Future African American thru-hiker

[Sailor (The other one)]

"There's a lot of people really pissed off because we have a Black president."

I'm a trucker from West Virginia, which ought to put my finger firmly on the redneck pulse. The next person I meet who is "really pissed off because we have a Black president" will be the first one.

I'm a massage therapist in central Florida. I have literally had my finger on the pulses of rednecks and others. Unfortunately I have met many people pissed of and/or frightened because we have a Black president. I've heard a Black man can't be intelligent enough for the job, I've heard the birther stuff, I've heard that he is a secret plant of the Islamist Jihad who before he became president was able to engineer the recession so that "real" Americans would lose everything and Blacks would take over. And I've heard some people say the sort of things that can bring the secret service over for a chat just to make sure you're not serious.

Not all racism is blatant. Some of the most shocking to me has come from people I never would have expected it from, and they have mostly been older people who grew up in the south and would not otherwise hurt a fly, who'd give a hungry Black person the shirt off their back, but who are unable to get over the Jim Crow culture they grew up in in which Black people just aren't quite as good as whites and need to stay in their place.

We've come a long way because of brave Americans who have stood up for the values of our country. Things are certainly better then when I was a kid traveling in the south and wondering why some water fountains had "whites only" signs on them. But a couple of years ago a neighbor put on a haunted house and he was telling a little Black kid all about it and how all the kids were invited and this little guy said, "Even little Black boys?"

OP, many people will tell you the chances of just seeing a bear on the AT are slim, not to mention getting bothered by one, and you can just about forget about one hurting you.

But I keep my eyes open.

[1azarus]

I think this is a very reasonable question... you might take a look at the thread about the speed record attempt currently underway -- by an Israeli Jew. Anti-Semitism and racism run hand-in-hand. Some comments made on his Journal site are reprehensible. Is irrational hatred something you can occasionally (rarely...) expect to encounter? Sure -- and you already know that! While about as far away from a practicing Jew as one can be, I'm told I look Jewish -- and even though "white" I've felt uncomfortable several times -- especially in the South. Worst moment, though? A talkative old man in a diner talking about Obama... in North Carolina.

Do I hitch hike? Sure. Do I think you'll be fine? You've been in the armed forces? Aw common -- you'll be fine! I'm sure you'll have a great time. You know, sometimes it is actually nice to be different...

Enjoy!!!

[Sierra Echo]

Well as a northern white guy, I shouldn't presume to guess how African-Americans or southern whites would think and react to the situation. The only thing I'll offer is that folks all along the Trail corridor are accustomed to seeing thruhikers, especially "in-season." So if the OP starts his hike in early Spring (with the crowd so-to-speak) and is typically equipped with backpack, boots, hiking clothes, other gear etc. and goes to the same trail towns, hostels, etc. as all/most other thrus, then he may more likely be perceived as "one of them" meaning a thruhiker who happens to be black rather than a "black guy" first. Just maybe....

Hello, racism is NOT restricted to the south!
I have met a LOT of northern transplants who are very racist.
They claim they can get away with it because it is not expected of them.

[Cookerhiker]

Hello, racism is NOT restricted to the south!
I have met a LOT of northern transplants who are very racist.
They claim they can get away with it because it is not expected of them.

I know that well. You missed my point. I was merely stating that I can only speak as a northern white guy, not southern. And yes, I know and know of racists in the north (as well as the south).

[Uncle Cranky]

I' m a white guy who grew up in a small, all white, rural town in MA back in the 50s and 60s. I remember the Jim Crow South, with it's whites only toilets and water fountains and the KKK bill boards, already mentioned, when our family drove through the South before the building of the Interstates to vacation in Florida during the Civil Rights era. More than once my father was stopped by local cops to pay a "ticket" or "fine" for some unfounded infraction as we traveled through small towns, especially in rural GA. Our family was obviously targeted for having "Yankee" plates on the car. I also remember the polite and courteous manner shown towards us by most white southerners most "tolerant & enlightened" Northerners would label as "red necks" or "crackers", though too polite to express it openly. I moved with my own family to central North Carolina about 15 years ago expecting to be misunderstood or barely tolerated for being a "Yankee". As my family began to "integrate" into the community I found we were treated with respect and polite civility and from time to time our neighbors would comment that we were not as they expected a "Yankee" to be like and we were accepted more and more. What I began to discover was that I had many unfounded Yankee stereotypes of the South and the people, both black and white. Civil Rights has changed the character and the attitude of the South. The Old Jim Crow South no longer exists and I find that Southerners in general are tolerant and accepting of outsiders. Indeed, some of the comments on this forum seem to express some of the same stereotypes that I at one time unconsciously held. I can boldly state two facts about life in America which also holds true in the South...First,The vast majority of people will treat you with respect and decency if you do likewise no matter what your color or place of origin. Second, there will always be a hand full of Jackasses, bigots, stupid, outrageously rude and some times dangerous and even evil persons on the loose. I can also state I have met some of the later and no doubt will meet some more but thank God I mostly have to deal with the former. By the way, I've lived down here long enough to find the Southern accent normal. When I go north you'll sound like HICKS!!!

[Lone Wolf]

i ain't never met no African-American. i've met folks of color that had ancestors from Africa but had never been to the continent. i've got lots of Scottish ancestors. it don't make me a Scottish-American. we're Americans that w3alk a trail

[Lone Wolf]

i ain't never met no African-American. i've met folks of color that had ancestors from Africa but had never been to the continent. i've got lots of Scottish ancestors. it don't make me a Scottish-American. we're Americans that w3alk a trail

actually, Greg, a guy i work wth is from South Africa. i think he has dual citizenship. he's an African-American

[JAK]

I agree with you Lone Wolf. I think alot of those sorts of designations might be well intended in some sense, but somewhat misguided in another. There is a difference between ethnicity and nationality. Nationality is usually pretty cut and dried. Ethnicity is somewhat of a slippery slope. It really depends on how people want to self-identify, and people should be free to self-identify in many different ways, because people are complicated. Take Scots for example. What are they? Were they ever a distinct homogenous society? I don't think so. Everyone has a story.

[fiddlehead]

Not a good idea to call a Scot and Englishman or vice versa.
Some take it personal.
Same with Welsh and Irish.

Xenophobia is found almost everywhere.
(But usually not in groups of travelers.)

[double d]

i ain't never met no African-American. i've met folks of color that had ancestors from Africa but had never been to the continent. i've got lots of Scottish ancestors. it don't make me a Scottish-American. we're Americans that w3alk a trail

True LW, but some are white and some are black and that makes all the difference to alot of folks on how they get treated. I could be wrong, but you seem to imply that people don't "see" race or much care about it, but people do see race and the resulting stereotypes and scapegoating that goes with it.

[Heater]

Not a good idea to call a Scot and Englishman or vice versa.
Some take it personal.
Same with Welsh and Irish.

Xenophobia is found almost everywhere.
(But usually not in groups of travelers.)

yup!

..................

[jesse]

i ain't never met no African-American. i've met folks of color that had ancestors from Africa but had never been to the continent. i've got lots of Scottish ancestors. it don't make me a Scottish-American. we're Americans that w3alk a trail

Well put. I'm sick of hearing African-American. I never use the term.

[JAK]

I don't think there is anything wrong with not knowing what to call yourself or someone else. I think it's very healthy having to stop and think before using any term to identify yourself or someone else. It's strange though, how it hard it is not to have it enter the conversation, even when it is isn't material to the story you are telling.

Like this older fellow showed up at track the other day, and I thought he was like 40 but he turned out to be 60, and he was wicked fast even though he was still just a tad overweight. I asked him if he was getting back into running and he said he was, jogging about 3 times a week, and biking a fair bit, and now starting track once a week. I cautioned him to go easy on the speed work when getting back into it. He agreed. I noticed he had some wicked speed and he said he ran a 10s 100 yard dash when he was younger, and the fact that he said 100 yard and not 100m sort of dated him.

There, I managed, but it wasn't easy.

[JAK]

The other thing that make me cringe a little when it works its way into a conversation, is when I ask a person, "so what do you do for a living" when I first meet someone, or "so where are you working now", if I haven't seen them in a while. I know there is nothing wrong with asking, but I don't always like it when others do the same to me, and I have to question my exact motives, and so I try to hold it off as long as possible. I don't know why it is so damned hard sometimes, to fall so repeatedly into the traps that we do. No biggy, but it would be nice to be able to exercise a little self-control. Funny, I complain when my wife is too controlling, but I really need to cut myself some slack, and try and take back some control of myself from myself.

[wcgornto]

The other thing that make me cringe a little when it works its way into a conversation, is when I ask a person, "so what do you do for a living" when I first meet someone, or "so where are you working now", if I haven't seen them in a while. I know there is nothing wrong with asking, but I don't always like it when others do the same to me, and I have to question my exact motives, and so I try to hold it off as long as possible. I don't know why it is so damned hard sometimes, to fall so repeatedly into the traps that we do. No biggy, but it would be nice to be able to exercise a little self-control. Funny, I complain when my wife is too controlling, but I really need to cut myself some slack, and try and take back some control of myself from myself.

This question is often phrased "What do you do?" I tend to answer "Lots of things", even though I know they are wanting to know what type of work I do.

Depending on the person, environment, setting, etc., this question is either a genuine attempt at amiable small talk or more of a self-validating question reflecting the questioner's insecurity. While I am happy to engage in a friendly conversation with anyone, I do not enjoy a line of questioning in which someone is simply attempting to size me up for their own emotional validation.

[JAK]

Not a good idea to call a Scot and Englishman or vice versa.
Some take it personal.
Same with Welsh and Irish.

Xenophobia is found almost everywhere.
(But usually not in groups of travelers.)

Yeah, I agree there is a difference, but still, what is a Scot or an Englishman? These places were constantly being invaded and constantly change overtime. When did Picts stop being Picts and become Scots? When did the Norse in Scotland become Scots? How many generations does it take for an East Asian in Scotland to be considered a Scot ethinically, and not just nationally? Should it take less time for a Hungarian or Swede? Ethinically speaking, is a Hungarian a European? What about Gypsies? What about the Saami? Was there really ever such a thing as a Scot, or an Englishman, or a European, ethnically or genetically speaking, or are these always just generalizations of convenience?

The original tribe of Scots, they say, came from Ireland, and from Scotland they have moved on to many places, but they also came to Scotland from many places, so what is a Scot really?

[Gray Blazer]

When people ask you what race you are, say "I'm an American. What are you?"

[JAK]

You can argue that Hungarians are not true Europeans because they came to Europe too late. You could also argue that the Sammi are not true Europeans because they came to Europe too soon.

So what is an American?

[Sierra Echo]

This new line of conversation is making my head spin~!
I'm gonna go to work now!

[Gray Blazer]

You can argue that Hungarians are not true Europeans because they came to Europe too late. You could also argue that the Sammi are not true Europeans because they came to Europe too soon.

So what is an American?

Me!.........