There is No Such Thing as a Post-Racial Society
In American history class, teachers and books tried to close the race chapter on a high note, despite the ongoing systemic racism. The entire 400-year history of oppression, discrimination and segregation in America cannot be simply wrapped up and decorated with a “now we all are equal” bow.
We still remain vastly underrepresented in Congress, in the police force, in corporate leadership, at colleges and universities, in school curriculums and in the media, including newsrooms, TV shows and movies.
Also, we find it harder to gain employment, which is represented by the Black unemployment rate remaining approximately double the average for whites and the general population. In addition to this, Black people continue to encounter barriers to equal housing opportunities.
Let’s not mention the struggle against corporate dress codes, advertisements and even romantic partners with Eurocentric ideals of beauty, such as chemically straightened hair or close-cropped haircuts.
Today, Black men especially have to be worried about being targeted for incarceration or even taking a simple stroll down the street since a trip to the store could mean a deadly encounter with racial profiling.
Black People Are Punished for Being Themselves Around White Folks
Black people have to often racially code switch as a method of survival and getting ahead because our authentic expressions are seen as inferior to whites.
Research has shown that white people have preferences for people of color who have weak racial identity. As Cheryl Kaiser, a University of Washington assistant psychology professor who led a 2009 study on the topic, said: “Research has shown that the more minorities identify with their group, the more prejudice they report experiencing.”
She added, “Our studies provide an alternative explanation, by showing that whites react more negatively toward strongly identified minorities than weakly identified ones.”
