Racism and sexism are the unfortunate realities to exist in our society. Both of said institutions can shape the experiences of people, especially people of color. In order to speak more about this, it is best to define what racism and sexism is. Racism can be defined as the belief in the superiority of one race over another. On the other hand, sexism is the behavior, conditions, or attitudes that foster stereotypes of social roles based on gender. It comes as no surprise that both acts of racism and sexism often, if not always, results in the discrimination as well as prejudice towards people of different races, ethnicities, as well as gender. It has been theorized that racism and sexism are not fixed ideas, rather, they are social constructs
In America, a culture of sustained racism and sexism influences foreign policymakers, which results in colonialism and imperialism, the desecration of nations, and militancy. The authors of the articles, Michael L. Krenn and Laura McEnaney, with differing skill sets, provide evidence of racial and gendered bias in foreign policy. In “The Adaptable Power of Racism,” Krenn expertly examines the history of racism within foreign policy; how racism adapted in the face of religious and scientific challenges, and the overall effects of racist foreign policies.1 McEnaney, in “Gender Analysis and Foreign Relations,” provides a lackluster account of the application of gender analysis to foreign policy, specifically in relation to the policies of the Cold War and Spanish-American War.2 The history of racism and sexism in America provide a blueprint for foreign policymakers, where racist militancy and sexist excuses override basic human rights.
Racism is a serious social menace not only in the US, but also the world over, including Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. The situation has escalated to a new high, especially in this twenty-first century where technological advancements have necessitated mass and quick sharing of information (Nairn et al. 188). Indeed, social media elements like Facebook, Snap Chat, Twitter, Instagram, and What Sapp has been core in enhancing globalization and its effects, some of which affect and influence racial discrimination both directly and indirectly. As opposed to the views that racism is real and has gained momentum globally, the work of media has on the other hand chosen to report the manifesting cases on the extreme degrees, so that it appears as though the world has come to a halt because of such discriminations. At a critical approach, scholars have noted that media is a channel that creates awareness about racism, and hence could easily escalate the situation if a critical balance on the news and reports aired to the public are not balanced between estimates and practical occurrences (Baker and Rowe 443). While discussing the subject of racism and racial discrimination, it is not only essential to outline how the situation is apparently but also imperative to confirm that race relations are depicted to be really bad in today’s times but the media tries to persuade people to believe an exaggerated side of the situation.
These stereotypes are one of the factors that create discrimination, instituting the inferiority of one group under
In To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, Jem and Scout, the protagonists in the book, experience and learn about the problems of racism, sexism, and classism when their father, Atticus, agrees to defend Tom Robinson, an African American, in a trial. Set in the 1930s, most people were treated unfairly because of their race, gender, or social class. Even though problems about race, gender, and class decreased over time, these problems are still very prevalent today.
The last hundred years have brought the world many valuable things; computers, better sanitation conditions, understandings of diseases, vaccines, surgery, education, and so much more. But there are so many social constructs that have made little progress such as racism, sexism, and homophobia. In reality vaccines and sexism are manmade, a vaccine is a manmade invention and sexism is a manmade idea. Neither would exist without human beings backing the idea that they are necessary. Racism is “prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one’s own race is superior (Oxford Dictionary).” Racism over the last hundred years has been directed towards Blacks, Hispanics, and Asian’s. Looking at the past in relation to racism in the United States, reveals that racism is still alive and well in 2015 just as it was in 1915.
Racism is the belief that members of each race possess characteristics or abilities specific to another race to classify them as inferior or superior. Sexism is prejudice, stereotyping, or discrimination on the basis of sex, which is typically shown towards women. During the slave era, racism was not the only problem black women faced, they were confronted with sexism as well. Elise McDougald and Frances M. Beale are two activist women who shared their perspective on society’s view of black women.
Stereotypes refers to the features imposed upon individual groups which are conventional, formulaic and exaggerated regarding to their nationality, race and sexual alignment, among many others (Stuart Ewen & Elizabeth Ewen; 2006). These features tend to be over simplications of the groups involved. For instance, somebody who meets some few people from a certain country and finds them to be old fashioned and quit may spread to all the people from the country in question are reserved and quiet. A simplification like this doesn’t tolerate diversity among groups and may lead in stigmatization and wrong perception of the groups if the stereotypes associated to them are largely negative (Hilton &von, 1996). Even the so known as
In the Western Society, many individuals tend to believe certain characteristics based on people that are different from them: culturally, racially, or even religiously. This is known as stereotyping. Many individuals will generalize a certain characteristic of a person, stereotyping the individual. Whether it is a friend or a stranger, it comes naturally. For example, there are many stereotypes about how men and women should act. These stereotypes tend to generalize certain characteristics of men and women. For example, men are perceived as aggressive and dominant, and women are perceived as expressive and emotional. This is an example of gender roles. Numerous individuals will believe that people should act appropriately,
In our everyday life, we see some form of racism being portrayed in movies, tv shows, and media. For many of us, it is hard to distinguish and truly uncover the racism being portrayed. There are forms of racism that one can easily see, but it is hard to reveal full insight. For instance, in the film The Help, racism was portrayed because the women working as maids were African American whom worked to pay for their necessities. This film showed how women of color suffered double the hardship because of their race and sex. However, some white women were also discriminated by men and amongst each other. In addition, this could be traced back to the article Take a Closer Look: Racism in Women’s Lives, because it speaks of the different levels in which racism harms an entire society. Also, the article talks about the advantages/privileges that whites have. Although the article and the film are fairly similar, they also have some differences. The film portrays both racism and sexism, and the article focuses on how children’s upbringings develop racism, and how others resist racism. Both the article and the film interrelate with one another.
Racism and sexism are evils that have permeated our society from its inception. While measles came and went, candles morphed into lightbulbs, and 13 colonies transformed into 50 states, racism and sexism remained prevalent in American society. In Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, this frustrating reality is addressed. By illuminating the pervasive evil of racism and illustrating the ever-present patriarchy, Hurston highlights the exponential oppression and subjugation of black women in 20th century America.
Simply by incorporating the statistics associated with race and gender, stereotypes are avoidable yet fail to be eliminated. By resolving these stereotypes that label gender, and race, the world will be a better place, and
A stereotype is an inference that a person has certain traits that all members of the group have. It is a mindset that is based on assumptions. These structures affect how people process information and perceive others. The innate need for order leads humans to sort people into groups based on certain traits. This type of categorization is not only socially acceptable but encouraged as a way to simplify daily social interactions. While stereotyping reduces the amount of processing required during social interaction, it often leads to prejudice and misguided assumptions. Stereotypes can be based on numerous characteristics, including race, religious affiliation, and even gender. Gender stereotypes are especially prevalent and often used. Gender stereotyping includes automatically assigning certain attributes to a person based on their gender. This mentality has been prevalent in almost every era, including the 16th and 21st century. In both the 16th and 21st century, society has a huge impact on the individual by creating stereotypical gender roles and then applying pressure to conform to them.
A time I had to stand up for what I believe in, was during summer of 2016, I got into a heated discussion of how profiling someone verbally can lead to racism. That day I and my African American friend went to the convenience store. One of the customers shouted to the cashier in a disrespectful manner “oh look a thug and a cartel leader, make sure they pay bossman” and I quickly questioned him “ sir you don 't know our history.” He quickly interrupted me by saying “yes I do, your buddies parent 's are black. I 'm sure “coffee grinds” has been to juvenile for committing a crime. I had to protect my friend mostly because he 's shy and afraid to express his opinion around others. At that point it was obvious, the guy was racist. In this
Racial discrimination and sexism are types of discrimination. Racial discrimination is a notion that race is the first or most significant of human qualities and abilities and that racial differences produce a built-in (quality of being better than everything else) of a particular subspecies. Sexism is detrimental, pre-decided wicked opinions, behavior, conditions, or attitudes that help develop prejudiced mental pictures of social roles based on gender. There are multiple differences between racial discrimination and sexism. How should we understand the difference between racial discrimination and sexism?
Society has always retained deeply rooted stereotypes in all aspects of life. Whether it is prejudice due to color, creed, or gender, we cannot ignore the differential treatment of specific groups that occurs daily in our world. Although much has been done to alter our views on such matters, can we really suggest that society