Is racism still an issue?

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Growing up, I admit, I did not think racism was still as much of an issue in today’s society as it is in reality. Often, up north where I went to school, the teachers framed the concept of racism as a thing of the past. It was typically just referred to as an issue between whites and blacks. So, while I was young, I never opened my eyes to truly see the many dimensions of racism. However, as I grew up, I began to understand the definition of racism and saw examples throughout society. So, while reading Beverly Daniel Tatum’s book, Why Do All The Black Kids Sit Together?, I appreciated the fact that she began the book by defining racism. She explained that it could not be defined simply through prejudice since prejudice is a preconceived judgment. Rather, racism is a system of advantages that involves beliefs and actions of individuals, as well as the structure of and institutions within our society. Racism is based on race and culture. Dr. Tatum said “In my view, reserving the term racist only for behaviors committed by whites in the context of a white-dominated society is a way of acknowledging the ever present power differential afforded whites by the culture and institutions that make up the system of advantage and continue to reinforce notions of white superiority.”

Dr. Tatum’s underlying premise of her book deals with the fact that many people hesitate when it comes to speaking to children about racism. This tends to be because of an underlying fear that they will create problems or even make “colorblind” children more conscious of these racial differences. From simply my personal experiences with our education system, I have found that none of my teachers until college truly addressed the issue. When I moved to North Carolina my eyes were opened to an even greater extent. I found that there is much more racism and at local events people’s unfiltered comments never cease to shock me. Where my family owns property now is in a rural part of North Carolina and here, because of a lack of education, I have found that too many people are racist. For instance, when we moved here we were even warned by neighbors not to go certain places because there were regular KKK meetings. However, I realize that this is not even the extent to which racism occurs. The KKK meetings are an easy example of racism to point out, but there is racism that occurs in the work place, and many other areas of society. The next thing Dr. Tatum discussed in this week’s reading was the concept of identity. Often when we think about identity we think of what sets us apart from others. She explains that dominant groups hold the power, yet they do not really understand the experience of those in the subordinate groups. On the other hand, the subordinate groups are very well informed about those in the dominant groups. The aspect that seems to be lacking in all of this is awareness. People feel guilty when they realize they are having a negative impact on the lives of others for the most part. So, when it comes to racism I think we can relate Appiah’s idea that conversation helps people recognize differences. It seems that what is lacking is an understanding of the experience. In an educational environment, starting as early as preschool, children begin to notice their differences. However, conversation among children and their elders, such as parents and teachers, will help create an understanding. Dr. Tatum explains that often adolescents of color are more likely to explore their racial identity. Regardless, though, all children explore their identity in many dimensions, including, but not limited to, politics, values, religious beliefs, educational plans, and even gender roles.

When Dr. Tatum presented the question in the book title “why do all the Black students sit together in the cafeteria? She explained that there are five stages to racial identity development. These were: pre-encounter, encounter, immersion/ emersion, internalization, and internalization-commitment. During these phases, people will experience numerous emotions ranging from anger to apathy. This entire concept was very easy for me to rationalize and understand. Basically, what I understood to be her point was that those students sat together to create an oppositional stance away from all that was “white”. When doing this, they are operating based on stereotypes. However, every individual does not go through all of these stages. As we all know, everyone is different and their coping skills differ as well.

Since I don’t have enough time to discuss the entire book, I am going to jump to the ending, which I really liked. Dr. Tatum seemed to give a prescription for people to give them a sense of what they can do to make a difference. She, like Appiah (in Cosmopolitanism), things meaningful, productive dialogue will be most helpful. Deep conversations will help to raise consciousness and hopefully will eventually lead to social change. People tend to be silent because they are afraid. They are afraid they are naïve or offensive. Racism can hold us back and prevent growth and development of society. It also can alienate us.

                I think this would have been helpful for me as a child. Eventually, I came to an understanding of what racism is and how prevalent it is even today. However, I look at the children at I Have a Dream and now especially after reading this book I can’t help but wonder about their understanding of racism and what they are taught both at home and at school. From what I have experienced, the children do not judge one another based on appearance or ethnicity. However, I do wonder what goes on within the classroom and simply outside of I Have a Dream in general. I hope that as I experience more during my weekly volunteering I will come to a better understanding.