This question always bugs me in a weird way, because I seem to be slightly obsessive over race, and people's ethnic background. I hate overt racism more than anyone, but I sometimes wonder if in my own thoughts and actions I am not racist in myself.
Here's the thing. I am a white male, and a large percentage of my friends are non-white, and a an even larger percentage of my closer friends are non-white (mostly Asians, Indians and Pacific Islanders). However, I make and laugh at racist comments and jokes quite often, as my friends don't really care.
Example: One of my friends is Jewish, so I called him Jewboy. Other people started wondering if he was getting offended, but when I asked him he said "Nah man, I fucking hate Jews" and laughed, so it was all good. Later I heard that in high school he had been a member of the "Racist Nazi club" which was a drinking club, so he's obviously not going to be offended.
I could give other examples, which more sensitive people would consider terribly racist. Sure, my friends use words like nigger and coon and jap and all that, but no one actually means it, and no one is going to vote for a racist party like One Nation. Though I am positive that no one I know is actually racist, does that necessarily excuse racist comments?
My question is basically this: What makes racism? Is it possible to be a "racist" in that you discriminate in terms of race in certain ways, and yet still be a light-hearted person who respects all people on a deeper level, regardless of skin colour or ethnic origin? I certainly don't consider myself a racist, but I sometimes wonder if in my actions I could be percieved by some as such.
On the other hand, I do tend to bitch about white people just as much, if not more. Especially Americans
And I do seem to make my most racist jokes when surrounded by people who are the target of the joke...and I don't tend to get killed too often.