Examples of Racial Groups - Term Paper Example

Introduction: Racialism refers to emphasis on race for purposes of determining the kind of relations an individual will have with the person of the different race. Examples of racial groups include African-Americans, the Hispanics, and the Indians. Members of a racial group use ethnic symbols as a method of identification, since this helps in creating a distinction between them, and other racial groups. These badges can either be their style of dressing, language and religion (Flax, 36). Biological characteristic such as the color of their skin is also an important indicator of a racial group. Take for instance, the African Americans, badge of identity is their black skin color. However, this characteristic does not fully identify members of a particular race because of the notion of inter-marriage. For instance, there is a high rate of inter-marriages amongst members of different races such as blacks, and whites, and this interferes with their genetic characteristics. On this basis therefore, race is a societal issue, and can compose of people who have a share dialect, and experience. In America for instance, race explains why people of African descent were forced to work as slaves, deny them some of their rights and basic freedom (Flax, 51). The federal government for instance, enacted some legislation to deny African American some benefits that citizens of the Union had. Take an example of the naturalization act, which came into existence in 1790. The aim of this law was to deny people of African descent the citizenship status of America. Other racial laws include, the national origins act of 1924, and the Chinese exclusion act of 1882 (Flax, 32). The national origins act was meant to regulate the number of immigrant coming into the United States of America. The target of the law was the Jews, the Eastern and Western Europeans, the Indians and Asians. On this basis therefore, we can argue that other racial groups were also a target of the American government, and people. Despite these aspects, African Americans are the people who suffered most under the policies of the Federal government. This is due to slavery and other discriminative tendencies from the white people and the government. Racism still continues to dominate the American social life and Bell Hook agrees with this notion. Hook (23) observes that racialism is even on the minds of the educated white people. She denotes that in a cultural conference she attended, there were arrangements denoting the supremacy of the white men (Hook, 33). This was depicted on the people who were invited to talk in the conference; and the different manner in which the organizers of the meeting handled white and black speakers. This was a clear indication of people who came from a white race, looking down upon people of different races, and this attitude instilled fear in her. Therefore, this paper analyzes how African Americans suffered from racialism in United States of America. It starts by analyzing the impact of slavery upon African-Americans, the human rights movement that advocated for an equal opportunity, and the various laws that the Federal government enacted to solve the problem of racialism in United States of America. The conclusion of this paper is a summary of the major points found in it. African American Experiences with Racialism: African Americans began their stay in United States of America as slaves for purposes of supporting an economic system that did not benefit them in whatever circumstances. This is because they did not enjoy the benefits of a naturalized citizen. The naturalization act of 1790 prevented anybody who was not a white person from gaining citizenship, by naturalization. Due to their status as slaves, African Americans could not vote, could not hold any political or administrative office, could not serve on a jury, or could not own any property. Slaves were not allowed to speak before their master, or before a congregation of white people. Bell Hooks denotes, in one of her quotes denotes that Sojourner Truth, a female slave was heckled by white women in 1852, in Akron, Ohio. Her intention was to speak on the problems that African American women were passing through. Bell Hooks further denotes that Sojourner Truth was a proof that women could do the same jobs that men did, and therefore they were equals (Hooks, 22). During the American civil war, General Sherman played a great role in liberating slaves from their white masters. To prevent them from joining the rebels, the general initiated a policy where by each slave would receive some 40 acres of land, plus a mule. However, the Federal government under President Andrew Johnson refused to implement this plan. In their views, it was unacceptable for people of African descent to own property in United States of America. The thirteenth amendment of the American constitution outlawed slavery in 1865. However, African Americans were still unable to adequately enjoy the resources that the federal and state governments had. This is because of the introduction of the Jim Crow laws. The Southern confederacy states used these laws as a basis of advocating for separate resources for African Americans. In other words, African Americans were not to share any facilities with their white counterparts (Kiuchi, 41). The resources enjoyed by the African Americans were inferior to the resources enjoyed by the white Americans. This ranged from the schools the African Americans could attend, the health care services they could access, and the economic activities that African Americans could engage in. There were different restrooms that were to serve African Americans and the White Americans. The transportation system was also segregated, with White Americans having their own transport system, same as the African Americans. The housing system was also segregated, with different housing units, serving the whites, and the African Americans. On most occasions, resources allocated to white people were of a higher quality as compared to resources allocated to African Americans. The effect of these laws on African Americans was great, and this is because they had no choice to make, in relation to the social and economic resources available for their use. This was an example of oppression based on racism. Hooks (23) denotes that having no choices to make is an example of oppression. The Wagner act of 1935 was a continuation of the institutionalization of racialism by the federal government. This act made it possible for white workers to ascend into the middle class social strata through the power of collective bargaining at their work place. However, it made it possible for the unions to exclude African-Americans from accessing better paid jobs, and health care benefits. These experiences by African Americans shaped their agitations for equality during the periods of 1950s (Kiuchi, 27). This is the time that the civil rights movements emerged in United States of America to advocate for equality amongst all Citizens of United States of America. The catalyst for the emergence of the movement was the refusal by Rosa Parks to give her sit to a white man, in a bus. Following this action, Martin Luther King led a boycott on the Montgomery bus station. In 1964, the United States legislature allowed the introduction of the 1964 Civil rights act, and the 1965 voting rights act. These laws were able to undermine the Jim Crow laws, and gave African Americans some rights such as the right to vote, and equal access of resources within the State. Hooks (17) denotes that sometimes personal experiences might force people not to achieve their visions, and it is therefore important to cast them aside. She further goes on to say that controlling some resources might make people not to achieve what they intend to do, on this note therefore, it is important to cast them aside. The federal government realized that the Jim Crow laws were causing disintegration within the country, and to protect the unity of the Union, it was important to discard such laws. Conclusion: In conclusion, slavery has had a negative impact on the social lives of African Americans. Due to slavery, these people suffered social stigma, and they became poor. The policies of the various Federal governments did not help their cause either. This paper Has managed to highlight these points clearly. For instance, this paper identifies the Sherman policies of 40acres of land, plus a mule to every freed slave, but was later overturned by the Federal government who chose to compensate the white slave owners instead. This paper has also manged to identify the various laws that discriminated African Americans, and this includes the Wagner act of 1935, and the Jim Crow laws. On this note, this paper manages to identify the various elements of the Jim Crow laws, that were discriminatory in nature, and that led to the emergence of the civil rights movements to campaign for equality of rights amongst all citizens of United States of America. Works Cited: Flax, Jane. Resonances of slavery in race/gender relations shadow at the heart of American politics. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2010. Print. Hooks, Bell. Where we stand: class matters. New York: Routledge, 2000. Print. Kiuchi, Yuya. Struggles for equal voice: the history of African American media democracy. State University of New York Press: Albany, 2012. Print. Read More