Racism 8 Essay, Research Paper

People see it everyday across America. A group of whites burn down a black church, someone gets hurt or murdered from a racial slur, or fights break out at school or in public. These are the extremes of racism. Racism is definitely not a good thing, it s a power that has taken over through the last two years. In doing research on Racism, I hope that my feelings towards blacks would improve and they have. What will the future bring for Racism? What are the main problems of racism? Can we get a hold on racism throughout America or will we self-destruct in our own hate?

Racism is everywhere, as much as today tries to hide it or say that we resolved it forty-to-fifty years ago. Racism is still all over the place. Racism first showed it teeth in America, when the segregation of blacks and whites came along. The segregation shut down all activities or actions from whites and blacks. It absolutely separated whites and blacks from being close to each other in public and blacks having no rights. Then the movement took place when Rosa Parks wouldn t give up her seat to a white man on a bus. At the time she was tired of the treatment her and fellow African-Americans were getting. She said she was tired and on this fateful day she bgan the turning wheels of the Civil Rights Movement. The Civil Rights Movement took place and gave blacks their future as they have now. It gave them the freedom that they deserved and needed. They were given the ability to vote; not having to be separated in such insane ways against whites, as they were. Positive helpers in the role of black s rights were Dr. Martin Luther King and Malcolm X. King had a dream that little black boys and girls would be able to join hands with little white boys and girls. His dream came true. On April 4th 1968, King was leaving his motel room. When he was shot and killed (Schulke).

Everybody knows what racism is, but there are so many other factors that tie in with racism. If someone is a racist they are of course, prejudice. Prejudice is when someone doesn t like someone for the way they look. A big problem with racism is many live in racist conditions and don t even see it. It flies right over their heads. Schools, the workplace, our community, our friend s house, even our homes. We hear a racial slur, oh well, it’s just a joke. Hardly. If you think racist joke are harmless than you should take a reality check. Racist jokes are just the start of it. Many people think the jokes are funny. Maybe they are, but they still hurt the people the jokes are about. Some of the worst racists are the ones who think that they are not racist, and they really are. They really have to come to grips with reality. Why are they some the worst racists? They are, because they can’t comprehend what is happening. They don’t realize what they are saying and doing are racist. Until they come to grips with it, there is no problem. No problem, in their minds. They say that they aren’t racist, even when they don’t hire the East Indian employee who was the most qualified of the candidates. Even when the basketball team that they coach is all white. And even the time when they moved from their seat at the movie theater because of the black person next to them. Well, gee, they could have been a criminal. A robber from “the hood.” After all, isn’t that what most of “them” are. No one deserves to be prejudged like that. The prejudice of people in the world is disgusting. The worst part of it all is that they don’t even know that they are doing it. They think it’s normal behavior, it doesn t even phase them when they do it.

Born of the civil rights movement three decades ago, affirmative action calls for minorities and women to be given special consideration in employment, education and contracting decisions. In its modern form, affirmative action can call for an admission s officer faced with two similarly qualified applicants to choose the minority over the white, or for a manager to recruit and hire a qualified woman for a job instead of a man. Affirmative action decisions are generally not supposed to be based on quotas, nor are they supposed to give any preference to unqualified candidates (Froomkin). And they are not supposed to harm anyone

through “reverse discrimination.

Then there are those who are completely unaware of racism in the world. They walk down the streets, through the stores and working at their job, completely oblivious. They’re so blind! Why can’t they see what is happening around them? Have they really lived such sheltered lives? Or do they just not want to believe it is happening? If you take someone and put them in the heart of a racist area, they still won’t notice the problems. They will see it with their own eyes, but it won’t register in their mind. If these people don’t open their eyes, they will never see what is happening. What is going to happen to the world if people don’t start realizing what is happening? Will we be plunged into a time where racial tension is everywhere? Will we soon start having racial wars? Will racial violence be a normal every day occurrence? I don’t know. No one could know. Unless we start taking action and helping people come to grips with the way they are, we can’t combat racism.

Today we are living in a load of social issues that we have to deal with and racism is one of them. For some reason many people can t figure out, is why are many standards being lowered? The government has given blacks many ways to get in and out of college and it s not fair for the average white person. Throughout history blacks haven t always been the smartest people. They have consistently under performed in IQ (Emeagwali). A black athlete then doesn t have to be as smart as the average white athlete to get into college. Blacks blame their faults and disappointments against society and the whole race in which they live in. They say that since they grew up in a poor family, they can t do good or excel, but anyone can do good or excel if they put their mind to it. This is not a one sided situation though. Whites can be the same way. Many whites grow up in poor families, and they can t use excuses either. Some whites live in a trailer so they say that they can t succeed in anything. I have friends that act this way. There isn t but one

true pure science that blacks have furthered in. Phillip Emeagwali programmed the world s fastest computer in 1992, due to his exceptional mathematics.

Superiority is a big part of racism. Blacks think that they are superior to whites, and whites think they are superior to blacks. That s one of the main reasons racism is very bad across America. Blacks think they are a better race and whites think they are the better race. Therefore, we fight and create violence to justify who is the greater race. Gangs can be associated with this view. In the sense that every gang thinks that they can t be stopped. And if someone wears the wrong colors on the wrong street or neighborhood they are going to get hurt or killed. That follows the same scenario, if a white man walks in a black community, it s generally unsafe in the inner cities or slums. Or if a black man walks in the presence of one or several KKK members, it would be unsafe for the black person. The scenario could go many different ways, but the reality is, that it doesn t matter who you are or what color you are, its unsafe to be who you are.

Hate in America is getting worse and worse everyday. Every hate crime that happens has to do with race or being prejudice. No less than one month ago, two teenage boys committed the worst school shooting this country has seen, killing 13 helpless teenagers and 1 courageous teacher. These two boys made it clear, that they hated blacks, Christians, athletes and foreign people (O Donnell). They killed a black for his color and a Christian for saying that she believed in God. They went on a rampage and tore up thousands of people lives on one Tuesday morning. All because they didn t like types of people. Everyone is different, that s the way that God made us. He didn t intend for us to do this to each other though.

History has had their share of hate crimes, dating back to the start of the Klu Klux Klan (KKK), a group of whites that hate and terrorize blacks. They wear all white, ghost looking outfits. And in their earlier years were known to ride on horses and kill blacks for no reason, just hate. The KKK was more of a southern cult, then became known worldwide, and are still located in the southern parts of the country. The KKK committed hate crimes such as burning down of black churches, and putting crosses to fire. Not to mention torturing blacks and creating brutal

deaths such as the death seen last June in Jasper, Texas. A 49 year old black man by the name of James Bryd Jr. was dragged by the back of a pickup truck (Boven). Police got the call of a dead body and the man s torso was found first, right arm second. The brutal death started by two young men picking up Bryd, he hopped in the back of the truck and one of the men became enraged that he picked up a black man. They then drove to a clearing and beat Bryd severely. Then he was chained to the truck and dragged, to his death. The two men who had many white-supremacist tattoos were charged with a capital crime offense (Boven). The Texas born Dennis Rodman paid for the funeral for his stand against racism.

The future, when you hear that word you start to think about advancing our technology and furthering science. You think of exploring new boundaries and seeing new places. A better world, but a worse world is what I see. The technology may improve as we go into the next century, but what about the children of today that are responsible for the future? Right now, we are only hurting ourselves with racism and hate. We have taken many steps in controlling this disease, but like most diseases, they spread. Where there is a problem, there is a solution. The only solution that seems to be found is to stop the hate. Plain and simple. If only that feeling of walking in public and being looked at the wrong way could end. It s not even safe to be a Christian anymore, and that s when you know something s wrong.

Prejudice is human nature. It will never be stopped. The government can control it with specific penalties for hate crimes, but surely can t end it. It seems that people would respect someone s life enough not to take it. Everyone is different; therefore, we have to live with it. We don t have to associate with that certain someone if they are black or white, but we just have to respect them, and where they come from. God put us on this Earth to love one another and to be kind to your brother. To hate someone is just like an insult to God. So remember, next time you re in public, just be kind and generous. That s the start to the answer.