Racism: Freedom of Speech or Discrimination?
Andrew Pulley
Mrs. Kriegbaum
American Literature
7 September 2010
Andrew Pulley
Mrs. Kriegbaum
American Literature
7 September 2010
Racism: Freedom of Speech or Discrimination?
The struggle to stop racism has been in effect for hundreds of years, but no matter what has been done it just can’t get out of the minds of people. Racism is in all things we do; it is in our vocabulary, in the form of stereotypes, and in the media. Many people say they are not racist, but assuming someone can do something because of their ethnicity is racial profiling. No person should have to suffer the injustice of racism, yet millions of people have to endure through it whether it is racial profiling, discrimination, or the hate given from supremacist groups around the world.
Racism has always been around ever since people and cultures met they were scared of people who looked and sounded different then they did. As civilization advanced the prejudice towards others only worsened. People began to feel like they were better than other people. One major example of this prejudice was the African slaves brought to America to work. The hardships forced upon these people lasted for centuries killing millions of innocent Africans. For In early southern states people fought for their right to have the slaves; some southerners even believed it was their right and Christian duty to civilize the Africans. The African race survives today but most of the indigenous peoples of the Americas were wiped out through disease, starvation, or war with the Europeans.
The Essay on Racism and Discrimination theme of TKAM
To Kill a Mockingbird written by Harper Lee is a Pulitzer Prize winning novel that offers a view of life through a young girl's eyes. This novel focuses on two main themes being racism and discrimination.Racism is undoubtedly the most prominent theme of the novel. It comes in an open and subtle manner that is displayed through speech and actions. The racism in Maycomb takes mainly the form of ...
Everyone knows that the United States of America has struggled with racial profiling, especially after the tragedy on September 11, 2001. Serious precautions have been taken since then, but the increase in security has led to the increase in racial profiling. Many members of the Sikh community and the Middle Eastern country are being falsely accused because of the way they look. (Shah) There were many violent outbreaks towards Indians, Muslims, and people who look Middle Eastern; including several attacks in Eastern countries killing innocents while trying to get revenge on the terrorists. (Shah)
There are many people and groups that support racism, such as the neo-Nazi. Neo-Nazi and other supremacist groups generally recruit children at young ages. On Hitler’s birthday in April of 1999 a killing spree took place by two kids in Columbine high school; the killing took the lives of many of their classmates. The targets of these children were students of different races. These two students were said to be involved with a Nazi supremacist group. (Shah) Another event that took place the same week was, nail bombs were planted in ethnic minority areas in London there were no deaths, but damage was done. A Nazi group claimed responsibility for the bombing. (Shah) Jesse Jackson once said, “Racism as a form of skin worship, and as a sickness and a pathological anxiety for America, is so great, until the poor whites, rather than fighting for jobs or education, fight to remain white. And therefore they cannot see an alliance with people that they feel to be inherently inferior.”
Many people support racial profiling and discrimination are just words. They believe freedom of speech gives them the right to say whatever they want. The consequences can be dire in some cases; because this freedom of speech turns into bombings and attacks on ethnic minorities. (Shah)
After living in Maryland for several years my mother Yvette Pulley unfortunately experienced racism first hand. She has had to deal with the hardships put on her for being Hispanic and married to a white man. One example was, she was singled out at a job she had and was taken aside by a co-worker there he began to tell her that my father and her were disgusting for mixing races and the thought of them breeding and bringing a child of mix blood was an abomination. The same man also had made many rude comments such as spic, beaner and wet back. Fortunately the man was let go from his position after she had brought this to her employer’s attention. While working in the same restaurant she had a man upset that it was Mexican food night he didn’t realize that the server waiting on him was Hispanic due to her light complexion. To protect herself and instead of making a scene she decided to say nothing and let the man make himself feel good by putting down her race. While they lived in Maryland there was a small town called Thurmont, in this town the KKK was a big part of the community. In Thurmont the KKK had many marches and it was on these days that she stayed home for safety. Many of the others found small burning crosses in there trucks. The ignorance of these communities astonished my parents and they were happy to move back to California where racism is alive yet a little more excepted.
The Essay on Racism People Races Prejudice
Mr. Man Your Class Your Teacher 4-06-01 Racism Have you ever been picked on or made fun of because your nationality is different from someone else's or the color of your skin? If so, then the person who did it was probably a racist person. Racism still exists within all cultures. Some people won't admit they " re a racist, but their actions and words prove otherwise. Most people won't directly ...
We as a community should not be judged by the color of our skin. Man has no right to look down upon others they believe are lesser individuals. People should have the freedom to stand for there right to be a part of our community. We should treat them the way we would want them to treat us. We shouldn’t be ignorant of others simply because of the color of their skin; until we have walked in there shoes, lived and experienced the lives and background of those we are judging. We may find that these races and people can share so much with us we can all learn and maybe we can find out that the ignorant one is not the one we are judging but instead it’s ourselves. People need to learn, “There is no race, but the Human race.” (Kivel)
Works Cited
Anup, Shah. “Racism Global Issues.” Global Issues : Social, Political, Economic and Environmental Issues That Affect Us All. 20 July 1998. Web. 06 Sept. 2010. .
Kivel, Paul. Uprooting Racism: How White People Can Work for Racial Justice. Gabriola Island, B.C.: New Society, 2002. Print.
Macmillian Social Science Library. “Racism.” Gale Opposing Viewpoints in Context. 2010. Web. 08 Sept. 2010. .
The Essay on View On Life Richard People Racism
"Come ova here and do yo work boy!"Did you address me with a sir boy?" This is something a racist white man or female might say to a young black boy in the South. How would one feel if they were treated differently just because of their race? Would it have immediate and long term effects on one's life? The two statements above are examples of how people talk to their labeled inferiors. In this ...
Pulley, Yvette M. “Racism.” Personal interview. 05 Sept. 2010
