Cultural And Racial Discrimination By Angel Kyodo Williams

In Nadine Gordimer’s short story “Once Upon a Time” she references points of racial prejudice in South Africa. “She sent the trusted housemaid out with bread and tea, but the housemaid said these were loafers and tsotsis… You only encourage them with your bread and tea”. Gordimer wrote the unemployed people on the streets as people of color to show that even in areas of the world where there is a larger population of colored people, there are still issues of white supremacy. They don’t trust their own neighbors and begin to ostracize themselves from society Also, in the Gettysburg Address, Lincoln says “ Four score and seven years ago, our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation… Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure.” He is saying that even though our country is only eighty-seven years old, we were fighting already, so maybe it was never meant to be. Furthermore, in Anna Quindlen mentions issues in the beginning of the United States in her essay “ A Quilt of a Country”. She mentions that this country is held together by “... the notion that all men are created equal, though everyone knows that most men consider themselves better than someone.” This compares to the ‘agree to disagree’ concept, where on the surface, humans appear to be fully capable of getting along without bickering or fighting over the simplest things, but in reality, most humans consider their opinions or themselves more important than others. Thus, it is clear that humans cannot live in harmony as ‘one human race’ because we don’t trust each other and we don’t consider ourselves

Racial bias, defined as “unreasonably hostile feelings or opinions about a social group” by Dictionary.com in which the social groups are different races, has been a problem for a long time, and it still exsts today. People cannot ignore the truth that is being shoved in our faces on the media. There are multiple examples of racial bias in the criminal justice system. If you don't believe this, here are some statistics by the Huffington Post: In a California study, the ACLU found blacks three times more likely to be stopped than whites, African Americans are arrested for drug offenses at rates 2 to 11 times higher than whites stated in a May 2009 report by Human Rights Watch, the U.S. Sentencing Commission in March 2010 stated that, in the

Diversity is said to make us unique and beautiful, yet too often it creates the ugliest conflicts. History will tell us more often than not that fundamental components of human life (race, religion, politics, culture, etc) are the root of many conflicts. Yet, people seem to make our discrepancies seem praiseworthy, and that we must accept them wholeheartedly. Although acceptance is crucial in forming a more empathetic society, it is important to recognize that one’s willingness to accept others is shaped by their past experiences and upbringing.

America has had discrimination against minorities for a long time and it will continue to have it until people treat minorities with respect. Discrimination is when people treat minorities bad because of their skin color, ethnicity and the place they were born. For immigrants, the problems they had to arrive to America were not a good experience only by the struggle to gain acceptance among the population. Most immigrants came to the U.S. to have a better life and give education to their children. Almost all immigrants have experienced discrimination at some point in their life and even some are still experiencing it today. Most Latinos don’t have a choice but to deal with it because they know they are illegal and they can’t say anything

In America’s history, each race has been portrayed as inferior or inferior, because of one’s skin color, or the beliefs of a culture. Oppression In early America varied in some ethnicities. Some races didn’t even have any civil liberties at all, they were not allowed to vote, not even allowed to become professionals. This was to keep everyone that was not of the superior race below them. Even though they are classified as U.S citizens. In most areas, the ruling race is the upper white class that runs the system, and have a disproportionate amount of power. In other areas, it may not be the white race, but it is still the race that makes up the majority. The majority, who makes the laws, and/or has money, are keys to dominate over the weaker minorities that don’t have the

Perhaps one of the most disgusting accusations one can receive today is “You’re racist!” However as disturbing as racism is, it is just one of the many mediums in which people use to control others. Whether the motive is race, religion, nationality, financial standing, or even gender, in every society, certain groups of people have always been oppressed. The culprit of seemingly unnecessary and ignorant oppression is human nature itself. Humans will always experience the need to feel superior, and for that reason, similar connections can be made among those people living under oppression thousands of miles and centuries apart from each other. “The Man Who Was Almost a Man” by Richard Wright, “Sweat” by Zora Neale

It is clearly apparent in society that segregation causes unneeded violence and hatred that can be stopped once everyone learns to respect and notice their differences. Although, this transformation does not seem to be as easy as it sounds. In this case, fear impacts equality and when fear prevents equality, people 's’ opinions are not able to be heard, leading to discrimination and injustice. The fear of differing ideas and opinions makes it hard to reach independence and freedom because a negative mindset is preventing the transformation. Throughout history and into today, the largest injustice in our society deals with racial prejudice, and the fear of emerging cultures often leads to superiority with the majority of the population and inferiority with the minority.

Writer and civil activist Audre Lorde points out, “It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences.” The world is a made up of differences, which tends to lead to clashing ideas. Along the way of becoming “civilized”, humanity lost its most important idea: we are all one, we are all human. So why does this ancient idea not apply in modern day issues? What exactly happened along the way for one human to not be as entitled as another? The answers to these questions might never be answered, but there can be action done to remediate humanity's errs. One way to remediate is by asking what can be done for a population that is normally

This week in North Philly Notes, Diana Pan, author of Incidental Racialization, writes about race, inequality, and professional socialization of Asian Americans and Latinos in law school.

There is no simple approach to create a world in which men and women of all distinctive races and backgrounds can live together equally in harmony because of their various viewpoints. If such a world is created in our lifetime, it must be accomplished through nonviolence which fabricates companionship and comprehension. It will be accomplished by persons who have the courage to put an end to suffering by willingly suffering themselves rather than inflict suffering upon others. Prejudice and discrimination can only be solved by dismissing the racism, materialism and brutality that has characterized Western civilization progress. By removing these restraints, society can begin to move in a positive direction of a universe of fellowship, collaboration and peace.

According to the oxford dictionary, institutional racism is defined as discrimination amongst people of a certain race that society becomes to see as normal. Looking back at the “discovering” of America, the history of colonization, slavery, the trail of tears and even Japanese internment camps, anyone not of European(British descent) were always seen and treated as less than. Because so many years have passed, one would think that something as simple as a skin color no longer was such a big determinant of prison time, obtaining a house, getting an education, and even getting a college degree (Irizarry and Raible, 2014).

One might think that being a part of the human race would work to unify all people. However, this has sadly not the case, as our commonality took a back seat to our supposed differences. Ergo, the construction of race effectively stratified society on the basis of one’s skin color. The creation of dominate and subordinate status along racial lines has resulted in one race benefiting at the expense of all other races. In the United States, this superior entitlement has been granted to those that are a part of the white race. Accordingly, white individuals have been able to reap the rewards of their skin tone, experiencing privilege that they may not even be aware of and that other races can only hope to attain.

Today, a serious problem exists all over the world. Racial oppression takes place in the poorest and the richest countries, including America. Racial oppression is characterized by the majority, or the ruling race, imposing its beliefs, values, and laws on the minority, or the ruled race. In most areas, the ruling race is upper class whites that run the “system”, and have a disproportionate amount of power. In other areas, it may not be the white race, but it is still the race that is comprised of the majority, makes the laws, or has the most money. These are the keys to domination over the weaker minorities that don’t have the power to thrive under the majority’s system according to their own cultural beliefs,

For instance, if we accept that discrimination is wrong within ourselves, then this injustice is less likely to happen, but if we believe that discrimination is right then this injustice is more likely to be repeated. We as humans are destroying our own peace and stability. We are creating division amongst ourselves with this injustice, leading our humanity to be more intolerant, offensive, judgmental, immoral and cruel. One the other hand, one way that this injustice can be controlled is if we change our attitudes and behavior. Awareness and acceptance of differences are crucially important to help stop this injustice. First, we must be more cautious about the way we speak and act, then we must respect other’s choices, wants and needs. One can’t stop this injustice alone but coming together can. Unification is key to overcome and end discrimination. We need to do it for our children, families, friends, communities, but most important for ourselves to create an environment where we can feel safe, free of unequal treatment and unfairness.

Civil rights activist Al Sharpton said, “We have come a long way from the days of slavery, but in 2014, discrimination and inequality still saturate our society in modern ways”. This quote rings true where equality in the workplace is concerned. In Toni Cade Bambara’s short story “The Lesson”, we see what social discrimination looks like through the eyes of children who are observing a wealthier part of town. In their eyes, they see and injustice and question why it is not being altered into something centered more on equality and equal opportunity. Toni Cade Bambara’s story “The Lesson” is written to make a point about racial discrimination in the workplace and social inequality.