Conversation Of The Week XXX: The Various Forms Of Racism

Searching for literature review sources, the complexity of understanding racism in our modern day society can’t be overstated. Terminology angst filled me. What I thought would be a simple search for a working definition of racism turned into an exploration of the intricacies of such a negatively powerful and emotive term.

After reading a few journal articles, I wanted to recheck my understanding of the term, racism. Looking for a very basic definition, I pulled out my college version of the Webster’s dictionary. I searched for a simple “traditional” meaning. Racism was defined as a teaching or a doctrine, without scientific basis, that claims there is difference in racial character, intelligence, etc., asserting the superiority of one race over another or others. Ironically, traditional racism itself was a term encountered next in my readings (p.1106). Traditional racism was defined as racism that occurred before the Civil War. In traditional racism, discrimination was openly displayed and stereotypical. The Klu Klux Klan and other white supremacist organizations fall under this definition. Continuing in my exploration, in defining racism, I found overt racism. This form of racism is publically displayed, with no attempt to conceal it. Overt racism and traditional racism appear to be very similar in definition. Both forms involve public displays of racism. Subtle racism was defined as racism not openly direct; it is not obvious, not easily detected.

I have encountered different forms of racism in reading through Helen Fox’s, When Race Breaks Out. Modern or “symbolic” racism was a term used in the 1980’s. In modern racism, traditional Protestant ethics are seen to be superior over any other cultural and/or moral values. People of color are often seen as lazy and not having strong work ethics, to explain their lack of financial resources (Fox, 2009, p.48). Some members of the dominant social group declare they are not racist, yet harbor racist feelings and beliefs about people of color. The term for this form of racism is aversive racism (Fox, 2009, p.49).

My next step in my exploration of racism was to search the Internet. Racism is only a computer key away in our nation and abroad. The Internet is the harbinger of “cyber racism.” Now, a person can express racist views and access racist websites within microseconds. At the touch of a finger, racist points of view and opinions can spread throughout our world – uniting racists and promoting racism against already disenfranchised people. On the Internet, I found there are 1,018 hate groups, including 221 Klu Klux Klan organizations in the United States. Visit www.splcenter.org/hatemap for additional information about these organizations representing hate and racism.

What initially started as a journey into finding a simple definition of racism, ended with a dilemma of definitions. The fact that there are so many different forms of racism only lead to my realization of just how pervasive racism is in our nation. Racism appears to be everywhere within our society and expressed in different manners. The final outcome of my curious exploration was that racism is a very complex reality in our nation. Racism, in all of its facets and definitions, has a historical and social structural basis. No one definition of racism can stand alone completely. No one form of racism can be understood without knowledge of the many other forms of racism that exist. As complex as our society is, so are the various ways racism infiltrates our daily lives. We only need to look on the Internet or on the television to see incidents of overt racism occurring on a daily basis. Racism is often perpetuated in our social institutions, such as schools, courts, and government. An example of racism in our educational system is multicultural education being removed from Arizona schools. Racism being perpetuated in our social institutions is an indicator that racism is a systemic issue. The defining features of all these definitions include a dominant group having feelings of superiority (often unconscious), greater access to resources, and having a social structure in place to promote and reinforce inequities. Are there other forms of racism I have missed? I invite fellow students to blog about other forms of racism they have encountered.

Sources:

Fox, H. (2009). When Race Breaks Out: Conversations about Race and Racism in College Classrooms. New York, New York: Peter Lang Publishing, Inc.

Nuefeldt, V. and David B. Guralink (Eds.) (1988). Webster’s New World Dictionary of American English, Third College Edition. New York, New York: Simon & Schuster’s, Inc.

Author Bio: Margot is currently Sociology graduate student at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs (UCCS). Additionally, she is working on obtaining a teaching certificate. She earned her Bachelor's degree at UCCS in Anthropology; graduating Magna Cum Laude. Through the University of Pittsburgh, she attended Semester - at - Sea, visiting 10 different nations For seven years, working as a caseworker, she assessed child abuse and neglect. She is a mother of two and grandmother of four grandchildren, who was born in Lake Charles, Louisiana. She is a first generation Cuban, and her goal is to teach introductory sociology courses at the college level.