Racism in America
America is always considered to be one of the most diverse countries in the world. There are various races in America and are citizens by birth or even by naturalization. Therefore, the concept of race and racism is something that has often been very controversial. In the book by Adams et al. (2007), they described ‘race’ as “a social construct that artificially divides people into distinct groups based on certain characteristics such as; physical appearance (particularly skin color) ancestral heritage, cultural affiliation, cultural history, ethnic classification.” (Pg. 88). Race is, thus, a social concept that always brings a distinction among various groups of people. Many factors are always at play anytime race is mentioned, but majorly defined by the skin color of an individual. Most people often claim that race is a different concept compared to racism -in terms of definition. This is because race describes the differences between individuals, while racism is the insubordination or attack against people of a specific race. In most cases, racism is always significantly influenced by the systems that are in place. Various factors also do influence racism in most parts of the world. In the United States of America, racism often significantly affect the minority races. The white Americans are usually considered to be the majority race in America; whereas, the minority race often consists of African-Americans, Latinos, and Asians. For a very long-time, racism had always been part of America and was trademarked by slavery in the early years. African Americans were the most affected by slavery. However, when slavery ended, racism didn’t actually stop. In the twentieth century, racism was at a high in America, and the minority groups face many hurdles as they were mostly sidelined. However, over the past few decades, researchers have often cited that racism in America has decreased significantly. This is true to some extent since the Obama presidency, in some way, helped to reduce the extent of racism in America. However, this hasn’t completely wiped out racism, and currently, other studies have also shown that cases of racism are still rampant in most parts of America. Consequently, this paper will analyze the concept of racism in America and how it still affects minorities in various dimensions. This paper will also use multiple past studies, literature, and articles to explain these concepts and support this paper’s thesis. This paper, therefore, holds the premise that race is a social construct and that racism is still very rampant in America.
Race is never just a matter that can be lightly understood. Race is usually constructed socially in societies. The concept or theory of racial formation was developed by two researchers Michael Omi and Howard Winant, in the year 2014. In their book – Racial Formation, they critically look into what defines race and how it occurs in communities. The two authors also analyzed the role that racism played in American history and also in the present. According to their theory, “the concept of racial formation is the sociohistorical process by which racial identities are created, lived out, transformed, and destroyed.” (Pg.109). In their view, they also suggest that race is more than just a biological concept, such as the color of the skin. Consequently, the author seems to assert that race is socially constructed in American societies. Therefore, there are various factors that determine the importance and content of the different categories of races in America. These factors are social, political, and economical. These factors often tend to structure political activities in many states around America. Thus, race factor still remains prevalent in America. Therefore, with a better understanding of how race is constructed, we can analyze the concept of racism. However, in the following analysis of racism, this paper will not also consider race as a political construction.
In most cases, people always consider racism as an act where one race acts superior to others; thus, making them feel inferior. In America, the minority groups have often been greatly affected by racism for a very long time now. One of the most significant cases of racism has often been witnessed in police treatment of minorities and mostly African Americans. Over the past years, this has always been an issue that hasn’t subside as each year a dozen police brutality are reported. Ritchie and Mogul (2016) claim that the “use of excessive force by law enforcement officers all too frequently results in the death of civilians and people of color who are disproportionately killed by law enforcement officials.” (Pg.195). It is quite evident that most of the African-Americans are always the ones affected due to how skewed the system is against them. This is often pointed to the fact that most of them are usually perceived in another way. There are numerous stereotypes around this group – mostly the African-American youth, that they are dangerous. Therefore, in most cases, police officers view them as suspects, even in instances where they are victims. This is a clear depiction of the racial biasness that exists in America. The police departments in many parts of the United States have seemingly been marred with a lot of racial bias. (Fryer, pg.1). This is not only limited to how they treat the minorities, but also how they recruit people. Therefore, the minority races have been left so vulnerable to the system that is supposed to protect them. Questions have often risen on why it is only the African Americans that are the ones being mistreated, shot, and even killed by police. However, the answer still boils down to race.
Racism in America also takes different forms in America. It is often clear that inequality and race are factors that sometimes go hand in hand. In minority communities, racism is even complicated when it comes to women. This is because its racism intertwines with gender to create a significant gap in society. As Malcom X once said, the African-American women were the most vulnerable, misunderstood, and even overlooked. Inequality in gender was always in existence, even in the ages of slavery. However, despite the abolition, women witnessed not only gender issues but also racial inequality. This biasness has often limited them even in the political arena. The Washington Post article done by Kyle Swenson (2017) cites the claims that were made by Dulce Sloan, suggesting that the African-Americans weren’t given much appreciation for their political contribution. Instead, they have been sidelined economically and also politically. This, of course, is quite evident with the lower number of women in politics and in top business and corporate positions. Race, therefore, subject women to a lot of inequality and discrimination. (Evans, pg.13). Racism makes it even harder for African American and Latino women to liberate themselves from the societal barriers.
Most research studies have often claimed that, compared to the twentieth century, the twenty-first century has witnessed a significant change in the attitude towards race in politics. In the early years, it was difficult for the minority races in America to actively participate in politics. This was due to the heightened racism and discrimination that existed at that time. However, despite the claimed change in attitude is very true that racism is still consistent in the American political scene. Chris Danielson (2016) claims that “the subject of racism in politics is not just a timely issue in US political culture, but one that recurs with depressing frequencies.” (Pg.8). Therefore, racism in politics is like a culture that can’t just end soon. Most people had hope that the election of the first African-American president in 2008 would signal an end to racist politics. For some time, a little changed; however, the culture was slowly creeping back. After the re-election of Obama, a section of the Republicans started attacking the minorities after losing their votes. Social media technology has since been attributed to fueling the culture of racial politics in America. For instance, President Donald has always been called out for posting racist political comments on Twitter. This has been coupled with a constant critique of the minority leaders and discrimination of the minority groups politically. Maryann Cusimano Love (2007) seemed to suggest that Americans can’t get out of racist politics because most people don’t understand the roots. (Pg. 450). The American political scene is still skewed against the minorities due to the racial factors due to the deceptive history that has allowed it to be a culture.
Not only are the minority races limited in politics and also brutalized by police in America, but they also face legal injustices. In the late twentieth century, police brutality always led to the arrests of minority racial groups without any apparent cause. A study by Petersilia in the year 1983 claimed that there wasn’t a big difference in how minority and majority races were treated and that there wasn’t a rampant arresting of the minorities. (Pg.6). These claims and research by Petersilia could be right at that time. He claimed that the study didn’t find am evidence that the justice system treated people differently in terms of race. However, they have been evidence that the justice system in America has often operated on racial biasness. It’s an issue that has been controversial and can’t be claimed that it started in this decade. The African-Americans, mostly, are the ones who are victims of the skewed justice system that locks them in jail. However, most people have still remained adamant that the justice system doesn’t sentence or discriminate against people. Radley Balko (2018), in the Washing Post article, notes that “it’s pretty clear to me that the evidence of racial bias in our criminal justice system isn’t just convincing — it’s overwhelming.” The author acknowledges that even the white people are treated unfairly or even wrongfully accused and arrested or even harmed by the police. Nevertheless, the author states that the rate at which African-Americans and Latinos are profiled and treated is much higher. Most statistics have often supported this claim since African-Americans are often more likely to be pulled over, more likely to be arrested and even jailed for petty crimes – than white Americans. Mass incarceration is just another proof that the system is racially skewed towards the minor races in America.
In the United States of America, racism is still prevalent in matters of education. In education, racism has seemingly taken a different form and complicated the systems in numerous ways. Rita Kohl (2008) cited in her article that “many Black children have a racial inferiority complex regarding whiteness.” (Pg.179). This points out one of the elements of race and racism. As mentioned earlier in this paper, racism is considered to be an act that makes one group feel inferior as the other group becomes superior. In most cases, minority students who join a majority school will often have a feeling of being out of place and inferior too. This, thus, boils down to how race is constructed in society. In some cases, these students can be isolated and even racially discriminated by others. In most cases, adolescent students may suffer deeply psychologically due to the effects of racism in their schools. Several studies have also cited that highly-ranked colleges often deny minority students University admission because of their racial backgrounds. For so many years now, complaints have always been on the Ivy League schools’ biased admission systems – only favoring a few minorities and a more significant number of the white majority. This has often forced most of the minorities to opt for the mid-level universities and colleges. Thus, most African-Americans and Latinos fail to reach their full potential despite attaining the same required standards as their counterparts. Despite all the complains and programs, the racial bias still prevails, and equality seems to far out of reach.
Systematic racism is often witnessed in the employment sector too. Most research studies have often pointed out that the American labor market is usually full of White Americans in charge. Studies have also pointed out that racial discrimination is still widespread in most workplaces. According to Bahraini Ahzin (2019), minorities in America struggle to get jobs since colorism is one of the factors that determine whether one gets and stays on the job or not. (Pg.5). This offers proof that minority races still struggle to attain better jobs in America. Research says that white privilege is evident as white majorities are the ones likely to land the job. This often occurs even when the groups have got the same qualifications or experience in the required field. Statistics by researchers have often shown that the African-Americans are twice likely to be victims of unemployment compared to white Americans. However, it also worth note that racism also leads to the disparity in payment; whereby, the minority is likely to get lesser in wages and salaries. Additionally, Black African women are more likely to more affected by racism in employment and payment that their male counterparts.
Conclusion
In conclusion, racism seems to be deep-rooted in American culture. Race is always a factor that seems to be socially constructed in the American community. Despite the claims that racism has subsided, numerous evidence shows that it is still prevalent. The ever-high cases of police brutality and injustices against the minority races have served as one proof. Again, racial politics, education, and discriminative employment systems that have become very common also paints a vivid picture of how far we are from ending it.
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