I'll admit that I'm a sexist. [View All]

No snark or joke here. I am definitely a sexist.

I come from a small town with traditional values and I was raised to treat women differently. To this day, I open doors for women whether I know them or not. I wait for women to enter or leave an elevator before I do. I call the women I know "dear" by habit. I ALWAYS pay for the meal when dining out with a woman.

That same small town made me prejudiced as well. My family and neighbors were racists and some traits die hard. When I meet a new person, the first thing that registers in my mind is their race. I go out of my way to be nice and consider my words more carefully. I probably defer to African Americans more than I would a white man

On the other hand, I respect women and African Americans as equals who not only deserve all the rights and opportunities I receive as a white man, but require them for the benefit of ALL people. I have no problems taking orders from a woman or a black person and often do. They are my customers, my friends and my family. They're the people who have been there for me when my world was crashing down and the people I've helped hold above water.

The point is we all have our own sexist and prejudiced reactions regardless of our own sex or race. We grew up having them instilled into our psyches and they will always hold some small place in our words and deeds. That doesn't mean we're bad people or that we can't make rational decisions because of it.

I'm a progressive and that means I support policies that make life better for ALL of us, not just me. the vast majority of DUers support the same thing.

I'm proud to have the chance to vote for an African American or a woman. To me that means that one day perhaps a new generation will grow up in small towns and not be subjected to the prejudices and hatreds that have scarred me and most others. That time might not even be as far away as I once thought it would be.

I'm telling my life story because I posted a thread earlier asking if we could all come together for just a moment to celebrate this but it didn't seem many were ready. So if we can't celebrate, can we at least look into ourselves and admit that there is more good than bad coming from all of this?

Win or lose, this is the start of a new day.