The fact that racism is a big problem will most likely not come as a surprise to many people. Yet, there are people who are just now seeing racism as a “big problem” in the United States. According to a Pew research center poll, 58% now see racism as a big problem in the United States. What about the other 42%? These are the people who either think racism is somewhat a problem, small problem, …
“The history of America is too big for one building.” – Lonnie Bunch, founding director of the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Recently, I had a conversation about the variety of museums in my hometown of Capitol Hill and about the wonderful exhibits surrounding the Washington Mall. The person I spoke with had recently visited, they shared, and they loved it. But they didn’t visit the African American museum because they didn’t like …
Microaggressions are defined as seemingly harmless, everyday comments or actions that send degrading messages to certain individuals because of their race or their group they identify with. All White people are guilty of microaggressions, and most of the time we (White people) don’t even know that we said them or perpetuated them, because that hasn’t been our experience. Well, it is time to acknowledge our mistakes no matter how small or insignificant they seem to …
In our recent world, especially in developed countries, the concept of egalitarianism is accepted more and more widely by people. They believe the world should be a fair place which provides equal opportunity for each person no matter what one’s race, gender, or sexual orientation is. Because of this belief many people pay attention to their conversations and behaviors in order to not act as a racist or sexist. Egalitarianism is not only a inner …
Our high schools just aren’t pulling their weight when it comes to teaching about the Civil War and the role of slavery in shaping American society. A report released by the Southern Poverty Law Center on February 1st found that only 8 percent of high school seniors can identify slavery as the central cause of the Civil War. Not only that, but two-thirds of high school seniors were unaware that it took a constitutional amendment …
Coming from a family with a military background and a brother currently serving in the United States Navy, the NFL protest of the flag has been very important to both my family and myself. Many NFL players, specifically Colin Kaepernick, decided to use their platforms to raise awareness about social issues that people of color face, such as police brutality, by not standing for the national anthem and instead taking a knee. Originally, I was …
Beginning in August of 2016, Colin Kaepernick, the former quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers, began a national anthem protest. Over the next 13 months, players from various teams in the NFL began sitting, kneeling and speaking out in acts joining Kaepernick. On August 26, 2016, Kaepernick exclaimed, “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color. To me, this …
Models Sophie Applegarth and Julie Iovenitti dressed up as tennis players Venus and Serena Williams for a Christmas party through the use of blackface. “There is nothing racist about backing [your] favorite sport stars,” Applegarth and Iovenitti said in defense. Later, Applegarth put out a statement saying that they had no intent to be racist when they put these outfits on. Blackface has always been a contested issue in the United States. When these girls …
Our country is an an extremely sensitive era in regards to racism, homosexuality, anti-semitism and a variety of other topics. People being accused of racism is becoming more of a normality, even considering the fact that racism has long been around even before the birth of our nation. It’s seeming as if it’s becoming the one and only accusation that is made, of white American’s, some having good reason, others have really no legitimacy at …
“History is written by the victors,” Winston Churchill said. Another way to understand this power to define reality is through the construction of master narratives. A master narrative is majority-constructed script that specifies and controls how social processes are contextualized. An example of a master narrative that is perpetuated by our education system is one about the “discovery” of America by Christopher Columbus. When the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria landed on Plymouth …
There’s always a hair section at the supermarket: a section for hair — regular hair, normal hair, perhaps you would call it white women’s hair — and then a section dubbed “ethnic” for the other hair; it’s for the misunderstood hair, the hair that the simple “hair” section cannot provide shelf space for. The “ethnic” section is for black women’s hair. It is separate due to its other-ship. “Hair” and “Ethnic Hair” have been segregated, …
I have scrolled through my Facebook and found far too many videos’ that capture police brutality. There are very few times I have been able to go on my Facebook feed without coming across a video that captures racism in violent acts. After which I would leave and log off of my social media. Not only has there been an increase in media coverage of these events but there has been an increase in occurrence …