Dating preferences are something we all develop as we meet and date people, and to have them is normal and very common. The problem arises when we begin to make preferences based solely on race. Even though it might not be intentional, this particular preference is very much racism.
Westernized cultures have always held Caucasians as superior and people of color as inferior; therefore, the standard of beauty is usually depicted as a Caucasian person. Fortunately, in recent years, there has been a slight deviation from this standard—but whitewashing continues to be a problem. This may lead to an unconscious preference toward what society considers beautiful, but when that standard of beauty is called out for being all-white, you’d think that there would be some kind of societal change.
Unfortunately, in my experience, there hasn’t been this change of heart. As a result, I realized that people don’t want their reputation to be stained and they’ll find ways to justify themselves for their actions. However, the simple fact is that people’s actions speak louder than their justifications.
One of the first images when you search “beautiful woman” on Google. Photo from Pexels.
If you refuse to date someone based solely on the color of their skin, you’re indirectly holding one race superior to another. According to Merriam-Webster, the definition of racism is “a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race; racial prejudice and discrimination.”
Whether one wants to admit it or not, when you begin to build preferences revolving around race, you are inherently prejudiced. When your justifications for not dating a certain person are only based on the color of that person’s skin, you’re being racist. If you say, “I’m just not attracted to black girls,” you are, whether unintentionally or not, viewing them as inferior to white girls when it comes to your standard of beauty. Therefore, you’re being racist.
Photo from The Odyssey.
The idea of prejudice is having a preconceived judgment or idea with insufficient knowledge to make such judgment. When such comments as the aforementioned are made, there is a preconceived judgment that women (or men) of a certain race are not attractive with no grounds to make that judgment. One cannot possibly make that claim without having met every person of that race. Using such racial prejudice in your own preferences qualifies as racism.
Are preferences personal beliefs? Yes, but it doesn’t take away from the fact that they can act as a form of racism. Racism was never rooted in facts, it was developed from opinions. There’s no factual evidence of a superior race. Just because someone may think they are entitled to their own opinion or preference, which they are, doesn’t make them entitled to be racist.
Photo from channel4.com.