Race and the Filipinos Community - Research Paper Example

Race and my Community Introduction: I live in an urban society with a large number of the population being African American. Other communities like Hispanics, Asians and whites also live with us. I am a Filipino female who experiences little discrimination within this community. People cooperate with one another and stand by each other in needful times. The various organizations present here include The Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), which operates in 26 states and works in multiple issues for the betterment of the ethnic groups. As per the population of America, the blacks constitute about 41.1 million populations which is roughly 13.5% of the population, while the state of Mississippi has the highest percentage of blacks in America, Asians make up 5% of the population and are one of the fastest growing ethnic groups in America. We the Filipinos belong to the Asian community of the ethnic group staying in America (African American by numbers, ND) Resemblances and differences: Since the people of other communities and race live with us so they resemble us in our way of life style, work places, place of worship etc. However, we have distinct ways of food habits, clothing sense and our looks are different. Complexion and languages are also different, as many of us have migrated from various parts of the world. Various organizations have come up so that people who are not whites do not suffer from any types of malnutrition, diseases, justice, education and basic healthcare. As per the information from National Institute of Mental Health, many communities are underserved by nation’s mental health care system. It has been found out that out of every three African-American & ethnic group person who needs medical help, only one receives it. They are also more likely to stop treatment and less likely to go for follow-ups. This is happening despite the recent effort to improve health services. Also another interesting finding is health research has been based on Caucasian and European groups and the ethnic groups were never incorporated. Culturally competent health care systems are important to improve utilization of service and curing of these diseases. One major difference, which can be found between different ethnic groups, is that the African American people have a different approach while dealing with diseases. They have been the most oppressed community for decades and withstood slavery for long. So when any of their members in their community needs medical help they prefer to go to their community, church, friends and less of scientific medical help is sought.  Also the tendency of substance abuse is less commonly found in African Americans compared to the general population of America, however the deaths caused by alcohol abuse and drug abuse is more easily found in this group. (American Psychiatric Association, N.D.) Perception about ethnic groups: In a survey it has been found while interviewing seventeen African-American & ethnic students and nineteen American white students that there is huge racial gap and communication barrier between the whites and nonwhites. Interview findings revealed that there lay strong intra-racial ties and weak interracial ties. This also serves as an opportunity in higher education to remove this barrier and intentionally breakdown the racial discomfort that exists between different groups. If this goes unchecked then the hatred against each other and the communication barrier may be extended to the larger society as well. McGhee (1983) summarized the heart of the issue: “Racism is the great leveler [sic]. For no matter how wealthy blacks become or how much they contribute to their community or how strong their character, the reality is that they are still black and perceived by many as inferior, and no amount of individual education or income can overcome that fact….If and when race and racial discrimination are no longer perceived by blacks to be a major problem, then we may begin to see genuine and deep divisions within the black community similar to those within other ethnic and racial groups. Until then, however, race will continue to be the tie that binds”. (McGhee, 1983, pp. 33-34) Outlook of the society: Many races have been under constant threat that they are not treated fairly by the police department and justice is not meted out to them. A survey pointed out that people in black dominated city had more faith in police where black police were a majority than a city where black police were a minority. (Weitzer, Tuch & Skogan, 2008, p.398) The key findings show that the people of the ethnic groups particularly the blacks believe that the city police is more likely to stop them and abuse them compared to that of whites. African Americans also viewed the police as more corrupt than the white Americans. Also it has been found that ethnic groups like the Asians also receive similar treatment. The problems faced by Filipinos include that majority of the Americans cannot distinguish between Filipinos and Indonesians. Also they see everybody as foreigners. Although statistics show that almost 50% of the Asians have been living in America for generations, but because of their skin color and ethnic looks they are the victims of racism at times. (Persistent Stereotypes about Asian Americans, N.D.) Historically Filipinos trying were coming to America for their livelihood and to get rid of their oppression of political regime. However of late Absconder Apprehension initiative was passed in US as an anti-terrorist measure and a large number of Filipinos were deported. This was an unfair act from the US because they branded US as a country where Al Qaeda was active. This is true only for a certain island in Philippines, out of 7100 island. This is really surprising and disgusting as Philippines was among the very first of the states to support the anti-terrorist war, but that did not stop the racial profiling, selective deportation and interrogation. It has been brought to notice that after 9/11 many Filipino air-screeners were laid off and not hired simply because they were not US citizens, in-spite of having years of experience. (Persistent Stereotypes about Asian Americans, N.D.)  It has been found out that a large number of people of our African-American community can be found in jails. While some people say it is primarily because of racism in nation’s criminal system while others argue that black people like us commit more crimes. It needs to be understood several other factors like poverty, illiteracy; family structure goes a long way to explain why more number of black people can be found in jails. (Roberts, 2006, p. xiii) The leaders of today’s generation are trying to bring more unanimity between all ethnic groups and whites. Racial discrimination is discouraged. Marriages between whites and blacks are also taking place today. Marriage is an important phase of our live and marks the beginning of the new transition. Having children also an important phase of our lives. Nearly 42% of the African American people have said they have children at home compared to only 17 % of Americans (Weitzer, Tuch & Skogan, 2009, p.417) Also the anti establishment sentiments were found more in a black community which was economically backward compared to a middle class black community.  Government policies: The policies of the government, which are meant for uplifting the socially backward African-American like Affirmative action, have raised eyebrows in many quarters. Affirmative action was started to promote diversity and remedy inequities in work place. It has been used as a tool to get government jobs, university admissions and obviously to fight discrimination. It has been under criticism because the law penalizes the white males for the “sins of the past” (Affirmative action for African Latino and Asian Americans, N.D.). We have more faith and trust towards people from our race and origin than the white Americans  Media: The media too paints a rosy picture of the American white as compared to us, the African Americans. This can be better understood from the fact that in the book by Prof. Dennis Rome points out that the media poisons the general perception about the African American men by stereotyping them with negative attributes, thus bolstering the primitive idea of fear that White Americans have for black Americans. He points out that all the heinous crimes and reality crime shows tend to give the criminals a black/ethnic face, whereas statistics point otherwise. It says more number of white people use cocaine in America than any other groups. In his book called Black Demon he points out that even to this day the dominant society has employed and still employs this type of ideas to paint a picture that we are second-class citizens. This is even more surprising because almost half the people convicted in court of laws happens to be Hispanics and African-Americans where they only constitute 13% of the population. (Mass media and African-American criminal male stereotype, 2004) Similarly, one of the radio personalities in America had ridiculed the Filipinos a few days ago, which had angered a lot of people like us. He had ridiculed us saying we are “illiterate” and “praying to chicken bones”. He actually ridiculed us for being poor and in an extremely poor country like ours sex trade has become a norm as there are a very few opportunities to get rid out of the clutches of poverty. This has drawn sharp criticism from various people like us. Way back in 1992 one more radio personality Howard Stern had made a similar remark that it is a country where fathers engage their daughters in sex trade. The sad news is that in-spite of making significant contributions in US economy for the past 100 years we have not been represented in mainstream media. So much so hugely popular shows like Desperate Housewives take a public jab at Filipino culture. (Ellorin, 2010)  Leaders: Within our community we do not discriminate on grounds of race amongst us. Therefore the leaders also generate in us the spirit of being an American. I sometimes feel it is a blessing to live in a mixed community where we live with the common culture of Americans rather than feeling cut off from the rest of the crowd and reveling within our distinct boundary only. Our local community leaders treat us equally as much as possible and with compassion. Thinking at the national level, the government tried to address of social equality through a plethora of steps and the results are quite evident today. In 1968 the dropout rate in schools used to be as high as 70% among African Americans & other ethnic groups, today the rate has come down to 20%. The increase in college goers from the community has increased to more than 300%. The wage parity between us and the Whites have increased significantly. Economic development has taken place among us with those people who are economically strong. Ever since we have got the voting rights, we have more number of our representatives in our parliament. Hence our problems get more attention and focus. In the recent events in our country the election of Barrack Obama as the president of our country will go a long way to remove the misconceptions many people have about the capabilities of an African American. These days lot of people from the other race knows each other as a close friend. In recent past many golfers and athletes of African American origin have brought fame and glory to our country. This has helped to change an idea that we are not stereotyped racially but admired for our skills and expertise. Residential segregation exists even to this day even after the passing of Fair Housing Act in 1968.This is because the black buyers are offered far fewer homes as options than comparable, qualified whites. The Hispanics and the lower income group of African American face an economic problem of poor wages and hence they find it difficult to collect assets and get out of the poverty cycle. (Race and Ethnic policy issues, 2008)  Many people like us who has been adversely affected by recession feels that an African American president would do more for us, but we have been disappointed. The President has clearly said that he would work for the betterment of whole of America and not just the blacks. He will work for especially for those sections of the society who are weak and vulnerable. Statistics reveal that in the recession the blacks & other migrant laborers like Filipinos were hit most severely, however the president prefers to see it as national problem rather than problem, which is restricted to only the blacks/ethnic groups. However as the Congress passed the $18 billion job bill, the president Mr. Barrack Obama is of the opinion that it is the blacks and ethnic groups who will benefit most. (Nelson, 2010)  Resolving inequalities: Some of the problems, which are plaguing the non-American society consisting of all ethnic groups, are that a large number of people from this community are not receiving proper medical attention in-spite of the government doing their best. A step in this direction would be to rope in the primary schools for this mission. The kids should be made to understand that medical attention is extremely important and they in turn would propagate this idea to their family members. Also the church can play an instrumental role in this program where they will also make the people understand the need of medical supervision. This will go a long way in changing the attitude of the people as they place lot of importance on what the church says. Special interaction sessions between the schools, church and medical teams can be arranged which will help to dispel more information and will prove to be effective.  Conclusion: Subsequent governmental bodies in US have accomplished a lot of improvement in the last five centuries. However a lot remains to be done. A lot many of people from the ethnic groups still feel that they are second-class citizens and injustice is done to them. Steps need to be taken which can ensure proper education & healthcare system. The burning problem of recession and unemployment needs to be tackled first by the government. Social enhancement programs needs to be given better impetus to improve the standard of life.                      References 1. “African American by numbers” (2009) retrieved on September 13,2010 from : http://www.infoplease.com/spot/bhmcensus1.html#axzz0zOEbns3R 2. American Psychiatric Association (N.D.), “African Americans”, retrieved on September 13, 2010 from: http://www.healthyminds.org/More-Info-For/African-Americans.aspx 3. “Affirmative action for African Latino and Asian Americans”, (N.D.) retrieved on September 13, 2010 from: http://www.ethnicmajority.com/affirmative_action.htm 4. Ellorin B (2010), “Filipino group demands apology from racist radio host”, Workers World, retrieved on September 14,2010 from: http://www.workers.org/2010/us/racist_radio_host_0415/ 5. “Mass media and African-American criminal male stereotype”, (2004), retrieved on September 13, 2010 from: http://newsinfo.iu.edu/news/page/normal/1580.html 6. Nelson S., (2010), “Black Americans must step up to challenge racial inequities” The Washington Post, retrieved on September 13, 2010 from: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/19/AR2010031902815.html 7. “Persistent Stereotypes about Asian Americans”(N.D.) retrieved on September 14,2010 from: http://www.asian-nation.org/ 8. “Race and Ethnic policy issues”, (2008), retrieved on September 13, 2010 from: http://www.newsbatch.com/race.htm 9. Roberts K. (2006), African American Issues, Greenwood Publishing group 10. Weitzer R; Tuch S. & Skogan W, (2009) Police community relations in a majority black city, London, SAGE Read More