worst parts of humanity?
For context/elaborating on it, I kinda drifted off from lemmy to reddit due to lack of content here and holee fuck, its just horrifying, the amount of pro genocidal statements and cheers for extremism genuinely makes me feel at extreme unease, but it also makes me ask a question. I come from a conservative southasian society and whenever you bring up topics like treatment of minorities, lgbtq+ rights, feminism etc, people normally dont comment on this stuff or make a “harmless joke” out of it, but seeing reddit pages of the same grp of ppl it makes me genuinely feel that these guys hold on to genuinely insane beliefs, and are just afraid to present it to anyone in person…
Maybe racists keep in on the down low around me, but I live in the South and never hear anything racist. And as a middle-aged white guy, and somewhat of a redneck, I’d expect them to think I’m safe to rant to.
When I moved here 20-years ago, I experienced racism from black people like never before, weirded me out. Can’t remember that last time I felt that. We’ve all changed.
Counter anecdote though! Traveling Mississippi last year with my Filipino wife was distinctly uncomfortable for the first time. Can’t put my finger on it, can’t describe a single incident, but I felt we were shunned for the first time. Those people were formerly outgoing and hospitable. Not now.
Oh that’s it. There’s the veneer of Southern Hospitality (and a lot of it is legitimate) but folks keep the nastiness behind the curtain. Like, I have family that looks back on their aunts and uncles and had no idea they were racist until they thought a lot about some incidents, or caught something weird.
It went both ways, 100%…. Reconstruction failed. There’s a lot of resentment.
Much of what my anecdote was about, the veneer has slipped. And yes, much of it is legitimate. Much seemed to come from, “I’m not the racist my parents were!” But it was weird and borderline scary seeing that veneer peel off on that last trip.