Hi I’m from Europe and unfortunately in the past few years I realized how much racism there is in the world which really messes up my mind since that concept didn’t exist for me as a kid and I thought it’s normal that people look different.

Having very pale skin and not having visited too many countries I was wondering if I might encounter any problems in America because of my skin. Can I just talk to anyone or will people reject me because of my skin? (I have blond hair too)

  • rivan@lemm.ee
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    2 days ago

    You’re far more likely to encounter problems because you aren’t a citizen. Now isn’t the best time to visit, I’m sorry to say.

  • snooggums@lemmy.world
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    2 days ago

    Are you by chance a mythical creature, possibly a troll? If so be aware that the majority of the US has sunny days and you risk being turned to stone, but the Pacific Northwest might be safe most of the year.

    • Social_Discussion@lemm.eeOP
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      2 days ago

      Why do some people online have to say this? Racism is a real problem in this world if you didn’t know before

  • southsamurai@sh.itjust.works
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    2 days ago

    As a side note, you’d usually say pale skin, not bright, in English

    Bright is close enough to figure out what you mean from context, but it is a very non standard use of the word.

    Generally, in the US, most racism in terms of what you could expect as a tourist is going to be against darker skin. Yes, racism against paler skinned people exists, but not in a way that most tourists with pale skin will experience. You would usually have to go into residential districts of cities or towns rather than business or entertainment districts to experience racism towards pale skin. Most of the people dealing with tourists either want their money enough to be polite and friendly, aren’t racists, or are also pale skinned.

    Even then, if you stray into residential areas, you’re still more likely to run into trouble for being a tourist, no matter what color your skin is. Nobody likes tourists fucking around their neighbourhood away from businesses, and being a foreign tourist is “worse” in some ways, though not in others. As an example, if some random dude from new York comes to my town, they’ll likely be less welcome walking down our street, talking and taking pictures than someone from africa, no matter what skin color is involved.

  • LilB0kChoy@lemm.ee
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    2 days ago

    Based on your skin tone you’re Caucasian. Caucasians have made up the racial majority in the United States pretty much since its inception.

    I’d say you’re more likely to face issues with xenophobia if you visit the United States right now.

        • Social_Discussion@lemm.eeOP
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          2 days ago

          It’s sad to me that some people divide and label people based on their appearance or where they come from. My wish is to just connect to people regardless of how they look and see each other as a person instead of “black”, “Caucasian”, “Asian” etc.

          • LilB0kChoy@lemm.ee
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            2 days ago

            Ok, that’s an admirable wish but then you definitely shouldn’t go to the United States and might want to avoid humanity all together. Humans have a tendency to want to categorize and classify and quantify things.

            • Social_Discussion@lemm.eeOP
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              2 days ago

              I don’t think that’s too much to ask for. If humans really wanted ending racism they could do so

              • LilB0kChoy@lemm.ee
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                2 days ago

                Community for asking and answering any question related to the life, the people or anything related to the USA. Non-US people are welcome to provide their perspective!

                Maybe, but we’ve strayed pretty far from your original question which is the only thing that actually fit this community’s rules and I suspect that was disingenuous.

              • MagicShel@lemmy.zip
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                2 days ago

                If all humans wanted to end racism we wouldn’t need to because there wouldn’t be any. Insofar as some people are racist and you can’t control the actions of others, no one can end racism just by wishing it so.

                I respect your color blindness and sense of equality, but I’m afraid this leans towards wishful thinking.

  • OpenStars@piefed.social
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    2 days ago

    You should have no problems based on skin color, I would guess.

    What problems there are with skin colors usually go the other way, and more importantly tends to not involve foreigners, so the moment someone hears your accent they will realize that you are not part of their target demographic. For the most part, I think?

    Obviously there is crime but this is the same as everywhere in the world, so I’m speaking here strictly of racial based ones.

    I guess you are asking if people who are not white - being black or Hispanic or whatever - and who hate whities/crackers, would they do something like mug you? And the answer is yeah they could, but those who would do that are roughly equally likely to mug others of their own race as well.

    There is also a possibility that they could want to mug you merely because you look different. But the same would be true for a non-white person who wears a noticeably different style of clothing or some such.

    Crime here, like everywhere, is based on locality. You aren’t wrong to have asked, obviously, but that is my answer is that specifically skin color based crimes are not something for you to worry about. Poor areas where crime happens, now THAT is what you want to worry about, regardless of how you look.