History Essay on racism

Izabella Zayshlyy

History 305

LRA #4

November 08, 2019

Part 1:

Racism still exists today in the country known for freedom and the country that is also known as the melting pot. The United States is rich in diversity, which improves many aspects of today's society, yet people today still discriminate you based on your color or race. People of all races feel the impact of racism during different events in life, such as getting a new job, making new friends, or simply walking down a busy street. I believe that the result of racism today affects how our society views diversity and how victims of racism view society. More importantly, the complexity of racism allows it to permeate across cultures, contexts, and institutions.

What caused the initial act of slavery within the United States, and why were African Americans the target? What were some consequences of disobedience in terms of slavery back then and how can they compare to modern day racial discrimination? In 1619, Dutch traders brought African slaves that they had captured from the Spanish into the colonies. This led to the growth of slavery in the colonies. Also, Africans were the target because they easy to acquire, easy to control and cheaper than the indentured servants. Slave disobedience could be punished by whipping, hanging and other forms of cruel punishment. This is different from today since most racial discriminations are carried out through bullying. For example, online abuses. Therefore, they hardly go physical.

Racism in America experienced a great shift in 1964 when the Civil Rights Act was signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson. This act outlawed segregation and the Jim Crow laws of the South. The act also outlawed discrimination based on race, national background, and gender. This piece of history is important for understanding the current conflicts because this is act was supposed to help and fix the problem of racism and it may have helped a little, but racism has still continued in other ways.

Part 2:

The history of racism in the US has been characterized by phases of progress and drawbacks as visionaries advocated for unity whereas demagogues called for division in the lines of race and class. From 1619 to 1865, racism took the form of slavery where African Americans and other races were enslaved (Morabia, 2019). The slavery was core to the US economy as it provided free labor and accounted for a fifth of the US wealth. Slaves had no rights and were not recognized as citizens of the US.

In 1866 after the Civil war, a reconstruction period that saw the abolishment of slavery through the 13th, 14th and 15th amendments began. The amendments gave rights such as voting, participation in politics and usage of public accommodations to all persons including African Americans. Also, in 1866, the Civil Rights Act was passed by congress (Morabia, 2019). The Act advocated for equality in employment and equality in the monetary compensations for all individuals under similar employment regardless of their race.

The reconstruction period was short-lived as in 1877, the Ku Klux Klan, to suppress the freed slaves, was formed. The group used means of terror and violence to achieve their objective. Also, prerequisites for voting such as literacy tests and tax polls were imposed on blacks, which translated to a significant decrease in voters whose effects were manifested in periods of few or no African American members of Congress (Fredrickson, 2015). The trend continued into the 20th century with racism taking the form of denial of economical rights such as access to a loan or public accommodations.

After the world war II, many activists and leaders fighting against racism such as Fannie Lou Hamer and Martin Luther King Jr. intensified the pressure for equality causing acts such as the 1964 Civil Rights act (prohibited discrimination in the workplace on the basis of gender and race) and 1965 Voting Rights Act (abolished the imposed voting prerequisites) to be passed by congress (Fredrickson, 2015). Since then, the issue of racism has seen steps of progress such as policies towards integrated schools and drawbacks such as assassinations of activists for diversity and equality. The shift from racism saw significant progress in 2008 and 2012 with the election and re-election of President Barrack Obama, the first black American president of the US. In conclusion, racism in the US has strong roots from the precolonial period. However, there has been a significant shift towards equality of the different races.

References

Benner, Aprile D, et al. “Racial/Ethnic Discrimination and Well-Being During Adolescence: A Meta-Analytic Review.” American Psychologist, vol. 73, ser. 7, 2018, pp. 855–883. 7, doi:10.1037/amp0000204.supp.

 

Boulila, S. C., & Carri, C. (2017). On Cologne: Gender, migration and unacknowledged racisms in Germany. European Journal of Women's Studies, 24(3), 286–293.  https://doi.org/10.1177/1350506817712447

 

Bryant, W. W. (2011). Internalized Racism's Association With African American Male Youth's Propensity for Violence. Journal of Black Studies, 42(4), 690–707.  https://doi.org/10.1177/0021934710393243

Fredrickson, G. M. (2015). Racism: A short history. Princeton University Press.

Morabia, A. (2019). Slavery, Work, and Racism in America: A Review of Four Books.