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Racial inequality in the workplace
Racial inequality in the workplace
Minorities In Congress
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When Barack Obama was elected to be President of the United States in 2008, many deemed it as the ultimate breakthrough for African-Americans. Considering the social position of African-Americans only 50 years ago, to have an African-American serving the most powerful role in the world was no mean feat, and yet, despite this, in many areas of society, African-Americans still seem to be suffering from undue discrimination. This begs the question, just how racist is America? Prior to the 1960s, rarely was there black representation in Congress. Putting aside for a moment the irony of this in a country that declared its independence under the banner of “no taxation with representation,” this posed a serious issue for the black community. However, when the Civil Rights Act was passed in 1964, it set the path for African-Americans to leap up the social ladder and become equal in all aspects of life as whites, and potentially opened the gates for equal racial representation in the federal government. Yet, 47 years on, blacks are still not proportionally represented in Congress. My calcul...
For 75 years following reconstruction the United States made little advancement towards racial equality. Many parts of the nation enacted Jim Crowe laws making separation of the races not just a matter of practice but a matter of law. The laws were implemented with the explicit purpose of keeping black American’s from being able to enjoy the rights and freedoms their white counterparts took for granted. Despite the efforts of so many nameless forgotten heroes, the fate of African Americans seemed to be in the hands of a racist society bent on keeping them down; however that all began to change following World War II. Thousands of African American men returned from Europe with a renewed purpose and determined to break the proverbial chains segregation had keep them in since the end of the American Civil War. With a piece of Civil Rights legislation in 1957, the federal government took its first step towards breaking the bonds that had held too many citizens down for far too long. The Civil Rights Act of 1957 was a watered down version of the law initially proposed but what has been perceived as a small step towards correcting the mistakes of the past was actually a giant leap forward for a nation still stuck in the muck of racial division. What some historians have dismissed as an insignificant and weak act was perhaps the most important law passed during the nation’s civil rights movement, because it was the first and that cannot be underestimated.
Historians offer different perceptions of the significance of Martin Luther King and the 1963 March on Washington. Without examining this event within its historical context the media publicity and iconic ‘I Have a Dream’ speech can easily overshadow progress that was already underway in America. It was insisted by prominent civil rights activist Ella Baker, ‘the movement made Martin rather than Martin making the movement.’ What is important not to overlook is the significant change that took place in the United States during the previous 100 years. Such that, many influential figures in support of racial equality opposed the March. The Civil Rights Act proposed by President Kennedy in 1963 was already in the legislative process. Furthermore the Federal Government was now reasserting power over the entire of the United States by enforcing a policy of desegregation. It is important to note that these changes all took place less than one hundred years after the Thirteenth Amendment in 1965 abolished slavery, and the Fourteenth amendment in 1968 acknowledged the rights of former slaves to be acknowledged as U.S citizens. With this level of progress Kennedy was against the March going ahead due to the argument that it was limited in what it could achieve. Today, King’s 1963 Speech is viewed as one of the most iconic speeches in history. However, was it a key turning point in African Americans achieving racial equality? Federal endorsement would suggest yes after decades of southern states being able to subvert the Federal law designed to break down segregation. This support built upon the corner stones of the Thirteenth and Fourteenth amendments in the nineteenth century. Therefore looking at the national status of black Americans fro...
Since the election of President Barrack Obama in 2008, many people have started to believe that America is beyond racial inequalities - this is not the reality. Rather, we, as a society, chose to see only what we want to see. Discrimination is still rampant in our nation. Michelle Alexander explains that since the Jim Crow laws were abolished, new forms of racial caste systems have taken their place. Our society and criminal justice system claim to be colorblind, but this is not the actuality. Michelle Alexander explains:
Despite the 14th and 15th constitutional amendments that guarantee citizenship and voting right regardless of race and religion, southern states, in practice, denied African Americans the right to vote by setting up literacy tests and charging a poll tax that was designed only to disqualify them as voters. In 1955, African Americans still had significantly less political power than their white counterparts. As a result, they were powerless to prevent the white from segregating all aspects of their lives and could not stop racial discrimination in public accommodations, education, and economic opportunities. Following the 1954 Supreme Court’s ruling in Brown vs. Board of Education that segregation in public schools was unconstitutional, it remained a hot issue in 1955. That year, however, it was the murder of the fourteen-year-old Emmett Louis Till that directed the nation’s attention to the racial discrimination in America.
“…Everybody jumped on him, and beat him senseless… Everybody was hitting him or kicking him. One guy was kicking at his spine. Another guy was hitting him on the side of his face… he was unconscious. He was bleeding. Everybody had blood on their forearms. We ran back up the hill laughing… He should have died… He lost so much blood he turned white. He got what he deserved…” (Ridgeway 167). The skinheads who were beating this man up had no reason to do so except for the fact that he was Mexican. Racism in this day and age is still as big of a problem as it was in the past, and as long as hate groups are still around to promote violence, society is never going to grow to love one another.
Racism (n): the prejudice that members of one race are intrinsically superior to members of other race (Wordnet search, 1), a controversial topic in today’s society, a subject that many people try to sweep under the rug, but yet a detrimental problem that has been present in America since the colonial era. Will this dilemma come to a halt? Can all Americans see each other as equals despite their skin color and nationality; and what role has it played in past generations versus today’s generations and how will it affect our future? Has this on going way of thinking gotten better or worse? These are questions raised when many think about the subject; especially members of American ethnic groups and backgrounds, because most have dealt with racial discrimination in their life time.
Dating back to the beginning of times people have always been looked at different depending on the color of their skin or what your religion, race, or beliefs may be. It is in our human nature to not like people for certain things that they are. Many will argue that in this day in age we are no longer at a race war but how can you be so sure when you actually open your eyes and see reality. Rapper Kanye West once said “racism is still alive, they just be concealing it” and these words are everything but false. You must ask yourself the real question about racism and it is how could you ever cure such a thing in people’s minds? People are free to think and believe what ever they would like and old habits such as racism will never change in people.
While browsing through articles on the internet, I came across many related to the topic of racism. I am beginning to feel as if I am surrounded by stories of racism. From the KKK’s aggressive campaign against immigrants, to the police violence against black people in cites throughout our nation, racism and discrimination continue to be problems. One story stood out to me and continues to make me uncomfortable. Malachi Wilson, a five year-old boy, could not attend his first day of kindergarten in Seminole, Texas. What could he have done to warrant the principal’s rejection? His hair was simply too long.
It appear that we have been investigating the cause and effects of race and racism for quick some time, as middle age adult in the year 2015, I feel that we have run into a brick wall which seems too hard to break though, to wide to get around and runs to deep to get under.
5A) The founders and creators of the constitution anticipated for congress to be the dominant branch of government. They expected it to be an equal representation of the demographics of this country. Given that in a democracy the legislature should represent the people equally, this draws the question on how well are African Americans being represented in congress (Walton & Smith, pg. 196). Representation is usually measured on three criteria’s known as descriptive, symbolic and substantive. This means the legislature should look like its demographics, it should be that the constituents have trust in the legislature and the laws passed by the legislature equally corresponds with the people its representing Walton & Smith, pg. 196). The most important part of the three criteria’s is symbolic representation because on both sides of the color spectrum whites and blacks have a hard time having respect to their representation. Both whites and blacks don’t fully have trust in the people they elect to represent them. Historically congress didn’t always have an equal representation of the demographics. From over 11,000 people that have served in congress on 139 have been black. From 1787-1870 no blacks served in congress, then in
African Americans have been at a disadvantage for almost all of America’s history. In fact, America was built off of exploiting African American men and women as well as other individuals that were not considered white. As time progress, the need for different organizations to protect the rights of African Americans was necessary and very much needed. You find that there are institutes like the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, The Black Panther Party, Sororities, Fraternities, and even Churches were established to preserve and protect the rights of Colored/African-American People. There were also different caucuses whose functions were very similar to the organizations above. I have selected the Georgia Legislative
Black youths arrested for drug possession are 48 times more likely to wind up in prison than white youths arrested for the same crime under the same circumstances. Many people are unaware how constant racism has been throughout the years. It is important to understand the problems of racism because it is relevant to society. Racism in America is very real and Americans need to know it.
We have a long history of racism in America that has been structured to favor White people. Structural racism can be defined as, “a system in which public policies, institutional practices, cultural representations, and other norms work in various, often reinforcing ways to perpetuate racial group inequity. It identifies the dimensions of our history and culture that have allowed privileges associated with “whiteness” and disadvantages associated with “color” to endure and adapt over time”(Structural Racism, 2004,p. 11). Overt racism became illegal during The Civil Rights Movement that took place between 1954-1968 (Tuck, 2015). Although society seemed to be heading toward a more socially acceptable society, the movement enabled white people to blame the struggles black face as a character flaw. White people will believe that black people have a lot of problems because their culture is bad or they have bad values. The message they are reinforcing is that being black is inferior, and this is an example of structural racism operates. Structural racism is a system of forces that keeps people of color in a permanent second-class status, and it is the foundation of racism in our society. Society is structured in a way where the hierarchy of white people oppresses Blacks, Latinos, Native Americans, etc and has
Before the Civil Rights Act of 1964, segregation in the United States was commonly practiced in many of the Southern and Border States. This segregation while supposed to be separate but equal, was hardly that. Blacks in the South were discriminated against repeatedly while laws did nothing to protect their individual rights. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 ridded the nation of this legal segregation and cleared a path towards equality and integration. The passage of this Act, while forever altering the relationship between blacks and whites, remains as one of history’s greatest political battles.
Racism is the mistreatment of a group of people on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, place of origin, or ancestry. The term racism may also denote a blind and unreasoning hatred, envy, or prejudice (Dimensions of Racism). Racism has had a strong effect on society. Despite the many efforts made to alleviate racism, what is the future of African Americans' Racism's long history, important leaders, current status, and future outlook will be the main factors in determining how to combat racism. Racism is still present in many societies, although many people are doing their best to put an end to racism and its somewhat tragic ordeals.