Very overt, conscious racism seems to be on the decline in modern America, but even people who consider themselves to be colorblind or racially fair often have subconscious racist feelings that guide their action.
So this made me wonder: in the past when overt racism was more apparent, did people consider themselves racist? If they did, was it a label of pride?
in one sense no: the word wasn't invented yet: OED says (1895 as adjective, 1924 as noun) which makes sense because the term racism caries an inherently negative connotation. That being said yes people often stressed some sort of racial pride. (a history of white people is a good book on this). I can't really think of a label people used because you really need something opposed to it to define terms against and not racist views were few and far between. the most accurate phrase might be "against racial equality" and that's most often seen as a brute fact so it wouldn't be something shameful.
in the past when overt racism was more apparent, did people consider themselves racist?
Absolutely, if by racist you mean believing that one's own race is superior than others. That goes not just for Europeans but for many other ethnic groups as well.
If they did, was it a label of pride?
I don't think it was a matter of pride, it was just the way things were.
I just read The Primeval Forest, an autobiography by Albert Schweitzer. He set up medical clinics in Africa at the beginning of the 20th century and his humanitarian efforts were applauded with a Nobel peace prize. He took the prize money and used it to build a bigger hospital.
This man, had he been a Roman Catholic instead of a Protestant, would have been canonized and made a Saint by now.
That said, his candid observations of the native Africans would be shocking to a modern audience and most certainly would not have been published today.
Here's one comment on the Amazon book site;
deeply offensive for us natives of Gabon By Nyingone on November 24, 2004 Format: Paperback I read this book out of curiosity because my grandmother remembers Dr. Schweitzer very well. I found this book very offensive because of the imperialistic language of "superior Europeans coming to the rescue of inferior childlike Blacks". He calls us "children of nature" and "savages." Read the book, it's all in there. 1 Comment Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
http://www.amazon.com/Primeval-Forest-Albert-Schweitzer-Library/dp/0801859581