preview

Prejudice and Discrimination in America Today Essay

Better Essays

Across the nation, millions of Americans of all races turn on the television or open a newspaper and are bombarded with images of well dressed, articulate, attractive black people advertising different products and representing respected companies. The population of black professionals in all arenas of work has risen to the point where seeing a black physician, attorney, or a college professor are becoming more a common sight. More and more black people are holding positions of respect and authority throughout America today, such as Barack Obama, Colin Powell, Condelezza Rice and many other prominent black executives. As a result of their apparent success, these black people are seen as role models for many Americans, despite their race. …show more content…

In Derrick Bell's Faces at the Bottom of the Well, this idea was well played out. The dialogue was between a "moving on up" black person trying to explain to a regular working class black person that he and all other working class brothers are in the same boat. However, the less successful working class brother proclaimed, " Not really, brother...the fact is you "moving on up" black folks hurt us everyday blacks simply by being successful. The white folks see you doing your thing, making money and they conclude right off that discrimination/ racism is over and that if the rest of us got up off our dead asses, dropped the welfare tit, stopped having illegitimate babies, and found jobs, we would all be just like you." Unfortunately, the problem of racism in America lies so much deeper than that. Black people everyday encounter different types of racism, be it they can't get the good jobs, can't afford the best education, and overall cannot partake in the "better life" that is such the emphasis of the American Dream.

It has been over 40 years since the Civil Rights Movement was in full swing, however the struggle for equal rights is still very prevalent in America today. Blacks still continue to fight for basic civil rights and equality throughout America everyday. The Civil Rights Movement of the 1960's is still very much relevant when dealing with racial issues in the twenty first century.

Get Access