Reflection On Racism

In one way or another everyone encounters racism at many times in their life. Whether they are making the comments or victims of it, racism is everywhere and continues to be denied throughout the world. Neil Bissoondath, a Trinidad native, writes "I'm Not Racist But…" which discusses the types of labels given to different ethnic groups and the encouragement of racism they give. Based on the effective way it was written, Bissoondath's essay is suggested for an English 101 text.

Is it racism or economics which hinders many African American communities from progressing economically in the 21st Century? This research proposal will address this question by examining the social and psychological impact caused by racism and the economic impact it’s had on the African American community. This proposal will further investigate whether the emotional scars of slavery continue to hamper African American progress or if racism is actually the cause.

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.

While coming up with a topic for this paper, one of my questions dealt with war and cultural groups. I will be the first to admit, Racism was the last thing on my mind. The original question being, “How does war affect a Social Culture and how does it stand today?” When I started thinking about Cultures that had been so deeply affected by war, one of the first that came to mind were the Japanese in World War II. Then I recalled what one person had told me of their younger days at college, when they were attending school. Their name will remain anonymous; I do not want to make the victim’s name public as it has a very personal nature.

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.

Explanations that justify the use of racism directly relates to differential treatment of minority groups and contributes to racism’s existence as an unstoppable social problem. The foundations of these explanations are based on the common misunderstanding of the definition of race. Thus, problems that tend to concentrate in one race are mistakenly judged as “race problems”. This judgement leads to the establishment of a system of inequality between a superior race and inferior races. However, the logic behind these explanations don’t account for the true reasoning behind minority individuals value status. In fact, these explanations contribute to minority individuals’ further struggle in life.

Racism in a pre-Civil Right Era was violent, abhorrently blatant, and prevalent to a fault. Post Jim-Crow, racism has diminished so much so that it barely exists; or so society likes to believe. In actuality, racism has been transformed under a different lens where racism still stands as the structures and functions of American society but have been so normalized and legalized that white Americans feel as the country has progressed in terms of racism. This lens, one that Eduardo Bonilla-Silva has defined as colorblind in his book Racism without Racists, explain how racism still dictate how people of color live and suffer in contrast to their white American counterparts despite the racial “progress” that society so desperately want to believe. Colorblind racism can be defined as the belief or behavior that racism no longer exists at all or like it once did in the past by disregarding how race plays a role in minorities lives and thus continuing to prop up the same racist structures and foundations that was at play decades ago before the alleged “progress” of the post civil rights era. What makes colorblind ideology a problem at its basis is held within the fact that white Americans know that race exists yet they both subconsciously and willfully ignore how the sociopolitical and economic aspects of the nation work to keep white Americans ahead while minorities struggle to survive in a world that essentially ignores them. A prime example of colorblind racism in a modern

What is the author trying to make us understand about this ? What the speaker is saying that back then it was hard for black men and black women because of racism , you think that the present day of racism is bad not like back then. Black's were treated if they weren't even human but more like a animal with two leg's, two arm's , and a face.If you were black back then and you had did something by accident to a white they would give you a life sentence for doing that we , but it not as bad like back then.Being black back then was like you as a rock always being step on or being kick around the sidewalk or being

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.

Racism and the effects of racism can be seen anywhere. In the hallways of the high school, the streets, housing, neighborhoods, cities, and more, one thing is seen, and that 's segregation, which is ultimately caused by racism. Walking in the hallways at school, chances are that you’ll see a group of whites, a group of Hispanics, and a group of African Americans, but rarely do you see these three groups interacting with each other. Racism has been made a part of people’s everyday lives, a border posed by racism: segregation. Racism and its effects can not only be seen around us but can also be traced throughout countless readings in HWOC this year. Almost every literary work focuses on the topic or underscores at its effects, and today, you can walk into any library or bookstore and find something, whether it be a news article or chapter book, regarding racial conflict. This alone is evidence of how racism has integrated our society and continues to inform and manipulate our minds. The literature we have been exposed to this past year is a reflection of society, similar to a reflection in a mirror showing us the piece of hair sticking up in the back, literature is showing us the problem so it can be addressed.

Racism is an ongoing force that negatively impacts the lives of Americans every day. The racist mindset in America stems from the times of slavery, where blacks were thought to be inferior to whites. Throughout history, the ideology of race and racism has evolved and developed several different meanings. Today, we can still see the devastating effects of racism on people of color, as well as whites. “Racism, like other forms of oppression, is not only a personal ideology based on racial prejudice, but a system involving cultural messages and institutional policies and practices as well as beliefs and actions of individual” (Tatum, pg. 9). As a result of this system, it leaves the

My memory of almost drowning as a young child destroyed my perfect perspective of the world. I couldn’t fully understand why everyone came to save me when I almost drowned but when I saw an African American student who was constantly bullied in my predominantly white Texas school, no one came to save her. She was drowning too but in racism, not water. I couldn’t understand why some people were born drowning and why some weren’t. I thought that was how the world naturally worked. I couldn’t see any fault when I decided to keep quiet. I didn’t have “white privilege” and I wasn’t the one drowning others. When I moved to California, where I was exposed to a variety of different ethnicities and beliefs, I realized that even though I didn’t have “white privilege,” I was still more privileged than others and by admitting it, I was acknowledging that racism is real and wrong.

I’ve never once in my life been forced to do something I’ve ever thought was wrong except for today. It all started as a fairly hot winter day for Oakland when they called us in for another regularly scheduled teacher meeting before the school winter break officially started. I particularly didn’t like these kinds of meetings because I felt they were useless. The public schools have had terrible test scores and a history of passing students along for the past few years. So far, nothing had changed. I walked into the bustling auditorium packed with teachers from elementary to high school. My boss, Mr. Smith, stood at the front of the auditorium with the glow of a projector screen reflecting behind him. In bold type was a new word I did not recognize yet. Being an English major in college I was shocked that I had not come across the term. My peers were talking in the third row so I decided to join them. They were talking about the same word: “Ebonics.” My colleagues were gossiping about the meeting saying it was going to be about budgets while others told me it was about attendance procedures. In fact it was much more serious than that.

For the discussion the topic I chose was racism in the United States. I chose this topic for many reasons. First, I feel that racism is a major problem in society that needs to be fixed. Racial slurs hurt the people who receive them, and need to be stopped. Hence, I wanted to learn more about why racism happens, and how to end it. In order to learn about this topic, I did research on what racism is and how experts think it can be stopped. Then, to further my understanding of what can be done, I led a group discussion of peers. From the discussion, I received feedback about what they personally think will work to end racism.

I would be interested to read some feedback from my classmates if this were a discussion question. "Race" has become that topic that people are trying to avoid, especially now with all of the racially motivated incidents that are happening around the country. It is ultimately forcing people to choose a side, which is simply wrong or right. The topic is beyond black or white, and it is now a free for all. It is especially challenging for an individual like myself. I was born in the Caribbean where the only racism I was ever confronted with was on television or from a book about slavery and civil rights. It was not until my family moved to Melbourne, Florida in the late eighty's that I had my first racist incident. It happened to my brother, while we were playing with some of the children from the apartment complex, and my brother beat this kid in basketball, so he called him the n-word. It was the first time it had ever happened to us ever. I remember my brother just standing there, while the kid ran away. We were unphased by it because we didn’t know how to feel about it. That night we had a long talk with our mother about race, and we played with the kid the very next day. I think the other child was more embarrassed about it because he ran away when he said it, but he and my brother remained friends until we moved away some years later. Now I am not saying that should be the response for everyone. However, I do feel that people give certain things too much power and energy. Therefore let's address these issues of ignorance that were established by individuals whose rationale is just outdated. This revolution begins with the way we communicate with each other and the meanings in the language that we use (Coyle, 2010).