There is a syndicated morning radio show that I listen to here. It's out of Chicago (www.mancow.com), and it's generally pretty entertaining, if designed for the attention span of a gnat.
There was a caller this morning that ended up with some discussion that got me thinking whether I would date a black woman.
I say sure. Fer instance, I'd date Halle Berry in a heartbeat.
This caller says that she's not black.
(To back up for a minute, I'm usiong the term "black" instead of "African-American" because there are a lot more people of native African descent than are in America, and that is relevant.)
So I'm thinking about this. And I can think of other black women that I find attractive and I would most definitely date. One of them is my friend Trevi, who is from South Africa. Another would be the lead actress in 28 days later. And I am starting to see a pattern (aside from them all being actresss).
It isn't an issue of race for me. It's an issue of culture.
I am not at all attracted to the gangsta-thug urban/hip-hop culture that is what this caller identifed as being "black". Maybe culture is the wrong term, but I'll use it here as being the closest thing I can think of.
I respect the culture. I have no problem with it, or those who decide to identify themselves with it. I like some of the music. But it's not something that I can identify with, it's not something that holds anything for me.
I think I'm okay with that.
Is it discriminatory? Absolutely. Discrimination is not a bad thing. We all discriminate in the music that we listen to, the food we eat, the direction that we take when we drive to work, the clothes that we buy. And I would hope that we can discriminate in who we date. Think of what the world would be like if you had to date whoever asked you out.