Racism, Racism And The Central Frame From Bonilla Silva Of Cultural Racism

Racism is a socially constructed concept used by multiple groups of people and creates a hierarchy of sorts based purely on the color of a person’s skin or their cultural origins. It has been an idea that has existed since the beginnings of civilization. A more modern iteration of this concept was made prominent in the 16th century as European settlers began to explore different areas of the world, specifically areas in or around Africa. But slavery can be seen back in the 1500s all the way to 1880 and was most likely a leading example of what helped define racism up to the 20th century. In Ali Rattansi’s book, “Racism: A Very Short Introduction” , the author connects how slavery and race are closely tied together. European explorers would ignore the cultures the invaded in order to see these people as nothing more than native groups that were meant to be seen in a subservient role. Slavery would continue to grow across the Atlantic and seen as an institution that created large amounts of wealth for those who could reap the benefits from it. As long as money was being made, slavery persisted and was justified. Race and racism was conceived the way it was because the slave owning system was controlled by European colonizers.

In this essay I stated my views on racism and other perceptive views of racism. I have always had a different mindset than most, and I am ok with it. I think that it is good to be able to think for oneself and that is what I did in this essay. Racism is inevitable in today’s world. There is really no way to stop it because everyone has their own opinions and beliefs, but people can try to end racism by having an open

The overarching theme of critical race theory is centered on race and racism, however in higher education, critical race scholars recognize that racial identity and this form of oppression (racism) intersects with other subordinated identities (such as gender, class, religion, ability/disability, sexual orientation, etc.) and forms of oppression (sexism, homophobia, ableism, etc.) to influence People of Color’s lived experiences (Bartlett & Brayboy, 2005; Brayboy 2005; Kumasi, 2011; Lynn & Adams, 2002; Solórzano & Yosso, 2001). This means that in higher education, critical race theory challenges the dominate discourse on race and racism as it relates to educational theory, policy and practice (Solórzano, 1998).

The articles of Brent Staples “ Just Walk on By” and Richard Rodriguez “Complexion” comparing the similarities and differences of Staples and Rodriguez 's article. Both authors state the scarring effects of racism on the mind juveniles by the use of personal experiences from their youth.

This issue of racism is popular by name but tends to be sugar coated by the way people see it. In order to truly understand racism you need to take a bite into the topic in order to get a taste of what it is really like. Racism comes in many different forms and can be seen many different ways. But why even care about racism at all? Why does it even matter? One would think that with such a harsh background regarding racism in America it would no longer exist in society today. But sadly that is not the case here, racism continues to show up all over the country sometimes being worse than others but still racism is racism. People should all be considered equal regardless of what they look like, talk like, or even do that makes them who they are.

The anecdotal instances of racism in Rankin’s Citizen together demonstrates the existence of a structural form of racism. The anecdotes demonstrates that if a person is of colour they suffer different treatment which distinguish them to be an ‘other’ type of person. The idea behind these racist encounters can be further categorized into three categories: overt racism, covert racism, and institutional racism, and these ideas together form the basis behind structural racism.

Racism has been a debated topic throughout the years. There have been many questions about if racism is a communal structured method of categorizing and separating people or if it is a learned or inherited behavior. The word has so many different meaning to each person affected by it. According to Miles and Brown, “The concept of racism is heavily negatively loaded, morally and politically” (3). All the way through history, racism has generated grief for those who fall victim to the problem. “Kindred” by Octavia Butler explains how a black woman is able to take a journey back in time to encounter and witness slavery up close and personal. In Natasha Trethewey “Bellocq's Ophelia”, the reader is able to recognize Ophelia’s yearning to be seen as a white woman opposed to a very fair-skinned black women. both Ophelia and Dana encounter racism and stereotypes. “During both of these women’s journeys throughout the stories, they have to face issues and hardships concerning their race in many different ways.”

Racism is the belief that innate differences between races dictate cultural achievement and includes the idea that one race is above another. This is a universal problem and is the root of discrimination. Lately, police officers face accusations of racial profiling and being responsible for several unjust murders. The deaths that are due to the victims’ skin pigment recognize that social oppression is an active practice. In the book A Lesson Before Dying, author Ernest Gaines reveals how racism is an oppressive force through multiple characters and situations.

Have you ever been called something horrible that was based on what race you were or something even worse than name calling? (Rhetorical Question) In the book, Beyond Heroes and Holidays, Enid Lee explains racism as the “use of individual and institutional power to deny or grant people and groups of the rights of people, respect, representation and resources based on the color of their skin”. (Logos) Such types of discrimination occur most often in schools and are expressed in many forms; in this case, students are the main targets of racism which affects not only how they interact but also how they learn in schools. Unfair situations, social problems, and negative behaviors are all the cause for a huge problem known as racism, which in today’s society is a huge problem that needs to be solved in schools everywhere. (Parallelism)(Thesis)

Critical Racism Theory is comprised of 5 major tenets as proposed by seminal author Richard Delgado although a host of authors and scholars have researched and written about the major tenets. Nonetheless, the first tenet is centrality of racism or that race is ordinary– the idea that race is conventional, customary and a normal occurrence for people of color; and that it should be accepted because it is intricately woven into American society (Hartlep, 2009; Hiraldo, 2010; Sleeter, 2012; Delgado & Stefancic, 2012; Hollis, 2015; Quinn & Grumbach, 2017). The second tenet known as Bell’s interest convergence or material determinism – is the idea that racism brings about material advancement for whites, and that changes towards racial equality for the racially oppressed are made only when it converges with the interest of the white majority. Interest Convergence also recognizes that whites are the primary beneficiaries of the civil rights

Critical theories of race and racism have been used by sociologists to not only describe modern societies, but also address issues of social injustice and achieve an end to racial oppression. Critical race theory is one of the most widely used for this purpose. Its utility rests upon the assumption that race is a social construct and not an inherent biological feature. In place of the concept of inherent race, critical race theory proffers the concept of racialization. The tenet that the concept of race is created and attached to particular groups of people through social processes. In tandem with this, critical race theory contends that identity is neither fixed nor unidimensional. It also places importance on the perspectives and experiences of racial minorities (Ritzer and Stepnisky, 2013:66).

The idea of race has been constructed over hundreds of years, with numerous cultural implications arising from this construction. Since Johann Fredrich Blumenbach’s racial hierarchy, the inventor of a “…modern racial classification" (Gould 1994:66), the idea of race as a scientific truth justified slavery, colonisation and other existing racial structures. We see these racial hierarchies with notions of white superiority affecting events around the globe everyday; regardless of the fact that race has been proven as a flawed biological concept, with racial categories a result of ‘pseudo science’. The events following Hurricane Katrina in 2005 are evidence of the racist attitudes that linger in our society, institutionally and in everyday life – racism is more than simply individual attitudes, and is embedded in the social structures of society.

Unfortunately, in this time and age, racism continues to be an issue in the American society, especially in the south. Since the introduction of slavery, many people have the belief that skin color determines someone’s ranking in life. After the freedom of slaves, racism became a big problem in America. As a result, other races look down upon many different cultures and ethnic groups believing that they are superior to others. Racism has lead to people discriminate against one another and become prejudice. Unfortunately, racism effects peoples lifestyles, job opportunities, and education.

The course a story takes is influenced by everything the narrator experiences. However, this also limits us to a viewpoint of the narrator and the narrator only. In the third person narrative, though it lacks the “fun” aspect, it makes up with the fact that it can expose multiple ways of interpreting a situation. In this case, it is able to show detailed insights to the narrator’s idea of racism.

To understand whether or not racism is learnt, we first have to divulge into the nature of racism. It is usually assumed that racism has been a part of civilisation since civilisation started, that it is embedded into how people work and that no matter what, it will always exist. Another assumption is that racism derives from the capitalism of the slave trade by white elitist men seeking to dehumanize people for economic gain, and used racism as a way to mask their financial motives to justify enslavement as righteous. After anti-slavery movements began to happen, the capitalist motives behind slavery “took on a new form as the justification of the ideology of imperialism” [4].