Contemporary Racism

Hey Google, Why Are You Biased?

10/17/2024 by Colin McCormack

When using the search engine of Google as your primary method of acquiring informational resources, you would hope that the generated sources would hold an abundance of factual and unbiased information. Good arguments are founded on premises that are in fact true, and the logic that follows that groundwork must be valid and sensible. Think back to the basic spelling tests and mathematical problems taught by your elementary school teachers. Did you ever doubt that …

So, You Want to be Racist for Halloween?

10/17/2024 by Julianna Muñoz

Last halloween some friends and I decided to get dressed up and walk around the neighborhoods surrounding our college that are home to a plethora of students here at Muhlenberg. Walking around and seeing people dressed up was all in all fun, until from the corner of my eye I saw what looked to be a sombrero. For people who do not know, sombrero’s are a significant part of Mexican culture and a huge part …

Representation from Disney is a “Threat’ to White People?

10/17/2024 by Carly

Why is it that white people seem to be so threatened by the idea of representation and equity? White people seem to believe that they are entitled to being represented through the media, even in spaces where Black individuals are requesting more POC (people of color) characters and stories. For example, Disney has recently been under some backlash from audiences about choices for their theme parks and movies. Simply because of people attempting to keep …

Stepping off the Moving Walkway!

10/17/2024 by Danielleh

Imagine you are at the airport, standing still on a moving sidewalk, you feel the breeze in your hair as you get closer to where you intend to go. This is the overall nature of the well-known moving walkway analogy. This famous analogy comes from Dr. Tatum as she understands it by comparing it to an “ongoing cycle of racism is like a moving walkway at the airport.” Overall this concept sets an understanding and …

How Do We Confront Cognitive Dissonance When Engaging in Racial Dialogues?

10/16/202410/16/2024 by Abby Bresalier

The first critical step that one must take in engaging in antiracist practices is beginning the conversation. If you have already been a part of a few conversations, congratulations! You have gotten over the hurdle of being so barred by fear by dipping your toes into the emotionally daunting topic of RACISM. But your work is only just beginning, as the journey of being a truly engaged person in antiracism work requires constant introspection, reading, …

Cementing Prejudice: Racism in the Roads and Roots of the United States

10/10/202410/10/2024 by PJ R

It would hardly be an exaggeration to say that the Interstate Highway System of the United States was one of the most impactful public works projects in the nation’s history. Tying together one of the largest nations on the planet with millions upon millions of miles of asphalt, many Americans credit it with helping to bring a scattered nation closer to unity. They hold this assumption in ignorance of the ways in which it also …

Yellow Light!

12/17/2023 by Piper Schwenk

Is it safer to speed up or slow down at a yellow light? Slow down! Slowing down is safer for yourself and others when driving on the road. Let’s take this yellow light idea and apply it to race talk. Slowing down when talking to others is one of the most important steps to combat implicit bias. What is implicit bias? Implicit bias is unconscious opinions and beliefs that are not consciously thought and can …

Let’s Switch the Code

10/10/202412/17/2023 by Maridie Niare

In a nation where the air we breathe is polluted with the ideologies of Whiteness, People of Color are faced with two options: choke on the smog or put on a mask. While it would be ideal for one not to choke on smog, there’s two reasons why a POC wouldn’t wear it. One would be that no matter how hard they try, they just cannot find a mask that’s capable of blocking out this …

Describe Who?

12/17/2023 by Natstermac

If someone were to describe you, what are the first things they would say? How would someone describe me: a white, blonde, young woman. See, that wasn’t too hard to describe myself with the acknowledgement of my race. Now if I can use race to describe myself, then why is it so hard to acknowledge another person’s race when describing them? I ask this question with the knowledge that for most of my life, race …

Stop Before You Stereotype

12/06/2023 by Natstermac

I was born in a land littered with Confederate flags. Each flag you drive past holds generations worth of harmful stereotypes about Black Americans. Even if you aren’t from South Carolina, like me, stereotypes are constantly around us. They are found through our thoughts, conversations with others, information from the media, etc. Once we understand that a stereotype exists, what do we do with them? Do we let them control our thoughts and interactions? And …

Egalitarianism, Implicit Bias, and Motivation

12/06/2023 by Ricardo Caamano

In society today some people are beginning to make change. They are becoming less prejudiced, and using fewer stereotypes. The question is whether this is due to internal, or external motivations. Meaning are people being less racist because in their heart they know it is wrong? Or, are they being less racist because they are scared of the societal consequences and being known as a racist and getting canceled by society, or maybe because of …

The Misinformation in the United States

12/06/2023 by Ricardo Caamano

Throughout United States history people are continuing to believe things that are not true. Not only are they not true, but they are disgusting and horrible. People who believe in stereotypes which are attitudes and beliefs, usually they are prejudiced which are ill feelings towards people. Which is also related to discrimination which is behaviors against people. These stereotypes are not true, they are racist. In the readings we learned that people who joke about …