Definition Of Racism
| Subject: | 🧑🤝🧑 Sociology |
| Type: | Definition Essay |
| Pages: | 4 |
| Word count: | 1020 |
| Topics: | 👎🏿 Racism, 🦸🏿♂️ Racial Inequality |
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Table of Contents
Introduction
In these times, some numerous issues in the society are related to racism. Racism can be defined as the adverse conditioning of opinion or action on the basis of a particular race. At that point the term “racist” is applied to refer to someone or something that clearly matches the concept of racism. Racial discrimination is not anything that evolves organically. The mindset of people is influenced by the culture in which they are raised. For instance, if a child is brought up in an atmosphere in which racism is socially tolerated, then the child will equally develop a preconceived notion that her prejudiced values are correct. They may consider their view of race to be fair, but it is likely that they have never been confronted with anything beyond their surroundings.
How to define racism and who is a racist
This develops controversies when we reflect on who and what is racist. The hesitation with defining someone or something as racist is that it becomes a question of attitude. Biased individuals do not identify as such, and individuals who have never been racist believe that they are aware of what racism is. Therefore, thinking about what causes someone racist precludes discussion and decides who is wrong. There are two primary considerations when identifying whether someone is racist. Number one is that the person clings to a prejudiced view of people of a particular race. The second is that the individual acts on that preconception and conveys it in a discriminatory, hurtful or offensive manner to humans of a certain race. However, this is not the sole form that racism can assume. Humans can also turn to art forms to exemplify racist ideologies. An element to consider when evaluating whether someone or something is a racist is the context and the manner in which something is manifested.
President Donald Trump as the embodiment of racism
In addition, certain individuals can express their racist views in a straightforward and unabashed manner. A vivid representative of such a person is the former President of the United States Donald Trump. Trump has made it extremely obvious that he is intolerant of certain races of people through the media, speeches and actions. Apparently, he has been known as a racist during his entire political journey. If one ponders over Trump’s speeches, it is not challenging to determine that he indeed fits the characteristics of a person who is a racist. For instance, we can notice that in the course of the 2016 presidential election campaign, Trump called all Mexican immigrants “criminals” and “rapists”. However, we realize that all Mexican immigrants are not “criminals” or “rapists”.
This is proof that Trump aims to voice his own prejudice against Mexicans and spread it by referring to Mexican immigrants in this way. Trump’s claim can be added to define what causes someone a racist. Another personal quote from Trump goes like this: “…40,000 Nigerians, once seeing the United States, would never ‘go back to their huts’ in Africa”. In this situation, Trump is stereotyping the Nigerian people by suggesting that they live in worse conditions than people in the United States. This opinion also does not coincide with reality, making it its own prejudice. This highlights the first crucial factor. Additionally, Trump employs his influence to stereotypically portray the Nigerian people and their homeland in a literal sense. This encompasses the second factor. Moreover, racism is evolving because of people like this politician. After all, Trump is a prime example of what exactly executes someone or something racist. While Trump has been able to articulate his ideas in speeches, a statue situated in San Francisco titled “Early Days” defines the term “racist” in an indirect way.
Statue “Early Days” as racism in works of art
When presenting the issue of whether something is racist, the consideration should be the context and the way it is presented. For instance, in San Francisco, the statue of “Early Days”, which had been there since the 19th century, was recently demolished. The statue was removed because it was perceived to be racist towards Native Americans. It represented a Native American lying on his back at the feet of a Spanish cowboy and a Catholic missionary. The arrangement of people on the statue can manifest a kind of power relationship between each figure. In this instance, the Indian is situated by the feet of the Spanish cowboy and the Catholic missionary, suggesting the Indian’s obedience to the cowboy and the missionary. The statue portrays a certain racist factor as it implies Native Americans as humiliated. As a result, modern Native Americans actively opposed the statue in order to dismantle it. After a long time, the statue was finally demolished. Ultimately, it should be noted that many elements of the way of expressing information can conceal potentially racist ideals, so it is essential to examine every detail of the expression or object and analyze each element separately. The statue of Native Americans was proven in this case to be a proper interpretation of the term “racist” because it intolerantly displayed a race and conveyed a message.
Conclusion
In summary, we have identified two leading elements that identify the term “racist” and that both President Donald Trump and the “Early Days” statue possess. They are both the embodiment of prejudiced intolerant thinking, and both adversely portray a race on the basis of that preconceived notion. In the situation with Donald Trump, it was explicitly stated and clearly racist towards a particular racial group. In the same way, in the context of the “Early Days” statue in San Francisco, the manner in which the statue was positioned established a connotation that presented the Native American people as demeaned. As such, it is essential to be mindful of the context and nuances that may convey a particular message. At the last moment, it is crucial to bear in mind that an individual who has been raised in a racist culture will harbor racist values. The only possible method for a person to recognize that they are racist is to discover the definition and measure themselves against it.
Offered for reference purposes only.