Racism in Your Life

Because racism today often reveals itself in ways that can be much subtler than in the past, it is often more difficult to detect—and more difficult to confront. There are many different stereotypes and prejudices that are commonly made by people toward others. It is these negative stereotypes—and the ignorance that keeps them alive—that allows racism to continue.

One of the keys to getting rid of racism is to change the negative attitudes that you or someone you know may have. The difficulty in overcoming these attitudes is first recognizing that they exist. Because racism is such an ugly word, it is hard to take an honest look at yourself and admit that you are prejudiced.

Another way of breaking down prejudices is to learn more about other cultures and traditions. Many racist opinions and stereotypes come from ignorance and fear of the unknown. Once someone becomes familiar, they are no longer a threat. Once you learn more about a race or a culture, that race or culture is no longer “foreign.”

In the end, we all need to recognize that our future is dependent on how we treat each other as individuals. Frederick Douglass, former slave, abolitionist, and author, once said, “The destiny of the colored American … is the destiny of America.”

Whether we are Black or white or of any other race, we are all human beings. As a larger group, we are all dependent on each other to move forward. As part of the next generation, you, too, can help make a difference in the fight against racism.

Most white people living in North America never even think twice about their race. Usually, the only time whites might think about their “whiteness” is when they find themselves in a room, a part of town, or a foreign country in which they are the minority. Even under such circumstances, a white person is probably thinking more about the other people’s race than their own.

Racial Profiling

Racial profiling is what happens when you assume things about someone based on that person’s race, ethnicity, nation of origin, or religion. Profiling often occurs in the legal system. Some police officers take part in this type of discrimination.

It can be frustrating to deal with racial profiling. You might have been followed around a store, while store employees didn’t follow anyone else. Maybe police officers have stopped you while you were walking home from school. You weren’t doing anything wrong, but the way they questioned you made it seem like you did. It’s natural to feel resentful and helpless in these situations.

Even if you’ve never experienced racial profiling, you should take a stand against it whenever possible. When people work together for a cause, it brings them together. One of the best ways to put an end to racism and all of its negative effects is to cooperate with others who share the same goal.

Microaggressions

You may not have been the victim of loud, overt racism, but chances are you might have experienced what the experts call microaggressions. This term was first used by psychiatrist Dr. Chester Pierce in the 1970s and then later expanded upon by psychologist Dr. Derald Wing Sue at Columbia University. Microaggressions are what are known as unintended discrimination. Dr. Sue defined them as “brief and commonplace daily, verbal, behavioral, or environmental indignities, whether intentional or unintentional, that communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative racial slights and insults towards people of color.” These actions or comments are often subtle, and they unintentionally or unconsciously reinforce negative racial stereotypes. Some examples include a white person tightening their hold on their bag when a Latinx person walks nearby, an Asian American person being complimented for speaking “such good English”, a Black couple being seated near the kitchen in a restaurant even though there are better tables available, or a Native American person being told, “Wow, I don’t even think of you as an Indian”.

It is likely that, most of the time, microaggressions are not meant to be insulting, yet they can certainly feel demeaning under certain circumstances. So, how do you handle them? Recognize that you’re not being overly sensitive. Feeling hurt or angry is normal. You might be able to let it go, especially if you really like the person who made the comment. You can just choose to walk away from the moment. Other times, the experience may fester like a wound and that’s when you need to take some action. As psychologist Ellen Hendriksen writes online, “Trust yourself. If the comment sticks with you, even hours later, or it makes you mad or sad to replay in your head what happened, know you don’t have to swallow it like a hot coal. Tell someone,” she continues. “Talk to someone who gets it, no matter their color.” Find a friend, parent, relative, teacher, or other trusted adult and explain how you feel.

Another way to respond to microaggressions is to take a minute and ask the person, “What did you mean by that comment?” Often this question is enough to make the person more aware of what they have just said. You might also try saying, “That comment was pretty offensive to Latinos” or “You know, comments like that might be upsetting to Asians.” You might even personalize the statement and say, “It hurts my feelings when people say those things, because …“ These are fairly gentle ways of teaching an important lesson. Speaking honestly and tactfully is often the key to getting through to others.

White Privilege

“White privilege” is a phrase that has become more common in recent conversations about racism. Francis E. Kendall, author of Diversity in the Classroom and Understanding White Privilege: Creating Pathways to Authentic Relationships Across Race, offers one definition of white privilege as “having greater access to power and resources than people of color [in the same situation] do.” The website Learning for Justice says, “For many, white privilege was an invisible force that white people needed to recognize. It was being able to walk into a store and find that the main displays of shampoo and panty hose were catered toward your hair type and skin tone. It was being able to turn on the television and see people of your race widely represented. It was being able to move through life without being racially profiled or unfairly stereotyped.”

Stereotypes

It is easy to forget that each person is unique. If people weren’t so quick to judge, we wouldn’t hear prejudiced statements like, “Black people are dangerous” or “Mexicans are lazy,” or “White people think they know everything.” These statements are based on stereotypes. A stereotype is an unfair assumption formed when the actions of one person become the basis for judging a whole group of people. Stereotypes are usually negative and based on ignorance.

The Media

Stereotypes are often found in the media—television, movies, newspapers, magazines, radio, and even the Internet. The media has the power to influence many people. Unfortunately, the media can also promote negative stereotypes. When you watch television or go to a movie, you often see characters portrayed in a way that does not present a complete or honest picture. For example, if you were to watch a whole week’s worth of prime-time television, you might notice that the criminals are usually Black, drug dealers are often Latinx, or white people are often rich. But in reality, there are many white people who are not rich, and there are criminals of every race. Many shows on television do not have any non-white characters. The same can be said of magazines. As a young Black, Latinx, Indigenous or Native American, or Asian or Pacific Islander person, you might feel less attractive because you do not see your race portrayed in the media.

Young women who do not look like the so-called all-American beauty sometimes try to alter their appearance. Some try things as extreme as bleaching their skin or changing the shape of their eyes, nose, or body with plastic surgery. Every culture has different beauty standards.

Confronting Society’s Biases

Many teens are confronted with society’s biases based solely on surface impressions. When situations such as these occur, you might be tempted to react in many different ways. Below are a few positive ways in which to deal with racism and prejudice.

• Avoid hate speech—We have each witnessed examples of hate speech and racial slurs being used against individuals and groups in our schools and communities. Instead of going along with these messages of hate, speak out against them. Be on the lookout for hate literature or hate graffiti and get help to stop it. When you hear someone using hateful language, remark that it’s disrespectful. When you recognize hate symbols on a person’s clothing, notebooks, bumper stickers, social media account, or cloth patches, tell an adult.

• Replace apathy with action—Be a role model of tolerance. Instead of going along with groups who support or promote racism, speak out against them. Stand up against all forms of bias in your family, school, and community. Remember, if you don’t speak out against racism, it’s the same as agreeing with racist attitudes and opinions.

• Support victims of racism—Form a discussion group at your school to reach out to victims of racism or bias. Help spread the word about counseling groups or services in your school and community. Be sensitive to the needs of others and try to imagine life in their shoes. Talk it out and express regret about the intolerance of the racist person or group.

• Teach tolerance—Whenever possible, draw attention to racist comments and jokes. Let others in your group know that you do not share their negative stereotypes and opinions. Be aware of white privilege. Encourage teachers and other school officials to hold diversity activities at your school. Ask community and business leaders to help with tolerance efforts by sponsoring your group or school project.

Hair Discrimination

In January 2020, eighteen-year-old DeAndre Arnold was suspended and told that he couldn’t walk at his high school graduation unless he cut off his dreadlocks. Arnold’s cousin, sixteen-year-old Kaden Bradford, attends the same school and was suspended for the same reason. School officials said the teens’ hair violated their Texas school’s dress code. Arnold, who was invited to tell his story on “Ellen,” told host Ellen DeGeneres that his hairstyle was “really important” to him because his father was from Trinidad. “It’s part of our culture and our heritage,” he said. “I really wish the school would kind of be open to other cultures. At least let us try to tell you some things. Don’t just shut us out.”

Hair discrimination occurs when Black people are harassed, punished, threatened, demoted, or fired because of their natural hair texture or because they wear natural hairstyles such as box braids, twists, cornrows, dreadlocks, or afros. It is based on the harmful racial stereotype that Black hair is messy, unattractive, or unprofessional. At school, Black students are singled out, bullied, banned from activities and exams, suspended, or forced to transfer for refusing to change their hair. At work, Black people are pressured to straighten, cut, or relax their hair to more closely resemble white hairstyles. If they refuse, they may be fired, passed over for promotions, or denied job offers.

Hair discrimination is becoming more visible due to stories going viral on social media. In December 2018, sixteen-year-old Andrew Johnson was forced to cut his dreadlocks before a wrestling match. There was growing outrage after a video showed a white trainer hacking off Johnson’s dreadlocks with scissors in front of the entire gym, sparking the hashtag #WrestlingWhileBlack. In August 2019, parents of a thirteen-year-old boy filed a lawsuit against a Texas junior high school after school staff colored in their son’s fade haircut with a permanent black marker.

U.S. states and cities are starting to take action against hair discrimination. California, New York, New Jersey, and the city of Cincinnati, Ohio, and Montgomery County, Maryland, were the first to pass the CROWN Act, which prohibits employment, housing, and other public service discrimination based on certain protective hairstyles and textures. (CROWN stands for Create a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair.) Many other states are considering the CROWN Act or are in the process of introducing their own anti-hair discrimination bills.

Judging Others

You have probably heard the expression “You can’t judge a book by its cover.” Yet, at the same time, all of us do judge people based on their outer appearances, which is inappropriate and unfair. The first time you see someone, you are bound to form an impression of that person. A first impression is based on the surface details that you first observe—clothing (clean or dirty, fashionable or frumpy), hair (neat or messy, long or short), and also size, height, weight, and skin color. The problem is that an impression is never neutral. It is always, to a degree, negative or positive. It always involves making a judgment. The more different the person is, the more difficult it is to make a fair, unbiased, positive judgment.

If you have always lived in the same place and you always associate with people who are similar to you in terms of race, religion, ethnic background, and economic status, you might feel uncomfortable hanging out with someone who looks, speaks, dresses, or behaves differently. When you have never been exposed to different kinds of people, it is easy to make judgments based on stereotypes. Unfortunately, these stereotypes are often false. This is why you need to fight the tendency to judge someone based on a stereotype. Get to know a person as an individual before slotting him or her into a category. If you keep an open mind, you can react to a person based on who they are instead of who you think they are.

Racism and Xenophobia

Many people think that racism seems very similar to xenophobia (the fear of outsiders or people different from ourselves). While the two issues are related, they are not the same thing. While racists are prejudiced against people because of their race, xenophobes are prejudiced against people because of their nationality or where they come from.

Racism and xenophobia prop each other up and share similar methods of prejudice and hate speech. Many people who are xenophobic are also racist, and vice versa. Both xenophobia and racism operate on the same basis of profiling people and making negative assumptions about them based on those profiles. This means both xenophobes and racists look at the actions of one person from a group and apply those actions to the whole group. Xenophobic people may also see a person’s race as a sign that they are an outsider and from another country.