Race And Racism

The idea that all men are created equal can be found in the Declaration of Independence, An important document in the development of the United States. It is a true statement however that idea has not been applied to everyone. From the moment that the idea of race was created there has been an unequal treatment of groups of people. When looking at history we see that “race” did not exist to define racial inferiority. This attributes to the idea that race is a social construct created by society that was not fully developed till mid-nineteenth century. Race and Racism are alive and well, it thrives in people denying it is existence. There are groups of people being discriminated against and affected by the color of their skin on a daily basis. …show more content…
It is a label that we have imposed on each other. This division created exactly that, it makes us separate ourselves from the rest. We have grown ups thinking like this because everyone around us has also been taught to think like that. Labeling others based on their appearance has benefits and disadvantages depending on what you are labeled as. History shows us that being considered white has had the most advantages for people. In the textbook we read about how when the Irish first arrived they recognized the privileges white men had compared to black people. It became obvious that being white meant being the superior group and so with time the Irish embraced being considered white. On the other hand black people were at the bottom, slaves who were confined to the least opportunities. Although many years have passed the African American community/groups of color still struggle to have the same opportunities. “I was taught to be black and you were taught to call me that” (Prince EA) enforces the idea that labels can shape us. When labels are thrown at us we start to believe them ourselves. As an African American man he’s been expected to be a certain way, stereotypes used to describe young black men include gangbanger, law breaker, thugs, and drug users to name a few. Some of society expects them to fail and not be law abiding citizens. When we break free from this thinking …show more content…
Dr. Martin Luther King talks about the discrimination that African Americans encountered. Police brutality was a big part of the problem, in his letter from Birmingham he finishes with “…what else is there to do when you are alone for days in the dull monotony of a narrow jail cell other than write long letters…” (Martin Luther King 6). He himself was arrested for peacefully protesting against segregation. In the last few years we have seen a new movement grow in the African American community, they are not protesting segregation but racial profiling from law enforcement towards people of color. The movement Black Lives Matter was created to demand an end to the senseless killing of people like Freddie Gray who was killed during police custody. Like Freddie Gray there are countless victims, all dead at the hands of police. Victims of the color of their skin, that were of no threat to police at the time of their deaths. Most of the time no officers get convicted and are freed of all guilt, as if the lives of black people were not important or worthy of justice. It is cases like this were we see an abuse of power towards a group of people that show us modern day examples of

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