Ever since people began to create certain social groups they belong to and started to notice invariable differences between each of them, certain stereotypes began to emerge. When one belongs to a grouping different than ours, judging their way of life and action comes almost naturally. It’s in our human nature. This especially becomes noticeable when distinct features are in question, such as gender, skin color and race, religious beliefs… The observance of these common traits immediately makes us generalize them without thinking about the deeper particularities behind each individual. Generalizations about different cultures and nationalities provide us a sense of belonging, of identity and pride.
Knowing you’re different than others and confidently believing they are all your inferiors is the true way how stereotypes are born. The biggest and most common of them all are ethnic stereotypes. Based on the cultural norms and social status of members of a certain nationality, people develop a system of beliefs about their personalities. Again, generalization. Just because an Italian speaks very loud and waves with their hands a lot, doesn’t mean each person from Italy is the same. Russians, on the other hand, are considered to be very crude and love their Vodka a lot, which doesn’t necessarily make them a nation of alcoholics. But that’s exactly how racist jokes came to be.
With the appearance and reinforcement of ethnic identity, people found it funny to invent racist jokes and share them around at gatherings. Maybe they weren’t socially acceptable if you went out and started saying them out loud on the street, but they were acceptable, what’s more even encouraged inside their inner circles. That’s how everyone came to know that Jews enjoy keeping their money at home in a safe place, rather than spend them; that African Americans really love eating watermelons (this goes all the way back to 18-th century slavery); or that Mexicans are the inferior population that would do anything for petty cash. Putting everyone in the same basket just because of one thing they share in common is certainly unfair.
It is what it is, and there will always be someone to tell a racist joke. It basically all comes down to who is telling it. Human character is a funny thing, and this situation is no different. When someone from the “inside”, i.e. someone who belongs in this ethnic group tells self-mocking racists jokes, it’s never offensive, but rather fun and enjoyed by its subjects. But it is very different when it’s the other way around. Even if someone from the outside were to tell the same joke, it would be regarded more negatively and considered insulting. It is not acceptable for this outsider to judge them, no matter their sense of humor.
Now thanks to globalization, funny racist jokes are not perceived as too threatening and offensive, which is a good thing. In fact, people tend to be more careful about saying them as overall public awareness regarding racism has been raised. We live in a multi-cultural society that has thought us not to judge based on general facts and physical appearances, but to find the good inside an individual. Now everyone enjoys good racist jokes, even certain ethnic groups have a good laugh at them and make them for themselves. So let’s laugh together while you enjoy our collection of best racist jokes. We’re all white, black, yellow or red; who cares?
