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Next month I am participating in the One
Hundred Thousand Poets for Change event. I took part in this event last year,
which had a great success around the world. There are many things I could write about for that
topic. I think I have found a topic to write about. But for now, there is a
topic that I would like to discuss now. It is relevant, and needs discussing. The
following writing has videos and photos to accompany the topic. Please read and
watch with an open mind and an open heart.
There is one topic on the mind of many
Americans right now; that topic is race. Earlier this year, the Supreme Court
of the U.S. repealed a voting rights act that was written into law in the
1960s. Many people fought and died for the right for all to vote, regardless of
color. The ruling from the Supreme Court was a huge step backwards in equal
rights in the U.S. The court ruled this way because the court feels that we
live in a “post-racist” society, meaning, in their minds, that racism does not
exist in anymore. As anyone can tell the court, racism does exist. It exists all
around the world.
To be clear, racism is defined as: the belief that all
members of each race possess characteristics or abilities specific to that
race, esp. so as to distinguish it as inferior or superior to another race or
races. (Google definition)
Fifty years ago, on August 28, 1963, there was a
march on Washington, made famous by the “I Have a Dream” speech by Martin
Luther King Jr. It was originally planned to be a march for jobs and freedom.
It became a march for equality, the defining moment
in the civil rights movement in the United States.
Today in Washington D.C., there is another march on Washington,
to commemorate the event fifty years ago. The U.S. has come a long way in those
fifty years. But we have a long way to go.
There are many other words
that accompany racism. One I learned recently, is called colorism. Colorism is defined
as:
a practice of discrimination by which those with lighter skin are treated more favorably than those with darker skin. (About.com definition)
a practice of discrimination by which those with lighter skin are treated more favorably than those with darker skin. (About.com definition)
I knew
that such discrimination existed; I learned of the existence of colorsim from
the controversial movie, “Imitation of Life”.
More recently, I watched a documentary called “Dark Girls”, which discusses
colorism. The documentary was fascinating to watch. I learned many things I
never knew before. I learned that colorism is found in the black culture, the
Latino culture, and other cultures around the world.
Another word that goes along with racism is the word bias. This word
can be defined as: cause to feel or show inclination or prejudice
for or against someone or something. (Google definition.) Biases border on the subconscious and
stereotypes based on things that are not true. They are often shown in ways we
are not always aware of. In a recent racial bias test from Harvard University,
70% of the white people who took the test had racial biases, and of black
people who took the test, 45% had racial biases. Here is the link to the test:
In a
recent advertisement on television, a family was shown, made up of a white
mother, a black father, and biracial child. Many adults protested the
commercial, for showing a family of mixed races. Many people just saw the
commercial, and did not notice the color of the actors. Interracial families
exist; they should be represented on television.
I have
heard people say, “living in an urban setting made me a racist” and say “that
is just how I was raised.” All of us have racial beliefs and biases, to some
extent, whether we are aware of them or not. This does not mean that we would
act violently towards someone of another race, or join the hate group down the
road. It does mean that we need to take a closer look at ourselves, what we
believe, and why. Children are not born hating one another, hating someone
different from them. Children have to be taught to hate.
Let me give
you a little background on my family. Here is a picture of myself…..
I am white. I was
adopted by an all-white family. My parents had three children; a few years
later my parents adopted a boy who is biracial. Then
another few years later I was born, and my parents adopted me.
Growing
up, our family lived on the east side of our street. Across the street from us,
on the west side of the street, lived a black family who had adopted a white
child. With this upbringing, I think I have a different view on race. I do not concentrate
on the color or ethnicity or race of a person-I concentrate on the person. I have heard insensitive jokes in the past, and blantant racially insensitive comments. I find it is best to take myself out of the situation when that happens.
I will not tolerate such comments from anyone.
I will not tolerate such comments from anyone.
Racism,
colorism, and biases are found the world over. For us to really
be in a “post-racist” society, we need to be able to be comfortable enough to
admit our biases and beliefs and talk about these things with one another, across
racial backgrounds, across misconceptions.
We are more alike
than we are different.
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