本期节目，Jim与Greg Thomas探讨了美国民主以及种族本质主义和种族化带来的问题。他们讨论了爵士领导力项目、爵士乐作为隐喻、种族主义与种族概念之间的联系、奴隶贸易在制造种族本质主义中的作用、培根叛乱及其后的分而治之立法、对剥削的辩护、奴隶制的恐怖、对Stanley Crouch和50年代爵士乐的共同热爱、超越种族和文化融合、Albert Murray的“全美身份”、3种美国基本原型、克服部落主义的挑战、传统媒体对冲突的结构性偏见、为什么Ibram X. Kendi和Robin DiAngelo的反种族主义书籍强化了种族、布鲁斯音乐的悲喜剧和肯定、种族主义的多种形式、不以种族为基础思考和行动的影响、文化运作方式的挪用、寻找比过去更好的东西等等。

🤔 **种族本质主义与种族概念的联系**：Greg Thomas认为，种族主义与种族概念紧密相连，种族概念本身就是一个社会建构，而不是生物学事实。奴隶贸易作为一种经济和政治制度，为了维护其利益，将种族概念作为一种工具，将黑人贬低为劣等种族，从而为剥削和压迫提供合法性。

✊ **克服部落主义的挑战**：Greg Thomas指出，美国社会面临着克服部落主义的挑战。部落主义是一种基于种族、宗教、政治等因素形成的群体认同，它会导致社会分裂和冲突。克服部落主义需要超越种族和文化差异，建立共同的价值观和目标。

📚 **反种族主义书籍的局限性**：Greg Thomas批判了Ibram X. Kendi和Robin DiAngelo等反种族主义书籍，认为它们强化了种族概念，反而加剧了社会的分裂。他认为，解决种族问题需要超越种族框架，从更深层的社会结构和历史根源入手。

🎨 **爵士乐作为隐喻**：Greg Thomas将爵士乐视为一种隐喻，代表着美国文化的多元性和融合性。爵士乐源于非洲裔美国人的文化，但它也吸收了其他文化元素，最终成为一种全球性的音乐形式。爵士乐的这种融合性和创造性精神，为解决种族问题提供了启示。

💡 **超越种族框架思考**：Greg Thomas强调，解决种族问题需要超越种族框架，从更深层的社会结构和历史根源入手。他认为，以种族为基础的思考方式只会加剧社会的分裂，而应该从人性的共同点出发，构建一个更平等、更包容的社会。

🎭 **文化挪用：文化互动的方式**：Greg Thomas认为，文化挪用是文化互动的一种方式。文化挪用并非总是负面的，它可以促进不同文化之间的交流和融合。重要的是，文化挪用应该尊重被挪用的文化，并避免对它造成伤害。

🚀 **寻找比过去更好的未来**：Greg Thomas呼吁人们寻找比过去更好的未来，创造一个更平等、更包容的社会。他认为，种族问题并非不可解决，只要人们愿意从更深层的社会结构和历史根源入手，就能够找到解决问题的办法。

🏛️ **美国民主的困境**：Greg Thomas指出，美国民主面临着种族本质主义和种族化的挑战。种族本质主义将种族视为一种决定性的因素，而种族化则将种族作为一种社会建构，用于划分和控制不同的群体。这些问题阻碍了美国民主的实现，也导致了社会的不平等和冲突。

Jim talks with Greg Thomas about American democracy & the problems created by racial essentialism & racialization...Jim talks with Greg Thomas about American democracy & the problems created by racial essentialism & racialization. They discuss the Jazz Leadership Project, jazz as metaphor, the connection between racism & the concept of race, the slave trade's role in producing racial essentialism, Bacon's Rebellion & subsequent divide-and-conquer legislation, justifications for exploitation, the horrors of chattel slavery, a mutual love of Stanley Crouch & Fifties jazz, transcending race & including culture, Albert Murray's "omni-American identity," 3 foundational American archetypes, the developmental challenge of overcoming tribalism, legacy media's structural bias toward conflict, why Ibram X. Kendi & Robin DiAngelo's anti-racist books reify race, the blues as tragicomic & affirmative, varieties of racism, the impact of not thinking & acting in racial terms, appropriation as the way culture works, searching for something better than the past, and much more. Episode Transcript "Resolving the Race(ism) Dilemma" (event) The Omni-Americans: Some Alternatives to the Folklore of White Supremacy, by Albert Murray The All-American Skin Game, or, The Decoy of Race, by Stanley Crouch Racecraft: The Soul of Inequality in American Life, by Karen & Barbara Fields Recapture the Rapture: Rethinking God, Sex, and Death in a World That's Lost its Mind, by Jamie Wheal Finite and Infinite Games: A Vision of Life as Play and Possibility, by James P. Carse "Why race-based framings of social issues hurt us all," by Greg Thomas American Humor: A Study of the National Character, by Constance RourkeGreg Thomas is CEO of the Jazz Leadership Project. He curates and facilitates business workshops and humanities programs for a range of organizations, including JPMorgan Chase, Verizon, NYPD, TD Bank, Jazz at Lincoln Center, and Google. He’s written on jazz and democratic life for Areo, New Republic, The Root, New York Daily News, The Developmentalist, and his blog, Tune In To Leadership. Greg is a Senior Fellow of the Institute for Cultural Evolution and an Advisor to The Consilience Project. As an educator, he has presented on virtual platforms such as Rebel Wisdom and The Stoa, and served as a lead instructor for courses on Cultural Intelligence and “Stepping Up: Wrestling with America’s Past, Reimagining Its Future, Healing Together.” He’s also a co-producer of the annual “Shaping an Omni-American Future” event. Greg has lectured at institutions such as Columbia, Hamilton, Ben Gurion University, and Harvard.