African Americans and the Law - Research Paper Example

 African Americans and the Law Actually, USA is a plural society that is made up of people from diverse racial, ethnic and cultural diversities. The most notable social groups in the country are the whites and the blacks. Whereas each of these groups should be given equal treatment as citizens, there have been cases of discrimination in the country. For a very long time, the African-Americans have been subjected to discrimination mainly because of their black complexion. As the natives, the whites have assumed a superior role and taken advantage of any other immigrant groups mainly because they are minorities. Although several efforts have been made to promote equality, racism still remains a great challenge to the nation.
The discrimination of the African Americans began several centuries ago. As immigrants, they were initially deprived of nearly all rights since they were perceived as underprivileged human beings who should only b enslaved and mistreated. Hence, they could not enjoy rights such as voting, housing, education, assembly and speech because these were exclusively reserved for the whites. As time went by, several efforts were made through constitutional amendments to eliminate any form of racisms in the country. Even though the tireless efforts of the civil rights movements yielded some fruits, discrimination did not completely end. In fact, it still remains a menace up to the present times.
Inequality still persists in the country because of the skewness of the law. As it today, the US constitution does not entirely fight racism. The domination of the whites has greatly influenced the formulation and enforcement of policies and laws that are highly selective in nature. Whenever such legislations are made, focus is always put on the whites who still hold the view that they should be enjoying more privileges than their black counterparts. This has made it possible for the blacks to be mistreated in the country.
The ineffectiveness of the anti-racial laws and policies has been evidenced in many situations. It is what has promoted the discrimination of the African Americans across the country. Racial profiling still remains a major challenge in the fight against inequality between the whites and blacks. As much as the law might tend to be giving equal treatment to all the citizens regardless of their race, the truth is that the blacks have remained a target for the skewed police, and immigration policies. For example, apart from targeting more African-Americans in the traffic sports, they have been indiscriminately shot by white police officers.
Conclusion
In conclusion, racism still poses a major threat in the country. It is a dividing factor amongst the whites and blacks that needs to be fought. The war against racial discrimination should be fiercely fought by everyone. All the people, irrespective of their race, should come up to help in eradicating racism in the country. Meaning, both the whites and blacks should be enjoyed in the fight. The law makers should formulate legislations to stringently and effectively deal with racism in the country. Once such policies are implemented, equality would be achieved because it is not justified for the law to be selectively applied to different people in the country. Preferential treatment is not necessary since everyone should be equal before the law. Read More