Grant Jones
Well Informed Post: Racism 3.0
There are certain “taboos” that have developed in America. As a nation, we do not talk about certain things about our history, and often, things that are currently happening are either hushed or left in the past. Or, our media stokes the fires of controversy and leaves any sort of progress our nation has taken in ashes. As the generations have been looking for answers on the internet, these taboos have not only been dissolved, but streamlined into soundbites. The history books are left on the shelves as the true histories of America are exposed via interviews with historians and independent individuals who want to shed light on the nation’s dark past and present. Racism in America is a taboo to most middle to upper middle class citizens who would like to see our nation as a beacon to the world, however, our nation is far from reaching any sort of integration.
Matthew Cooke is one of many people who are trying to ignore the taboo of just how serious and current racism is in America. In Matthew’s video, How to Race Bait, he explains America’s cast system. Mixing income and race has been a justifiable cause to keep a dominance over the minorities and poor in this country. Racial and social dominance has not been eradicated, but refined. Our legal system and free market enterprise together suppress the cultures that helped build up their very foundations. Our government officials will grant us our freedoms as long as they don’t interfere with political and corporate agendas. The majority of the citizens of America would like to think our racial issues are long behind us. However, as Matthew quotes, 30% of Americans are minorities, yet this percentage makes up 60% of the prison population. According to Burnie Saunders, 1 in 3 black men are likely to face jail time, and while in jail, are stripped of their right to vote. Looking further, neighborhoods, roadways, and cities are all designed with segregation in mind. To quote an article published by the BBC, “ If zero is a measure for perfect integration and 100 is complete segregation, analysis from Brookings showed most of the country's largest metropolitan areas have segregation levels of between 50 to 70.” Education wise, lower income areas and higher income areas have their own school zones. The zoning segregation of residential and schools have further widened the gap for kids to experience interaction in environments where color and income should never matter.
The segregation does not stop in zoning for housing. As far as free enterprise goes, a study from the PMC explained that Maryland, North Carolina, Mississippi, and Minnesota and reported a higher prevalence of fast-food restaurants among low-income neighborhoods. As we all know by now, fast food has lead to heart disease and obesity, along with many other health problems. The availability of fresh foods such as vegetables and fruits are hard to find in lower income areas. The segregation and oppression are encouraged in government, law enforcement, and commercial business. The media would like to frame caucasians as victims of reverse racism, but if I grew up in these conditions, I would not be a big fan of whoever was setting my life up to be many times harder right out of the gate. Ask yourself if you would rather grow up with unsafe streets, poor food quality, and poor quality education compared to those white folks who can afford it. Even with so many inspirational leaders of color, the trends of racial oppression are so tightly knit in our everyday lives, that it must be a continuous dialogue in our social media feeds and in face to face conversations. Racism, in order to be obstructed, must not be a taboo any longer.
