Racism: The Destruction of Unity
The planet Earth is diversity at its extreme. Who could guess that just seven continents could hold 195 countries, 6,500 languages, 4,300 religions, and over 7.8 billion people? Every one of these many people has different values, ideas, and beliefs, not to mention their wide range of outward appearances, including eye, skin and hair color. We would surely think this is something to be valued and appreciated. What good would life be if everyone were the same, both inside and out? It would get quite boring, wouldn't it? But unfortunately, not all people believe this to be true.
Some people believe that one skin color is inferior to another, one religion is of less significant value than another, and even some accents are mocked and ridiculed. This sums up the definition of racism, which is the belief that certain races are superior or inferior to others. Racism slows the growth of our bonds, our cultures, and our traditions, but most of all, it is a brick wall that keeps us from embracing the gift of humanity to its fullest extent.
To completely and thoroughly understand the causes and effects of racism, it is essential to note the differences between racism and discrimination. Though similar, they each have certain qualities that set them apart. Racism originates from thoughts, opinions and attitudes. It is a bias that takes place in your head, causing you to think differently about a certain group of people.
Discrimination, on the other hand, is a form of racism in which you act upon that racist
idea, using words, actions, or both. Both racism and discrimination are extremely broad, and can appear in numerous forms. Just like how a square is a rectangle, but a rectangle is not a square, discrimination is a form racism, but racism cannot purely be categorized under discrimination.
Forms of Racism and Discrimination
Systemic racism is when society is structured in a manner that benefits or detriments a certain race or ethnicity over another. Though society deems this form of racism to be 'normal', it truly is far from normal, and should be avoided at all costs. This is one of the more serious forms of racism/discrimination, as it affects both the physical and emotional well-being of people. Systemic racism, especially in the United States, is built from attitudes of white supremacy (the belief that individuals with lighter skin color are superior to those with darker skin color), undoubtedly driven from the country's long history of slavery and segregation. Poverty is a notable example pertaining to systemic racism. As of 2019, 7.3% of the White population, 18.7% of the African American population, and 15.7% of Hispanics (those who speak Spanish) are struggling with poverty in America. Additionally, White families have a median income of $76, 057, Hispanic families $56,113, while the average African American family only receives an annual income of $46,073. It is clearly noticeable that society as a whole favors whites much, much more than African Americans and Hispanics. One way to combat this issue of inequality is to eliminate discrimination when it comes to employment, since unemployment is one of the more significant causes of poverty and homelessness.
Overt racism is an extremely serious issue; it is visible in schools, offices, and other public forums across the United States. Overt racism is a form of racism that is used to cause intentional harm, and is enacted using harmful speech and sometimes, even violent behavior. This, as well, is rooted in white supremacy. Many incidents have occurred using overt racism in the racism in the past year, including the murder of George Floyd this past June.