Have you ever been discriminated against/looked down upon for your political beliefs?

[Mythbuster]

This is an interesting discussion that I wish to discuss. In our capitalist society, many people look down upon socialism/communism. So, has any of you been discriminated against because of it? If so, I'd love to hear your story.

[Dzerzhinsky's Ghost]

I think I am the epitome of what the West hates/fears, so yes, politicaly, religiously, racially, socially, etc.

[Commissar Rykov]

Yes especially when I was younger and more brash. I tended to make my Managers squirm as I got my fellow workers to read Marx and having discussion over our rights. I tended to be just the oddball militant in an area of the United States where not just being another cog isn't exactly celebrated.

[Kamos]

I've been called a communist Jew before by some wacky old geezer on the street, who then proceeded to throw unintelligible insults at me until I was out of hearing range. Funny thing is, I didn't tell him that I am a communist (and I'm not a Jew). Probably had to do with my looks.

[Mythbuster]

Interesting. So many attacks have came from me like there is no private property. How many times to I have to explain the differences between private and personal property!

[Tim Cornelis]

Not really, a few years ago when I told my teacher I was an anarchist she replied "you're not going to blow us up are you?". I suppose if she replied that to someone saying "I'm a muslim" it would be more controversial and discriminating though.

[PhoenixAsh]

Yes. Since I was a little boy in elementary school. I refused to partake in support actions for anti-communist activities. That had consequences...mostly by the teacher inciting the whole class against me and publicly ridiculing me in front of the whole school. Which got me in quite a few beatings.

When I was older I lost my job over it.

And there was a time when I was regularly checked by the police/BVD who one time sollicited my employer to fire me. Which he refused. Love that guy.

I couldn't get into another...well two actually...country and was send back at the airport. One time on a bussiness trip and another on holiday. The first one cost me my position.

Further general unpleasantness with random people I encountered in bars because of T-shirts or ill-considered remarks from friends, got beaten up several times, or dates which left after they found out.

But that is about the extend of it.

[Ocean Seal]

This is an interesting discussion that I wish to discuss. In our capitalist society, many people look down upon socialism/communism. So, has any of you been discriminated against because of it? If so, I'd love to hear your story.
Yep, I think that almost everyone on this forum has. I remember one store owner proceeded to yell at me about communism and about how Che Guevara was a murderer, and then he didn't let me buy anything in his store. Even though I hadn't eaten since the previous day (it had been 20 hours or so and I looked pale as balls). The guy was a dick, and only a few months later his store (which seemed pretty successful at the time) shut down. Guess he should have been a better capitalist :sneaky:.

[jake williams]

Personal ribbing in sort of a minor way? Yeah, but to be honest it never really bothered me. When high school teachers would bug me about being a commie it would never be in a seriously hostile way and to be honest, if anything, it kind of normalized being a commie.

Serious discrimination though? Not really. I can see it happening in the future, but it hasn't.

[Tim Cornelis]

Yes. Since I was a little boy in elementary school. I refused to partake in support actions for anti-communist activities. That had consequences...mostly by the teacher inciting the whole class against me and publicly ridiculing me in front of the whole school. Which got me in quite a few beatings.

When I was older I lost my job over it.

And there was a time when I was regularly checked by the police/BVD who one time sollicited my employer to fire me. Which he refused. Love that guy.

I couldn't get into another...well two actually...country and was send back at the airport. One time on a bussiness trip and another on holiday. The first one cost me my position.

Further general unpleasantness with random people I encountered in bars because of T-shirts or ill-considered remarks from friends, got beaten up several times, or dates which left after they found out.

But that is about the extend of it.

This happened in the Netherlands you say? The same Netherlands located above Belgium? To the West of Germany?

If you're serious I feel sorry for you...

I hope I won't go through that shit.

[Le Socialiste]

Not really, the only time I really felt "discriminated against" for my political beliefs was during my Intro to Political Science class. The first week of class we were asked by the professor to state our names and give a brief summary of our political leanings in front of him and the other students. When I stated I was an anarchist/libertarian socialist, my professor start convulsing like he was trying to contain his laughter. I hate public speaking in the first place, so to have that happen in front of everyone was enough to weaken my already dying resolve. When I finished and made my way to my seat I heard some asshole whisper to the guy next to him "fascist". That didn't embarrass me - it pissed me off.

[DarkPast]

I wasn't very vocal about my beliefs in school (though I didn't really know all that much about socialism back then :o), but I was still called a "traitor" to my country. One of my ultranationalist teachers consistently graded me much more harshly because of it - among other things, she refused to believe that communism didn't originate in Russia :laugh:

[ColonelCossack]

someone I know only refers to me as "communist", e.g. "Hey, Communist! Get over here!", and my spanish teacher gave me a lower mark in a spanish test because I'm a communist...

[Jimmie Higgins]

I was stopped and detained by police for handing out fliers for an anti-police brutality meeting after Oscar Grant was murdered by the cops.

[#FF0000]

and my spanish teacher gave me a lower mark in a spanish test because I'm a communist...

:mellow:

anyway, the worst I get is people who wouldn't even be able to hold a conversation with me without getting lost try and dismiss me because I'm a communist.

[Vladimir Innit Lenin]

IRL a little bit, being culturally Jewish and religiously speaking an atheist i've been attacked from both sides of the coin, predictably.

[Magón]

Before or after they realize I'm a brown Spanish speaking Mexican? Because one can only come after the other.

[NoOneIsIllegal]

Most people I talk politics to are generally cool with what I say. I make a lot of workplace complaints and labor observations, so they can typically agree with me. I don't try to be your typically embarrassing radical who shouts really mediocre and lame things, like how I picture some people (TVM) do. That shit just alienates and confuses people.

I often tell people I'm anarchist or am interested in anarchism, only because people always pester me about my tattoos ("what does that red-black thing mean?"). No one has ever given me shit about it, but who knows what they're thinking...

The only person who actually gives me gruff about my political beliefs is my dad, but I usually hold my own against him really well, especially on Israel. He has some good counter-attacks when we discuss economics, only because he majored in Labor Economics and was a banker for a while.