Racism in the United States of America - Research Paper Example

Module Racism in United s Racism is a vice that still exists in the United s today and in various forms regardless of the efforts have been made left, right and centre to get rid of it. Racism in the most basic of terms identifies a certain race as superior to others and support of such views renders one to be a racist. Racism leads to discrimination and puts others in disadvantageous positions in the society. However, when discussing racism as pertaining to United States it is necessary to state that it is not only the Caucasians who appear racist against all others like African Americans and Hispanics. All other races at one point exhibit racist tendencies towards the Caucasians and among themselves. As far as the government is concerned there is no racism as the law is quite clear that it is illegal. As compared to earlier times of slavery and periods before the 1960s (when civil rights movements were most vocal), open racism has subsided in a huge way. Its form has also changed to be more covertly and technically portrayed than before. The education system, the justice system, health sector and the corporate sector in the United States are some sectors where many feel racism still exists. Immigration issue has also played a role towards racism. Campaigns against and for immigration have on numerous occasions centered on racism. These are some of the issues that lead to the discussion as to whether racism still exists in the United States since they touch on the lives of many. Racism in the US still exists but in a more subtle way as compared to yesteryears and past centuries, and it is manifested in all races not just Caucasians versus all others. Racism puts those being discriminated against in positions of uncertainty and sheer difficulty. Racists work towards ensuring the system is water tight to prevent success of the minority groups. Minority groups are blocked from fully participating in the education system, health system, corporate sector and other realms of social development, for example, politics. These scenarios are quite well depicted in Ellison’s Battle Royal. The author here tries to portray the life of an ordinary but eloquent and learned African American back in the early 20th century. At first the story informs that the young man is optimistic that, with his talent and education, the society will accommodate him. The society here means the whites in the boy’s community, and this is clearly illustrated when he says, “I visualized myself as a potential Booker T. Washington” (Ellison 939). The state of social affairs is also deduced from humility being the key point in his speech. The story further depicts the hard position in which racism put African Americans by stating that the audiences at the battle royal were divided on whether the fighters were to look at the naked girl dancing in front of them. This scenario saw a portion of the audiences order the fighters to look at the girl while the other portion ordered them not to do so owing to the belief that it is a taboo for an African American to stare at the nakedness of a white woman. The author stated “some threatened us if we looked and others if we did not. On my right I saw one boy faint” (Ellison 940). This taboo among many others, mostly in the Southern States, was meant to distant other races from marrying the whites and as tools to harass African American men. The Southern states has such high levels of discrimination against African Americans that even after the Civil Rights marches, many still lost their lives and a great deal of their properties including houses all for in the name of white women pursuance. The minority groups have for decades received promises of better lives and a bigger share of the national cake with no tangible evidence of these promises’ fulfillments. This is depicted by the fact that the gold coins are only made of brass thereby showing deception toward the African Americans. It is also clear that the African Americans have been put at their own place by the white counterparts as deduced from a white man’s reply that, “we mean to do right by you, but you’ve got to know you place at all time” (Ellison 947). The same is seem when the African American boy is at the end of the speech handed a briefcase containing scholarship papers to head to an African American college. Many early university scholars provided … justification for racism … helping implement and reinforce racist social constructions …” (Chesler, Lewis, Crowfoot 16). However as stated by Henry and Generett “… education has always been a way for oppressed people to improve their lives …” (Henry and Generett 188). Patel and Rushefsky also state that “… bias, prejudice and stereotyping on the part of health care providers was one of the sources that contributed to disparities in health care” (Patel and Rushefsky 45). Most of the uninsured Americans are people of color and as such no other reason other than racism can be safely attributed to this disparity other than racism. Lack of adequate education for the minority races spells doom in later life leading to higher chances of these races contributing to the poverty bracket as well as the prison system. Many people’s social lives and personal lives are filled with incidences that bring about racism in one way or the other although not overtly. As the case is with Alexie’s The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven, interracial marriages are an increasing reality all over the US. These are marriages that undergo various tribulations solely based on each others racial affiliation. As the case in the article portrays it, stereotypy by far contributes to racism. The wife to this Indian is white and attributes the basis of their marital conflicts to poor anger management skills of the husband. She states “I don’t trust you … you get too angry.” Throughout the article, there is no evidence that the Indian gets angry even in other situations in his daily living. The trend with racism nowadays is pegged heavily on what a certain race is believed to possess. For example, native Indians are regarded as irritable and hostile by other races and as such they are approached in a manner that will not raise their tempers. This is also witnessed when the 7-11 clerk told the Indian, “pretty hot out tonight?” the author clearly states that such a question “… is designed to put both at ease.” The rest of the conversation shows there is a form of tension between the clerk and the Indian man but this is carefully eluded by use of jokes, for example, “hot enough to make you go crazy” and “if you knew I wanted a large, then why did you ask me again?” These are from the Indian to the white clerk. On the other hand, the white clerk put forth jokes like “I was hoping you weren’t crazy. You were scaring me.” The incidence is where the white kid played the Indian ball. It is surprising for this Indian to find a white kid playing it so well and others affirm this through this conversation, “can he play?” “Oh, yeah.” How long has he been playing here?” … “Long enough.” As elaborated by Hicks, “Black Americans view racism, in particular, not as a scourge on the wane, nor even as an influence that has plateaued since the 1970s, but as a constantly growing force that is more subtle … and insidious than the racism of the past” (Hicks 133). The same is echoed by Williams and Williams when they stated that, “… racism has only become a hide-and-seek thing … an era where racist beliefs are hidden in policy, concealed in practice … but never in anything as crude as a sign that says ‘white only’” (Williams and Williams 25). Regardless of the legislation against racism or any form of discrimination, the covert nature with which racism is being portrayed make it hard to pin down racists or its perpetuators in today’s U.S. The fight is now left squarely to every individual to ensure rightful treatment of all regardless of racial affiliations. Racism as stated earlier exists where a race takes itself to be superior to others. This puts others at a disadvantage, and this is clear from Alexie’s My Heroes Have Never Been Cowboys. This article aims to show how history has been twisted to portray the white race as superior to that of the native Indians. As clearly illustrated, Indians were seen as extras which means they are less significant in issues that matter. The author states that, “Indians never lost their West, so how come I walk into the supermarkets and find a dozen cowboy books telling How the West Was Won?” (Alexie 3). This statement is designed to question the exhibition of false literature in the eyes of the public. The title of that publication makes one to deduce that the Indians lost the way to the white while this was not the case. It is also quite obvious from the article that the whites presume to be cleverer than the Indians where the author states, “The cowboys, 19th century geniuses, talk the Indians into touching the wire … After a dozen or so have hold of the wire, the cowboys crank the portable generator and electrocute some of the Indian” (Alexie 7). This statement shows both aspects of superiority in respect to knowledge and level of thinking on the side of the whites as opposed to the Indians, and this is why the author sarcastically criticizes the source by framing the cowboys as 19th century geniuses. According to Parker and Edwards “Mexican Americans did not … belief in white racial supremacy … although it was certainly reinforced … whenever one encountered blacks and Indians” (Alexie 132). Similar superiority issue is highlighted by Johnson by stating, “The reason why whites are less likely to get hypertension is that … a majority employ the attitude of being superior” (Alexie 10). Superiority complex affects many whites than it does Native Americans, African Americans or people of other races. Johnson has gone a stretch ahead to even link state of health to racial affiliation and attached superiority in regards to whites, as opposed to other races. This only shows how this problem is deeply rooted despite having been abolished centuries ago. CONCLUSION Throughout the United States, there are incidences that recur and which surround racist tendencies. This is despite the initiatives aiming at equality for all throughout the history of the US before and after slavery, before and after the civil war, and after the civil rights movements of the 1960s. This is also after United States voted the first president of African American origin in 2008. However, all races have paid and will continue paying a price for racism. While whites … pay some price for … U.S racism, that price pales when put up against that paid by African Americans and … other groups of color” (Feagin 219). Racism’s heaviest price is the lost opportunities for people to access same amenities like quality education, quality health care and justice within the justice system. Feagin and McKinney state that “Middle-class African Americans … confront racial barriers and blockades throughout their lives” (Feagin and McKinney 182). Nevertheless, with continued pressure for an equal-opportunity United States, at one point racism may end just as slavery did. Works cited Alexie, Sherman. The Lone Ranger and Tanto Fistfight in Heaven. nd. Web. 29 Apr. 2012. Alexie. Sherman. My Heroes Have Never Been Cowboys. nd. Web. 29 Apr. 2012. Chesler, Mark A., Lewis, Amanda E. and Crowfoot, James E. Challenging Racism In Higher Education: Promoting Justice. Rowman & Littlefield, 2005. Print. http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=OhlVpiF8ACAC&pg=PR3&dq=Chesler,+Mark+A.,+Lewis,+Amanda+E.+and+Crowfoot,+James+E.+Challenging+Racism+In+Higher+Education:+Promoting+Justice.+Rowman+%26+Littlefield,+2005&hl=en&sa=X&ei=9xSmT6K7KIvTsgaa2eX-BA&ved=0CDQQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false Ellison, Ralph. Battle Royal. Web. 29 Apr. 2012. Feagin, Joe R. and McKinney, Karyn D. The Many Costs of Racism. Rowman & Littlefield, 2005. Print. http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=CafYagAX9scC&pg=PT242&dq=Feagin,+Joe+R.+and+McKinney,+Karyn+D.+The+Many+Costs+of+Racism.+Rowman+%26+Littlefield,+2005&hl=en&sa=X&ei=MRWmT4nsCIXdtAb83s35BA&ved=0CDIQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=Feagin%2C%20Joe%20R.%20and%20McKinney%2C%20Karyn%20D.%20The%20Many%20Costs%20of%20Racism.%20Rowman%20%26%20Littlefield%2C%202005&f=false Feagin, Joe R. Racist America: Roots, Current Realities, and Future Reparations. Taylor & Francis, 2009. Print. http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=0stwPeRea2MC&pg=PA330&dq=Feagin,+Joe+R.+Racist+America:+Roots,+Current+Realities,+and+Future+Reparations.+Taylor+%26+Francis,+2009&hl=en&sa=X&ei=UxWmT4miIcj0sgatlv3jBQ&ved=0CDIQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false Henry, Sue E. and Generett, Gretchen G. The Problem of Colorblindness in Us Education. Routledge, 2005. Print. http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=sanO9n1w9FwC&pg=PA120&dq=Henry,+Sue+E.+and+Generett,+Gretchen+G.+The+Problem+of+Colorblindness+in+Us+Education.+Routledge,+2005&hl=en&sa=X&ei=dRWmT96UJobUsgbz2djqBA&ved=0CDIQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false Hicks, Reginald E. Hidden in the Shadow of Truth: Why Our Black Boys Choose Criminality Prison and Enslavement. iUniverse, 2010. Print. http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=_6heOV-cI4MC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Hicks,+Reginald+E.+Hidden+in+the+Shadow+of+Truth:+Why+Our+Black+Boys+Choose+Criminality+Prison+and+Enslavement.+iUniverse,+2010&hl=en&sa=X&ei=lRWmT_u8LcT5sgbL76nSBA&ved=0CDQQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=Hicks%2C%20Reginald%20E.%20Hidden%20in%20the%20Shadow%20of%20Truth%3A%20Why%20Our%20Black%20Boys%20Choose%20Criminality%20Prison%20and%20Enslavement.%20iUniverse%2C%202010&f=false Johnson, Ginny. White Folks Can Cook Better than Black Folks. iUniverse, 2003. Print. http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=eyaZbkKLkxkC&pg=PA25&dq=Johnson,+Ginny.+White+Folks+Can+Cook+Better+than+Black+Folks.+iUniverse,+2003&hl=en&sa=X&ei=sRWmT_rFM8vntQbzq4mCCA&ved=0CDYQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=Johnson%2C%20Ginny.%20White%20Folks%20Can%20Cook%20Better%20than%20Black%20Folks.%20iUniverse%2C%202003&f=false Parker, Alison M. and Edwards, Laura F. Beyond Black & White: Race, Ethnicity, and Gender in the U.S. South and Southwest Texas. A&M University Press, 2003. Print. http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=uIENhDJSh5sC&pg=PA148&dq=Parker,+Alison+M.+and+Edwards,+Laura+F.+Beyond+Black+%26+White:+Race,+Ethnicity,+and+Gender+in+the+U.S.+South+and+Southwest+Texas.+A%26M+University+Press,+2003&hl=en&sa=X&ei=yhWmT-_kNIbWtAb6jeGmBg&ved=0CDIQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false Patel, Kant and Rushefsky, Mark E. Health Care in America: Separate and Unequal. M.E. Sharpe, 2008. Print. http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=Js2J5aNtCrAC&pg=PR13&dq=Patel,+Kant+and+Rushefsky,+Mark+E.+Health+Care+in+America:+Separate+and+Unequal.+M.E.+Sharpe,+2008&hl=en&sa=X&ei=5BWmT7q0EcnltQb-j-iNBQ&ved=0CDIQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=Patel%2C%20Kant%20and%20Rushefsky%2C%20Mark%20E.%20Health%20Care%20in%20America%3A%20Separate%20and%20Unequal.%20M.E.%20Sharpe%2C%202008&f=false Williams, Robert L. III and Williams, Robert L. Racism Learned at an Early Age Through Racial Scripting: Racism at an Early Age. AuthorHouse, 2007. Print. http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=snLRJTwvUioC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Williams,+Robert+L.+III+and+Williams,+Robert+L.+Racism+Learned+at+an+Early+Age+Through+Racial+Scripting:+Racism+at+an+Early+Age.+AuthorHouse,+2007&hl=en&sa=X&ei=_hWmT4CgIcvSsgaV_sWBBQ&ved=0CDQQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false Read More