Prejudice And Racism In America

America may be a young nation compared to those around those around the world and we as a nation have achieved a lot in our years. One battle that we have been fighting since the birth of our nation however is one against our own people. For years we have been divided by the colors of our skin and our heritage. Although Caucasian people may be the majority of our population, individually there are just as diverse of people in their origins as the minorities of this country. It just isn’t as apparent as having a culture branded into a skin tone. America is known as a melting pot of races from all over the globe. A lot of people seem to have forgotten where they came from after generations of searching for the “American Dream,” thus creating a typical “white American”. One instance where the white Americans banded together and discriminated against one race occurred after the bombing at Pearl Harbor. The racism that occurred against Japanese Americans is not as talked about as slavery, but the fact that it is talked about so little just goes to show that Americans are willing to sweep horrendous acts against our own people under the rug.

Throughout history in America there has always been the idea of racism. When Americans think of racism, they usually think of slavery and that racism is no longer a problem in America. However, this is not the case. Racism is still very apparent in America. It is true that since the end of slavery, the U.S. has made great strides towards becoming a less racist country. In reality, racism will never be extinct. In today’s society, all American citizens of all races have the same rights as one another, yet there is still racism. Racism can be linked directly to stereotypical mindsets of certain groups of people. It is human nature to make conclusions about other people, this is what leads to racism. Today’s racism is not limited to whites

America has always been a country filled with discrimination towards a group whether it be Native Americans, Hispanics, Native Americans, or Asians. The hate in this country is real, even today we still have KKK protests in our own streets. I and many Americans hope this hatred towards people can stop, hate towards people for their skin color or ethnicity is down right dumb. It is our jobs as Americans to raise awareness and limit discrimination for the future of america. Even in today’s world there is still extreme levels of hate towards these people. When we take a look back to Hitler’s reign and the holocaust how is the hate we show towards blacks different then the hate towards Jewish people that he showed? There’s not a whole lot of a difference, granted it was way worse, but it’s still similar.

America’s foundation in a sense was founded on racism. Although we live in a much more different, accepting time, it wasn’t too long ago that there was segregation and extreme racism in our society. We as a society have now since evolved and are now more tolerable and diverse then what we once were. However, there still are cases in America that show just how far we still need to develop our tolerance.

An American is a man, a woman, a child who came to the U.S. and started to grow and flourish to become the men and women that feel pride for their country and the freedoms they have through salutes to the country and leaving behind their past heritage to become a citizen of the U.S. We as Americans have very well tried to become who we are today by not being prejudice and not being without freedoms. We strive to be the best we can by saying our pledge of allegiances and our doing as much as we can for our country. Just as my grandfather does every morning by saluting of the flag always hanging in his yard up high.

The United States of America has a deep and rich history. Unfortunately, this history has been tainted by racism and intolerance. For a long time in this country, minorities have been viewed as less than other Americans. Like the book, Mississippi Trial, 1955 shows, racism affects many areas of people life. Their have been many attempts to change this way of thinking. Many different civil rights movements have taken place to get equal rights for everyone. However, the United States still suffers from a race problem. What cause racism? In the article, Breaking Down Prejudices: Racism in America: Past and Present, the author Kristian Lazaridi, states the reasons for racism. She states that “According to Aronson (1998) there are four basic reasons

In this modern world, prejudice is still a universal problem we still have yet to overcome. Although it is true that our society is much less prejudiced than it was 40-50 years ago, we are still struggling to create racial harmony in a world that is so diverse in terms of racial group, sexual orientations, ethnicity, nationality, religions, and so on. I think the core of prejudice comes from stereotyping, which is the generalization of motives, characteristics, or behavior to an entire group of people. In the world where media propaganda is ubiquitous, often times most stereotypes are not formed on valid experiences, instead they are based on images publicized by the mass media, or even created within our heads after seeing and hearing examples from many different sources, like movies, or even hearsay. Stereotyping is more powerful than we think, because it allows those false pictures to control our thinking that leads us to assign uniform characteristics to any person in a group, without consideration of the actual difference between members of that particular group.

Prior to examining the origins of racism in America, one has to know what racism is. According to Merriam-Webster dictionary the word racism means the “poor treatment of or violence against people because of their race or the belief that some races of people are better than others” (“Racism”). This great nation that we are a part of, America was created upon a foundation of racism in the form of slavery.

There are many different reasons why people are racist and groups of people who are racist. One type of reason of why someone might be racist are how they were raised. Another reason someone might be racist is what they choose to believe in when they get older and form their own option.

So why did I feel afraid when I went to Arizona and people stared at me?

America has faced many problems when it comes to achieving equality. Starting with slavery and going all the way from racial to religion we still have a lot of the same problems we had before. For example,”when it’s a white man’s word against a black in the courts a white will always win” (295) (Harper). well that is still prevalent today in a lot of court cases or just cop cases a cop or judge will usually always go in favor of the white man. Also the slang that is used most of the time by Americans is also proof like,”I seen that black nigger yonder ruttin on Mayella” (231) (Harper). it shows that there is a huge lack of respect. Therefore it also shows how people treat others with differences like there not equal.

If you know anyone who is a different skin color than you, then you must know the struggles they go through with people looking at them wrong, saying the rudest things as an insult, even though they never did anything wrong. “Americans consider blacks more likely to be racist than whites and Hispanics in this country.” (Rasmussen). People of this nation need to realize that 1. People aren’t all created the same, some are poor, some are rich, some are Christian, some are Islamic. 2. We will never achieve the country we want, one that never goes to war, one that everyone is the same, one that is trustworthy, willing, and brave. These things will never happen since we are so wrapped up in the way we are now and wish that people we are around or heard of would just change their ways to the ones that they have when really those are the ones that need to change. Those are the ones that hold this country back from its full potential.

Unfortunately racism has existed in America since the beginning, certain situations have improved and changed but pockets of America still seem to live like it's still the 1600's, with the mindset that a white man is better than a black man. Before the Civil Rights Movement; there were laws that segregated schools, restaurants and almost every other place where people publicly congregated. Even though racism currently still exist, because of the Civil Rights Movement, we can all be treated as equals. Since then we all have the same opportunity for employment, lodging, privilege to vote, and equal access to public facilities. Furthermore since the Civil Rights Movement we share the same; schools, bathrooms, water fountains, waiting rooms, public transportation, the list can go on, America will forever thank the activist who made a forever

When you turn on the TV to watch the news, walk down the street, or travel further South in the United States, however subtle or blatant, you can detect racism. Many people chalk it up to shallow racism and ignore it, but the issues are more deeply embedded than they appear. The issue with race in the media, South, or people, in general, is that it's one of the foundations of the United States. Racism is intertwined all throughout U.S. History being passed down from generation to generation, to the point where it's practically in their DNA. This all began when Columbus arrived in the Caribbean and enslaved the indigenous people, bringing them back to England as the queen's slaves. As a result, of Columbus' actions, slavery began to spread throughout England. Europeans paid Africans with guns and other weapons to enslave rival tribe members. Eventually when Europeans migrated to America, slavery in England had begun to die down, however, it was just beginning in America. The European-Americans used the African slaves to build America, then to tend to their crops and fields. This continued for several years until the Civil War began, slaves saw an opportunity for freedom, but then realized that they would never truly be free until they had the same rights as an American citizen. So, when the Civil War ended, the Reconstruction was born. However, from here, it would continue to be a battle for people of color. Some say that though the Reconstruction amendments helped Africans

Racism has been a notable part of the American society for centuries. While the colonists raise their voices for freedom, meanwhile, they are in feared of losing their slaves. With this mindset, an individual considered one life to be worth more than another due to their skin colors, this contributed greatly to the racial segregation and tension in America. Up to now, in the 21st century, racism is still prominently part of the United States, as people are protesting all over the nation over white police officers brutally toward black citizens. Even with all of the ethical, societal, and technological advancement our country has recognized, racism continues to be, and remains to be a problem in our nation today.