Southern Virginia: Living in the land of bigots.
Bigotry starts in the heart of someone who treats others poorly or believes they are inferior just because they are different. There are historical roots in bigotry. Southern Virginia is a classic example. Because of its history, bigotry survives, and you can see that even blacks support it, knowingly and unknowingly. Ethnic minorities suffer the most because of bigotry.
Bigotry can start with income differences. Some believe that if they have more money than others, they are better off than those with lower incomes. Because they have more spending money, they may have a big house or more land and prefer to live with others who share their sense of self-worth. These people can survive in communities with different ethnic backgrounds as long as they are in the same income bracket. But tradition can still come into play, and so can their sense of protecting their ethnicity.
In cities, you may find bigots in exclusive or gated communities. In rural areas, you may find them on a certain road. The newest classification of who suffers from bigotry is black politicians, especially female politicians, and those who are in upper management. Whites feel that they got their jobs because of their color. In 2026, the fight over Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) became a call to eliminate those in authority, even historical people of color.
In a country like parts of Africa where all the people appear to be black, there can still be bigots. It could come down to tribal history. People in these countries, even with the same skin color, can tell when someone is different based on physical appearance. The Rwandan genocide occurred because people could tell the physical differences between Black people.
It is easy to be a racial bigot because the outward appearance is obvious, and they can identify cultural backgrounds just because of the color of their skin, language, and lifestyles. Bigots don't only care about different colors. Bigots exist within a color scheme, but most of the time income also plays a part. Sometimes religion plays a part in bigotry. How you worship can put you in an unfavorable category.
This gives mainly white people a feeling of superiority because they need to feel good about themselves and their shortcomings. This can stem from unreasonable beliefs because people outside their group have different beliefs or ways of life. When a group with the same bigoted beliefs gets together, they can reinforce their bias.
Living in a land of bigots can be difficult and dangerous because the mental health of a bigot can take it to a different level. Whites are very fearful of blacks, feeling that they will attack them at will, rob them, or maybe raping their woman. Blacks are fearful of whites because of attacks against them just because of the color of their skin.
History has shown that more blacks are attacked and killed by whites just because of the color of their skin or where they are in their neighborhoods. There have been more rapes of black women by whites, and they go unreported. But when there is an alleged assault of white women, not only is the alleged perpetrator prosecuted; the whole black community could be under assault.
It is rare to hear about the police being called in a black community because residents have spotted an unusual white person. But it is common for police to respond to a call for an unusual black person in a community, and this can lead to deadly consequences.
The most sinister of bigotry is the quiet, unnoticed discriminatory acts. These people are hypocrites who go about their everyday lives with a smile on their face, but in their heart and mind, they are truly bigots.
Living in Southern Virginia is a place where examples of bigotry exist.