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A pandemic that disproportionately affected communities of color, roadblocks that obstructed efforts to expand the franchise and protect voting discrimination, a growing movement to push anti-racist curricula out of schools – events over the past year have only underscored how prevalent systemic racism and bias is in America today.

What can be done to dismantle centuries of discrimination in the U.S.? How can a more equitable society be achieved? What makes racism such a complicated problem to solve? Black History Month is a time marked for honoring and reflecting on the experience of Black Americans, and it is also an opportunity to reexamine our nation’s deeply embedded racial problems and the possible solutions that could help build a more equitable society.

Stanford scholars are tackling these issues head-on in their research from the perspectives of history, education, law and other disciplines. For example, historian Clayborne Carson is working to preserve and promote the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. and religious studies scholar Lerone A. Martin has joined Stanford to continue expanding access and opportunities to learn from King’s teachings; sociologist Matthew Clair is examining how the criminal justice system can end a vicious cycle involving the disparate treatment of Black men; and education scholar Subini Ancy Annamma is studying ways to make education more equitable for historically marginalized students.

Learn more about these efforts and other projects examining racism and discrimination in areas like health and medicine, technology and the workplace below.

Update: Jan. 27, 2023: This story was originally published on Feb. 16, 2021, and has been updated on a number of occasions to include new content.

Understanding the impact of racism; advancing justice

One of the hardest elements of advancing racial justice is helping everyone understand the ways in which they are involved in a system or structure that perpetuates racism, according to Stanford legal scholar Ralph Richard Banks.

“The starting point for the center is the recognition that racial inequality and division have long been the fault line of American society. Thus, addressing racial inequity is essential to sustaining our nation, and furthering its democratic aspirations,” said Banks , the Jackson Eli Reynolds Professor of Law at Stanford Law School and co-founder of the Stanford Center for Racial Justice .

This sentiment was echoed by Stanford researcher Rebecca Hetey . One of the obstacles in solving inequality is people’s attitudes towards it, Hetey said. “One of the barriers of reducing inequality is how some people justify and rationalize it.”

How people talk about race and stereotypes matters. Here is some of that scholarship.

For Black Americans, COVID-19 is quickly reversing crucial economic gains

Research co-authored by SIEPR’s Peter Klenow and Chad Jones measures the welfare gap between Black and white Americans and provides a way to analyze policies to narrow the divide.

How an ‘impact mindset’ unites activists of different races

A new study finds that people’s involvement with Black Lives Matter stems from an impulse that goes beyond identity.

For democracy to work, racial inequalities must be addressed

The Stanford Center for Racial Justice is taking a hard look at the policies perpetuating systemic racism in America today and asking how we can imagine a more equitable society.

The psychological toll of George Floyd’s murder

As the nation mourned the death of George Floyd, more Black Americans than white Americans felt angry or sad – a finding that reveals the racial disparities of grief.

Seven factors contributing to American racism

Of the seven factors the researchers identified, perhaps the most insidious is passivism or passive racism, which includes an apathy toward systems of racial advantage or denial that those systems even exist.

Scholars reflect on Black history

Humanities and social sciences scholars reflect on “Black history as American history” and its impact on their personal and professional lives.

The history of Black History Month

It's February, so many teachers and schools are taking time to celebrate Black History Month. According to Stanford historian Michael Hines, there are still misunderstandings and misconceptions about the past, present, and future of the celebration.

Numbers about inequality don’t speak for themselves

In a new research paper, Stanford scholars Rebecca Hetey and Jennifer Eberhardt propose new ways to talk about racial disparities that exist across society, from education to health care and criminal justice systems.

Changing how people perceive problems

Drawing on an extensive body of research, Stanford psychologist Gregory Walton lays out a roadmap to positively influence the way people think about themselves and the world around them. These changes could improve society, too.

Welfare opposition linked to threats of racial standing

Research co-authored by sociologist Robb Willer finds that when white Americans perceive threats to their status as the dominant demographic group, their resentment of minorities increases. This resentment leads to opposing welfare programs they believe will mainly benefit minority groups.

Conversations about race between Black and white friends can feel risky, but are valuable

New research about how friends approach talking about their race-related experiences with each other reveals concerns but also the potential that these conversations have to strengthen relationships and further intergroup learning.

Defusing racial bias

Research shows why understanding the source of discrimination matters.

Many white parents aren’t having ‘the talk’ about race with their kids

After George Floyd’s murder, Black parents talked about race and racism with their kids more. White parents did not and were more likely to give their kids colorblind messages.

Stereotyping makes people more likely to act badly

Even slight cues, like reading a negative stereotype about your race or gender, can have an impact.

Why white people downplay their individual racial privileges

Research shows that white Americans, when faced with evidence of racial privilege, deny that they have benefited personally.

Clayborne Carson: Looking back at a legacy

Stanford historian Clayborne Carson reflects on a career dedicated to studying and preserving the legacy of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.

How race influences, amplifies backlash against outspoken women

When women break gender norms, the most negative reactions may come from people of the same race.

Examining disparities in education

Scholar Subini Ancy Annamma is studying ways to make education more equitable for historically marginalized students. Annamma’s research examines how schools contribute to the criminalization of Black youths by creating a culture of punishment that penalizes Black children more harshly than their white peers for the same behavior. Her work shows that youth of color are more likely to be closely watched, over-represented in special education, and reported to and arrested by police.

“These are all ways in which schools criminalize Black youth,” she said. “Day after day, these things start to sediment.”

That’s why Annamma has identified opportunities for teachers and administrators to intervene in these unfair practices. Below is some of that research, from Annamma and others.

New ‘Segregation Index’ shows American schools remain highly segregated by race, ethnicity, and economic status

Researchers at Stanford and USC developed a new tool to track neighborhood and school segregation in the U.S.

New evidence shows that school poverty shapes racial achievement gaps

Racial segregation leads to growing achievement gaps – but it does so entirely through differences in school poverty, according to new research from education Professor Sean Reardon, who is launching a new tool to help educators, parents and policymakers examine education trends by race and poverty level nationwide.

School closures intensify gentrification in Black neighborhoods nationwide

An analysis of census and school closure data finds that shuttering schools increases gentrification – but only in predominantly Black communities.

Ninth-grade ethnic studies helped students for years, Stanford researchers find

A new study shows that students assigned to an ethnic studies course had longer-term improvements in attendance and graduation rates.

Teaching about racism

Stanford sociologist Matthew Snipp discusses ways to educate students about race and ethnic relations in America.

Stanford scholar uncovers an early activist’s fight to get Black history into schools

In a new book, Assistant Professor Michael Hines chronicles the efforts of a Chicago schoolteacher in the 1930s who wanted to remedy the portrayal of Black history in textbooks of the time.

How disability intersects with race

Professor Alfredo J. Artiles discusses the complexities in creating inclusive policies for students with disabilities.

Access to program for black male students lowered dropout rates

New research led by Stanford education professor Thomas S. Dee provides the first evidence of effectiveness for a district-wide initiative targeted at black male high school students.

How school systems make criminals of Black youth

Stanford education professor Subini Ancy Annamma talks about the role schools play in creating a culture of punishment against Black students.

Reducing racial disparities in school discipline

Stanford psychologists find that brief exercises early in middle school can improve students’ relationships with their teachers, increase their sense of belonging and reduce teachers’ reports of discipline issues among black and Latino boys.

Science lessons through a different lens

In his new book, Science in the City, Stanford education professor Bryan A. Brown helps bridge the gap between students’ culture and the science classroom.

Teachers more likely to label black students as troublemakers, Stanford research shows

Stanford psychologists Jennifer Eberhardt and Jason Okonofua experimentally examined the psychological processes involved when teachers discipline black students more harshly than white students.

Why we need Black teachers

Travis Bristol, MA '04, talks about what it takes for schools to hire and retain teachers of color.

Understanding racism in the criminal justice system

Research has shown that time and time again, inequality is embedded into all facets of the criminal justice system. From being arrested to being charged, convicted and sentenced, people of color – particularly Black men – are disproportionately targeted by the police.

“So many reforms are needed: police accountability, judicial intervention, reducing prosecutorial power and increasing resources for public defenders are places we can start,” said sociologist Matthew Clair . “But beyond piecemeal reforms, we need to continue having critical conversations about transformation and the role of the courts in bringing about the abolition of police and prisons.”

Clair is one of several Stanford scholars who have examined the intersection of race and the criminal process and offered solutions to end the vicious cycle of racism. Here is some of that work.

Police Facebook posts disproportionately highlight crimes involving Black suspects, study finds

Researchers examined crime-related posts from 14,000 Facebook pages maintained by U.S. law enforcement agencies and found that Facebook users are exposed to posts that overrepresent Black suspects by 25% relative to local arrest rates.

Supporting students involved in the justice system

New data show that a one-page letter asking a teacher to support a youth as they navigate the difficult transition from juvenile detention back to school can reduce the likelihood that the student re-offends.

Race and mass criminalization in the U.S.

Stanford sociologist discusses how race and class inequalities are embedded in the American criminal legal system.

New Stanford research lab explores incarcerated students’ educational paths

Associate Professor Subini Annamma examines the policies and practices that push marginalized students out of school and into prisons.

Derek Chauvin verdict important, but much remains to be done

Stanford scholars Hakeem Jefferson, Robert Weisberg and Matthew Clair weigh in on the Derek Chauvin verdict, emphasizing that while the outcome is important, much work remains to be done to bring about long-lasting justice.

A ‘veil of darkness’ reduces racial bias in traffic stops

After analyzing 95 million traffic stop records, filed by officers with 21 state patrol agencies and 35 municipal police forces from 2011 to 2018, researchers concluded that “police stops and search decisions suffer from persistent racial bias.”

Stanford big data study finds racial disparities in Oakland, Calif., police behavior, offers solutions

Analyzing thousands of data points, the researchers found racial disparities in how Oakland officers treated African Americans on routine traffic and pedestrian stops. They suggest 50 measures to improve police-community relations.

Race and the death penalty

As questions about racial bias in the criminal justice system dominate the headlines, research by Stanford law Professor John J. Donohue III offers insight into one of the most fraught areas: the death penalty.

Diagnosing disparities in health, medicine

The COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately impacted communities of color and has highlighted the health disparities between Black Americans, whites and other demographic groups.

As Iris Gibbs , professor of radiation oncology and associate dean of MD program admissions, pointed out at an event sponsored by Stanford Medicine: “We need more sustained attention and real action towards eliminating health inequities, educating our entire community and going beyond ‘allyship,’ because that one fizzles out. We really do need people who are truly there all the way.”

Below is some of that research as well as solutions that can address some of the disparities in the American healthcare system.

Stanford researchers testing ways to improve clinical trial diversity

The American Heart Association has provided funding to two Stanford Medicine professors to develop ways to diversify enrollment in heart disease clinical trials.

Striking inequalities in maternal and infant health

Research by SIEPR’s Petra Persson and Maya Rossin-Slater finds wealthy Black mothers and infants in the U.S. fare worse than the poorest white mothers and infants.

More racial diversity among physicians would lead to better health among black men

A clinical trial in Oakland by Stanford researchers found that black men are more likely to seek out preventive care after being seen by black doctors compared to non-black doctors.

A better measuring stick: Algorithmic approach to pain diagnosis could eliminate racial bias

Traditional approaches to pain management don’t treat all patients the same. AI could level the playing field.

5 questions: Alice Popejoy on race, ethnicity and ancestry in science

Alice Popejoy, a postdoctoral scholar who studies biomedical data sciences, speaks to the role – and pitfalls – of race, ethnicity and ancestry in research.

Stanford Medicine community calls for action against racial injustice, inequities

The event at Stanford provided a venue for health care workers and students to express their feelings about violence against African Americans and to voice their demands for change.

Racial disparity remains in heart-transplant mortality rates, Stanford study finds

African-American heart transplant patients have had persistently higher mortality rates than white patients, but exactly why still remains a mystery.

Finding the COVID-19 Victims that Big Data Misses

Widely used virus tracking data undercounts older people and people of color. Scholars propose a solution to this demographic bias.

Studying how racial stressors affect mental health

Farzana Saleem, an assistant professor at Stanford Graduate School of Education, is interested in the way Black youth and other young people of color navigate adolescence—and the racial stressors that can make the journey harder.

Infants’ race influences quality of hospital care in California

Disparities exist in how babies of different racial and ethnic origins are treated in California’s neonatal intensive care units, but this could be changed, say Stanford researchers.

Immigrants don’t move state-to-state in search of health benefits

When states expand public health insurance to include low-income, legal immigrants, it does not lead to out-of-state immigrants moving in search of benefits.

Excess mortality rates early in pandemic highest among Blacks

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has been starkly uneven across race, ethnicity and geography, according to a new study led by SHP's Maria Polyakova.

Decoding bias in media, technology

Driving Artificial Intelligence are machine learning algorithms, sets of rules that tell a computer how to solve a problem, perform a task and in some cases, predict an outcome. These predictive models are based on massive datasets to recognize certain patterns, which according to communication scholar Angele Christin , sometimes come flawed with human bias . 

“Technology changes things, but perhaps not always as much as we think,” Christin said. “Social context matters a lot in shaping the actual effects of the technological tools. […] So, it’s important to understand that connection between humans and machines.”

Below is some of that research, as well as other ways discrimination unfolds across technology, in the media, and ways to counteract it.

IRS disproportionately audits Black taxpayers

A Stanford collaboration with the Department of the Treasury yields the first direct evidence of differences in audit rates by race.

Automated speech recognition less accurate for blacks

The disparity likely occurs because such technologies are based on machine learning systems that rely heavily on databases of English as spoken by white Americans.

New algorithm trains AI to avoid bad behaviors

Robots, self-driving cars and other intelligent machines could become better-behaved thanks to a new way to help machine learning designers build AI applications with safeguards against specific, undesirable outcomes such as racial and gender bias.

Stanford scholar analyzes responses to algorithms in journalism, criminal justice

In a recent study, assistant professor of communication Angèle Christin finds a gap between intended and actual uses of algorithmic tools in journalism and criminal justice fields.

Move responsibly and think about things

In the course CS 181: Computers, Ethics and Public Policy , Stanford students become computer programmers, policymakers and philosophers to examine the ethical and social impacts of technological innovation.

Homicide victims from Black and Hispanic neighborhoods devalued

Social scientists found that homicide victims killed in Chicago’s predominantly Black and Hispanic neighborhoods received less news coverage than those killed in mostly white neighborhoods.

Algorithms reveal changes in stereotypes

New Stanford research shows that, over the past century, linguistic changes in gender and ethnic stereotypes correlated with major social movements and demographic changes in the U.S. Census data.

AI Index Diversity Report: An Unmoving Needle

Stanford HAI’s 2021 AI Index reveals stalled progress in diversifying AI and a scarcity of the data needed to fix it.

Identifying discrimination in the workplace and economy

From who moves forward in the hiring process to who receives funding from venture capitalists, research has revealed how Blacks and other minority groups are discriminated against in the workplace and economy-at-large. 

“There is not one silver bullet here that you can walk away with. Hiring and retention with respect to employee diversity are complex problems,” said Adina Sterling , associate professor of organizational behavior at the Graduate School of Business (GSB). 

Sterling has offered a few places where employers can expand employee diversity at their companies. For example, she suggests hiring managers track data about their recruitment methods and the pools that result from those efforts, as well as examining who they ultimately hire.

Here is some of that insight.

How To: Use a Scorecard to Evaluate People More Fairly

A written framework is an easy way to hold everyone to the same standard.

Archiving Black histories of Silicon Valley

A new collection at Stanford Libraries will highlight Black Americans who helped transform California’s Silicon Valley region into a hub for innovation, ideas.

Race influences professional investors’ judgments

In their evaluations of high-performing venture capital funds, professional investors rate white-led teams more favorably than they do black-led teams with identical credentials, a new Stanford study led by Jennifer L. Eberhardt finds.

Who moves forward in the hiring process?

People whose employment histories include part-time, temporary help agency or mismatched work can face challenges during the hiring process, according to new research by Stanford sociologist David Pedulla.

How emotions may result in hiring, workplace bias

Stanford study suggests that the emotions American employers are looking for in job candidates may not match up with emotions valued by jobseekers from some cultural backgrounds – potentially leading to hiring bias.

Do VCs really favor white male founders?

A field experiment used fake emails to measure gender and racial bias among startup investors.

Can you spot diversity? (Probably not)

New research shows a “spillover effect” that might be clouding your judgment.

Can job referrals improve employee diversity?

New research looks at how referrals impact promotions of minorities and women.

14 influential essays from Black writers on America's problems with race

• Business leaders are calling for people to reflect on civil rights this Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
• Black literary experts shared their top nonfiction essay and article picks on race. 
• The list includes "A Report from Occupied Territory" by James Baldwin.

For many, Martin Luther King Jr. Day is a time of reflection on the life of one of the nation's most prominent civil rights leaders. It's also an important time for people who support racial justice to educate themselves on the experiences of Black people in America. 

Business leaders like TIAA CEO Thasunda Duckett Brown and others are encouraging people to reflect on King's life's work, and one way to do that is to read his essays and the work of others dedicated to the same mission he had: racial equity. 

Insider asked Black literary and historical experts to share their favorite works of journalism on race by Black authors. Here are the top pieces they recommended everyone read to better understand the quest for Black liberation in America:

An earlier version of this article was published on June 14, 2020.

"Southern Horrors: Lynch Law in All Its Phases" and "The Red Record: Tabulated Statistics and Alleged Causes of Lynching in the United States" by Ida B. Wells

In 1892, investigative journalist, activist, and NAACP founding member Ida B. Wells began to publish her research on lynching in a pamphlet titled "Southern Horrors: Lynch Law in All Its Phases." Three years later, she followed up with more research and detail in "The Red Record." 

Shirley Moody-Turner, associate Professor of English and African American Studies at Penn State University recommended everyone read these two texts, saying they hold "many parallels to our own moment."  

"In these two pamphlets, Wells exposes the pervasive use of lynching and white mob violence against African American men and women. She discredits the myths used by white mobs to justify the killing of African Americans and exposes Northern and international audiences to the growing racial violence and terror perpetrated against Black people in the South in the years following the Civil War," Moody-Turner told Business Insider. 

Read  "Southern Horrors" here and "The Red Record" here >>

"On Juneteenth" by Annette Gordon-Reed

In this collection of essays, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Annette Gordon-Reed combines memoir and history to help readers understand the complexities out of which Juneteenth was born. She also argues how racial and ethnic hierarchies remain in society today, said Moody-Turner. 

"Gordon-Reed invites readers to see Juneteenth as a time to grapple with the complexities of race and enslavement in the US, to re-think our origin stories about race and slavery's central role in the formation of both Texas and the US, and to consider how, as Gordon-Reed so eloquently puts it, 'echoes of the past remain, leaving their traces in the people and events of the present and future.'"

Purchase "On Juneteenth" here>>

"The Case for Reparations" by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Ta-Nehisi Coates, best-selling author and national correspondent for The Atlantic, made waves when he published his 2014 article "The Case for Reparations," in which he called for "collective introspection" on reparations for Black Americans subjected to centuries of racism and violence. 

"In his now famed essay for The Atlantic, journalist, author, and essayist, Ta-Nehisi Coates traces how slavery, segregation, and discriminatory racial policies underpin ongoing and systemic economic and racial disparities," Moody-Turner said. 

"Coates provides deep historical context punctuated by individual and collective stories that compel us to reconsider the case for reparations," she added.  

Read it here>>

"The Idea of America" by Nikole Hannah-Jones and the "1619 Project" by The New York Times

In "The Idea of America," Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones traces America's history from 1619 onward, the year slavery began in the US. She explores how the history of slavery is inseparable from the rise of America's democracy in her essay that's part of The New York Times' larger "1619 Project," which is the outlet's ongoing project created in 2019 to re-examine the impact of slavery in the US. 

"In her unflinching look at the legacy of slavery and the underside of American democracy and capitalism, Hannah-Jones asks, 'what if America understood, finally, in this 400th year, that we [Black Americans] have never been the problem but the solution,'" said Moody-Turner, who recommended readers read the whole "1619 Project" as well. 

Read "The Idea of America" here and the rest of the "1619 Project here>>

"Many Thousands Gone" by James Baldwin

In "Many Thousands Gone," James Arthur Baldwin, American novelist, playwright, essayist, poet, and activist lays out how white America is not ready to fully recognize Black people as people. It's a must read, according to Jimmy Worthy II, assistant professor of English at The University of Massachusetts, Amherst.

"Baldwin's essay reminds us that in America, the very idea of Black persons conjures an amalgamation of specters, fears, threats, anxieties, guilts, and memories that must be extinguished as part of the labor to forget histories deemed too uncomfortable to remember," Worthy said.

"Letter from a Birmingham Jail" by Martin Luther King Jr.

On April 13 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. and other Civil Rights activists were arrested after peaceful protest in Birmingham, Alabama. In jail, King penned an open letter about how people have a moral obligation to break unjust laws rather than waiting patiently for legal change. In his essay, he expresses criticism and disappointment in white moderates and white churches, something that's not often focused on in history textbooks, Worthy said.

"King revises the perception of white racists devoted to a vehement status quo to include white moderates whose theories of inevitable racial equality and silence pertaining to racial injustice prolong discriminatory practices," Worthy said. 

"The Transformation of Silence into Language and Action" by Audre Lorde

Audre Lorde, African American writer, feminist, womanist, librarian, and civil rights activist asks readers to not be silent on important issues. This short, rousing read is crucial for everyone according to Thomonique Moore, a 2016 graduate of Howard University, founder of Books&Shit book club, and an incoming Masters' candidate at Columbia University's Teacher's College. 

"In this essay, Lorde explains to readers the importance of overcoming our fears and speaking out about the injustices that are plaguing us and the people around us. She challenges us to not live our lives in silence, or we risk never changing the things around us," Moore said.  Read it here>>

"The First White President" by Ta-Nehisi Coates

This essay from the award-winning journalist's book " We Were Eight Years in Power ," details how Trump, during his presidency, employed the notion of whiteness and white supremacy to pick apart the legacy of the nation's first Black president, Barack Obama.

Moore said it was crucial reading to understand the current political environment we're in. 

"Just Walk on By" by Brent Staples

In this essay, Brent Staples, author and Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial writer for The New York Times, hones in on the experience of racism against Black people in public spaces, especially on the role of white women in contributing to the view that Black men are threatening figures.  

For Crystal M. Fleming, associate professor of sociology and Africana Studies at SUNY Stony Brook, his essay is especially relevant right now. 

"We see the relevance of his critique in the recent incident in New York City, wherein a white woman named Amy Cooper infamously called the police and lied, claiming that a Black man — Christian Cooper — threatened her life in Central Park. Although the experience that Staples describes took place decades ago, the social dynamics have largely remained the same," Fleming told Insider. 

"I Was Pregnant and in Crisis. All the Doctors and Nurses Saw Was an Incompetent Black Woman" by Tressie McMillan Cottom

Tressie McMillan Cottom is an author, associate professor of sociology at Virginia Commonwealth University and a faculty affiliate at Harvard University's Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society. In this essay, Cottom shares her gut-wrenching experience of racism within the healthcare system. 

Fleming called this piece an "excellent primer on intersectionality" between racism and sexism, calling Cottom one of the most influential sociologists and writers in the US today.  Read it here>>

"A Report from Occupied Territory" by James Baldwin

Baldwin's "A Report from Occupied Territory" was originally published in The Nation in 1966. It takes a hard look at violence against Black people in the US, specifically police brutality. 

"Baldwin's work remains essential to understanding the depth and breadth of anti-black racism in our society. This essay — which touches on issues of racialized violence, policing and the role of the law in reproducing inequality — is an absolute must-read for anyone who wants to understand just how much has not changed with regard to police violence and anti-Black racism in our country," Fleming told Insider.  Read it here>>

"I'm From Philly. 30 Years Later, I'm Still Trying To Make Sense Of The MOVE Bombing" by Gene Demby

On May 13, 1985, a police helicopter dropped a bomb on the MOVE compound in Philadelphia, which housed members of the MOVE, a black liberation group founded in 1972 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Eleven people, including five children, died in the airstrike. In this essay, Gene Demby, co-host and correspondent for NPR's Code Switch team, tries to wrap his head around the shocking instance of police violence against Black people. 

"I would argue that the fact that police were authorized to literally bomb Black citizens in their own homes, in their own country, is directly relevant to current conversations about militarized police and the growing movement to defund and abolish policing," Fleming said.  Read it here>>

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• Main content

Measuring Racial Discrimination (2004)

Chapter: 1 introduction, 1 introduction.

M ost people would agree that equal opportunity to participate as a full and functioning member of society is important. Nonetheless, existing social and economic disparities among racial and ethnic groups suggest that our society has yet to achieve this goal. For instance, Hispanics have higher school dropout rates than other racial and ethnic groups (Hauser et al., 2002). The black–white wealth gap remains large (Conley, 1999; Oliver and Shapiro, 1995). Young Native Americans are incarcerated in federal prisons at higher rates than any other minority racial group (Smelser and Baltes, 2001; Weich and Angulo, 2002). And some Asian Americans, among other minority groups, have poorer access to health care services and treatments than whites (Institute of Medicine, 2003). Such racial disparities are pervasive and may be the result of racial prejudice and discrimination, as well as differences in socioeconomic status, differential access to opportunities, and institutional policies and practices.

Such racial disparities persist despite the many legal and social changes that have improved opportunities for minority racial and ethnic groups in the United States. Several factors may contribute to racial differences in outcomes, including differences in socioeconomic status, differential access to opportunities, and others. One factor that should be considered is the role of racial discrimination. Overt discrimination against African Americans and other minority groups characterized much of U.S. history; a question is whether and what types of discrimination continue to exist and their effects on differential outcomes.

Although researchers in specific disciplines have investigated discrimination in particular domains, there has been little effort to coordinate and

expand such research in ways that could help to better understand and measure various kinds of racial and ethnic discrimination across domains and groups and over time. To address this problem, the Committee on National Statistics convened a panel of scholars in 2001 to consider the definition of racial discrimination, assess current methodologies for measuring it, identify new approaches, and make recommendations about the best broad methodological approaches. In particular, this panel was asked to conduct the following tasks:

Give the policy and scholarly communities new tools for assessing the extent to which discrimination continues to undermine the achievement of equal opportunity by suggesting additional means for measuring discrimination that can be applied not only to the racial question but in other important social arenas as well.

Conduct a thorough evaluation of current methodologies for measuring discrimination in a wide range of circumstances where it may occur.

Consider how analyses of data from other sources could contribute to findings from research experimentation, such as the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development paired tests.

Recommend further research as well as the development of data to complement research studies.

Although there is substantial direct empirical evidence for the prevalence of large disparities among racial and ethnic groups in various domains, it is often difficult to obtain direct evidence of whether and to what extent discrimination may be a contributing factor. Differential outcomes by race and ethnicity may or may not indicate discrimination. Examples of studies using methods that persuasively measure the presence or absence of discrimination are rare, and appropriate data for measurement are often unobtainable. As a result, there is little scholarly consensus about the extent and frequency of discrimination and how it relates to continuing disadvantages along racial and ethnic lines (Fix and Turner, 1998).

One reason it is difficult to assess discrimination is that changes have occurred in the nature of prejudiced attitudes and discriminatory behaviors. With the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and other laws that prohibit discrimination because of race in a variety of domains, overt discrimination is less often apparent. However, discrimination may persist in more subtle forms. Indeed, social psychological research suggests that relatively automatic and unexamined cognitive processes, of which the holder (and sometimes the target) may not be fully aware, can lead to discrimination (Devine, 1989; Fiske, 1998). These subtleties make defining and measuring discrimination more difficult.

STUDY APPROACH AND SCOPE

The panel’s goal in this report is to review and comment on the methods used in various social scientific disciplines to identify types of racial discrimination and measure their effects. The report is designed to help social science researchers, policy analysts, federal agencies, and concerned observers better understand how to assess racial discrimination in different domains, drawing on different social science methods and data sources as appropriate. To approach this important but difficult task, the panel focused on defining relevant concepts, examining various methodological approaches and data sources, and considering directions for future research.

The purpose of this report is not to promote a single “right” way to measure discrimination. In some situations, one approach may be more easily implemented and more credible; in other situations, another approach may be more appropriate. Often, multiple approaches will be needed to provide credible evidence about the prevalence of discrimination in a domain. Thus, the panel attempts to identify the broad range of approaches for measuring discrimination and to provide a critical review of their relative credibility when applied in different situations. The panel develops a cross-disciplinary research and data collection agenda for action by public and private funding agencies and the research community.

The report makes no attempt to actually measure current or past levels of discrimination in any domain. Our purpose is not to report numbers or impacts but to provide guidance and encouragement to researchers and policy analysts as they work across domains to identify where discrimination may be present and what its effects may be.

In the first part of this report, the panel defines the concepts of race and racial discrimination from a social science perspective, which we believe is the appropriate perspective for research and policy analysis on discrimination. When referring to race in the report, the panel uses the categories established by the federal classification standards (U.S. Office of Management and Budget, 1997) to identify whites, blacks or African Americans, American Indians and Alaska Natives or Native Americans, Asians, and Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders. According to these standards, Hispanics or Latinos are referred to as an ethnic group. Yet, although the panel was asked to consider racial discrimination, Hispanics (a rapidly growing ethnic population) also face discrimination. In addition, concepts of race and ethnicity are not clearly defined for many Hispanics, so for these two reasons our discussion often refers to Hispanics as well as to specific racial groups. Throughout the report, the term disadvantaged racial group is used to refer to groups in the United States (e.g., blacks) whose disadvantage can be linked historically to discriminatory practices and policies and who are, consequently, part of a legally protected class.

The panel is concerned with broad types of discriminatory behaviors and processes that have negative consequences for disadvantaged racial groups in various social and economic arenas. We draw on sociological, social psychological, and other literature to develop our definition of racial discrimination. We also discuss the conceptual possibility that discrimination may operate not just at one point in time and within one particular domain but at various points within and across multiple domains throughout the course of an individual’s life. The panel acknowledges that the effect of such cumulative discrimination may not be easily identified or measured.

In interpreting that part of its charge to review measurement methods, the panel chose to address broad approaches that could be applied across domains, rather than making recommendations about specific approaches for particular domains. Therefore, although examples are used throughout the report to illustrate efforts to measure discrimination in particular circumstances, our main focus is on methods (e.g., experiments, observational studies, survey research) that can be used to study discrimination under many different circumstances.

The examples of disparities and discrimination measurement that we provide come from research in five domains: labor markets and employment, education, housing and mortgage lending, health care, and criminal justice. Although not the only domains of concern, these are key areas of social interaction for which discrimination can seriously limit life opportunities; these are also among the areas for which the federal government regularly collects administrative and survey data long used by researchers to study discrimination and discriminatory effects. We do not provide an exhaustive set of examples for each of these areas. Rather, a selected bibliography of important literature reviews, major reports, and other work on data collection and analytical methods used in each of these domains is provided at the end of this report.

Much of the discussion in this report on such topics as statistical inference, experimental design, and data quality is relatively technical in nature. Although sometimes dry, the import of this discussion should not be misunderstood by readers who are deeply concerned about the possible extent and continued effects of racial discrimination in American life. It was our shared concern about racial discrimination that drew each member of the panel into the in-depth discussions of measurement reflected in this report. Because we view racial discrimination as a crucial social issue, we believe it is essential to use the most credible and accurate measurement approaches.

In carrying out this study, the panel met and deliberated over a period of almost 2 years. We held meetings, invited speakers, and commissioned several papers (see Box 1-1 ); we requested input from prominent scholars on key issues; reviewed a large body of literature on salient aspects of the law and criminal justice, labor markets, housing markets, education, and

health care; investigated the ways in which race is defined in various federally funded surveys; reviewed the literature on race, prejudice, and discrimination; and examined other literature on survey design, experimental evidence, and statistical analysis.

REPORT ORGANIZATION

This report is divided into three parts. The chapters in Part I provide a conceptual framework for thinking about racial discrimination. Chapter 2 explores the meaning of race as a social construct and provides historical background on the complex issues surrounding race in the United States and how it is measured in the decennial census and other federal data collections. Chapter 3 defines discrimination from a social science perspective and explains why we focus on racial discrimination. Our definition of racial discrimination is informed by legal concepts of discrimination, but it also encompasses behaviors and processes that may not be unlawful or easily measured. Chapter 4 provides a framework for understanding how racial

discrimination may operate. As the discussion indicates, there are different ways in which discrimination can occur and various mechanisms that can result in discriminatory behavior. Identifying various sources of discrimination is a crucial first step in developing theories or models of discrimination and using them to guide data collection and research for measuring the presence and extent of different types of discrimination.

The chapters in Part II examine methodological approaches to measuring discrimination and the advantages, limitations, and best techniques associated with each. Chapter 5 provides a general framework for inferring causation and a brief introduction to some of the topics covered in detail in the chapters that follow. Chapter 6 focuses on experimental methods, including field and laboratory experiments. Chapter 7 describes the use of statistical analysis of observational data to measure discrimination, reviewing the necessary assumptions and potential credibility of various approaches. Chapter 8 focuses on approaches employing attitudinal and behavioral indicators of discrimination, including methods based on survey data and administrative records. Each of these chapters describes specific approaches and the situations in which they can be implemented and may be appropriate. Where possible, we also attempt to identify more and less credible approaches, providing guidance for future scholars seeking to use the most effective methods. Chapter 9 at the end of Part II addresses issues of racial profiling, as an illustration of an area in which measuring discrimination is difficult.

The chapters in Part III present the panel’s priorities for data collection and research for improved measures of race and racial discrimination. Chapter 10 describes the data collected by federal statistical and administrative agencies that may support analysis of racial discrimination and its effects. The discussion focuses on concepts and measures of race and ethnicity in federal data sources, how different measures may affect distributions and consequent analyses for racial and ethnic groups, and research that is needed to improve federal measures. Chapter 11 considers the nature of cumulative effects of discrimination within and across multiple domains, seeking to identify techniques that can be used to provide a fuller measure of the impact of discrimination when it occurs over time and in more than one social arena. Little empirical work has been done on cumulative discrimination, so research and data collection in this area are important to pursue.

Finally, Chapter 12 suggests next steps for program and research agencies to build a research agenda that is directed to priority needs for measuring racial discrimination. The aim of the chapter is not to develop a detailed agenda per se, which is beyond the panel’s scope and resources, but to suggest a series of steps whereby agencies may identify priority research topics; evaluate them for feasibility and cost-effectiveness; and bring to bear the necessary conceptual frameworks, research methods, and data. Whether

conducting research from a policy perspective or more basic research, it will be important to support multidisciplinary studies that draw on a range of methodologies and data sources.

The report ends with two appendixes: Appendix A presents the agenda for the Workshop on Measuring Racial Disparities and Discrimination in Elementary and Secondary Education held by the panel in July 2002; Appendix B provides biographical sketches of the panel members and staff.

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Many racial and ethnic groups in the United States, including blacks, Hispanics, Asians, American Indians, and others, have historically faced severe discrimination—pervasive and open denial of civil, social, political, educational, and economic opportunities. Today, large differences among racial and ethnic groups continue to exist in employment, income and wealth, housing, education, criminal justice, health, and other areas. While many factors may contribute to such differences, their size and extent suggest that various forms of discriminatory treatment persist in U.S. society and serve to undercut the achievement of equal opportunity.

Measuring Racial Discrimination considers the definition of race and racial discrimination, reviews the existing techniques used to measure racial discrimination, and identifies new tools and areas for future research. The book conducts a thorough evaluation of current methodologies for a wide range of circumstances in which racial discrimination may occur, and makes recommendations on how to better assess the presence and effects of discrimination.

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What is racism?

What are some of the societal aspects of racism, what were the measures taken to combat racism.

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Racism, also called racialism, is the belief that humans can be divided into separate and exclusive biological entities called “races"; that there is a causal link between inherited physical traits and traits of personality, intellect, morality, and other cultural and behavioral features; and that some races are innately superior to others.

Historically, the practice of racism held that members of low-status races should be limited to low-status jobs or enslavement and be excluded from access to political power, economic resources, and unrestricted civil rights. Members of low-status races could encounter segregation, acts of physical violence, and in some places, racism dictated that it was unnatural for members of different races to marry.

Racism elicits hatred and distrust and precludes any attempt to understand its victims. Many societies attempt to combat racism by raising awareness of racist beliefs and practices and by promoting human understanding in public policies, such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, set forth by the United Nations in 1948.

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racism , the belief that humans may be divided into separate and exclusive biological entities called “races”; that there is a causal link between inherited physical traits and traits of personality, intellect, morality , and other cultural and behavioral features; and that some races are innately superior to others. The term is also applied to political, economic, or legal institutions and systems that engage in or perpetuate discrimination on the basis of race or otherwise reinforce racial inequalities in wealth and income, education , health care, civil rights, and other areas. Such institutional, structural, or systemic racism became a particular focus of scholarly investigation in the 1980s with the emergence of critical race theory , an offshoot of the critical legal studies movement. Since the late 20th century the notion of biological race has been recognized as a cultural invention, entirely without scientific basis.

Following Germany’s defeat in World War I , that country’s deeply ingrained anti-Semitism was successfully exploited by the Nazi Party , which seized power in 1933 and implemented policies of systematic discrimination, persecution, and eventual mass murder of Jews in Germany and in the territories occupied by the country during World War II ( see Holocaust ).

In North America and apartheid -era South Africa , racism dictated that different races (chiefly blacks and whites) should be segregated from one another; that they should have their own distinct communities and develop their own institutions such as churches, schools, and hospitals; and that it was unnatural for members of different races to marry .

Historically, those who openly professed or practiced racism held that members of low-status races should be limited to low-status jobs and that members of the dominant race should have exclusive access to political power, economic resources, high-status jobs, and unrestricted civil rights . The lived experience of racism for members of low-status races includes acts of physical violence , daily insults, and frequent acts and verbal expressions of contempt and disrespect, all of which have profound effects on self-esteem and social relationships.

Racism was at the heart of North American slavery and the colonization and empire-building activities of western Europeans, especially in the 18th century. The idea of race was invented to magnify the differences between people of European origin and those of African descent whose ancestors had been involuntarily enslaved and transported to the Americas. By characterizing Africans and their African American descendants as lesser human beings, the proponents of slavery attempted to justify and maintain the system of exploitation while portraying the United States as a bastion and champion of human freedom, with human rights , democratic institutions, unlimited opportunities, and equality. The contradiction between slavery and the ideology of human equality, accompanying a philosophy of human freedom and dignity, seemed to demand the dehumanization of those enslaved.

By the 19th century, racism had matured and spread around the world. In many countries, leaders began to think of the ethnic components of their own societies, usually religious or language groups, in racial terms and to designate “higher” and “lower” races. Those seen as the low-status races, especially in colonized areas, were exploited for their labour, and discrimination against them became a common pattern in many areas of the world. The expressions and feelings of racial superiority that accompanied colonialism generated resentment and hostility from those who were colonized and exploited, feelings that continued even after independence.

Since the mid-20th century many conflicts around the world have been interpreted in racial terms even though their origins were in the ethnic hostilities that have long characterized many human societies (e.g., Arabs and Jews, English and Irish). Racism reflects an acceptance of the deepest forms and degrees of divisiveness and carries the implication that differences between groups are so great that they cannot be transcended .

Racism elicits hatred and distrust and precludes any attempt to understand its victims. For that reason, most human societies have concluded that racism is wrong, at least in principle, and social trends have moved away from racism. Many societies have begun to combat racism by raising awareness of racist beliefs and practices and by promoting human understanding in public policies, as does the Universal Declaration of Human Rights , set forth by the United Nations in 1948.

In the United States, racism came under increasing attack during the civil rights movement of the 1950s and ’60s, and laws and social policies that enforced racial segregation and permitted racial discrimination against African Americans were gradually eliminated. Laws aimed at limiting the voting power of racial minorities were invalidated by the Twenty-fourth Amendment (1964) to the U.S. Constitution , which prohibited poll taxes , and by the federal Voting Rights Act (1965), which required jurisdictions with a history of voter suppression to obtain federal approval (“preclearance”) of any proposed changes to their voting laws (the preclearance requirement was effectively removed by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2013 [ see Shelby County v. Holder ]). By 2020 nearly three-quarters of the states had adopted varying forms of voter ID law , by which would-be voters were required or requested to present certain forms of identification before casting a ballot. Critics of the laws, some of which were successfully challenged in the courts, contended that they effectively suppressed voting among African Americans and other demographic groups. Other measures that tended to limit voting by African Americans were unconstitutional racial gerrymanders , partisan gerrymanders aimed at limiting the number of Democratic representatives in state legislatures and Congress, the closing of polling stations in African American or Democratic-leaning neighbourhoods, restrictions on the use of mail-in and absentee ballots, limits on early voting, and purges of voter rolls.

Despite constitutional and legal measures aimed at protecting the rights of racial minorities in the United States, the private beliefs and practices of many Americans remained racist, and some group of assumed lower status was often made a scapegoat. That tendency has persisted well into the 21st century.

Because, in the popular mind, “race” is linked to physical differences among peoples, and such features as dark skin colour have been seen as markers of low status, some experts believe that racism may be difficult to eradicate . Indeed, minds cannot be changed by laws, but beliefs about human differences can and do change, as do all cultural elements.

Home — Essay Samples — Social Issues — Racial Discrimination — Understanding and Addressing Racism: Causes, Effects, and Anti-Racism Efforts

Understanding and Addressing Racism: Causes, Effects, and Anti-racism Efforts

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Published: Feb 7, 2024

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Table of contents

Definition of racism, forms of racism, causes of racism, effects of racism, anti-racism efforts.

• Prejudice refers to negative attitudes or beliefs that are based on stereotypes or generalizations about a particular racial group. It can lead to discrimination and exclusion of members of that group.
• Discrimination is the differential treatment of individuals or groups based on their race or ethnicity. It can occur in various settings, such as employment, education, housing, and healthcare.
• Systemic racism refers to the ways in which social and political institutions perpetuate racial disparities and inequalities. This can include policies, practices, and norms that disadvantage certain racial groups while benefiting others.
• Structural racism refers to the underlying systems and structures that create and maintain racial inequality. This can include economic, political, and cultural systems that privilege certain groups while excluding others.
• Socialization: Racism can be learned and internalized through socialization processes, including family, peers, media, and education. Children may develop racial biases and prejudices early in life, which can be reinforced or challenged as they grow up.
• Stereotypes: Racism is often based on stereotypes, which are oversimplified and distorted beliefs about a particular group. Stereotypes can be perpetuated by media, popular culture, and social interactions, leading to the marginalization and stigmatization of certain groups.
• Fear and Ignorance: Racism can also be fueled by fear and ignorance, especially in contexts of social and economic insecurity. Some people may view members of other racial groups as a threat to their livelihoods or identities, leading to resentment and hostility.
• Anxiety: Racism can cause anxiety and stress among individuals who experience discrimination or prejudice. This can lead to negative health outcomes and reduced well-being.
• Depression: Racism can also contribute to depression and other mental health issues , especially among marginalized groups who face chronic stress and discrimination.
• Social Inequality: Racism perpetuates social inequality and marginalization, leading to disparities in education, employment, health, and other domains. This can limit individuals' opportunities and life chances and perpetuate intergenerational poverty.
• Political Polarization: Racism can also contribute to political polarization and social conflict, as different groups may have divergent views on racial issues and policies.
• Civil Rights Movements: The civil rights movements of the 20th century were a major milestone in the fight against racism, challenging institutionalized segregation and discrimination and advocating for equal rights and opportunities for all.
• Anti-Apartheid Movement: The anti-apartheid movement in South Africa was another important example of anti-racism efforts, which mobilized global support to end the racist policies and practices of the apartheid regime.
• Black Lives Matter Movement: The Black Lives Matter movement emerged in response to police brutality and systemic racism against Black people in the US, advocating for social and political change to address racial inequalities and injustices.
• Diversity and Inclusion Programs: Many organizations and institutions have implemented diversity and inclusion programs to promote equity and representation of diverse racial and ethnic groups, including affirmative action, unconscious bias training, and multicultural education.

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An Essay for Teachers Who Understand Racism Is Real

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This essay is not to enumerate the recent murders of Black people by police, justify why protest and uprising are important for social change, or remind us why NFL player Colin Kaepernick took a knee. If you have missed those points, blamed victims, or proclaimed “All Lives Matter,” this article is not for you, and you may want to ask yourself whether you should be teaching any children, especially Black children.

This article is for teachers who understand that racism is real, anti-Blackness is real, and state-sanctioned violence, which allows police to kill Black people with impunity, is real. It is for teachers who know change is necessary and want to understand exactly what kind of change we need as a country.

Politicians who know the words “justice” and “equity” only when they want peace in the streets are going to try to persuade us that they are capable of reforming centuries of oppression by changing policies, adding more accountability measures, and removing the “bad apples” from among police.

More From This Author:

“Teachers, We Cannot Go Back to the Way Things Were” “White Teachers Need Anti-Racist Therapy” “How Schools Are ‘Spirit Murdering’ Black and Brown Students” “Dear White Teachers: You Can’t Love Your Black Students If You Don’t Know Them” “‘Grit Is in Our DNA': Why Teaching Grit Is Inherently Anti-Black”

These actions will sound comprehensive and, with time, a solution to injustice. These reforms may even reduce police killings or school suspensions of Black students, but as civil rights activist Ella Baker said, a “reduction of injustice is not the same as freedom.” Reformists want incremental change, but Black lives are being lost with every day we wait. And to be Black is to live in a constant state of exhaustion.

Centuries of Black resistance and protest have had a profound impact on the nation. As Nikole Hannah-Jones, the creator of “The 1619 Project,” points out, “We have helped the country to live up to its founding ideals. ... Without the idealistic, strenuous, and patriotic efforts of Black Americans, our democracy today would most likely look very different—it might not be a democracy at all.” Those civil rights achievements were critical, including the reformist ones.

But reform is no longer enough. Too often, reform is rooted in Whiteness because it appeases White liberals who need to see change but want to maintain their status, power, and supremacy.

Abolition of oppression is needed because reform still did not stop a police officer from putting his knee on George Floyd’s neck in broad daylight for 8 minutes and 46 seconds; it did not stop police from killing Breonna Taylor in her own home. Also that: Largely non-White school districts get $23 billion less in state and local funding than predominantly White ones; Black people make up 13 percent of the U.S. population but account for 26 percent of the deaths from COVID-19; and with only 5 percent of the world’s population, the United States has nearly 25 percent of the world’s prison population. We need to be honest: We cannot reform something this monstrous; we have to abolish it.

Abolitionist Resources From Bettina L. Love

Organizations

• Free Minds, Free People
• Critical Resistance
• Black Youth Project 100
• Quetzal Education Consulting
• Assata’s Daughters
• Black Organizing Project
• Teachers 4 Social Justice
• “Reading Towards Abolition: A Reading List on Policing, Rebellion, and the Criminalization of Blackness”

Abolitionists want to eliminate what is oppressive, not reform it, not reimagine it, but remove oppression by its roots. Abolitionists want to understand the conditions that normalize oppression and uproot those conditions, too. Abolitionists, in the words of scholar and activist Bill Ayers, “demand the impossible” and work to build a world rooted in the possibilities of justice. Abolitionists are not anarchists because, as we eliminate these systems, we want to build conditions that create institutions that are just, loving, equitable, and center Black lives.

Abolitionism is not a social-justice trend. It is a way of life defined by commitment to working toward a humanity where no one is disposable, prisons no longer exist, being Black is not a crime, teachers have high expectations for Black and Brown children, and joy is seen as a foundation of learning.

Abolitionists strive for that reality by fighting for a divestment of law enforcement to redistribute funds to education, housing, jobs, and health care; elimination of high-stakes testing; replacement of watered-down and Eurocentric materials from educational publishers like Pearson, McGraw Hill, and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt with community-created standards and curriculum; the end of police presence in schools; employment of Black teachers en masse; hiring of therapists and counselors who believe Black lives matter in schools; destruction of inner-city schools that resemble prisons; and elimination of suspension in favor of restorative justice.

Abolitionist work is hard and demands an indomitable spirit of resistance. As a nation, we saw this spirit in Harriet Tubman and Frederick Douglass. We also see it in 21st-century abolitionists like Angela Davis, Charlene Carruthers, Erica Meiners, Derecka Purnell, David Stovall, and Farima Pour-Khorshid.

For non-Black people, abolitionism requires giving up the idea of being an “ally” to become a “co-conspirator.” Many social-justice groups have shifted the language to “co-conspirator” because allies work toward something that is mutually beneficial and supportive to all parties. Co-conspirators, in contrast, understand how Whiteness and privilege work in our society and leverage their power, privilege, and resources in solidarity with justice movements to dismantle White supremacy. Co-conspirators function as verbs, not as nouns.

The journey for abolitionists and our co-conspirators is arduous, but we fight for a future that will never need to be reformed again because it was built as just from the beginning.

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In 2016, Bettina L. Love, the author of this essay, spoke to Education Week about African-American girls and discipline. Here’s what she had to say:

A version of this article appeared in the June 17, 2020 edition of Education Week as For Teachers Who Understand Racism Is Real

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Essay About Racial Discrimination

Racial discrimination has been ranked as one the most pervasive issue in the world around today. Anyone judged by the skin colour, nationality, religion rather than by the content of character can be very dehumanizing experience that can have lasting effects on an individual’s life (Fischer 2008). Racism disturbs both individual and the learning environment in schools. It generates tension that alter cultural understanding and narrow the educational experiences of all students. According to (Berlak 2009) discrimination occurs in any stage of education from preschool through college and can be practiced by teachers or students. Racism occur in various forms such as teasing, name calling, teasing, verbal abuse and bullying. Therefore this literature review, discusses the types, effects and solution to this unstoppable issue in education system.

Types of Racial Discrimination

Racism is frequently thought of as individual demonstrations of inclination. While discrimination is still particularly a reality, concentrating on individual demonstrations of prejudice can darken the substances that make and keep up racial disparity all the more comprehensively. According to De la luz, there are three types of racial discrimination which are individual racism, instituinal racism and systematic racism. To completely address the effects of racism it is essential to address all parts of racial disparity. Individual racism, likewise called personal racism, is the sort of prejudice that a great many people consider when they consider “racism.” Individual prejudice happens when a man’s convictions, states of mind, and activities depend on inclinations, generalizations, or preferences against another race. Institutional racism refers to an establishment settling on decisions that deliberately single out or hurt ethnic minorities. Systematic racism, is maybe the most upsetting and slightest examined type of racism. It systematizes individual, social, and different sorts of prejudice in ceaseless frameworks. Like institutional prejudice, basic racism centre around associations instead of individuals. However, while institutional racism may intentionally attempt to single out a specific gathering, auxiliary bigotry is unbiased all over. This impartiality makes basic prejudice hard to gauge and significantly more hard to end.

Effects of Racial Discrimination

It is believed that racism is one term that describes the whole issue, however it is a complex system that describes many types of biased behaviours and systems (Jonnes 2018).According to the Human Rights Commission (2017), racism as an act that humiliates human behaviour and affects the life of an individual physically, mentally and socially. It takes various forms such as name calling, comments, jokes, verbal abuse, harassment, bullying or commentary in the media that inflames hostility towards certain groups. In serious case, it results in physical abuse and violence. Racial discrimination is a deadly virus that affects all, individual, families, communities and the learning and working environment. Racism can unpleasantly affect the educational outcomes, individual happiness and self-confidence, cultural identity, school and community relations and most commonly is the student’s behaviour and academic achievements (Kohli, 2017). Hence if it is unaddressed than racism can generate tensions within the school communities and these will affect the educational experiences of all students. It can demoralise students self -confidence and can result in students displaying a range of negative behaviours Students who are disaffected with school are less likely to attend school regularly and more likely to drop out of school earlier than other groups of students. The increase rate of the incidence of absenteeism and stress is due to racism been link to diminished morale and lower productivity (Fields 2014),The presence of racism in schools affects the educational outcomes due to lower participation rates, behavioural problems and feelings of alienation. Hence the educational success depends on the regular sustained attendance of each students and the ability to participate in the classroom. With racism in the learning environment, the balance is disrupted and educational outcomes maybe limited as a result (Triaki 2017).

Moreover, racism could be minimised even though it will decade to erase it from our beautiful world. Advancing positive ethnic and racial character decreases sentiments of detachment or prohibition and enhance students capacity to focus in the classroom. Teachers can enable students to create positive opinions about their ethnic and racial personality by presenting them to assorted good examples, and making a sheltered space for them to commend their disparities. A definitive answer for this issue is diminishing understudy introduction to racial separation and enhancing race relations in the U.S. In the interim, there are ways minding and concerned grown-ups can enable understudies to manage the pressure be minimised even though it will take time to prevent it from being practiced in schools. (Collins 2015).Racism has been around everlastingly however it can be diminished, just with a lot of exertion. Education is the key for some muddled issues we look in this world. Education can change the manner in which people think and lead us to a superior world. We can battle racism with education (Hwang 2008). On the off chance that we instruct and show sympathy, at that point there will be less need to discuss how we can stop racism. It will be difficult to stop racism if racist considerations are still with us. It is dependent upon us to get ready for the future by teaching our family and others on the difficulties of racial discrimination. At exactly that point will we overcome racial discrimination in our societies and schools.

Racial discrimination could be described as a weapon that destroys the society and the education system as whole. It affects the students in various ways that hinder their academic achievement and also affects them mentally, physically and socially. It was also stated that racial discrimination can occur at any stage either preschool, high schools or even tertiary institution. Hence there are possible ways where racism could be minimized even though it will take time to be erased. Therefore education is an important tool in everyone’s life since it can change the world and every individual.        

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Most Black Americans Believe U.S. Institutions Were Designed To Hold Black People Back

1. racial discrimination shapes how black americans view their progress and u.s. institutions, table of contents.

• In their own words: Quotes from our 2023 focus groups of Black Americans
• Most Black adults say they experience racial discrimination
• Black adults feel angry or undermined in the face of discrimination 
• Black adults say they must work more than everyone else to get ahead 
• Black Americans believe the criminal justice system was designed to hold them back
• Black adults and mistrust about policing and prisons 
• Many Black Americans believe the U.S. political system was designed to hold them back
• Black Americans, Black political leaders and mistrust of the U.S. political system
• Black Americans believe the economic system was designed to hold them back
• Mistrust of big businesses
• About half of Black Americans believe U.S. news media was designed to hold them back 
• Most Black adults say they encounter inaccurate news about Black people
• Some Black Americans believe the health care system was designed to hold them back
• Mistrust about medical research
• Mistrust of family-related government policy  
• Mistrust of government reproductive health policy
• Acknowledgments
• The American Trends Panel survey methodology
• Focus group methodology

Editorial note to readers

A version of this study was originally published on June 10. We previously used the term “ racial conspiracy theories ” as an editorial shorthand to describe a complex and mixed set of findings. By using these words, our reporting distorted rather than clarified the point of the study. Changes to this version include: an updated headline, new “explainer” paragraphs, some additional context and direct quotes from focus group participants.

Claudia Deane, Mark Hugo Lopez and Neha Sahgal contributed to the revision of this report.

Most Black adults say they have experienced racial discrimination (75%), either regularly (13%) or from time to time (62%). They say these experiences make them feel like the system is set up for their failure. Many also say Black people must work harder than everyone else to achieve success.

Three-quarters of Black Americans say they have experienced racial discrimination, either regularly (13%) or from time to time (62%). Fewer say they have not been discriminated against because of their race (23%). Black adults differ slightly on this question by age, education, family income and where they live.

Eight-in-ten Black Americans ages 65 and older say they experience racial discrimination, compared with smaller shares of Black adults under 30 (71%), ages 30 to 49 (76%) and 50 to 64 (75%). Black men 50 and older (82%) were most likely to say they experience racial discrimination when compared with men under 50 (73%) and Black women of any age (75%).

By education and family income

Most Black adults with at least a bachelor’s degree (82%) say they experience racial discrimination. Fewer of those with some college (77%) or a high school diploma or less education (70%) say the same. Black adults with upper incomes (80%) are more likely than those with lower incomes (74%) to say this. 1

Black adults who live in Western states (81%) are more likely than those who live in the Northeast (72%) and the South (74%) to say they experience racial discrimination. In the Midwest, 78% of Black adults experience this.

Black Americans who experience racial discrimination have a range of reactions to this treatment. Large majorities say their experiences with racial discrimination made them feel angry (76%) and like the system was designed to keep them down (73%).

Smaller shares say they felt nervous or anxious (59%), negative about the future (56%), scared for their personal safety (53%), isolated (52%) or depressed (41%), or had trouble sleeping (25%).

By gender and age

There are a few key differences among Black adults in their reactions to racial discrimination. Black women under 50 (80%) are more likely than Black men under 50 (73%) and women 50 and older (75%) to say racial discrimination made them feel angry.

Most Black adults also say experiencing racial discrimination made them feel like the system was designed to hold them down (73%). Black men 50 and older (75%) are more likely than Black women in this age group (69%) to say this.

By birthplace, education and party

Black adults born in the U.S. (77%) are more likely than Black immigrants (65%) to say experiencing racial discrimination made them feel angry. And Black adults who went to college (80%), regardless of their degree level, are more likely than those with a high school diploma or less (70%) to say the same. 

Black Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents (76%) are more likely than Black Republicans and Republican leaners (63%) to say their personal experiences with racial discrimination made them feel like the system was designed to hold them down. Still, majorities of both groups say racial discrimination makes them feel like the system was designed to hold them down.

Regardless of whether they feel systems are designed to hold them back, Black Americans generally view their road to success as more difficult than others’. Three-quarters of Black adults say they must work more than everyone else to achieve success. Far fewer say Black people must work the same as everyone else (19%) or less than everyone else (4%) to be successful.

By discrimination experience

Discrimination is still a key factor in how Black Americans think about their progress. Black adults who have experienced racial discrimination (79%) are more likely than those who haven’t (63%) to say Black people must work more than everyone else to be successful, though majorities of both groups share this view.

By ethnicity and age

Ethnicity and age also play a role. Non-Hispanic Black adults (76%) and multiracial Black adults (74%) are more likely than Hispanic Black adults (50%) to say Black people must work more than everyone else to achieve success. And the oldest Black adults, those ages 65 and older (82%), are more likely than those younger than 30 (69%) to say this.

By education, family income and party

Over eight-in-ten Black adults with a bachelor’s degree (84%) say Black people have to work more than everyone else to achieve success. Fewer of those with some college experience (77%) or a high school diploma or less education (68%) say the same. And Black adults with upper incomes (84%) are the most likely among income groups to say Black people must work harder than everyone else to be successful.

Political affiliation is also a factor in how Black Americans think about their progress. Black Democrats (79%) are more likely than Black Republicans (58%) to say Black people must work more than others to achieve success (though majorities of both groups say this).

• The middle-income range for the American Trends Panel is about $47,800 to $143,400 annually for an average family of three. Lower-income families have adjusted incomes less than $47,800 and upper-income families have adjusted incomes greater than $143,400. All figures are expressed in 2022 dollars. For more information, please refer to the methodology . ↩

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Hear Something, Say Something: Navigating The World Of Racial Awkwardness

Listen to this week's episode.

We've all been there — having fun relaxing with friends and family, when someone says something a little racially off. Sometimes it's subtle, like the friend who calls Thai food "exotic." Other times it's more overt, like that in-law who's always going on about "the illegals."

In any case, it can be hard to know how to respond. Even the most level-headed among us have faltered trying to navigate the fraught world of racial awkwardness.

So what exactly do you do? We delve into the issue on this week's episode of the Code Switch podcast, featuring writer Nicole Chung and Code Switch's Shereen Marisol Meraji, Gene Demby and Karen Grigsby Bates.

We also asked some folks to write about what runs through their minds during these tense moments, and how they've responded (or not). Their reactions ran the gamut from righteous indignation to total passivity, but in the wake of these uncomfortable comments, everyone seemed to walk away wishing they'd done something else.

Aaron E. Sanchez

It was the first time my dad visited me at college, and he had just dropped me off at my dorm. My suitemate walked in and sneered.

"Was that your dad?" he asked. "He looks sooo Mexican."

Aaron E. Sanchez is a Texas-based writer who focuses on issues of race, politics and popular culture from a Latino perspective. Courtesy of Aaron Sanchez hide caption

He kept laughing about it as he left my room.

I was caught off-guard. Instantly, I grew self-conscious, not because I was ashamed of my father, but because my respectability politics ran deep. My appearance was supposed to be impeccable and my manners unimpeachable to protect against stereotypes and slights. I felt exposed.

To be sure, when my dad walked into restaurants and stores, people almost always spoke to him in Spanish. He didn't mind. The fluidity of his bilingualism rarely failed him. He was unassuming. He wore his working-class past on his frame and in his actions. He enjoyed hard work and appreciated it in others. Yet others mistook him for something altogether different.

People regularly confused his humility for servility. He was mistaken for a landscape worker, a janitor, and once he sat next to a gentleman on a plane who kept referring to him as a "wetback." He was a poor Mexican-American kid who grew up in the Segundo Barrio of El Paso, Texas, for certain. But he was also an Air Force veteran who had served for 20 years. He was an electrical engineer, a proud father, an admirable storyteller, and a pretty decent fisherman.

I didn't respond to my suitemate. To him, my father was a funny caricature, a curio he could pick up, purchase and discard. And as much as it was hidden beneath my elite, liberal arts education, I was a novelty to him too, an even rarer one at that. Instead of a serape, I came wrapped in the trappings of middle-classness, a costume I was trying desperately to wear convincingly.

That night, I realized that no clothing or ill-fitting costume could cover us. Our bodies were incongruous to our surroundings. No matter how comfortable we were in our skins, our presence would make others uncomfortable.

Karen Good Marable

When the Q train pulled into the Cortelyou Road station, it was dark and I was tired. Another nine hours in New York City, working in the madness that is Midtown as a fact-checker at a fashion magazine. All day long, I researched and confirmed information relating to beauty, fashion and celebrity, and, at least once a day, suffered an editor who was openly annoyed that I'd discovered an error. Then, the crush of the rush-hour subway, and a dinner obligation I had to fulfill before heading home to my cat.

Karen Good Marable is a writer living in New York City. Her work has been featured in publications like The Undefeated and The New Yorker. Courtesy of Karen Good Marable hide caption

The train doors opened and I turned the corner to walk up the stairs. Coming down were two girls — free, white and in their 20s . They were dancing as they descended, complete with necks rolling, mouths pursed — a poor affectation of black girls — and rapping as they passed me:

Now I ain't sayin she a golddigger/But she ain't messin' with no broke niggas!

That last part — broke niggas — was actually less rap, more squeals that dissolved into giggles. These white girls were thrilled to say the word publicly — joyously, even — with the permission of Kanye West.

I stopped, turned around and stared at them. I envisioned kicking them both squarely in their backs. God didn't give me telekinetic powers for just this reason. I willed them to turn around and face me, but they did not dare. They bopped on down the stairs and onto the platform, not evening knowing the rest of the rhyme.

Listen: I'm a black woman from the South. I was born in the '70s and raised by parents — both educators — who marched for their civil rights. I never could get used to nigga being bandied about — not by the black kids and certainly not by white folks. I blamed the girls' parents for not taking over where common sense had clearly failed. Hell, even radio didn't play the nigga part.

I especially blamed Kanye West for not only making the damn song, but for having the nerve to make nigga a part of the damn hook.

Life in NYC is full of moments like this, where something happens and you wonder if you should speak up or stay silent (which can also feel like complicity). I am the type who will speak up . Boys (or men) cussing incessantly in my presence? Girls on the train cussing around my 70-year-old mama? C'mon, y'all. Do you see me? Do you hear yourselves? Please. Stop.

But on this day, I just didn't feel like running down the stairs to tap those girls on the shoulder and school them on what they damn well already knew. On this day, I just sighed a great sigh, walked up the stairs, past the turnstiles and into the night.

Robyn Henderson-Espinoza

When I was 5 or 6, my mother asked me a question: "Does anyone ever make fun of you for the color of your skin?"

This surprised me. I was born to a Mexican woman who had married an Anglo man, and I was fairly light-skinned compared to the earth-brown hue of my mother. When she asked me that question, I began to understand that I was different.

Robyn Henderson-Espinoza is a visiting assistant professor of ethics at the Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, Calif. Courtesy of Robyn Henderson-Espinoza hide caption

Following my parents' divorce in the early 1980s, I spent a considerable amount of time with my father and my paternal grandparents. One day in May of 1989, I was sitting at my grandparents' dinner table in West Texas. I was 12. The adults were talking about the need for more laborers on my grandfather's farm, and my dad said this:

"Mexicans are lazy."

He called the undocumented workers he employed on his 40 acres "wetbacks." Again and again, I heard from him that Mexicans always had to be told what to do. He and friends would say this when I was within earshot. I felt uncomfortable. Why would my father say these things about people like me?

But I remained silent.

It haunts me that I didn't speak up. Not then. Not ever. I still hear his words, 10 years since he passed away, and wonder whether he thought I was a lazy Mexican, too. I wish I could have found the courage to tell him that Mexicans are some of the hardest-working people I know; that those brown bodies who worked on his property made his lifestyle possible.

As I grew in experience and understanding, I was able to find language that described what he was doing: stereotyping, undermining, demonizing. I found my voice in the academy and in the movement for black and brown lives.

Still, the silence haunts me.

Channing Kennedy

My 20s were defined in no small part by a friendship with a guy I never met. For years, over email and chat, we shared everything with each other, and we made great jokes. Those jokes — made for each other only — were a foundational part of our relationship and our identities. No matter what happened, we could make each other laugh.

Channing Kennedy is an Oakland-based writer, performer, media producer and racial equity trainer. Courtesy of Channing Kennedy hide caption

It helped, also, that we were slackers with spare time, but eventually we both found callings. I started working in the social justice sector, and he gained recognition in the field of indie comics. I was proud of my new job and approached it seriously, if not gracefully. Before I took the job, I was the type of white dude who'd make casually racist comments in front of people I considered friends. Now, I had laid a new foundation for myself and was ready to undo the harm I'd done pre-wokeness.

And I was proud of him, too, if cautious. The indie comics scene is full of bravely offensive work: the power fantasies of straight white men with grievances against their nonexistent censors, put on defiant display. But he was my friend, and he wouldn't fall for that.

One day he emailed me a rough script to get my feedback. At my desk, on a break from deleting racist, threatening Facebook comments directed at my co-workers, I opened it up for a change of pace.

I got none. His script was a top-tier, irredeemable power fantasy — sex trafficking, disability jokes, gendered violence, every scene's background packed with commentary-devoid, racist caricatures. It also had a pop culture gag on top, to guarantee clicks.

I asked him why he'd written it. He said it felt "important." I suggested he shelve it. He suggested that that would be a form of censorship. And I realized this: My dear friend had created a racist power fantasy about dismembering women, and he considered it bravely offensive.

I could have said that there was nothing brave about catering to the established tastes of other straight white comics dudes. I could have dropped any number of half-understood factoids about structural racism, the finishing move of the recently woke. I could have just said the jokes were weak.

Instead, I became cruel to him, with a dedication I'd previously reserved for myself.

Over months, I redirected every bit of our old creativity. I goaded him into arguments I knew would leave him shaken and unable to work. I positioned myself as a surrogate parent (so I could tell myself I was still a concerned ally) then laughed at him. I got him to escalate. And, privately, I told myself it was me who was under attack, the one with the grievance, and I cried about how my friend was betraying me.

I wanted to erase him (I realized years later) not because his script offended me, but because it made me laugh. It was full of the sense of humor we'd spent years on — not the jokes verbatim, but the pacing, structure, reveals, go-to gags. It had my DNA and it was funny. I thought I had become a monster-slayer, but this comic was a monster with my hands and mouth.

After years as the best of friends and as the bitterest of exes, we finally had a chance to meet in person. We were little more than acquaintances with sunk costs at that point, but we met anyway. Maybe we both wanted forgiveness, or an apology, or to see if we still had some jokes. Instead, I lectured him about electoral politics and race in a bar and never smiled.

• code switch

Racism, bias, and discrimination

Racism is a form of prejudice that generally includes negative emotional reactions to members of a group, acceptance of negative stereotypes, and racial discrimination against individuals; in some cases it can lead to violence.

Discrimination refers to the differential treatment of different age, gender, racial, ethnic, religious, national, ability identity, sexual orientation, socioeconomic, and other groups at the individual level and the institutional/structural level. Discrimination is usually the behavioral manifestation of prejudice and involves negative, hostile, and injurious treatment of members of rejected groups.

Adapted from the APA Dictionary of Psychology

Resources from APA

Psychologists with mental health conditions may face discrimination

How the field can address its covert history of stigmatizing colleagues

Musicians fight mental health stigma through music

Artists share their wisdom and experiences coping with mental health challenges

Is mental health still misconstrued on screen? Psychology goes to Hollywood to dispel stigma

The industry is eager for psychologists’ expertise to improve mental health portrayals on-screen and more.

Policymakers are taking aim at women and LGBTQ+ individuals

Alarming policy trends are affecting people’s mental health, but psychologists are fighting back.

More resources about racism

What APA is doing

Race, ethnicity, and religion

APA Services advocates for the equal treatment of people of all races, religions, and ethnicities, as well as funding for federal programs that address health disparities in these groups.

Equity, diversity, and inclusion

Inclusive language guidelines

APA’s commitment to addressing systemic racism

APA’s action plan for addressing inequality

APA’s apology to people of color in the U.S.

Confronting past wrongs and building an equitable future

Stigma of Disease and Disability

The Psychology of Prejudice, 2nd Ed.

Perspectives on Hate

Multicultural Therapy

Addressing Cultural Complexities in Counseling and Clinical Practice

Magination Press children’s books

Lulu the One and Only

Algo Le Pasó a Mi Papá

There's a Cat in Our Class!

Something Happened in Our Town

Bernice Sandler and the Fight for Title IX

Journal special issues

Intersectionality in Psychology

Understanding, Unpacking and Eliminating Health Disparities

The Impact of Race on Psychological Processes

Prejudice and Discrimination

Asian America and the COVID-19 Pandemic

Ethnic psychological associations

• American Arab, Middle Eastern, and North African Psychological Association
• The Association of Black Psychologists
• Asian American Psychological Association
• National Latinx Psychological Association
• Society of Indian Psychologists

Related resources

• Protecting and Defending our People: Nakni tushka anowa (The Warrior’s Path) Final Report (PDF, 8.64MB) APA Division 45 Warrior’s Path Presidential Task Force (2020)
• Society for Community Research and Action (APA Division 27) Antiracism / Antioppression email series
• Society of Counseling Psychology (APA Division 17) Social justice resources
• Talking About Race | National Museum of African American History and Culture Tools and guidance for discussions of race
• InnoPsych therapists of color search

Racism and History of Discrimination Essay

• To find inspiration for your paper and overcome writer’s block
• As a source of information (ensure proper referencing)
• As a template for you assignment

Racism and other kinds of discrimination have existed for centuries and still prevail in modern-day society. While many people view racism as a social construct that only exists among ordinary people, it is much more frequent among government authorities and law enforcement agencies, with police brutality being one of the most acute issues. Such an issue is not merely a local or state problem but a federal one, permeating the entire country. As a result, while different policies aim to eradicate racism-caused police brutality, it still exists and causes many deaths.

There are many instances of the given issue that led not just to disabilities but also to deaths. For example, despite a 1993 prohibition on chokeholds by the New York Police Department, policeman Daniel Pantaleo nonetheless fatally choked Eric Garner in 2014 (The Economist, 2020). In one of the latest occurrences, Derek Chauvin, a Minneapolis law enforcement officer, knelt on George Floyd’s neck for 8 minutes on May 25, 2020, causing George Floyd to pass away (Valbuena et al., 2020). As a result, the policy sector this sort of social injustice falls under is criminal justice. According to the United Nations, among the core problems that impact this sector are “racial profiling, harassment, verbal abuse and abuse of power by law enforcement officials” (United Nations, 2022). As a result, advocacy should be aimed at creating new models in criminal justice that will ensure the protection of all minority groups and due process. As has been mentioned by the UN, “racial discrimination in law enforcement and the criminal justice system cannot be separated from systemic racism” (United Nations, 2022). Therefore, such a macro policy intervention should aim at holding those law enforcement officers responsible for the brutality.

Hence, despite efforts to end racism-related police violence, it still occurs and claims many lives. Criminal justice is the area of policy that deals with this kind of social injustice. Racial discrimination, harassment, emotional insults, and the misuse of authority by law enforcement authorities are among the significant issues that have an influence on this industry, according to the United Nations. Therefore, advocacy efforts should focus on developing new criminal justice models that would guarantee the protection of all minority groups and due process. The goal of such a macro-political intervention should be to hold violent law enforcement personnel accountable.

The Economist. (2020). In America protests have already brought policy changes . The Economist. Web.

United Nations. (2022). Addressing and responding to racial discrimination in the criminal justice system . UN. Web.

Valbuena, V., Howard, R., Bonner, S., & Dimick, J. (2020). Let us not be silent . Annals of Surgery , 272 (6), 915-916. Web.

• Pink Floyd’s “Dark Side of the Moon” Album Analysis
• How Parents of Color Transcend Nightmare of Racism
• Police Brutality: Is There a Solution?
• Race, Racism, and Dangers of Race Thinking
• Why Empathy in Racism Should Be Avoided
• How the Race Concept Has Changed Over Time
• Discrimination Against African-American Patients
• Racial Discrimination in High Education
• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

IvyPanda. (2024, January 19). Racism and History of Discrimination. https://ivypanda.com/essays/racism-and-history-of-discrimination/

"Racism and History of Discrimination." IvyPanda , 19 Jan. 2024, ivypanda.com/essays/racism-and-history-of-discrimination/.

IvyPanda . (2024) 'Racism and History of Discrimination'. 19 January.

IvyPanda . 2024. "Racism and History of Discrimination." January 19, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/racism-and-history-of-discrimination/.

1. IvyPanda . "Racism and History of Discrimination." January 19, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/racism-and-history-of-discrimination/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "Racism and History of Discrimination." January 19, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/racism-and-history-of-discrimination/.

Sample Essay on Racism and Discrimination, with Outline

Published by gudwriter on January 4, 2021 January 4, 2021

Sample Racism Research Paper Outline

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Although racism is assumed to be less grievous compared to other global issues, it has continuously lagged most communities behind as it exists in different societal spheres. Racial discrimination can be a hard topic to write essays on but seeking help with history from a venerated company will make things easier and will guarantee you a high quality paper that will get you good grades.

• Racial Discrimination in the Workplace
• Racial discrimination is a common phenomenon in the workplace.
• Here, it tends to portray itself in a variety of forms some of which can be overt or obvious. It can also be subtle and difficult to detect.
• A good example is a situation where an employer fails to promote a particular employee because they are of a specific race.
• Racial discrimination is not limited to insults but also involves violation of an employee’s dignity that creates an offensive environment.
• Any Federal and state laws condemn racial discrimination in the workplace.

Racial Discrimination in the Sports Industry

• Racial discrimination in sports is a prevalent problem all across the world.
• The group that suffers more in this category are African-Americans.
• In 2007, HREOC reported that racial abuse and vilification are a common thing when it comes to international sports.
• In 2017, research revealed that discrimination in sports rose from 31% in 2016 to 41% in 2017.

Racial Discrimination in Education

• The education sector is the most affected when it comes to racial discrimination.
• It has been reported that children of black origin receive heavy punishments compared to those of white origin even when they commit the same crime.
• According to Cokley, (2016) black children make at least 18% of pre-school enrollment.
• However, they represent 47% of students that receive one or more suspensions in their education cycle.

Racial Discrimination in the Criminal Justice System

• The United States is known to have the most significant number of incarcerated citizens compared to other developed nations.
• According to statistics on arrests, incarcerations, and prison population, blacks are disproportionately represented compared to any other people of color.

Undoubtedly, although racism is assumed to be less grievous compared to other global issues, it has continuously lagged most communities behind as it exists in different societal spheres. The existence of racial discrimination means that people are not productive as they ought to be, not active as they should receive a poor education, and sent to jail for the slightest crimes committed.

Essay about racism – Racism in our society -This topic offers a lot to write about. You can write about how racism is manifested in various spheres in society. You can document issues such as racism in employment, sports, education, politics, neighborhoods, and government. (3 pages) . Feel free to also read through a free research paper sample on racial profiling .

Essay on Racism. Racial Discrimination in Society

The world is continuously faced with different issues ranging from economic downturns, warfare, natural calamities, and many other problems. However, a problem that tends to bedevil many communities is the issue of racism. Racism refers to the act of discriminating or looking down upon an individual from a different race. It is based on the unfortunate idea that a particular race is more superior to another. Although racism is assumed to be less grievous compared to other global issues, it has continuously lagged most communities behind as it exists in different societal spheres.

Racial Discrimination at the Workplace

Racial discrimination is a common phenomenon in the workplace. Here, it tends to portray itself in a variety of forms some of which can be overt or obvious. However, it can also be subtle and difficult to detect. A good example is a situation where an employer fails to promote a particular employee because they are of a specific race. Sometimes, one might be denied a job because of his or her race despite having fulfilled all other requirements (Offermann et al., 2014). It is important to mention that racial discrimination is not limited to insults but also involves violation of an employee’s dignity that creates an offensive environment.

Federal and state laws condemn racial discrimination in the workplace. For instance, in the UK, the Equality Act of 2010 protects employees from any form of racial discrimination. In the U.S., the same case applies where legally, race encompasses color, ethnicity, national origin, and nationality. The U.S. protects its employees from racial discrimination through the Civil Rights Act of 1964: Title VII (Equal Employment Opportunities). The legislation is an important piece that continues to protect employees from any form of discrimination, especially during employment.

Racial harassment is a common form of racial discrimination in the workplace. For example, in a hypothetical situation, if Mohammed is working as a plant machine operator in a company and the manager keeps on questioning his dress code, appearance, and Islamic customs, the treatment can be termed racial discrimination. This would be so since Mohammed might feel that the workplace environment is hostile and intimidating. He may also feel that the boss is becoming intrusive and this might affect his performance in the long-run.

There is thus need to eliminate workplace discrimination given that a workplace that is devoid of discrimination serves to create an environment that is free of practical, psychological, and health consequences and/or costs of discrimination. It is an environment in which workers are not denied such important resources as promotion-related pay increases and neither do they have to suffer loss of employment. People working in such an environment are also less likely to report health or psychological problems associated with discrimination. The implication here is that these problems are real in workplaces where discrimination is rampant. Shi, Young and Bucher (2013) observe that “racial discrimination in the workplace positively predicts an increased number of physical health problems among Filipino Americans.” The scholars also note that African-American workers experience higher depression rates owing to “being the token minority member in the organization” (Shi, Young & Bucher, 2013). These people would regain their self-esteem if discrimination is eliminated.

Racial discrimination in sports is a prevalent problem across the entire world. The group that suffers more in this category are African-Americans. The group that is tasked with the responsibility of dealing with this problem is the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC). In 2007, HREOC reported that racial abuse and vilification are a common thing when it comes to international sports. Here, vilification refers to addressing someone in an abusive language.

In the modern times, racial discrimination in sports is still experienced. In 2017, research revealed that discrimination in sports rose from 31% in 2016 to 41% in 2017 (Lapchick, 2018). For instance, in May 2017, Adam Jones who is a Baltimore Orioles center fielder claimed that he was berated with racial slurs and that a bag of peanuts was thrown at him during a match. Other athletes also contended that the same happened to them including Draymond Green. Most of the times, sports fans tend to be the culprits of racial discrimination in sports through writings, actions, and speech. The affected sportspeople cannot play effectively and at their best when surrounded by a racial crowd.  

The education sector is probably the most affected when it comes to racial discrimination. Usually, children from certain races are considered inferior and not given the same resources as those considered from superior races. It has been reported that children of black origin receive heavy punishments compared to those of white origin even when they commit the same mistake at school. For instance, an African-American child could be suspended from school due to a violation of school regulations while a child of white origin could just be reprimanded for the same offense.

Statistics show that black children make at least 18% of pre-school enrollment. However, they represent 47% of students that receive one or more suspensions in their education cycle. Most of the times, misbehavior from African-American children are criminalized compared to other students (Cokley, 2016). The issue of suspension is essential to consider because it correlates to the number of blacks that get arrested and sent to jail.

The United States is known to have the highest number of incarcerated citizens compared to other developed nations. The people that are most affected are African-Americans who are subjected to different forms of racial discrimination. According to statistics on arrests, incarcerations, and prison population, blacks are disproportionately represented compared to any other people of color (Burch, 2015). These statistics might reinforce stereotypes that blacks are criminals, but they are in reality just victims of an extended system characterized by superiority and systematic discrimination.   Crucial criminal justice topics you can choose for your assignment.

Undoubtedly, although racism is assumed to be less grievous compared to other global issues, it has continuously lagged most communities behind as it exists in different societal spheres. It is widespread in the workplace, sports industry, education, and the criminal justice system. The existence of this vice means that people are not as productive as they ought to be, nor are they as active as they should. This is because they receive poor quality education and are sent to jail for the slightest crimes committed, for instance.

Burch, T. (2015). Skin color and the criminal justice system: beyond black‐white disparities in sentencing.  Journal of Empirical Legal Studies ,  12 (3), 395-420.

Cokley, K. O. (2016). “What it means to be black in the American educational system” . The Conversation . Retrieved June 18, 2020 from https://theconversation.com/what-it-means-to-be-black-in-the-american-educational-system-63576

Lapchick, R. (2018, January 12). “Racist acts in sports were on the rise in 2017” . Kwese . Retrieved June 18, 2020 from http://kwese.espn.com/espn/story/_/id/22041345/racism-continued-rear-ugly-head-sports-2017

Offermann, L. R., Basford, T. E., Graebner, R., Jaffer, S., De Graaf, S. B., & Kaminsky, S. E. (2014). See no evil: colorblindness and perceptions of subtle racial discrimination in the workplace. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology ,  20 (4), 499.

Shih, M., Young, M., & Bucher, A. (2013). “Working to reduce the effects of discrimination: identity management strategies in organizations.   American Psychologist , 68(3), 145-157.  

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After Affirmative Action Ban, They Rewrote College Essays With a Key Theme: Race

The Supreme Court’s ruling intended to remove the consideration of race during the admissions process. So students used their essays to highlight their racial background.

By Bernard Mokam

Bernard Mokam interviewed dozens of high school students, parents and counselors about preparing college applications in a new landscape.

Astrid Delgado first wrote her college application essay about a death in her family. Then she reshaped it around a Spanish book she read as a way to connect to her Dominican heritage.

Deshayne Curley wanted to leave his Indigenous background out of his essay. But he reworked it to focus on an heirloom necklace that reminded him of his home on the Navajo Reservation.

The first draft of Jyel Hollingsworth’s essay explored her love for chess. The final focused on the prejudice between her Korean and Black American families and the financial hardships she overcame.

All three students said they decided to rethink their essays to emphasize one key element: their racial identities. And they did so after the Supreme Court last year struck down affirmative action in college admissions, leaving essays the only place for applicants to directly indicate their racial and ethnic backgrounds.

High school students graduating this year worked on their college applications, due this month, in one of the most turbulent years in American education. Not only have they had to prepare them in the backdrop of the Israel-Hamas war — which sparked debates about free speech and antisemitism on college campuses, leading to the resignation of two Ivy League presidents — but they also had to wade through the new ban on race-conscious admissions.

“It has been a lot to take in,” said Keteyian Cade, a 17-year-old from St. Louis. “There is so much going on in the world right now.”

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The People Who Dismantled Affirmative Action Have a New Strategy to Crush Racial Justice

Last summer, in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard College , the Supreme Court’s conservative supermajority struck down race-conscious admission programs adopted by Harvard College and the University of North Carolina as violations of the 14 th Amendment’s equal protection clause. In doing so, the court’s conservative supermajority both ignored that the Framers of the 14 th Amendment were the originators of affirmative action and turned a blind eye to entrenched racial inequalities that make a mockery of the constitutional promise of equal citizenship. Now, Edward Blum, who was behind the attack on affirmative action in the SFFA case, and other conservative litigants intent on blocking racial justice efforts have a new strategy: remake the nation’s oldest federal civil rights law, the Civil Rights Act of 1866, into a weapon to challenge private efforts to ameliorate systemic racial discrimination and to redress the racial wealth gap.

Last week, in American Alliance for Equal Rights v. Fearless Fund Management , a divided panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11 th Circuit became the first federal court of appeals to place its imprimatur on Blum’s new tactic. In a 2–1 ruling, the court of appeals held that Fearless Fund’s grant program to provide capital funding to small businesses run by Black women violated a key federal civil rights statute that dates back to the Civil Rights Act of 1866. Known as Section 1981, this law guarantees the equal right to make and enforce contracts.

The court’s opinion, written by Judge Kevin Newsom and joined by Judge Robert Luck, both Donald Trump appointees, held that Fearless Fund’s privately financed effort to rectify the near-total exclusion of Black women from venture capital and ensure that women of color have access to the resources they need to enjoy economic freedom and succeed in business was an unlawful form of racial discrimination. Adopting a strict colorblind reading of Section 1981, Newsom insisted that permitting a grant program open only to Black women “would be anathema to the principles that underlie all antidiscrimination provisions” and preliminarily enjoined its operation.

Newsom’s majority opinion works hard to portray the result as compelled by settled legal principles, but make no mistake, Fearless Fund is a big deal: It perverts a landmark civil rights statute aimed at guaranteeing basic rights of economic citizenship to Black Americans and redressing the long shadow of enslavement, and it creates new barriers to efforts to ensure racial inclusion. Never mind that eradicating racial subordination and guaranteeing economic justice lie at the very core of Section 1981. The two Trump-appointed jurists in the majority effectively read these fundamental precepts out of the statute, holding that Black-owned companies cannot put their own private money into the work of redressing the racial wealth gap and helping to ensure the success of Black-owned companies. According to the court of appeals, Fearless Fund’s grant program must be available to white-owned businesses as well.

The colorblind reading of Section 1981 advanced by Newson’s majority opinion is profoundly antitextual. The Civil Rights Act of 1866 was intentionally written in a race-conscious manner. The act declares that citizens “of every race and color … shall have the same right … to make and enforce contracts, to sue, be parties, and give evidence, to inherit, purchase, lease, sell, hold, and convey real and personal property, and to full and equal benefit of all laws and proceedings for the security of person and property, as is enjoyed by white citizens.” Recognizing that enslaved Black Americans never had rights to contract and property—rights essential to equal citizenship—Congress used sweeping language to ensure that persons of “every race and color” would “enjoy” the same economic freedoms as “white citizens.” The statute is not aimed at the use or consideration of race at all; instead, it uses the rights of white citizens as a baseline to guarantee to Black Americans rights of economic citizenship that white citizens have long taken for granted. Newsom quotes the relevant statutory language, but pays the text lip service.

Congress chose this text for good reason: The Reconstruction-era Civil Rights Act was critical to enforcing the 13 th Amendment, eradicating badges of slavery and ensuring that Black Americans freed from bondage were entitled to basic economic rights and enjoyment of the fruits of their labor. It came in direct response to former enslavers seeking to impose new forms of servitude and reduce Black Americans to serfdom. With these new race-conscious protections, the Reconstruction-era Civil Rights Act’s Framers insisted, “all features of slavery which are oppressive in their character, which extinguish the rights of free citizens, and which unlawfully control their liberty shall be abolished and destroyed forever.” The Fearless Fund ruling perverts the statute’s roots in securing economic justice, even as it forbids Black-led businesses from using their own money to ameliorate systemic patterns of economic exclusion and inequality.

The Congress that enacted the Civil Rights Act of 1866 knew that private efforts were crucial to racial and economic uplift. One of the singular successes of Reconstruction was the creation of the nation’s first schools and colleges for Black Americans in the South , spurred by charitable giving by abolitionists and others who devoted significant resources to education in recognition that knowledge is power. In throwing up new roadblocks to the use of private money to redress racial and economic inequality, the Fearless Fund ruling is both deeply antitextual and antihistorical.

Fearless Fund will be far from the last word on the meaning of Section 1981. As other courts consider Ed Blum’s conservative effort to rewrite that critical act, they should remember that the Civil Rights Act of 1866 sought to redress continuing badges of enslavement and to make economic justice a reality. Reconstruction’s great constitutional transformations were race-conscious to the core. In passing statutes like the Civil Rights Act of 1866, Congress understood the need for far-reaching remedies to rectify centuries of racial enslavement, oppression, and violence and to ensure some measure of economic justice to Black Americans. Getting this history right is essential to exposing the glaring flaws in conservative rulings, like Fearless Fund , and to addressing the next wave of coming cases seeking to roll back racial justice efforts.