Cultural Whiplash: The Unforeseen Consequences of America's Crusade against Racial Discrimination

Patrick M. Garry
Cumberland House (2006)
ISBN 1581825692
Reviewed by Debra Gaynor for Reader Views (1/07)

“Instead of elevating the moral character of society, the antidiscrimination mind-set pushes behavioral standards to the lowest common denomination.”  The civil rights movement accomplished laudable success in America.  Racism is deplorable.  But has the antidiscrimination movement had a backlash effect? 

Racism has become a charge bandied around too swiftly.  When assistance for the Hurricane Katrina survivors was slow in coming, people shouted racism.  When teachers discipline black students we hear the shout of racism.  Yet we see African Americans succeeding as never before. 

“During the civil rights era of the 1960s, racial discrimination was easy to spot.” It resided in laws that made it more difficult for minorities to find jobs, vote or to get a college education.  Now racism is more understated, almost invisible.  Today we have racial perplexity.  While racism has not be completely eliminated but there has been great leaps in progress. 

When it comes to racism whites shout “self-indictment to achieve a semblance of virtue.”  Today we look at percentages of minorities in the work place, we yell discrimination if the percentage is lower than the percentage of the general populations.  “Allegations of racism have become an almost instinctive reaction to legal investigations of minority officeholders.”

Citizens are so afraid they will be judged racist that they over look “destructive social behavior of its racial minorities.”  “This is a model that blames high incarceration rates not on criminal behavior but on overly harsh laws.” 

“Because of the power of race, and because of the unquestioned social abhorrence of racism, it has been used to attack an array of cultural values and institutions lying at the heart of the American experience.  Race is being used to harm the reputation of American society.  This has become a nation that is frightened, unconfident, suspicious and remorseful about everything “from illegal immigration to foreign policy.”

Patrick Garry does an excellent job discussing racism in today’s society.  He has an objective attitude and opinion.  He expresses it in uncomplicated and straightforward manner.  Garry is stating what many of us have believed for a long time.  Racism is deplorable but so is what is happening to our society today.  We have become a society that is terribly afraid of a lawsuit, of being called a racist so we head the other direction, turning our country over to fear and chaos.  Racism will not end until we redefine it. “Men are created equal” is no longer the battle cry of this country now it is “do not sue me.”  I highly recommend “Cultural Whiplash” to everyone.  If we are to save our country we must stop seeing color and begin seeing humans. 

Make comment on weblog