Structural Racism

Racism imposes additional health issues on people of color because it is an unnecessary stressor in their every day lives. “African Americans die earlier and have higher rates than whites of many chronic diseases across the social gradient” (Unnatural Causes, 2008). Increased cortisol levels, which are caused by stress have been linked to high blood pressure, coronary artery disease, and other health problems.

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.

Ruth Wilson Gilmore’s “Fatal Couplings of Power and Difference:Notes on Racism and Geography” speaks honestly of the current state of systemic racism in America and its possible causes using past historical trends. He argues that because racism is so ingrained into the defining moments of our past and so deeply rooted in our political, economic and social systems that it cannot be solved by the short-run remedies being offered. Gilmore accused geography of being the cause of racial issues in America, saying that, “a geographical imperative lies at the heart of every struggle for social justice,” (Gilmore 16).There is so much truth in this statement because without borders or normative behavioral practices there is no differential treatment

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).

“We use the term racial formation to refer to the process by which social, economic and political forces determine the content and importance of racial categories, and by which they are in turn shaped by racial meanings.” (Omi and Winant 14) Through observing certain events in the economy, politics, and society, we can understand the unwanted ascribing of racial identities to the minorities that led to their unfair treatment and discrimination. The underlying factors that led to this utilization of racial formation were a scarcity of jobs, political policies to maintain power, and racial division through class differences.

There is an extricable relationship between race, capitalism, and property and how it perpetuates the notion of whiteness through the exploitation of “others”. Property is a relationship of a person and an object; slaves were considered as objects. Race is constructed from white workers’ ideology of whiteness and labor wage. Racism has been long constructed through the production of race and its relations to property, and we can see it through the notion of capitalism and the idea of whiteness.

The genocide of the Aboriginal peoples and enslavement of black people resulted in a massive influx of natural resources and cheap labor, greatly profiting the white class and securing an influential position of power in the imposed capitalist structure (Reich, 1974). Such economic stratifications are still visible in contemporary society, and are defended by democratic racism which permits the coexistence of liberal and non-egalitarian beliefs (Tepperman& Curtis, 2009). Through this vein of thought, the free market is excused as providing everyone an indiscriminately equal chance of financial success, illustrating poverty as a consequence of laziness and inadequacy instead of a product of systemic oppression and exclusion of those historically disadvantaged within capitalist society. (Tepperman& Curtis, 2009) Visible minorities, in particular blacks, are stereotyped as a financial burden to society, and are depicted as problematic, untrustworthy, and dishonest, increasing negative attitudes towards visible minorities out of the white class’s fear of losing their own

Explain how institutional racism could result in internalized oppression for members of marginalized populations. Provide examples relevant to a specific minority group, based on the chapters you selected.

Throughout the introduction and chapter 1 of the book, Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor explores the relations between the glorified mythology of American exceptionalism and the cultural pathology of Black livelihood, which has pinpointed and placed blame on Black people for their social and political positionality in US society. Black normativity (perceived by whiteness) is depicted as widespread poverty resulting from their innate capacities to gravitate toward impoverished material conditions. Given the dogma of white bourgeoisie ideals, the espousing of “colorblindness” has dominated mainstream academic and political discourse, which has only worked to further preclude the economic and social mobility of Black Americans. Thus, the limitations imposed upon people of color, and Black people in particular, have been the foreboding work of the current white supremacist late-stage capitalist society that continues to commodify

Although, this theory began as a part of law sciences, nowadays, there is a great interest of CRT in the field of education, helping people to understand some forms of discrimination which face the non-white people in education (Delgado & Stefanic, 2001). Moreover, embraces a lot of academic fields such as history, political science, anthropology etc (Delgado & Stefanic, 2001). CRT main purpose is not only to understand the social structures that promote inequalities but to eliminate them, it is clear that CRT targets on

She argues that economic inequality is a result of racism and capitalism. However, it can be said that both racism and capitalism are also a product of economic inequality. She argues that it is important to look at economic factors as well as social factors that contributes to racism. She believes it is important to bring together antiracist demands and economic demands in order to get to achieve solidary and unity to break the racial division. Sanneh’s article helps us understand that black culture alone does not help answer racial inequalities and that it is necessary to look at the structural side to racial inequality, which includes economic circumstances and racism. This helps us understand Roesch’s article on how economic circumstances fuels racisms and vice versa, meaning economic inequality constructs and maintain racial

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.

Institutional racism has solidified its position into various aspects of American society. It has installed itself into employment practices, all levels of education, healthcare, housing, politics and the criminal justice system. Institutional racism has made some subtle changes to replace the boldness of slavery and Jim Crow. However, in educational institutions the effects of racism and discrimination are so delicate they typically go unnoticed by students of color. Individual racism usually happens on the personal level where the prejudice is expressed either consciously or unconsciously while there is some form of interpersonal encounter. When it comes to institutional racism it is similar to the individual concepts, however policies and practices are associated with with the belief of racial dominance of one group over another. It is a powerful system that use race to determine power and privilege(Reynolds et al., 2010). Even after the desegregation of school, educational institution are still separated. In Shelby County where I have lived since 1999 there are schools for minorities, and there are schools for whites. The schools for minorities in the city of Memphis have police officers walking the halls and there no books for learning. There are higher numbers of Whites students enrolled in private, charter, and magnet schools in the more affluent segments of the county. They will be exposed to the advantages of a proper education because of their race and privilege

First is the belief that race is central, not peripheral, to American thought and life. Second is the notion that racism is common and ordinary rather than rare and episodic, so that a great deal of Americans’ social life is affected by it. A third strand is material determinism, or interest convergence—the idea that racial relations maintain a white-over-black/brown hierarchy that provides benefits and profits to elite groups in the majority race and are for that reason difficult to reform. A fourth feature is the social construction thesis, according to which races are products of social thought and invention, not objective or biologically real (Critical Race Theory: The Cutting Edge, 2011, p. 1).

CRT argues that while race and class are an interwoven paradigm in the US; race is they key source of inequality. CRT often uses race for the basis of class divides and the regulation of progress for individuals and social groups. It is no surprise to most individuals that racial issues exist everywhere. While most racism felt today is covert, it still exists everywhere, including our public policies. CRT argues that racism is an ordinary part of life and that there exists a white over color ascendency everywhere in the social world, (Delgado & Stefanic, 2001). There is little forward motion for people of different racial backgrounds because there is little “white” interest to change because racism benefits them, (Delgado & Stefani, 2001). CRT recognizes intersectionality within the theory, in doing so recognizing that oppression can be a multi-layered experience. The most interesting thing about CRT is that while it focuses mostly on white and color differentiations, it allows for “differential racialization” in that the dominant paradigm racializes (negatively) different groups based on society’s needs.