What is racism?
Racism is the belief that a particular race is superior or inferior to another, that a person’s social and moral traits are predetermined by his or her inborn biological characteristics. Racial separatism is the belief, most of the time based on racism, that different races should remain segregated and apart from one another.How does it affect our society today?
There are many ways that racism affects our society today, but one example area that it greatly effects is employment. A lot of times people of color are the last people to acquire jobs, and are also the first to be fired. “As a result, budget cuts, downsizing, and privatization may disproportionately hurt people of color.” (http://www.socialworkers.org/pressroom/events/911/racism.asp) Also, the unemployment rates between blacks and whites are significantly different. In 2012, ” the black unemployment rate rose to 14.4% in June, a sharp contrast to the white unemployment rate, which stayed put at 7.4%.” (http://money.cnn.com/2012/07/06/news/economy/black-unemployment-rate/index.htm)
Here is a chart displaying the differences in unemployment rates between blacks and whites from January of 2007 to June of 2012.
So, although racism is not often as rampant and violent now in the United States as it was when Ida B. Wells was writing, there are definitely ways that it drastically affects our society today. More ways include, education, housing, public welfare, and social services. Although it still affects our society in major ways, I think we are making steps toward a more equal society and hopefully one day we can all accept each other despite race and culture.
Can we stop RACISM?
Of course we can! According to an article that I have read there are nine ways taht we can do help end racism and here are those:
At the Individual Level (These are mostly for white people, but not exclusively.)
1. Listen to, validate, and ally with people who report personal and systemic racism. Most people of color report that whites do not take claims of racism seriously. It’s time to stop defending the idea of a post-racial society, and recognize instead that we live in a racist one.
2. Have hard conversations with yourself about the racism that lives within you. When you find yourself making an assumption about people, places, or things, challenge yourself by asking whether you know the assumption to be true, or if it is something you have simply been taught to believe by a racist society. Consider facts and evidence, rather than here-say and “common sense.”
3. Be mindful of the commonalities that humans share, and practice empathy. Do not fixate on difference, though it is important to be aware of it and the implications of it, particularly as regards power and privilege. Remember that if any kind of injustice is allowed to thrive in our society, all forms can. We owe it to each other to fight for an equal and just society for all.
At the Community Level
4. If you see something, say something. Step in when you see racism occurring, and disrupt it in a safe way (Like this, for example). Have hard conversations with others when you hear or see racism, whether explicit or implicit. Challenge racist assumptions by asking about supporting facts and evidence (in general, they do not exist). Have conversations about what led you and/or others to have racist beliefs.
5. Cross the racial divide (and others) by offering friendly greetings to people, regardless of race, gender, age, sexuality, ability, class, or housing status. Think about who you make eye contact with, nod to, or say “Hello” to while you are out in the world. If you notice a pattern of preference and exclusion, shake it up. Respectful, friendly, everyday communication is the essence of community.
6. Learn about the racism that occurs where you live, and do something about it by participating in and supporting anti-racist community events, protests, rallies, and programs. For example, you could: Support voter registration and polling in neighborhoods where people of color live, because they have historically been marginalized from the political process; Donate time and/or money to community organizations that serve youth of color; Mentor white kids on being anti-racist citizens who fight for justice; Support post-prison programs, because the inflated incarceration rates of black and Latino people lead to their longterm economic and political disenfranchisement; Support community organizations that serve those bearing the mental, physical, and economic costs of racism; And, communicate with your local and state government officials and institutions about how they can help end racism in the communities they represent.
At the National Level
7. Combat racism through national-level political channels. For example, you could: Write senators and members of congress to demand an end to racist practices in law enforcement, the judiciary, education, and the media; Advocate for national legislation that would criminalize racist police practices and institute ways to monitor police behavior, like Mike Brown Law; Join the movement for reparations to the descendants of African slaves and other historically oppressed populations within the U.S., because theft of land, labor, and denial of resources is the foundation of American racism, and it is on this foundation that contemporary inequalities thrive.
8. Advocate for Affirmative Action practices in education and employment. Countless studies have found that, qualifications being equal, people of color are rejected for employment and admission to educational institutions far more than white people. Affirmative Action initiatives help mediate this problem of racist exclusion.
9. Vote for candidates who make ending racism a priorty; vote for candidates of color. In today's federal government, people of color remain underrepresented. For a racially just democracy to exist, we must achieve accurate representation, and the governing of representatives must actually represent the experiences and concerns of our diverse populace.
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| YES TO EQUALITY! |
