August 28, 2013 marked the 50th anniversary of the Great March on Washington and notably, Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” speech. This momentous occasion calls upon deep societal reflection. There is no doubt we, as a humans and civilians, have made remarkable progress in abolishing racialized institutions, in the negative sanctions of racist ideology and in preaching a culture of equality for the individual. However, these democratic slogans blind us from the very issue we so strongly fought against.
Ideologically, North Americans and most developed nations are considered to be post-racial societies. This meaning that there lacks institutions that are fundamentally racist or discriminate certain peoples upon the foundation of race. Unfortunately, this is inherently incorrect and the perpetuating demographics of minorities in the trap of poverty are evidence of that.
Several reasons exist as to why this issue is so important. Some of these reasons are founded upon neo-liberal ideas of race that are in fact poisonous to civil progress:
Racism will disappear if we do not talk about race
Firstly, it is imperative that one clearly distinguishes the difference between racism and race. Race is a falsely contrived social institution founded in favour of colonialist agendas and still has repercussions for every identifier of a race. Racism is the act of discrimination based upon this institution. Secondly, race still needs to be talked about. There are discrepancies in government-run institutions and cultural perceptions that perpetuate racism. Moreover, these discrepancies have real consequence for those discriminated against. This is an intrinsic element of the post-racist society. However, post-racist ideas are not taught in the education system nor preached by parents. Post-racist ideas are a product of a lack of discourse, discussion and confrontation of the continuation of racism itself.
Reverse racism is the new racism
Reverse racism, defined as discrimination against the majority. This is often colloquially implied as racism against white people. This idea is fundamentally untrue as well. White people, or the majority, benefit from racist institutions due to the curtailing of rights and liberties of minorities There exists no institution that systematically infringes upon the rights of white people based on their race. However, this is not to say white people do not face discrimination; a homosexual white female faces injustice and intolerance, but this is based upon her sexuality and not the colour of her skin.
Illusion of white guilt as a signifier of social progress
Many a times, the illness of white guilt, due to remorse of benefitting from white privilege, plagues many liberal-minded Caucasians. Be that as it may, white guilt is a deterrent to progress toward racial equality, it masks the methodical discrimination that the minority faces on a daily basis and decreases it to a feeling. Consequently, this is how the majority perceives racism and deals with it. This feeling does not provide any solution to social justice and perpetuates an inconclusive and stigmatic culture surrounding racial problems. More productive terminology may be white responsibility or democratic duty; instead these inefficient terms continue to be used, reused and popularized.
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WRITTEN BY AILISHA MACHARIA
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