In today’s modern society, we live in a world where racism amongst people of different races has the ability and potential to express itself in a variety of ways. This expression of racism could vary depending on geography, culture, time period, etc. Nevertheless, regardless of these possible factors, racism is likely taking shape in some way or form, whether one is cognizant of it or not. This racism that seems to be occurring throughout the world, has had and continues to have a profound effect on the way we live today, not only economically and politically, but socially as well. Many philosophers have studied racism, looking at the situation from various standpoints and perspectives. In an attempt to get a full understanding, racism is often studied by means of both white and black people, while being analyzed and critically evaluated from both such perspectives as well. In his piece “The Bad Faith of Whiteness,” Robert Birt is one such philosopher who elaborates and expands upon this term “bad faith” from which racism has the ability to stem. In Lewis Gordon’s book “Existencia Africana” he claims, “that racism is a form of dehumanization, and that dehumanization is a form of bad faith” (Gordon 85). Such a claim sums up the concept nicely, but as others have continued to write about in their works, there is more complexity to this issue, and that other racist ideas and explanations can further be connected back to this matter. The argument made by Robert Birt starts off by explaining particularly what is occurring in this interaction between white and black people that leads to this idea of bad faith. The author claims, “the self-deceptions of bad faith often originate in a project of denying the freedom of others” (Birt 58).... ... middle of paper ... ... as many of these philosophers have explained and as we have learned in this class, the predicament is complex, but nevertheless, as we also discussed in class, can be amended. Works Cited Birt, Robert E. "The Bad Faith of Whiteness." What White Looks Like: African-American Philosophers on the Whiteness Question. By George Yancy. New York: Routledge, 2004. 55-64. Print. Fanon, Frantz. "II- Racism and Culture." Toward the African Revolution: Political Essays. New York: Grove, 1967. 31-44. Print. Gordon, Lewis R. "Chapter 4- What Does It Mean to Be a Problem." Existentia Africana: Understanding Africana Existential Thought. New York: Routledge, 2000. 62-95. Print. McIntosh, Peggy. "White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack." Independent School Winter (1990): n. pag. Print. Mills, Charles W. The Racial Contract. Ithaca: Cornell UP, 1997. PDF.
Back, Les, and Solomos, John, Theories of Race and Racism: A Reader, (New York: Routledge, 2000).
American traditions and institutions perpetuate the disadvantaged positions of nonwhites in ways that black people have experienced as personal in particular situations. This importance of race in public and private life, as well as subjective experiences of racism, have drawn to existentialism both black and white philosophers who address racial issues. Indeed, the marginal status of existentialism in philosophy is a good match for the marginal status of racial studies, and the marginal presence of black philosophers. Also, the awareness of human difficulty by existentialists, generally, is relevant to the specific difficulties of the American black experience.
The assumption that black people have lesser moral values and have a greater inclination towards violence is not new. According to Herman Gray, “Blackness was constructed along a continuum ranging from menace on one end to immortality on the other, with irresponsibility located somewhere in the middle.” (Gray) T...
Guess contends that conventional theoretical approaches to race fail to account for the “historical consciousness of whiteness as social norm” (650:2006). They tend to ignore whiteness and treat it as a given or a prerequisite (651:2006). This then results in an automatic social devaluation imposed on those that do not meet this norm. Guess contends that racism and colourism work on two levels. Firstly, racism by intent works on an individual level of belief and values that stem from historic events such as slavery and Jim Crowe laws (Guess 661:2006). Racism is then internalized into the framework of society, which Guess calls ‘racism of consequence’. Racism of consequence is reflected in differing educational, economic and residential opportunities between races, as well as differing health care standards (652:2006). Such structural inequalities are extremely problematic because they are so deeply internalised that many people may not even realise that they exist (Guess
Routledge, Clay . "Exploring the psychological motives of racism." More Than Mortal. N.p., 31 July 2010. Web. 30 June 2014. .
According to the authors, Critical Race Theory (CRT) is no longer new, but it continues to thrive. It has expanded from a subspecialty of jurisprudence to the use in department of education, cultural studies, English, sociology, comparative literature, political science, history, and anthropology. CRT treats race as central to the law and policy of the United States. CRT also looks beyond the belief that getting rid of racism means simply alleviating ignorance, or encouraging everyone to get along. CRT looks at many faucets of racism. Microagression are small acts of racism consciously or unconsciously perpetrated; these are absorbed from the assumption about racial matters most of us absorb from the cultural heritage in which we come of age in the United States. The CRT movement is a collection of activist and scholars interested in studying and transforming the relationship among race, racism, and power. CRT questions the very foundations of the liberal order, including equality theory, legal reasoning, Enlightenment rationalism, and neutral principles of constitutional law.
The black man is hence for white culture the “the burden of original sin” (Fanon 168). Racism in this way is essentially a kind of defense reaction, which, in a way, explains why racism so powerfully enforces and reaffirms relations of separation and distance – the white man wants as much distance
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.
Racism exists all around the world and is a big part of our society today. From schools, to work places, to even restaurants, racism is there because we, ourselves have constructed it but, not everyone can see it through their own eyes because we were all born with different perceptions. In Racism Without Racists by Eduardo Bonilla-Silva, racism is described in a variety of different ways whether it is due to biological factors or simply by saying that racism does not exist and people just need to work harder. Bonilla-Silva has experienced discrimination himself and he wrote this book to show that even though it is not extremely visible like before, such as segregation, it is subtler but still plays just as big of a role in our society as before.
To 'prejudge' is to make up your mind on an issue before you look at
Shelby, T. (2002) “Is Racism in the Heart?” In G. L. Bowie, M. W. Michaels, and R. C. Solomon (Eds.), Twenty Questions: An Introduction to Philosophy (479-483). Boston, MA: Wadsworth.
Racism: a Short History George Fredrickson makes an argument ultimately against the dichotomy between civilization and savagery, specifically the resurgence of ethnoreligious bigotry that, according to him, replaces 20th century race theory in order to justify continued inequities and sociopolitical oppression worldwide in Racism: A Brief History. His book delineates the rise of modern race theory, beginning in Medieval Europe and synthesizing an explanation for the existence and success of the overtly racist regimes, the United States, South Africa, and Nazi Germany. Fredrickson cautions, however, that racism can easily become interchangeable with religious bigotry when facing corporatism that aims to alienate, marginalize, and devalue human beings as mere consumers with little agency or any collective sense of identity. Racism's ultimate goal, according to Fredrickson, is to establish a permanent hierarchal order that "has two components: difference and power." Fredrickson's analysis is probably one of the most direct and functional definitions of racism that I have run across in a while.
Racism is one of the most revolting things within the vicinity of humanity. Many times it haunts our past, degrading our future. However, a good fraction o...
Racism can be defined as "any set of beliefs, which classifies humanity into distinct collectives, defined in terms of natural and/or cultural attributes, and ranks these attributes in a hierarchy of superiority and inferiority" (Blum 5). It can be directly linked to the past and still, centuries later, serves as a painful reminder that race continues to be one of the "sharpest and deepest divisions in American life" (Loewen 138). What were the causes of racism? How did it develop historically? In order to answer those complex questions, I plan to examine the conditions of America's history from colonialism to present day society. It was these conditions of America's past that promoted the development of racist practices and ideas that continue to be embraced by many to this day.
Racism is based on the belief that one’s culture is superior to that of others, and this racial superiority provides justification for discrimination. Racism begins with categorising by race, and therefore stereotyping particular cultures. A simple definition of prejudice given by St Thomas Aquinas states prejudice as “thinking ill of others without sufficient cause” (1. pg 21). Racism is a major issue in today’s society, affecting a large number of the world’s population and causing political and social turmoil. To evaluate the true meaning, effects and views concerning racism in today’s world, a number of literature sources were researched including novel, films, short stories, poetry, song lyrics, textbooks and magazine articles.