Racism And White Privilege And Institutional Racism

Racism; one word, a very powerful meaning and reminder. Many people shy away from talking about racism because speaking it into existence mean that we as a society have not gotten away from it. Unfortunately, this fact that we have not escaped racism and its effects still rings true today. I myself have tried to minimize the effects of racism in relation to white privilege and institutional racism. Sadly, I found that minimizing racism in general, when experiencing white privilege and or institutional racism while helpful can be harmful as well. As a child I guess I never really understood racism. I had no negative or positive experience with it so racism was never an issue. Many today would say that this is acceptable, understandable even because it is not a child’s job to understand racism. In society it is believed that a person doesn’t learn about racism until they experience it. After all, we go to school and receive a textbook definition of what the educated expla nation is. It is expected that we accept this definition and that is it but in actuality, this idea is not brought into perspective until it is experienced. I say all of this to point out that this was my line of thinking. I never really understood racism because I was not socialized to truly understand it. My thought process during that time was similar to that described by Victor Luckerson in his article Millennials Can’t Afford to be Color-Blind about Race; he says â€Å"because we have been taught to believeShow MoreRelatedRacism Is Not A Physical Action1533 Words   |  7 PagesYears A Slave being threatened by his white masters for being able to read and write. Not only did Blacks such as Northup suffer from the structural violence that was slavery, but also from institutionalized racism in the school system. Racism is more than a single person s actions towards another based on skin color. Racism is â€Å" the belief that all members of each race possess certain cha racteristics that make them inferior or superior to another race†. Racism is not a physical action, rather a mentalRead MoreRacism And White Supremacy For African Americans1288 Words   |  6 Pagestheir freedom, their history, and their human rights due to racism and white supremacy. However, in 1868 there was a light at the end of the tunnel, African Americans thought there was an end to racism and the beginning of equality when the 14th Amendment was created. The 14th Amendment stated, â€Å"All persons born in the United States are citizens of the United States†¦ no state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall anyRead MoreStructural Or Institutional Racism Is Formed By The Social, Economic, Political Or Educational Forces Essay1063 Words   |  5 Pages â€Æ' Structural or institutional racism is formed by the social, economic, political or educational forces that foster discriminatory outcomes or give preference to members of one group over the other deriving its genesis from the concept of race. The biological fact for the race has been invalidated by biologists, but the social aspect of it is formed by the community. The physical traits still possess the meanings of social race identity. 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Read MoreAmerican History And Its Current Setting927 Words   |  4 Pagesused the term racist or racism, the denotation suggest that they are talking on an individual level. The Oxford dictionary regards racism as an individual hate and discrimination against another race. But what about the bigger picture? Is society ignoring the systematic and power relationship racism actually stems from? The first print of the term racism was recorded in Oxford Dictionary in 1902 by Richard Henry Pratt (Demby, â€Å"The Ugly, Fascinating History Of The Word Racism†). Pratt once made a