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the influence of racism essay
the influence of racism essay
the effect of racism
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Racial superiority is a concept created to rationalize social inequality and though we live in a country with much diversity, why is racism still a prevailing problem? How are beliefs of superiority ingrained and maintained in people’s minds? What leads certain cultural groups to believe they are “biologically” superior to others? What live style do people with these mentality have? How is racial discrimination a continuing problem if, throughout the years, movements have been created to fight this very same social issue? In the book, American Swastika, Pete Simi and Robert Futrell answer these questions by exploring the white power movement through extensive fieldwork. They examine the factors that drive white supremacist to form their beliefs …show more content…
Children can be taught to view the world in specific ways even if these ways are not appropriate. Young minds can be taught to see the world positively or negatively, but the question we must ask ourselves next is, can we blame children for their beliefs and ideologies? How can we hold young minds responsible for how they see the word if they see it through that specific lens because it was presented as such? All, especially children, are socialized in many ways; ways that might not acceptable, but what exactly is socialization? How does it occur? The book, American Swastika, defines and explains socialization and the way in which Aryan parents shape their children’s minds and lives.
To begin, “socialization refers to the process by which humans learn the norms, values, and ideals of a culture and community” (22). In Aryan cultures, children are taught Aryan ideologies in numerous way and at a very young age. Parents cultivate hate and “use the home as a place to raise children as tomorrow’s warriors who will defend the white race against genocide” (21). But how can children really defy beliefs they are taught to be right when from a very young age they are told racism is right and they way to protect white culture and supremacy is through
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In environments like home, “Aryans transform [some] of the most common family rituals into deeply racist experiences” (22). These can consist of birthday parties, cookouts and even bible studies. “Birthday celebrations [are used as] ritual initiations for the children to embrace white power culture,” and things as simple as gifts are transformed and filled with racial themes to teach children Aryan ideologies (27). These can consist of “clothing with racist symbols, Aryan comics, white power coloring books, neo-Nazi video games, Aryan music, and SS knives among other weapons
Proselytism, or the act of forcing beliefs onto others in an attempt to convert them, is exceptionally prominent during teenage years, but continues to prevail as the years advance. Propaganda used before the Holocaust convinced teenagers to join auxiliary groups like the Student’s League and Hitler Youth. Hitler convinced adults to join auxiliary groups as well, apart from the main Nazi party. Behaviors established as the norm in such groups were spread throughout all of Germany and eventually became common conduct. Each account in Voices of the Holocaust supports the idea that the Holocaust was caused by the Nazi party’s overall ignorance due to wrongful
Socialization is the development or way of learning one’s culture. It is originally modeled by family in the early concepts of values, roles, and overall sense of self. In an analogy, socialization creates the lens in which one sees and interprets the world. The lens that comes from family is like the actual eyeball. It is a part of the person, and cannot so easily be changed or removed to create a new perspective. From the time a White person was born they were shown that an African American was less than. They were seen working the dirty jobs, called derogatory names, beaten, and overall disrespected. On top of just seeing the behavior if a white child tried to test the norm of segregation by talking to an African American, they were punished; making the point of inequality even stronger. This was the process of socialization that was further solidified in their churches, education system, in the media, and in the
Centuries of both figurative and literal binding held down countless individuals from reaching their full potential, and in turn held down the entirety of the mankind from progressing forward, Despite laws that emerged in hopes to create equality, years of “Separate but equal” lies perpetuated across from sea to shining sea. Other nations took notice to how America treated its citizens with concern, but yet the discrimination continued. Years of voices fighting for change fell on deaf ears. Typically, only in incidents such as Freedom Summer where white students who fought for equal rights died did the attention of the national public tune to the true horror and extremity white supremacists were taking to hold back change. (cite). Through reading Tyson’s book, one is able to further reach an understanding of the clash of rage, despair, anguish, and frustration felt by those fighting for equal
This power keeps the behavior of the oppressed well within the set guidelines of the oppressor (Freire, 2000, pg. 47). Critical Race Theory outlines this system of oppression as it relates to white and non-white races. By using the critical race theory coupled with the system of oppression described by Freire (2000), I propose that within the system of oppression, the oppressor must keep its own members in line with the prescribed guidelines by reinforcing the social norms from birth. Freire (2000) suggest that the interest of the oppressors lie in “changing the consciousness of the oppressed not the system” (pg.34). Identifying as white, therefore, starts at birth when members of the white class work to reinforce social norms that began with our founding fathers at Plymouth Rock. This long history of white privilege was taught to me and I continue to teach it to my children. As an educator of white affluent high school students, I believe we provide college and career counseling based on this white privilege system of oppression as well. Here, I journey even closer to unraveling the myth of white privilege as I encounter the intersection of an affluent white student choosing a career after high
A name is a mark of classification, a basis for self identity. Able to elevate or annihilate a persons' perception of herself and the surrounding society, these designations can uplift, joke, chide, mock, insult, degrade. "Society" implies the people and the atmosphere encompassing an individual in her daily life. "Culture" is closely tied to the society of a person--it is the aspects of her life which are directly influenced by such issues as race, color, nationality, religion, sexuality, and any other number of things that mark a person as distinct. Culture, though an integral part of everyone's lives, is frequently misunderstood or seen as threatening by people outside of the group in question. This ignorance of other people leads to judgments and assumptions, which frequently cloud daily issues. The most ignorant people stoop to name-calling, a painful slap of hatred. Stereotypical, racist, religious, and sexist name calling, especially, can affect the victim's views and opinions for life. Most vulnerable to these taunts are children, innocent and uncallused, who hear these names and know neither their true meanings nor the depth of senseless hatred behind them. As shown by Henry Louis Gates, Jr. and Gloria Naylor, these labels can be taken in and their meanings rendered harmless. By seizing and possessing these hateful words, a group can reshape the meaning of the slurs once wielded so forcefully against them.
German education in the 1930’s changed dramatically in several ways. First, Hitler was inserted into every classroom. His portrait hung on the wall and “Children were taught to greet each other with ‘Heil Hitler’, swear allegiance to Hitler, and use his name in their prayers” (Bartoletti 40,41). Secondly, two extra classes were added. In Eugenics children were taught to only marry healthy Aryans, discriminating against people of Jewish descent and invalids (Bartoletti 42...
Whiteness is a conceived ideology that has existed and been maintained since early history. This ideology has negatively influenced individuals of colour, causing them to receive many unfair benefits and disadvantages. In this essay, I will argue that the three most important overall features of whiteness are; that it is perceived as a normalized and dominant culture, that society considers white individuals as the most superior race and lastly that these individuals are easily granted countless of opportunities and privileges other races simply cannot have or afford. I will also show that through these features, whiteness essentially becomes a form of identity, shaping and maintaining the social institutions. Moreover, I have chosen these
Many people in the United States society believe that people of all cultures, races, and ethnicities are now on an even playing field. People with this belief support their logic with the argument that since equal rights for people of color and women have been required by law for some time now, we are all inherently as equal as claimed in the Declaration of Independence. Many believe that race is no longer an issue, a viewpoint frequently referred to as color-blindness. National polling data indicated that a majority of whites now believe discrimination against racial minorities no longer exists. (Gallagher, 96) Color-blindness allows a white person to define himself or herself as politically and racially tolerant and then proclaim their adherence to a belief system that does not see or judge individuals by the “color of their skin.” (Gallagher, 98) Many Caucasians in particular are of the opinion that because they listen to hip-hop or cheer for their favorite black, professional sports player that they are not racist. Still others believe that because they have a black president, we see black people in the commercial of products we consume, or enjoy television shows with black people that they are actually acknowledging race. In order to examine and dismantle this series of misconceptions, we will turn to the work of various scholars of social justice and privilege, including Peggy McIntosh, Patricia Hinchey and Johnathon Kozol as well as the story of Patricia J Williams. Through a careful examination of these works with the support of some key statistics, it is the goal of this paper to demonstrate the existence of a privileged and unprivileged America, despite the color-blindness many may profess to have integrated into their p...
Prior to beginning my readings on white racial identity, I did not pay much attention to my white race. If someone had asked me to describe my appearance I would have said short blond hair, blue eyes, average stature, etc. One of the last things I would have noted was the color of my skin. Growing up in overwhelmingly white communities, I never thought to use the color of my skin to differentiate myself from others. Over the course of this dialogue I have learned that my white racial identity is one of the most defining aspects of my appearance in this society. There is a certain level of privilege that I am afforded based solely on the color of my skin. According to Peggy McIntosh, “White privilege is like an invisible weightless knapsack of special provisions, assurances, tools, maps, guides, codebooks, passports, visas, clothes, compass, emergency gear, and blank checks” (71). All these objects listed by McIntosh are things I have access to and certainly take for granted. Due to a history of non-white racial oppression, which transformed into decades of racial discrimination that still lingers today, the white race has dominated our society in terms of resources and prosperity. The ideas of wealth, higher-level education and ambition to succeed are all traits commonly linked to people of the white race that collectively define privilege. The aspect of privilege can also produce disadvantages for people of the white race as well. In the book Promoting Diversity and Justice, the author D. Goodman notes that people of advantage groups develop a sense of superiority, which will sometimes lead them to wonder if, “their achievements were based on privilege or merit” (107). Along with a diminished sense of accomplishment, the cost ...
Because I am white, no one wonders if I am associated with terrorists or feels nervous and pulls their belongings closer if I am alone in an elevator with them. Going to school I always had a sense of safety. Having brought white privilege to my conscious awareness, it raised feelings of guilt and shame, because I was ignorant to my oppressiveness for so long. These feelings empowered me to identify various ways in which I can challenge the concept of white privilege in myself and others. On an individual level this can be done by increasing awareness of privilege, reducing feelings of guilt, accepting one’s own role in perpetuating racism. Do not assume that all differences are the same, acknowledge and validate everyone’s experience, avoid assumptions, listen with compassion, and create safety and room for everyone. Additional ways to challenge white privilege consist of exploring resources produced by or about other races, developing relationships with people across racial lines, positioning oneself in a context where they are the numerical minority, and/or exploring the field of whiteness
White privilege is institutionalized when the practices and policies of an institution systematically benefit whites at the expense of other racial groups. Peggy McIntosh published an article entitled “White privilege: Unpacking the invisible knapsack”, which names in very clear ways, how everyday, having white skin confers privileges that white people don’t often realize they receive. By illuminating the many forms that white privilege takes, Peggy McIntosh urges readers to exercise a sociological imagination. She asks us to consider how our individual life experiences are connected to and situated within large-scale patterns and trends in society. She includes a “white privileges” checklist which include answering yes or no to statements. For example, can Chad Aiken confidently say “I can be pulled over by a police cruiser and not have to worry about it being about my race”, or “I can be pretty sure that if I ask to talk to the “person in charge”, I will be facing a person of my race”. White people are generally free from this systemic bias, suspicion and low expectations that racialized people must endure everyday because it is built into our culture. When a criminal has white skin, his actions are never connected to his race, while a criminal perceived as a brown-skinned Muslim might inspire hatred and suspicion of other
Scientific racism, a concept created to enact racial classification during the new world, is purely based on instilling a certain ideology that places the Aryan people above everyone else, hence allowing a dictation of who is right and wrong within society. These pseudoscientists would even remark that society should not fear the inferior race’s death because their lives are not equal in value. Scientific ideas about race may have died off during the collapse of the Nazis in Germany, however, the basic ideology of whites having a natural superior over dark skinned people have never gone away and are still present in the minds of many individuals today. Furthermore, the history of science used to promote a racist doctrines have made racism a stronger ideology, though it is non-existent in the realm of modern science, the mark it has left in society is undeniably painful and perilous. Even though, racism back up by science has had long lasting effects that continue to influence the minds of many, some people may think that the substantial gains in the last 100 years by minorities are clearly indications of racism being
Racist and racism are provocative words in American society. To some, they become curse words. They are descriptive words of reality that cannot be denied. Some people believe that race is the primary determinant of human abilities and capacities and behave as if racial differences produce inherent superiorities. People of color are often injured by these judgements and actions whether they are directly or indirectly racist. Just as individuals can act in racist ways, so can institutions. Institutions can be overtly or inherently racist. Institutions can also injure people. The outcome is nonetheless racist, if not intentional (Randall).
Temporary inequality exists as a means of “improving” a subordinate to the level of a dominant. After the period of inequality is over, the two view each other as equals. The other form of inequality, permanent inequality, exists solely because of an ascription of inferiority to a subordinate that is inherent and unchangeable. Unlike temporary inequality, there is no possibility of improvement for the subordinate; they are, in the eyes of the dominant, inferior and impossible to “fix.” The dominants, who view themselves naturally superior to the subordinates, begin to take advantage of the subordinates. “Out of the total range of human possibilities, the activities most highly valued in any particular culture will tend to be enclosed within the domain of the dominant group; less valued functions are relegated to the subordinates” (Rothenberg, 112). Moreover, the subordinates, who by this point are under the total control of the dominant group, may begin to internalize the value of the dominants. “[Subordinates’] incapacities are ascribed to innate defects or deficiencies of mind or body…More importantly, subordinates themselves can come to find it difficult to believe in their own ability” (112). This theory of domination and subordination are clearly mirrored in race relations in the United States. Whites, who are the dominant group, make all of the fallacious errors involved in race-based thinking; they are prone to, like Miller describes, hoarding superior roles in society and practicing systematic cruelty towards the subordinates due to their sincere belief that the subordinates are inherently incapable of rising to the level of the dominant. This internalized belief on the part of the dominants, that the subordinates
Both points serve McIntosh’s objective of making clear that the notion of white privilege is not a myth. Due to the socially constructed and arbitrary nature of ideologies concerning race (a biological, phenotypic/ (physical) expression of human features) the highly immoral and nonsensical practice [whether recognized or not] of white supr...