Racial discrimination in the United States - Essay Example

Running Head: Necessity of Affirmative Action Policies Racial Discrimination in the United s Abstract Discrimination is the treatment that is accorded to a person or a group on the basis of the status, category or class rather than the merit an individual or a group possesses. It is commonly based on prejudice and it can be based on the behavior promotion of an individual or group otherwise referred to as affirmative action or it can be a negative attitude directed towards an individual or a group otherwise referred to as redlining. Redlining is more common in discrimination and it has been practiced over long period of time from historical perspective and in the modern world, it has been practiced on various grounds such as employment and opportunity to various individuals and groups in the society (Leonard, 2007). Affirmative actions are the policies that undertake race, ethnicity and gender into consideration in the endeavor of ensuring equal opportunity is promoted in a society. It is mainly concerned with such aspects as education, employment and also such public contracting as the health programs. Affirmative action can be in two categories whereby one category addresses equality and eliminate any form of discrimination that is concerned with such issues institutional, overt and involuntary while the other category is focused on maximizing societal benefits and diversity on all levels in the society (Ward, 2006). In the United States, there is gross discrimination on racial grounds and the most discriminated against are the Non-White residents in the country. There have been debates that an affirmative action would be very instrumental in eliminating discrimination based on institutional, employment, educational and business opportunity in the country. Thesis Statement In the modern world, people are still discriminated against in such aspects as employments, education, institutional and business opportunities. Affirmative action is an important project to counter this discrimination. This is because the policy give well qualified people equal opportunities to other people and in a country like the United States of America where there is gross discrimination based on race, this policy will give a strong foundation for improvement in regards to racial discrimination in the United States. Racial Discrimination in the United States Since the colonial era in the United States one of the most prevalent issues in the country is racism. The whites who are considered to be the settler society are the dominating race in the country and this means that the other races which include the Blacks, Native Americans, Asian Americans, Latin Americans, Irish Americans and others are highly discriminated against. This discrimination is extended to such fields as employment, education, institutional and business opportunity in the country. The whites have enjoyed dominancy in these fields while the other races have been left in the periphery of the system. Although there was some improvements in the twentieth century when the government enacted laws which prohibited entities against racialism, race identities are still held very highly in the country and by prominent members of the society who control various mechanisms in the country (Hurst, 2000). Educational discrimination There is widespread education discrimination in the Untied States with the highest numbers of graduates from high school, college and university coming from the Whites. This shows that the educational opportunities in the country are favored towards the Whites while the other races are discriminated against. This is also furthered in that when the Whites get better education opportunities they also get better opportunities in life especially in this era of education opportunities. This means that the Whites have better opportunities to develop their lives while the other races are left to struggle with life (Williams, 1999). The table below shows the percentage of White graduates compared to the minority races as a combination of all other races apart from the Whites. Race Graduates Whites 56% Minority Races 44% Employment discrimination Most non-Whites people in the United States are discriminated in terms of employment. This can be expressed by the fact that the majority of the people who hold well paying jobs are the whites while the other races only consist of a very small percentage of the Blacks, Asian Americans, Latin Americans and other minority races in the country compromise of a small percentage of the well paid employees. The situation is so bad in some states that the Whites who hold the well paying jobs are more than all the other races combined. On the other hand many of the minority races in the country hold casual jobs and low paying jobs. It is also evident that many minority races in the country are unemployed while majority of the whites are employed in various sectors of the economy. This shows the limited opportunities that the other races are afforded in United States and how the Whites are favored for in the country (Ronald, 1993). The table below shows the employment rates in the United States based on racial grounds. Unemployment Rates Race Percentage (%) Whites 4.2 Hispanics 5.7 Blacks 8.4 Institutional discrimination The established structures and institutions in the United States have been discriminating as early as the 1790s. Institutional discrimination is concerned with the fact that some races are discriminated against by the societal institutions that are put in place and this are mostly concerned with the ruling authority or the government. Some of the institutions include the wealth creation mechanism in the country, immigration and the social services. The Whites have been favored by the system in the country in terms of institutions. One of the aspects that the minor races are discriminated against is the wealth creation whereby the Whites are offered many wealth creation opportunities while the other races are denied some of the opportunities. This can be evidenced by the fact that the majority of the rich people in the United States are the Whites while the poorest are the minor races. In the same respect, the immigration of the country has been very discriminating since the 1790s and Non-White races have difficulties in gaining citizenship in the country. In the social services the minor races are also discriminated against in such aspects as health provision and the provision of education (Richard, 2000). Business opportunities discrimination There is also discrimination in the country in relation to business opportunities and the Whites have dominated this field also. Many of the businesses in the country are owned by the Whites while many of the minority races do not have any self employment avenues. This can be attributed to the fact that the Whites have better access of the resources and also better support from the government than the minority races (Frum, 2000). The table below shows the number of business owners identified by race. The minority races are a combination of other races in the United States apart from the Whites. Business Owners Percentage Whites 81% Minority Races 19% Affirmative action in the United States In the United States affirmative action refers to any policies that incorporate age, gender, ethnicity and race into account where the issues of equality and equal opportunity are concerned. These policies are concerned with issues which range from public contracting goals, employment, the education outreach of all people and also the health programs. In the United States affirmative action is mainly concerned with racial discrimination in the country. In the same light the policies of affirmative action are also concerned with the encouragement of institutions to be more representative of the entire population and these institutions include educational institutions, health facilities and law enforcement institutions (Ronald, 1993). The affirmative action policies in the United States are mainly concerned with racial diversification in the offering of various opportunities in the country. As of now, the Whites have dominated the sharing of resources in the country and many people feel that there is no equitable resource sharing in the country and feel that the affirmative action policies should highlight this issue. Although the country has many avenues of discrimination which include age, sex, sexual orientation, religion and political ideology, the most prevalent form of discrimination is witnessed in racialism. Various institutions have failed in the equal representation of the population in various avenues of opportunities and this is especially true in education, employment, institutional and business opportunities. This has led to widespread calls for the formation of diversified institutions which are not directed towards the Whites in a large proportion and in so doing disregarding the minority races (Williams, 1999). In educational discrimination, the country is faced with inefficient policies that address the issue of racial discrimination in the education system of the country. This discrimination is felt from grade school to the university and many of the graduates from various institutions in the country are the Whites. This is an indication that the affirmative action should be concentrated in providing policies that encourage the education institution in the country to be cater for the entire population without segregation of the races. This means that every institution of education in the country should be encouraged to accommodate students from various races and not favor the White students only. In the present times this has not been achieved and this has led to the fact that the Whites are more educated than other races in the country. This means that it is necessary for more affirmative action policies to be enacted to avoid this discrimination (Ronald, 1993). In employment discrimination although there have been many policies that have been implemented in ensuring that employment opportunities are diversified over the races, this have not be satisfactory successful and there are calls for the implementation of more policies which will address this problem in the country. The highest percentages of people who are high income earners are the Whites while the highest percentages of low income earners are the minority races. There is need for policies to be implemented which address the high income earners employment to be more diversified over the races. This means that the policies already in place are not adequate enough and this have resulted in the current situation where there is widespread discrimination in employment areas. There is also the concern about the unemployment levels in the country and the most affected are the Non-Whites population in the United States. The highest percent of the unemployed people in the United States are the minority races and this has led to more calls of more policies which will encourage the employers to diversify over the races. As it is now, the minorities have difficulties accessing employment opportunities. This means that affirmative action should be directed to this area also (Williams, 1999). In institutional discrimination, the policies that have been put in place through affirmative action are not adequate and this can be witnessed by such cases of racial profiling. This has led to a situation whereby the public institutions have largely discriminated against the minority races. One of the most discriminating institutions is the law enforcement whereby the mete more suspicion and violence towards the minority races. The affirmative action policies should be directed towards the institutions reaching out to the people in a more racially acceptable manner and not favoring some races while discriminating against other races. There is also need for other institutions to reach the population in a more diverse way and this has not been realized in the modern times (Richard, 2000). In business opportunity discrimination, the affirmative action policies are instrumental in ensuring that the commercial sector of the country has a more diversified approach to the population of the country. However, this has not been satisfactory for some time now and this can be evidenced by the low percentage of minority race investors in the country. This means that the affirmative action policies should address the commercial sector outreach to all races. Some of the financial institutions like banks and insurance companies should be encouraged to offer their services to all races without discriminating policies (Hurst, 2000). Conclusion Although the discrimination rates have reduced over the past few decades in the United States of America, there are still many cases of this vice and this is one of the reason that affirmative action is necessary in the country. This means that the country still have room for more policies to be implemented and this does not mean that it is only on the racial grounds but on other grounds as well. Discrimination in the country is evident on grounds of gender, sexual orientation, religion and even political ideology. This means that the country still needs more affirmative action policies. Affirmative action policies are necessary for the country to completely eliminate discrimination from the picture. It is necessary to end all types of discrimination that can be found in various aspects like education, employment, institutions and opportunities and it will ensure that the country has high levels of equality in the distribution of opportunities and resources. References Frum, D. (2000). How We Got Here: The '70s. New York, New York: Basic Books. p.242 - 244 Hurst, C. (2000)Social Inequality: Forms, Causes, and Consequences. Ed. 374-377. Leonard, Karen, (2007). University of California, Irvine. Western Knight Center. "American Muslims:South Asian Contributions to the Mix." 2005. July 28. Richard Griswold del Castillo, (2000)"The Los Angeles "Zoot Suit Riots" Revisited: Mexican and Latin American Perspectives," Mexican Studies/Estudios Mexicanos, Vol. 16, No. 2. pp. 367-391. Ronald Takaki, (1993) A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America (New York: Little, Brown & Co), 277-283. Ward Churchill, (2006). Kill the Indian, Save the Man.Pp. 212 - 218 Williams DR (1999). "Race, socioeconomic status, and health. The added effects of racism and discrimination". Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci. 896: 173-88. Read More