Racial Discrimination Issue in American Society

Introduction

Discrimination is a biased or incorrect attitude towards a person based on characteristics that are not directly related to his physical, mental, or other abilities necessary for a particular situation. Racial discrimination has existed in the United States for centuries. Blacks survived slavery and terror, and their situation improved significantly only a few years ago. However, even today, it cannot be said that discrimination in American society has been eliminated.

Main body

The history of America has a long history of discrimination. Over ten million local residents were forced to leave the African communities in the previous centuries. Further, as slaves, they were delivered to the United States, Latin America, and Europe (Moya 52). During the way, many slaves died, and their specific number is still unknown. In 1862, United States president Abraham Lincoln issued the Declaration of Emancipation, which stated that blacks living in confederate lands were freed from slavery (Fisher 109). This decision changed the nature of the Civil War, making it the main goal of the complete abolition of slavery in America.

In 1877, the US Supreme Court banned states from repealing segregation on public transport. Further, it changed the Civil Rights Act of 1875, which guaranteed equal rights for blacks when traveling on buses and trains. In 1890, the Supreme Court upheld racial segregation on public transport in Mississippi (Douglass 357). Through these and other mandates, the racists have restored their former power over blacks. Formally, they did not own them but in every possible way limited their freedom and infringed on their rights. Various actions helped racists remove black representatives from Congress and the legislature.

Nowadays, dark-skinned people in the United States formally have the same rights as whites. The right of African Americans to vote in elections and to nominate themselves is respected. The triumph of this right is the election in 2008 of US President Barack Obama, the first black in this post. However, people with dark skin color are still faced with infringement of their rights, which ultimately leads to protests and riots over and over again.

It is impossible to talk about the complete eradication of racism in the country. Civil rights projectors could note that racial segregation in society has returned to similar levels of the 1960s. The tension was always worsened due to the unofficial rules of etiquette based on nationality and skin color in the United States and any actions of nonconformity from which were thought of as a confrontation of common behavior. Sometimes modern racism in the United States appears in an open forum, but more often, it is more subtle or embedded in the system.

Discrimination can both relate to people with lower social wealth, as the attitude towards them in society changes due to their appearance or social status and lead to poverty due to unequal conditions of employment. The principles of separate catering, workplaces, healthcare, leisure, bathrooms, and education, as well as the prevention of marriage between different races, were in place in an official manner in the society.

Not only the social norms, etiquette, and laws were issues for the blacks in the US. Blacks also suffered from constant unemployment and unequal chances to be hired. Moreover, a system of different salaries depending on nationalities was applied. Norms were supported by the active members of radical groups, such as the Ku Klux Klan. In addition, all the policies were strictly backed up by law (Eckstrand 41). Discrimination can occur on any grounds, and it is the ethical and moral responsibility of every citizen to participate in its elimination throughout his life so that the events of past years do not repeat themselves and new types of discrimination do not appear in society.

Discrimination existed in the past and continues to exist today in only a slightly modified form. The racial issue in the United States has escalated after the murder in May 2021 of a black resident of Minneapolis, George Floyd. Police officer Derek Chauvin pressed his neck with his knee to the ground (Dreyer et al. 1). Floyd complained that he could not breathe and died shortly thereafter in the hospital from his injuries. Medical examination confirmed that he died as a result of cardiopulmonary shock. Derek Chauvin was released from prison on bail, which again demonstrates the different attitudes of the judicial system towards people who occupy different positions in society and have different skin colors. Floyd’s death sparked protests and riots in the United States that lasted several months.

In the course of the events with George Floyd, the Black Lives Matter movement, which opposes racism and police brutality, gained worldwide popularity. This movement demonstrates that the problem of discrimination must be tackled not only by those who are directly involved in these events but also by each individual personally. Each person can influence the outcome of events by becoming an active participant in actions with zero tolerance for any discrimination in society.

In the United States, protests against racial discrimination continue. Many brands and celebrities expressed their support for the Black Lives Matter movement and denounced those who did not follow their example. A wave of protests swept all strata of American society, where they condemned discrimination against African Americans and the policy of double standards of the US administration, as well as other negative phenomena in the country.

Racism in the United States of America has always been and remains one of the main problems, which is quite acute even after the election of an African American to the presidency. Slavery in North America was legalized in 1661, but by the end of 1861, the number of black slaves in the United States had reached approximately 4 million (Moya 25). Although the apartheid system for African Americans was gradually phased out, the racial problem has never been resolved in the United States.

Discrimination in American society, and in principle in society around the world, is not only due to skin color. There are many different types of discrimination, including those by religion, age, gender, and many other variations. Fighting discrimination in society is possible only through complex actions on the part of the state and citizens. There should be a policy of zero tolerance for such actions since, in the absence of attention to minimal discriminatory actions, they can lead to much larger consequences.

Conclusion

In conclusion, there is no justification for discrimination in any of its forms. Discrimination is a historical problem in American society, which over time has remained only in a simplified form, but still has not been completely eliminated. The state, for its part, can issue restrictive policies and participate in public awareness of the problems. Complete elimination of discrimination is possible only with comprehensive measures and an understanding of the responsibility of each individual person to participate in the supportive actions.

Works Cited

Douglass, Frederick. “This Decision Has Hum bled the Nation.” The Speeches of Frederick Douglass. Yale University Press, 2018, pp. 356-373, Web.

Dreyer, Benard P., et al. “The death of George Floyd: Bending the Arc of History Toward Justice for Generations of children.” Pediatrics, vol. 146, no. 3, 2020, pp. 1-4, Web.

Eckstrand, Nathan. “The Ugliness of Trolls: Comparing the Strategies/Methods of The Alt-right and The Ku Klux Klan.” Cosmopolitan Civil Societies: An Interdisciplinary Journal, vol. 10, no. 3, 2018, pp. 41-62, Web.

Fisher, Elijah Q. “Abraham Lincoln and the Marathon of Emancipation.” Tenor of Our Times, vol. 10, no. 1, 2021, pp. 109-124, Web.

Moya, Jose. “Migration and The Historical Formation of Latin America in a Global Perspective.” Sociologias, vol 20, 2018, pp. 24-68, Web.