The Roots of Racism
Jenny Freedman
February 27, 2019
Racism comes from a lack of human interaction and connection with other groups. In most cases, racism involves taking one behavior or characteristic and setting it as the standard for an entire race. Racism also involves the factor of legacies; humans are not born racist, but their upbringing or experiences can be the cause of prejudices to develop. Jennifer Richeson, a Yale University social psychologist, states, “People learn to be whatever their society and culture teaches them... This is not the product of some deep-seated, evil heart that is cultivated. It comes from the environment, the air all around us.”[1] Stereotypes are commonly passed down and further developed through many years. If people do not have experience or interactions with a group, there is no way to dispute prejudiced or ignorant claims about that group. At the same time, there is a power dynamic at play. When children develop and become more self-aware, the differences between themselves and others become starker. Oneself does not to be the outlier, so it is easier to mark the other person or group as strange. A need for approval and control can cause people to shame others’ differences. Racism prospers through a lack of knowledge and the expansion of assumptions.
In South Africa, the legacy of racial segregation has been maintained since the 17th century. The Mineral Revolution first caused a need for labor and the creation of a strict racial hierarchy. Before the fall of Apartheid, racism was institutionalized and fully integrated into legislation; however, now that leadership has shifted, racism is social. One of the most damaging practices of racism in South Africa was the formation and power of the Apartheid government. Apartheid, or “separateness” in Afrikaans, was first introduced in 1948 by the Afrikaner-led National Party government. Especially damaging aspects of Apartheid include no vote for black people in national election, races segregated in all aspects of life, pass laws, skilled jobs reserved for white people, and violent police raids. Despite a black majority within the county, oppression of black Africans within the county was maintained by strong governmental control by whites. Additionally, whites who did not approve of the system did not have as much on the line as the oppressed, so white liberals often were not willing to take extreme measures to alter the injustices within Apartheid. As Rooha Variava states in his thesis, “Deployment of Racism in South Africa”, “the liberal view [asserted] that racist practices have handicapped the economic growth of South Africa.”[2] The lack of power and unity between blacks was a major hinderance to justice and progress for black rights. Even though numerous protests took place, governmental backlash could result in extreme violence, specifically shown in the 1960 Sharpeville Massacre. Overwhelming political power ultimately allowed whites to maintain racist policies and oppress blacks for many years. This major element of South African history can also be seen within the United States.
When considering racism in the United States, one obvious characteristic is the institution and growth of slavery. At the time, the economic motivation for cotton growth and sale was one main factor of slavery that outweighed empathy or compassion. Even after the system of slavery was eventually broken down after the Civil War, strong race biases remained. Segregation kept races separated in everyday life, which allowed prejudice to flourish. Anger and resentment led to the Civil Rights movement and important events such as the Montgomery Bus Boycott, Brown vs. the Board of Education, which overturned Plessy vs. Ferguson and enforced “separate but equal”, integration of schools, and black power movements. Because these events took places in the mid 1900s, many Americans consider racism to be a problem of the past. However, a more insidious form of racism has developed within the U.S. in the form of subconscious bias. This progression and underlying fear of blacks led to the birth of an increasingly destructive system in American history: Mass incarceration.
Mass incarceration sprouted from the republican view that an excessive lenience existed towards lawlessness and criminal activity. Many argued that the structure of the system was not mistaken, but it was the people within it that need to be controlled. Outright racism could be easily disputed, so labeling blacks as “thugs” or “welfare queens” was more common; these subtle replacements still indicated race but were not viewed definitively as racism. On the other hand, democrats argued that social reforms would fix criminal behavior, such as the War on Poverty and civil rights legislation; however, debates over how to handle poverty created a wedge between races. As Michelle Alexander puts it in “The New Jim Crow”, “competing images of the poor as ‘deserving’ and ‘undeserving’” sparked rigorous debates.[3] As these debates took place, the rate of incarcerated African Americans continued to grow. Statistics from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People proclaim, “African Americans are incarcerated at more than 5 times the rate of whites”, but the percentage at which whites and blacks commit crimes remains similar. [4] Even though slavery and segregation displayed observable racism at that time, an elusive alternative with progressively detrimental effects remain.
The racial histories of South Africa and the United States are much more similar than they may seem at first glance. One major difference between the two countries is that the majority of the population consists of blacks in South Africa, but they are the minority in the US. Additionally, the white South African government was more explicitly racist than the government in the United States. More obvious racist legislation can be identified in South African history. In US legislation, there was not always a clear mention of blacks, but it was more often a vague statement giving whites the control. Despite these differences, the core development of racism within the two countries was very similar. Within both countries, the idea of segregation was encouraged both socially and politically at certain points. The oppression led to violence, rebellions, and protests in both the U.S. and South Africa. Often, activist groups and organizations with similar goals could not unite due to a few key differences in philosophies. The progression of racism in both countries followed a similar path: A racially-based structure was cultivated due to economic motivations and influences. Racism was justified by whites, as they saw it was for the benefit of the country. Monetary incentives led racism to be incorporated into legislation and governmental decisions. Segregation within schools, social groups, bathrooms, and water fountains can be observed in the histories of both countries. As racist policies increased, there was also a fear of black backlash and rebellions. Eventually, outright racism became politically unacceptable majorly due to the influences of increasingly liberal opponents to the oppressive system.
Racism still remains within South Africa and the United States, but it is a more indirect form of bigotry. The lack of a well-defined racist structure and the continuance of many racially separated communities allows discrimination to remain. Racial discrimination, at its core, is very comparable within the histories of many different countries. Getting lost in the intricacies of each country’s situation can led to the negligence of the fact that prejudice is simply caused by the lack of interaction with different groups and the influences of the racist attitudes of others.
[1] Wan, William, and Sarah Kaplan. “Why Are People Still Racist? What Science Says about America's Race Problem.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 14 Aug. 2017, www.washingtonpost.com.
[2] Variava, Rooha. “Deployment of Racism in South Africa.” South African History Online, 1 Sept. 2016, www.sahistory.org.za/archive/deployment-racism-south-africa-rooha-variava.
[3] Alexander, Michelle. The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness. New Press, 2012.
[4] “Criminal Justice Fact Sheet.” NAACP, www.naacp.org/criminal-justice-fact-sheet/.
February 27, 2019
Racism comes from a lack of human interaction and connection with other groups. In most cases, racism involves taking one behavior or characteristic and setting it as the standard for an entire race. Racism also involves the factor of legacies; humans are not born racist, but their upbringing or experiences can be the cause of prejudices to develop. Jennifer Richeson, a Yale University social psychologist, states, “People learn to be whatever their society and culture teaches them... This is not the product of some deep-seated, evil heart that is cultivated. It comes from the environment, the air all around us.”[1] Stereotypes are commonly passed down and further developed through many years. If people do not have experience or interactions with a group, there is no way to dispute prejudiced or ignorant claims about that group. At the same time, there is a power dynamic at play. When children develop and become more self-aware, the differences between themselves and others become starker. Oneself does not to be the outlier, so it is easier to mark the other person or group as strange. A need for approval and control can cause people to shame others’ differences. Racism prospers through a lack of knowledge and the expansion of assumptions.
In South Africa, the legacy of racial segregation has been maintained since the 17th century. The Mineral Revolution first caused a need for labor and the creation of a strict racial hierarchy. Before the fall of Apartheid, racism was institutionalized and fully integrated into legislation; however, now that leadership has shifted, racism is social. One of the most damaging practices of racism in South Africa was the formation and power of the Apartheid government. Apartheid, or “separateness” in Afrikaans, was first introduced in 1948 by the Afrikaner-led National Party government. Especially damaging aspects of Apartheid include no vote for black people in national election, races segregated in all aspects of life, pass laws, skilled jobs reserved for white people, and violent police raids. Despite a black majority within the county, oppression of black Africans within the county was maintained by strong governmental control by whites. Additionally, whites who did not approve of the system did not have as much on the line as the oppressed, so white liberals often were not willing to take extreme measures to alter the injustices within Apartheid. As Rooha Variava states in his thesis, “Deployment of Racism in South Africa”, “the liberal view [asserted] that racist practices have handicapped the economic growth of South Africa.”[2] The lack of power and unity between blacks was a major hinderance to justice and progress for black rights. Even though numerous protests took place, governmental backlash could result in extreme violence, specifically shown in the 1960 Sharpeville Massacre. Overwhelming political power ultimately allowed whites to maintain racist policies and oppress blacks for many years. This major element of South African history can also be seen within the United States.
When considering racism in the United States, one obvious characteristic is the institution and growth of slavery. At the time, the economic motivation for cotton growth and sale was one main factor of slavery that outweighed empathy or compassion. Even after the system of slavery was eventually broken down after the Civil War, strong race biases remained. Segregation kept races separated in everyday life, which allowed prejudice to flourish. Anger and resentment led to the Civil Rights movement and important events such as the Montgomery Bus Boycott, Brown vs. the Board of Education, which overturned Plessy vs. Ferguson and enforced “separate but equal”, integration of schools, and black power movements. Because these events took places in the mid 1900s, many Americans consider racism to be a problem of the past. However, a more insidious form of racism has developed within the U.S. in the form of subconscious bias. This progression and underlying fear of blacks led to the birth of an increasingly destructive system in American history: Mass incarceration.
Mass incarceration sprouted from the republican view that an excessive lenience existed towards lawlessness and criminal activity. Many argued that the structure of the system was not mistaken, but it was the people within it that need to be controlled. Outright racism could be easily disputed, so labeling blacks as “thugs” or “welfare queens” was more common; these subtle replacements still indicated race but were not viewed definitively as racism. On the other hand, democrats argued that social reforms would fix criminal behavior, such as the War on Poverty and civil rights legislation; however, debates over how to handle poverty created a wedge between races. As Michelle Alexander puts it in “The New Jim Crow”, “competing images of the poor as ‘deserving’ and ‘undeserving’” sparked rigorous debates.[3] As these debates took place, the rate of incarcerated African Americans continued to grow. Statistics from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People proclaim, “African Americans are incarcerated at more than 5 times the rate of whites”, but the percentage at which whites and blacks commit crimes remains similar. [4] Even though slavery and segregation displayed observable racism at that time, an elusive alternative with progressively detrimental effects remain.
The racial histories of South Africa and the United States are much more similar than they may seem at first glance. One major difference between the two countries is that the majority of the population consists of blacks in South Africa, but they are the minority in the US. Additionally, the white South African government was more explicitly racist than the government in the United States. More obvious racist legislation can be identified in South African history. In US legislation, there was not always a clear mention of blacks, but it was more often a vague statement giving whites the control. Despite these differences, the core development of racism within the two countries was very similar. Within both countries, the idea of segregation was encouraged both socially and politically at certain points. The oppression led to violence, rebellions, and protests in both the U.S. and South Africa. Often, activist groups and organizations with similar goals could not unite due to a few key differences in philosophies. The progression of racism in both countries followed a similar path: A racially-based structure was cultivated due to economic motivations and influences. Racism was justified by whites, as they saw it was for the benefit of the country. Monetary incentives led racism to be incorporated into legislation and governmental decisions. Segregation within schools, social groups, bathrooms, and water fountains can be observed in the histories of both countries. As racist policies increased, there was also a fear of black backlash and rebellions. Eventually, outright racism became politically unacceptable majorly due to the influences of increasingly liberal opponents to the oppressive system.
Racism still remains within South Africa and the United States, but it is a more indirect form of bigotry. The lack of a well-defined racist structure and the continuance of many racially separated communities allows discrimination to remain. Racial discrimination, at its core, is very comparable within the histories of many different countries. Getting lost in the intricacies of each country’s situation can led to the negligence of the fact that prejudice is simply caused by the lack of interaction with different groups and the influences of the racist attitudes of others.
[1] Wan, William, and Sarah Kaplan. “Why Are People Still Racist? What Science Says about America's Race Problem.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 14 Aug. 2017, www.washingtonpost.com.
[2] Variava, Rooha. “Deployment of Racism in South Africa.” South African History Online, 1 Sept. 2016, www.sahistory.org.za/archive/deployment-racism-south-africa-rooha-variava.
[3] Alexander, Michelle. The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness. New Press, 2012.
[4] “Criminal Justice Fact Sheet.” NAACP, www.naacp.org/criminal-justice-fact-sheet/.
Works Cited
Alexander, Michelle. The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness. New Press, 2012.
“Criminal Justice Fact Sheet.” NAACP, www.naacp.org/criminal-justice-fact-sheet/.
Variava, Rooha. “Deployment of Racism in South Africa.” South African History Online, 1 Sept. 2016, www.sahistory.org.za/archive/deployment-racism-south-africa-rooha-variava.
Wan, William, and Sarah Kaplan. “Why Are People Still Racist? What Science Says about America's Race Problem.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 14 Aug. 2017, www.washingtonpost.com.
“Criminal Justice Fact Sheet.” NAACP, www.naacp.org/criminal-justice-fact-sheet/.
Variava, Rooha. “Deployment of Racism in South Africa.” South African History Online, 1 Sept. 2016, www.sahistory.org.za/archive/deployment-racism-south-africa-rooha-variava.
Wan, William, and Sarah Kaplan. “Why Are People Still Racist? What Science Says about America's Race Problem.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 14 Aug. 2017, www.washingtonpost.com.