Causes Of Racism Throughout History

Improved Essays
Racism throughout history has deep roots. It is inevitable that it has existed since time has begun. Some say that racism is just non-existent anymore, while others say that racism is only getting worse. Hanna Guthrie, an English student, writes an article called “Black History Month?” to argue her side. Guthrie argues, “…hyphenating ones racial category…is a modern-day form of segregation” (2). Guthrie’s point is that racism is a self-inflicted issue since minorities decide to hyphenate their racial category. In retrospect, Peggy McIntosh, an anti-racism activist and writer of “White Privilege, Male Privilege” claims, “I think whites are carefully taught not to recognize white privilege, as males are taught not to recognize male privilege” …show more content…
Socially, there are stigmas casted on minority races to blend into a society. If those norms are not confined to, racism occurs. For instance, I come from a Pakistani background, women are known to be more modest and cover up. In some western societies, women tend to be more flaunting and confident. A western society would view a minority raced woman who is covered as an outcast in their society. When the woman is subjected to be an outcast, racism begins to form. Society would view the minority raced woman as inferior to the majority. By societies holding these norms and placing stigmas on minority races that act outside of the norms, it only creates more of an unprogressive …show more content…
Anyone can turn on the news and witness an act of racism. Whether its police being unjustifiably brutal towards a minority race or a storeowner going off on specific race, racism still happens. Personally, coming from a Pakistani immigrant father, I have learned the wrath of racism. The tragedy of 9/11 has really changed American perception. As a country, one would think it would bring a country together as whole. However, it had only split a connection with Arab-Americans, South Asian-Americans, or any American with a Muslim background. My own father had his own experience of the wrath of racism. Around the time after 9/11, my father worked in the worse possible place for a visibly Pakistani man, an airport. One day, my father was minding his own business at work, while a man walks up to him. This man with the rage of prejudice in his heart, threatens my father that he would kill him if he did not go back to Pakistan. Immediately, my father calls the police. The police escort the man and for the next few days stayed near my father. This is racism and the wrath of it. The major issue is, is that this in our current era. The ramification of the racism system still has its tolls. Consequently, history is only repeating itself. By not recognizing the issue of racism and working on eliminating it, it only delays progression to our

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Has racism really left the country since the amendments from the Civil War? Have people really changed enough to rid the United States, or other countries, of any form of racism, or have the cases of racism increased? Racism is “the belief that characteristics and abilities can be attributed to people simply on the basis of their race and that some racial groups are superior to others” (“Racism” 1). Although most people feel that racism has decreased over the years, it is clear that racism has not decreased, and may have even increased over time. Racism is seen everywhere: in stores, in restaurants, and even at sporting events.…

    • 1162 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Racism has existed since the early 1600s when African Americans were first brought to America against their will to work as slaves. It wasn’t until the Civil Rights Movement, beginning in 1955, that the lives of African Americans started to transform and the U.S. Supreme Court began to terminate “Jim Crow” laws and ban segregation (“Civil Rights Movement,” n.d.). The main goal of eradicating segregation was to reach what is known as “racial equality”, which is the balance between all the races making everyone equal. Since the Civil Right Movement, our country has continued to make steps of improvement including, swearing in our nation’s first black president and the fact that black people and white people are now able to go to the same school.…

    • 1516 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    What is white privilege? There have been many police brutality reports that show young black men being killed by white officers for no reason. The officers accused do not get convicted properly. In the court system, African Americans are ten times more likely to get an improper conviction for their crimes. An African American male is convicted of crimes they do not commit.…

    • 1432 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    “White” Like Me At the heart of American culture is the concept of racism; a continuous cycle perpetuated through years of injustice by slavery, violence, segregation, and hatred. Much like the symbolic “tree of life”, racism’s roots extend deep into the earth, drawing sustenance from each member of society. Yet in that survival tactic, it unconsciously steals a little more from one side—this is white privilege. “White privilege” is a mere social construction by which the dominant white group justifies their advantages and higher quality of life through diminution of people of color. To be a member of the white race, it is easy to overlook subtle inequalities—such as the wealth gap, career opportunities, education, etc.…

    • 1432 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Although there have been laws made, bringing about an impact, it still continues. We now have a black president which is a big step towards ending racism and shows that not the entire country is still racist. From (1800-1900’s) racism was at its worst. Blacks were made out to seem like they weren’t equal, and got treated very…

    • 794 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Racism In Social Media

    • 1440 Words
    • 6 Pages

    There are still many examples of racism today even though this issue appeared to be diminishing over the years. Humans have made advancements in technology, economy and society in general, yet racism and white supremacy…

    • 1440 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    The question is, “Is Racism permanent?” To respond to this question I will address the comments Derek Bell made in his article, “Faces at the Bottom of the Well,” and concurrently discuss the comments Peggy Macintosh made in her article, “White Privilege.” The two authors offered, prodigiously, out-of-the-box comments. Yet, neither authors’ arguments were remarkable or came as no surprise to any Americans, either black or white.…

    • 2216 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    Essay On Black Privilege

    • 1800 Words
    • 8 Pages

    “Black Privilege: Exploring consciousnesses to de-problematize and normalize blackness” Black privilege is a construct virtually unexplored to the masses. In theory, only white supremacists have ventured to name the phenomenon, though incorrectly. However, such a thing as black privilege may very well exist. But it is no way comparable to white privilege in its meaning or benefits.…

    • 1800 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Does racism still exist today? Yes, of course it does it happens everywhere, people discriminate other people based on their color and their background. Segregation happened a long time ago back in the 1800s, this is where people would have to be separated based on their color and they would have to go to different schools, drink from different water fountains and much more. In America racism there were two cases that led to each other the first one was Plessy vs. Ferguson, and then Brown v Board of Education both of these were also based on the phrase “ separate but equal.” Plessy v Ferguson and Brown v Board of Education are two landmark cases that changed the course of American history.…

    • 781 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    White Like Me In the documentary “White Like Me,” Tim Wise discusses the hidden or perhaps more accurately, ignored racism present in America. He starts by pointing out that most white Americans are blind to the privilege that being white provides them. When asked what it means to be white, a white person often wouldn’t really know, because they don’t really have to think about it, which in of itself is one of the many privileges of being white. In fact, white people feel that when people attempt to compensate for white privilege, they are being discriminated against.…

    • 650 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    We live in a time where unfortunately, racism is still an issue that many people across many races deal with. In America, it is mainly African-Americans, Hispanics, and Middle Eastern people that deal with the pain and hatred that takes shape in many different forms. In “Understanding White Privilege” by Frances Kendall, Ph.D., the author explores the concept of white privilege with an informative, yet critical tone in order to persuade readers to think differently. Kendall starts off by explaining the purpose of her article, which is to “to become clear about the basics of white privilege what it is and how it works” (2).…

    • 347 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Racial Formation Theory

    • 750 Words
    • 3 Pages

    This week’s readings exemplify scholarly and theoretical attempts to conceptualize race and racism in a way to effectively address and challenge systematic, structural racism that has evolved throughout the history of the United States socio- politically, historically, and culturally. Omi and Winant trace the lineage of race and racism in the US, focusing on the theoretical paradigms of race and their shortcomings as well as the contemporary evolution of racism coupled with neoliberal economic developments. Feagin similarly explores the legacy of racism in the US from a Marxist perspective. Taken together, these scholars problematize systematic racism that continues in the contemporary American society and argues for new ways to conceptualize…

    • 750 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Racism In America

    • 969 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Racism in America has died down over the years but it has not gone away completely. There are still many incidents in this world that show how we never moved on from years ago and still cling to racism. One racist thing in America…

    • 969 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Debra Friesen Ms. Higgins English 1301 4 December 2016 Change of Racism Over Time The world has various issues; however, one of the leading issues is being overlooked every day. Racial discrimination is one of the foremost issues in the nation.…

    • 1357 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Cause And Effect Of Racism

    • 2233 Words
    • 9 Pages

    Process Analysis Adams 4 Black sheep I am the only dark-skinned person in my family. My mother is white, my stepfather was white, and my brother and sister are white. I inherited the same 'white traits ' as my family. I ‘dressed like a white person’, ‘spoke like a white person,’ ‘listened to white music,’ and ‘ate white food.’…

    • 2233 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Superior Essays

Related Topics