Discrimination In History

When people hear the phrase “history repeats itself,” those who disagree argue that, by the definition of ‘repeat,’ it is impossible for history to precisely repeat. This is true, however, if you focus on ideology or sociology behind historical events, repetition is very common. Recurrence of history typically points back to broad patterns. “Another way to describe these patterns or relationships would be to describe them as cause and effect relationships” (Pegoda). These relationships are just a continuation of a previous movement, such as war, poverty, or discrimination; the latter has been demonstrated in many of the following cases. By investigating the sources and causes of different events, lots can be learned to understand people and …show more content…
The man in question was William James. He was accused of raping and murdering a white woman, Anna Pelley. Writer and poet, Martha Collins wrote a collection of poems regarding events in Cairo in connection with her father who attended the mobs as a child. Collins comments on the accusations against James by saying that he was blamed because “she was white and he / was black and could have therefore / must have” (this time there was a body, 21). Will James was captured and hanged from steel arches in the town square until his rope broke; his body fell to the ground where the “seething mob… fired volley after volley” of bullets into his body (?). His body was then burned and mutilated. Later in the riot, another man accused of the murder of his wife was taken from jail and lynched. However, he was treated differently and somewhat more respectfully. Killing this white man encouraged newspapers to say that events were “not moved by race” (there was a second, …show more content…
Each event comes down to a preconceived bias of a person or group. In Charlottesville, the members of the “Unite the Right” movement, or alt-right, took this bias against people of color to an extreme; they wanted to create a “state that would be racially homogenous” (Hawley). Despite the extremity, the same ideology can be applied to the East St. Louis Riots since the rioters wanted the black families to leave so they could secure their jobs. These events will have an impact on all people involved or exposed to them, specifically youth. Children are impressionable and their up-bringing can have a significant effect on the adults they become. White children involved in any of these riots could believe that the demonstrated hate and prejudice is acceptable, while colored kids might begin to think that all white men and women are against them, driving them to distance themselves. This exposure can lead to the reoccurrence of similar events, in this case discrimination. A Harvard group, consisting of psychologists, brain researchers, and racism and physical prejudice experts, conducted research that suggests kids exposed to racism can “accept and embrace it as young as age 3” (Burnett). Martha Collins also uses one of her poems to suggest that the people in the town of Cairo are subconsciously relaying their beliefs onto their children. Collins wrote, “and the children tucked / into bed into white