The Importance Of Oppression In The United States

Many other groups in our society are blamed for their own oppression because they aren’t “helping themselves” improve society or aren’t educated enough to understand the works of the world around them. The idea that women aren’t paid the same as their male counterparts or that African Americans rather be welfare dependent doesn’t give many people the motivation they need to climb that social ladder they would rather be at the level they are in their current life rather than try to make that difference in

The phenomenon of victim blaming is a multifaceted topic with far-reaching consequences. The tendency to blame innocent victims stems from a need to cope with threats to our concept of reality. People generally prefer to consider the world to be ‘just’ – a concept that indicates that people get what they deserve. This ‘just world view’ is very integral to the worldview of most people, so when it is threatened, individuals employ defensive strategies to reestablish a sense of justice in the world (Hafer, 2000). Blaming the victim in some capacity for misfortunes that befall them is a convenient way to reestablish a just world-view. Such misattribution of blame institutes the possibility that victims of crimes or disease will be mistreated and

Given the definition of oppression as a system of interrelated barriers and forces which “mold”, “immobilize”, and “reduce” a certain group of people, and affect their subordination to another group (Frye 4), Frye lists out five premises in order to be considered oppressed. First of all, the group of people must be restricted. In other words, there must be limitations or barriers on them. For example, women make 78 cents for every dollar earned by men (Kessler 1). Second, “those restrictions surely cause harm, which must outweigh any potential benefits oppressed groups experience as a result of those same restrictions” (Gillingham 1). For

“Oppression, you seek population control, Oppression, to divide and conquer is your goal, Oppression, I swear hatred is your home, Oppression, you mean me only harm.” (Harper). Oppression is a serious issue in our society today. Although it may be less serious than the past it is still a matter of importance, having to deal with sexism, religion and most importantly racial issues. Throughout the decades we have seen various ethnicities deal with racial oppressions. Many of the problems of the past still exist, and they may push the victims of the oppression beyond the emotional point of no return. A Hispanic male such as myself, can be the victim of several types of oppressions, including racial oppression.

In this course we learned about many different types of oppression, from the time America was first “discovered” and the discoverers began oppressing the Indians, to slavery, to the oppression of the mentally handicapped, all the way to more “modern” times in schools were students are being oppressed.

Numerous instances of oppression throughout history call into question its impact on society in the past and present. Governments like those of Joseph Stalin’s Communist regime or Adolf Hitler’s Nazi regime illustrate the ways in which it was justified. First-hand accounts of the people victimized from oppression give form to its methodologies. Even today, it leaves its stain on the fabric of the modern world. Through sources such as “The Need for Progress” by Joseph Stalin and Elie Wiesel’s famous memoir Night, readers can gain a better understanding of the driving principles and effects of oppression. Past governments have used the threat of racial and religious minorities to justify their persecution. One method of oppression involved the

People deemed ‘lesser’ end up being used as a scapegoat for many things out of the country’s control. A reoccurring theme, demonstrated through the McCarthy Trials and Trumps propositions today, shows how much society blames the weak-link. Just as Mexicans and Muslims are blamed for terrorism and job loss today, innocent people were blamed for communism in the 1950s-60s. Citizens of the United States often forget that the entire nation is made up of minorities (Kamisar 2). Those blamed are just as innocent and important as everyone

Up through the eighth grade I had only ever been good at Tae Kwon Do and school. And to be honest, that does not impress the ladies as much as I think it should. I had spent an entire summer of my life devoted to playing baseball, and perfecting every single aspect of my game. It worked wonders. I hit a league-best .730 batting average(For reference that means I got a hit 7.3 times out of ten, which is about 4.8 hits per ten plate appearances better than the average), and played every inning in all but one game. I actually had coaches approaching me after games to tell me how much they disliked my playstyle and to say how bad of a kid I was for playing so aggressively. This is about the time I realized I should stop trying to change what other

“The United States of America has a reputation as a beacon of freedom and diversity from the colonial period of its history” (American Freedom). Oppression is at the root of many of the most serious conflicts in the world. Before oppression could be a part of the world today, it had to be a part of history.

A poem by Martin Niemoller cites that when authorities sought after a specific group of people, everyone else remains quiet and does nothing to help the targeted group. This pattern continues until there is no one remaining to pick off. “First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out— because I was not a Socialist. Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out— because I was not a Trade Unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out— because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.” The reason I bring this poem up is because if we do not speak up for others, if we do not resist, than we are tolerating the actions our government is putting forth. Resistance, in a way, is everything our democracy stands for. With the power to resist is the power to change, and this country’s established ideals allow those powers to be

When working to determine the causes of oppression, one must first establish a definition of the word. Oppression can be perceived as being a broad, which can lead to disempowerment of the term. For the purposes of this paper, oppression is defined through the lens of both institutional and internalized oppression. Institutional oppression is define as the occurrence of established laws, customs, and practices systematically reflecting and producing inequities based on one’s membership in targeted social identity groups (Cheney, 2012). In regards to institutional oppression, oppressive consequences such as classism, prejudice and discrimination are typically attributed to institutional laws, customs, or practices. Internalized oppression is internalized oppression is the

Sociology has long been concerned with the construction of identity and the impact of this on feelings of belonging, power relations and social behaviours. Feminist and race studies literature have considered the construction of oppressed identities as a positive tool in the struggle for emancipation () with identification as a member of an oppressed group being seen as the opposite of victim blaming (Ryan,…..) by reinterpreting “ private woes into public wrongs” (Shakespeare, 1993 P…..) . It is the victim in active denial of their socially perceived victimhood and instead pointing to the social factors that are the cause of victimisation.

It’s important to acknowledge the historical context when understanding oppression because oppression always has its roots somewhere; no one is oppressed just because. Marginalization of minority groups in the past, and even today, has a purpose—not necessarily a good purpose, though. The purpose was usually for power; majority groups wanted to be the standard for good, resulting in the dehumanization of minority groups. Therefore, to understand fully why the oppression still stands today, it’s important to look back on how it started. That way, we can see why it still persists in our society; is its original purpose still being pursued but in a less physical way like in the past? And, is it still affecting the same people today, even to a

When we make conscious decisions to take part in the oppression of someone, we are playing a part in a large-scale plan that leads to mental harm, physical harm, and even the death of people who have done nothing to us. We are inflicting harm upon the victims of oppression.

Everyone knows that in our current society there are large amounts of political, equality, and social gaps that occur and can be clearly seen between the wealthy and the poor when it comes to politics, equality, and being socially accepted in the United States by others. People who are affected by these issues can and will experience social and political exploitations along with political and social abuse from numerous entities (Salas, 2013). These political and social exploitations and abuses occur on a daily basis and can cause great harm to those affected by them. People that are affected by these issues are usually the targets of corrupt politicians, inequalities, and social exclusion from others and must find a way to fight back in order to gain some form of or type of social justice for themselves and those of the same social class as them. If everyone in this social class decides or chooses to keep quite or continue to keep remaining silent then social change concerning exploitations and the social abuses they face will never occur and these injustices will keep happening over and over again (Salas, 2013). However, the approach that is used in seeking that change must be respectful to and of all involved wanting and seeking the change.