Under the Influence: Discrimination
Since the start of the 21st century, racial diversity has increased and the nation’s minority population has grown substantially. Minorities today are the majority in many parts of the country. Studies predict that if current rates of the national population continue to trend the way it has for the past 20 year, then by 2035, minorities will outnumber non-Hispanic caucasians. There are many benefits and advantages of diversity, however, there are also challenges and barriers. It is important to note that the very communities that are growing are also the ones that are experiencing significant obstacles, disparities and discrimination. Today, discrimination on the basis of one’s ethnicity and race remains …show more content…
After I learned to question everything, focus on diction, syntax and the author 's style throughout the course, I came to realize Claudia Rankine main focus was not just racism as a whole. She encourages the readers to undergo the experience and truly understand racism and discrimination. Not only did Rankine give multiple examples and encounters but she also incorporated artworks that spoke louder than the words. To the left is Carrie Mae Weems’s,“Blue Black Boy”. This art piece shows three identical (blue tinted) photos with different labels. BLUE. BLACK. BOY. This art piece can be interpreted and perceived in different ways. To me it describes the poem on the next page (stop and frisk poem) perfect. Rankine says, “And you are not the guy and still you fit the description because there is only one guy who is always the guy fitting the description” (105). As I interpret this quote, African Americans always tend to fit this certain “picture”. It is because there is only one characteristic that qualifies you as an individual to fit and represent this “description”. That feature is based on your skin color. Something humans have no control over. Racial profiling- yes, generalizing- yes and racism- of course. Yet this issue does not exist in the eyes of
Since the start of the 21st century, racial diversity has increased and the nation’s minority population has grown substantially. Minorities today are the majority in many parts of the country. Studies predict that if current rates of the national population continue to trend the way it has for the past 20 year, then by 2035, minorities will outnumber non-Hispanic caucasians. There are many benefits and advantages of diversity, however, there are also challenges and barriers. It is important to note that the very communities that are growing are also the ones that are experiencing significant obstacles, disparities and discrimination. Today, discrimination on the basis of one’s ethnicity and race remains …show more content…
After I learned to question everything, focus on diction, syntax and the author 's style throughout the course, I came to realize Claudia Rankine main focus was not just racism as a whole. She encourages the readers to undergo the experience and truly understand racism and discrimination. Not only did Rankine give multiple examples and encounters but she also incorporated artworks that spoke louder than the words. To the left is Carrie Mae Weems’s,“Blue Black Boy”. This art piece shows three identical (blue tinted) photos with different labels. BLUE. BLACK. BOY. This art piece can be interpreted and perceived in different ways. To me it describes the poem on the next page (stop and frisk poem) perfect. Rankine says, “And you are not the guy and still you fit the description because there is only one guy who is always the guy fitting the description” (105). As I interpret this quote, African Americans always tend to fit this certain “picture”. It is because there is only one characteristic that qualifies you as an individual to fit and represent this “description”. That feature is based on your skin color. Something humans have no control over. Racial profiling- yes, generalizing- yes and racism- of course. Yet this issue does not exist in the eyes of