Surprisingly no. Mormons are very much not racist on a personal level. Despite the Curse of Ham theory that was one justification for keeping people of African descent from holding the priesthood until 1978 (discussed in a previous question), most Mormons I have known are a bit embarrassed about that. All the Mormons I knew, including myself, kind of gave a sigh of relief when the doctrine was changed. A similar doctrine of Mormonism is that indigenous people of the Americas have dark skin because they were cursed. Very in keeping with the 19th century roots of the religion. Mormons were no more racist than most Americans from that time--probably less so. But the prohibition against the priesthood was definitely an uncomfortable doctrine during the 20th century. However, again, I think that today's Mormons are very accepting of people. Most Mormons I know bend over backwards not to be racist. [Response to MK]: Regarding why God's church would teach such a racist doctrine, I invite you to draw your own conclusion.

The answer to that question is an obvious NO. Nor have they ever been. Such an accusation has no ground. In fact, Joseph Smith was an avid opponent of slavery which resulted in much persecution of the saints and even massacres. The Saints (Mormons / Latter Day Saints) originally gathered at the state of Missouri, which of course is in the south. As with African-Americans and the Priesthood. It is absolutley foolish to try to connect the doctrine with racism. The gospel of Jesus Christ in many ages of time has had certain blessings or restrictions due to lineage. The priesthood is an obvious example of this. Being available for quite some time to none but those who were from the tribe of Levi. Each of the twelve tribes of Israel had its own special characteristics endowed by god. A favorite example to illustrate this point however is the revelation given to Peter to begin the preaching of the gospel to the Gentiles (formerly it was only to be preached to the jews) see Acts chapter 10. The doctrine of those of African descent holding the priesthood has never changed. Just as God's doctrine of preaching the gospel to the Jew first and then the Gentile wasn't changed by Peter. The fulfillment came wherein the gospel had been suffieciently preached to the jew and the time had come for the opening of the preaching of the gospel to the gentile as well. Brigham Young (Prophet of the church from 1847 to 1877) prophesied / taught that the Priesthood and its blessings would someday be made available to those of african descent. "they never can hold the Priesthood or share in it until all the other descendants of Adam have received the promises and enjoyed the blessings of the Priesthood and the keys thereof... then the curse will be removed from the seed of Cain, and they will receive blessings in like proportion" (Brigham Young, Journal of Discourses vol 7 page 291). This quote is usually chopped up to make it seem to say the opposite. It should also be noted that at no time was any race ever discourage from attending church. Only the blessings of the Priesthood were ever restricted. The Book of Mormon praises the Jewish people as chosen by God and preaches their eventual acceptance of Christ and re-gathering to there chosen lands. The Book of Mormon is in no way anti-semitic, it on the other hand chastises the gentiles for anti-semitism 2 Nephi 29:5 "O ye Gentiles, have ye remembered the Jews, mine ancient covenant people? Nay ; but ye have cursed them, and have hated them and have not sought to recover them. But behold, I will return all these things upon your own heads ; for I the Lord have not forgotten my people." (see also the whole of chapters 29 and 30 of 2 Nephi.)

Typically? No. Are some Mormons racist? Yes.

No... The Church was established in 1830 & Slavery ended in 1865 with the signing of the 13th Amendement to the constitution. But, The Church had suffered at the hands of Mobs from begining with the persecution the of its people without the added persecution of being labeled as 'Sympathisers' or having Black ministers, Although there were Blacks ordained in the 1830's & several Black members! There is not record that the prophet knew about the ordinations. This site shows that there were still major riots to do with racial equality upto the mid 1920's http://innercity.org/holt/chron_1830_end.html & DARE I SAY in the 1990's...Because of Racist Police Officers. I think that God held it back to 1978 for a reason. I wonder how many other religions are Plauged with this Question. Technically it took a hundred years after the First Black Catholic Priest to have it in writting but :- ALEAST... 'The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints' has the PROPER priesthood authority to give to ALL WORTHY MALES!

Openly? not since 1978. JOSPEH FIELDING SMITH Doctrines of Salvation, pp. 65-66 . There were no neutrals in the war in heaven. All took sides either with Christ or with Satan. Every man had his agency there, and men receive rewards here based upon their actions there, just as they will receive rewards hereafter for deeds done in the body. The Negro, evidently, is receiving the reward he merits. pg. 61. There is a reason why one man is born black and with other disadvantages, while another is born white with great advantages. The reason is that we once had an estate before we came here, and were obedient, more or less, to the laws that were given us there. Those who were faithful in all things there received greater blessings here, and those who were not faithful received less. BRUCE R. MCCONKIE Mormon Doctrine, p. 114 In a broad general sense, caste systems have their root and origin in the gospel itself, and when they operate according to the divine decree, the resultant restrictions and segregation are right and proper and have the approval of the Lord. To illustrate: Cain, Ham, and the whole Negro race have been cursed with a black skin, the mark of Cain, so they can be identified as a caste apart, a people with whom the other descendants of Adam should not intermarry. BRIGHAM YOUNG Journal of Discourses Shall I tell you the law of God in regard to the African Race? If the White man who belongs to the chosen seed mixes his blood with the seed of Cain, the penalty, under the law of God, is death on the spot. This will always be so. Vol. 7, pg. 290-291 Millennial Star, Vol. 14, pg. 418. For instance, the descendants of Cain cannot cast off their skin of blackness, at once, and immediately, although every soul of them should repent,....Cain and his posterity must wear the mark which God put upon them; and his white friends may wash the race of Cain with fuller's soap every day, they cannot wash away God's mark. Year 2001 update "Racial degeneration, resulting in differences in appearance and spiritual aptitude, has arisen since the fall. We know the circumstances under which the posterity of Cain (and later of Ham) were born with the characteristics of the black race. (Moses 5:16-41; 7:8,12,22; Abra. 1:20-27.) The Book of Mormon explains why the Lamanites received dark skins and a degenerate status. (2 Ne. 5:21-23.) If we had a full and true history of all races and nations, we would know the origins of all their distinctive characteristics. In the absence of such detailed information, however, we know only the general principle that all these changes from the physical and spiritual perfections of our common parents have been brought about by departure from the gospel truths. (Doctrines of Salvation, vol. 1, pp. 148-151; vol. 3, pp. 313-326.)" (Mormon Doctrine 1999 printing, p. 616) Cain slew his brother. . . and the Lord put a mark upon him, which is the flat nose and black skin. http://www.lds-mormon.com/racism.shtml

Some are and some aren't today... In the past the Church preached that the Black race was inferior or cursed. http://www.answerbag.com/a_view.php/19452

"Are Mormons typically racist?" ... In the Book of Mormon, Lamanites are described as having a "skin of blackness" caused by God as punishment for their wickedness and corruption: ""And he had caused the cursing to come upon [the Lamanites], yea, even a sore cursing, because of their iniquity. For behold, they had hardened their hearts against him, and they had become like unto a flint; wherefore, as they were white, and exceedingly fair and delightsome, that they might not be enticing unto my people the Lord God did cause a skin of blackness to come upon them." (2 Nephi 5:21)." ... so dark skin, or "skin of blackness", is considered to be a manifestation of "God's judgment" on a disobedient people. It is thus qualified to be a NEGATIVE trait. Therefore, the Book of Mormon, and the author/creator Joseph Smith, is/are racist. Thank you.

All the ones I have met are not.

Those who worship God are not racist, God is very loving and loves everyone! even if you don't appreciate him, he will always be there for you. Don't forget that God works in mysterious ways.

Typically no. But their are some fundamentalist LDS factions that sadly are. I have personally never seen, nor met or heard of any African American declare himself as being mormon, but I am sure somewhere outhere there are a few minority's. Most of the extremist organizations are racist, and anti-homosexual, and anti-womens rights.

Not typiccaly, but any human being can be racist. It really doesn't have anything to do with your religion, just your bigoted views.

Human beings (of all races and religions) are typically racist. There's no reason why Mormons should be any more racist than anyone else.

I would like to know how it is that no one alive in the modern era knows what Noah, Shem, Japeth and Ham looked like, and yet so many are certain that modern day negroes are the cursed phenotype simply because caucasians, some mulattoes, many natives and even a few negroes, chose to enslave them for a relatively short while, when looking at the entire length of human history, in the Americas. What about all of those thousands of years the world had been in exsistence before the 1600's when there wasn't even such a thing as race? How does two hundred years of slavery prove that only the modern negro race is the cursed descendents the bible speaks of, when caucasians, mongoloids, native americans and jews have also been enslaved (by their own people, by each other and to negroes), throughout the other thousands of years of world history? Why is it that all of these peoples, and more that I haven't listed, have been enslaved throughout history, but modern day negroes have been the only ones declared to be cursed? What about the fact that negroes were the ones capturing and selling other negroes into the American slave trade? I mean, if other black africans were profiting from the sale of black africans, that doesn't sound like a curse on the WHOLE negro race to me; that sounds like commerce within a free market society. And what is ALL of this talk about the curse of Ham anyway? I am so completely tired of supposedly educated men telling half truths in regards to what transpired between Ham and Noah. I am going to repeat this over and over again until I stop hearing about it: read your frickin' bibles people!!! Noah cursed CANAAN!!! CANAAN, NOT HAM!!! [Genesis 9:25 "And he [Noah] said, 'Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren." And by the way, Canaan was the last born son of Ham. Ooooo...God cursed the least of Ham's sons. How terrible. So even if by some miracle we were able to know that modern day negroes, and only modern day negroes, were descendents of Ham, that still wouldn't mean that they were automatically cursed. Ham had SEVERAL more sons, (including FIRST born, Cush, whose son was the mighty Nimrod), besides Canann who were NOT CURSED. Not only that, but how is it that modern day caucasians are so certain that they are not descendents of Canaan? Do all of them know where their Great to nth power Grandparents came from? Even modern day Russian nobilty has Ethopian blood running through it. Which brings me to this point: if it has been SCIENTIFICALLY proven that modern man originated with the dark skinned peoples of Africa, why is it ASSumed that the mark of Cain is black skin? Who said? Where is that written in the Bible? In my opinion it makes more sense that IF the mark is skin color [IF the mark is skin color! IF! IF!], it would be white skin seeing as how the norm at that time would have been dark skin. Let me finish with this: The thing about this that I REALLY do not understand is even if it is the truth that the modern negro is/was cursed by God, it is also the truth that this same God gave his only begotten son as a gift to the world. Jesus is the sacrficial lamb for ALL of those who believe. Through him, all sins are washed away and the believer is born again into a new creature. So even if the negro race was cursed, a negro in Christ would not be cursed, and as a church the blood of Christ should have been acknowledge in such a negro, thus we arrive at a more simple explanation as to why all of that racist doctrine is crap and shouldn't have exsisted in the first place.

Not by any stretch of the imagination. I’m a Latter-day Saint—have been for over 16 years—and I have friends of all races and even an African-American brother-in-law and a Hispanic sister-in-law (both of whom, incidentally, are also members of the Church). I have never (to the best of my knowledge) treated any of them differently than anyone else.

Mormons typically score *less* racist in polling than the average American, even prior to the 1978 lift on the priesthood ban. If you were to attend my New York City-based LDS congregation on any given Sunday, you would see a congration that is quite racially diverse, more so than probably many other NYC congregations. I will say, however, that I think Brigham Young, as great of a man as I think he was, was undeniably a racist -- his racist opinions (which were, to be fair, typical of the average 19th century American) were the source of the priesthood ban policy in the first place. Fortunately, few modern Mormons share his views, nor do I thing Brigham Young would have had the same views if he lived in the 20th century. (This is analogous to the history of most other U.S. based Christian denominations, if you're really being fair.)

I believe mormonism is racist. If you look back on the history of it you will see that they did not let blacks become preists and in many of their scriptures they believe that people of colour are cursed and the spawn of the devil. Any black or brown man/woman that is a morman is a fucking sell out!

I don't think so. I've known Mormons and they were not racist.

As a general rule they are like all of us. (I was Mormon for 10 years) The racism that some seem to see there really stems from the denial of the priesthood to blacks before 1978. The church today is much different than it was then. In fact there are more foreign mormons than there are white American mormons. I think if there is any residue of that exclusionary attitude, it is in the older generation. I've taught religion to the children and the younger priesthood for years while a member and that attitude is not there. Compared to other American groups they are in fact relatively non-racist...From first hand experience I can say no to this question. I am no longer mormon and so, have no pro-mormon agenda to my answer. Simply my observations as one who was and still associates with many mormons.

I think the answer is Yes historically, and probably still Yes today. In the past Mormonism had a not so guarded practice of discrimination against African-Americans. This came to a head when pressure was made on the church in it's most painful part... it's bank balance. During the 1970's the IRS actually threatened to cancel the church's non-profit tax exempt status because of institutionalized racism, and even some University sports teams were refusing to compete in Utah because of it. This pressure was relieved on 1978-JUN-6 when the church received a "revelation from God" to end the practice of discrimination against persons of African-American heritage. Quite nice timing indeed by God. Perhaps in the 30 years since that "revelation" things have changed? I would say the best evidence for the contrary is the 2008 Presidential election, with the white candidate versus the black one. The state that stands out as being the most anti-Obama from the polls is.. you guessed it, Utah. (See pollster.com) So if we draw a connection between anti-Obama voting and racism (and we probably can), then in 2008 Utah (and therefore Mormons) are unfortunately still racist. See also: http://www.religioustolerance.org/lds_race.htm

Well, god does seem to favor certain races and genders over others...

Yes. Same as the curse of poligamy, not in public. Mormons try hard to coverup their history with additional lies & fables. My 2 cents.

As a group, Mormons,(LDS) are not racist at all. If you think so, let me ask you a question? How come since the days of Cain, no seed of Cain ever held the Priesthood? In 4000+ years, not one descentant of Cain ever held the Priesthood, why? I know you have been told this started with the Mormon Church, but as you can see it started over 4000 years ago. This is obviously something which God our heavenly Father has taken upon Himself. And He owes no explanation to anyone, what He has done He has done...whew4

I don't think they are supposed to be today, but they were very racist, so I don't know why any colored person would want to be a mormon as they were systematically racist in the past. And they do believe they have a living profet so every decision they make comes from God.

There has been many examples of racist comments made by many from the LDS church because of their limited understanding and limited education! It is clear that these has changed lately and one rarely hear racist comments but they do exist in some backyards in any country and religion. With more knowledge normally comes a better understanding and perspective, but not always unfortunately. However if a leader or member TODAY would stand up and say some of the views expressed, they would be dealt with and called in eventually to put an end to it. If racist comments were not stopped they would be excommunicated for sure. No leader would last very long in any position today if he uphelp racist views, he/she would be changed quickly.

SHORT ANSWER: Well I know that if I want to hear the latest racist joke (and I don't) I need look no further than my College Educated, well read, rich, successful Business Man LDS Convert Brother or one of his College Educated, raised in the LDS Church sons. Especially N-Word jokes. BTW, prior to joining the LDS Church my brother was one of John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther's biggest fans. Now? Not so much! LONG ANSWER: And it turns out that my experience with my brother and his kids isn't unique. Please consider this article from the Jamaica Observer: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/columns/html/20050925T040000-0500_89119_OBS_THE_EMBARRASSING_TRUTH_ABOUT_MORMONISM_.asp (alternate link = http://www.i4m.com/think/comments/mormon-racism.htm) And these citations from LDS Scripture and History: Mormon scripture: God curses bad races with black skin 2 Nephi 5:21 21 And the Lord had caused the cursing to come upon them, yea, even a sore cursing, because of their iniquity. For behold, they had hardened their hearts against him, that they had become like unto a flint; wherefore, as they were white, and exceedingly fair and delightsome, that they might not be enticing unto my people the Lord God did cause a skin of blackness to come upon them. Alma 3: 6 "And the skins of the Lamanites were dark, according to the mark which was set upon their fathers, which was a curse upon them because of their transgression and their rebellion against their brethren, who consisted of Nephi, Jacob, and Joseph, and Sam, who were just and holy men." 3 Nephi 2:14-15 14 And it came to pass that those Lamanites who had united with the Nephites were numbered among the Nephites; 15 And their curse was taken from them, and their skin became white like unto the Nephites; Moses 7:22 22 And Enoch also beheld the residue of the people which were the sons of Adam; and they were a mixture of all the seed of Adam save it was the seed of Cain, for the seed of Cain were black, and had not place among them. Abraham 1:21-24,27 21 Now this king of Egypt was a descendant from the loins of Ham, and was a partaker of the blood of the Canaanites by birth. 22 From this descent sprang all the Egyptians, and thus the blood of the Canaanites was preserved in the land. 23 The land of Egypt being first discovered by a woman, who was the daughter of Ham, and the daughter of Egyptus, which in the Chaldean signifies Egypt, which signifies that which is forbidden; 24 When this woman discovered the land it was under water, who afterward settled her sons in it; and thus, from Ham, sprang that race which preserved the curse in the land. 27 Now, Pharaoh being of that lineage by which he could not have the right of Priesthood, notwithstanding the Pharaohs would fain claim it from Noah, through Ham, therefore my father was led away by their idolatry; Official LDS Church Publications Explain Racist LDS Scriptures "The Book of Abraham is rich both in doctrine and in historical incidents. Of the latter the fact of the large influence (if not identity) of Egyptian religious ideas in Chaldea in the days of Abraham is established; the descent of the black race, Negro, from Cain, the first murderer; the preservation of that race through the flood by the wife of Ham--"Egyptus," which in the Chaldean signifies "Egypt," "which signifies that which is forbidden"--the descendants of "Egyptus" were cursed as pertaining to the priesthood--that is, they were barred from holding that divine power; the origin also of the Egyptians--these things, together with the account of Abraham migrating from Chaldea to Egypt, constitute the chief historical items that are contained in the book." - Comprehensive History of the Church, Vol.2, Ch.47, Pg.128 “From this it is very clear that the mark which was set upon the descendants of Cain was a skin of blackness, and there can be no doubt that this was the mark that Cain himself received; in fact, it has been noticed in our day that men who have lost the spirit of the Lord, and from whom His blessings have been withdrawn, have turned dark to such an extent as to excite the comments of all who have known them.” - Juvenile Instructor, vol. 26, page 635 "We will first inquire into the results of the approbation or displeasure of God upon a people, starting with the belief that a black skin is a mark of the curse of heaven placed upon some portions of mankind. Some, however, will argue that a black skin is not a curse, nor a white skin a blessing. In fact, some have been so foolish as to believe and say that a black skin is a blessing, and that the negro is the finest type of a perfect man that exists on the earth; but to us such teachings are foolishness. We understand that when God made man in his own image and pronounced him very good, that he made him white. We have no record of any of God's favored servants being of a black race....every angel who ever brought a message of God's mercy to man was beautiful to look upon, clad in the purest white and with a countenance bright as the noonday sun.” - The Juvenile Instructor, Vol. 3, page 157 “For instance, the descendants of Cain cannot cast off their skin of blackness, at once, and immediately, although every soul of them should repent,... Cain and his posterity must wear the mark which God put upon them; and his white friends may wash the race of Cain with fuller's soap every day, they cannot wash away God's mark;...” - LDS Publication, The Millennial Star, vol. 14, page 418 "Their skin is quite black, their hair woolly and black, their intelligence stunted, and they appear never to have arisen from the most savage state of barbarism.” - The Juvenile Instructor, Vol. 3, page 157 "Is or is it not apparent from reason and analogy as drawn from a careful reading of the Scriptures, that God causes the saints, or people that fall away from his church to be cursed in time, with a black skin? Was or was not Cain, being marked, obliged to inherit the curse, he and his children, forever? And if so, as Ham, like other sons of God, might break the rule of God, by marrying out of the church, did or did he not, have a Canaanite wife, whereby some of the black seed was preserved through the flood, and his son, Canaan, after he laughed at his grandfather's nakedness, heired three curses: one from Cain for killing Abel; one from Ham for marrying a black wife, and one from Noah for ridiculing what God had respect for? Are or are not the Indians a sample of marking with blackness for rebellion against God's holy word and holy order? And can or can we not observe in the countenances of almost all nations, except the Gentile, a dark, sallow hue, which tells the sons of God, without a line of history, that they have fallen or changed from the original beauty and grace of father Adam?" - LDS Messenger and Advocate (Mar 1835), Pg.82 "History and common observation show that these predictions have been fulfilled to the letter. The descendants of Ham, besides a black skin which has ever been a curse that has followed an apostate of the holy priesthood, as well as a black heart, have been servants to both Shem and Japheth, and the abolitionists are trying to make void the curse of God, but it will require more power than man possesses to counteract the decrees of eternal wisdom." - Times and Seasons, Vol.6, Pg.857 The LDS Church's racism isn't just from some isolated quote from one or two church leaders. The racist teaching from the Mormon pulpit is prolific and consistent over time. If God didn't agree with his prophets teaching these things in His church, then why did they continue over generations? There's a big difference between folklore and Mormon scripture. When the president and prophet of the church stands at the pulpit and teaches the laws of God, that isn't folklore. The list of "inspired" LDS Prophets that have taught racist doctrine from the pulpit is too large to cite here. But here's a sampling: http://www.realmormonhistory.com/god&skin.htm Some church members make the mistake of dismissing the racist statements of 19th-century Mormon leaders as "their own opinion," "not official doctrine," "products of their times," etc. Those same church members assert that the only "official doctrine" is the Standard Works and official statements of the First Presidency, and that if some leaders said something that didn't come from those sources, it isn't "binding on the membership," and it isn't "canon" or "official doctrine." However, an official statement of the LDS Church First Presidency issued on August 17, 1951, reads: "The position of the Church regarding the Negro may be understood when another doctrine of the church is kept in mind, namely, that the conduct of spirits in the pre-mortal existence has some determining effect upon the conditions and circumstances under which these spirits take on mortality, and that while the details of this principle have not been made known, the principle itself indicates that the coming to this earth and taking on mortality is a privilege that is given to those who maintained their first estate; and that the worth of the privilege is so great that spirits are willing to come to earth and take on bodies no matter what the handicap may be as to the kind of bodies they are to secure; and that among the handicaps, failure of the right to enjoy in mortality the blessings of the priesthood is a handicap which spirits are willing to assume in order that they might come to earth. Under this principle there is no injustice whatsoever involved in this deprivation as to the holding of the priesthood by the Negroes....." "Man will be punished for his own sins and not for Adam's transgression. If this is carried further, it would imply that the Negro is punished or alloted to a certain position on this earth, not because of Cain's transgression, but came to earth through the loins of Cain because of his failure to achieve other stature in the spirit world." - William E. Berrett's "The Church and the Negroid People," pp. 16-17 Since it's obvious from this official First Presidency statement that church leaders taught and believed that people are born as Negroes because of their behavior in the pre-existence--- ---as well as being from the lineage of the "accursed" Cain--- ---and the "sign" of Cain's curse was the black skin and flat nose, according to church leaders--- ---then the fact that Negroes are still being born by the tens of thousands every day tells us that the God of Mormonism has never lifted the "curse of Cain," despite having the priesthood ban rescinded. Church members are terribly mistaken when they say that the "curse of Cain" teachings were "folklore" and "not official doctrine." If the people of Jamaica can recognize the LDS Church's racism, why can't church members? http://www.i4m.com/think/history/mormon_racism.htm As well as these citations from LDS History and Leaders: http://www.lds-mormon.com/racism.shtml As well as these historical archives: http://www.mormoncurtain.com/topic_racism.html