Race as a Myth - Essay Example

Race as a Myth Generally, people have a tendency to group themselves or discriminate others based on their appearance, background, and status. Perhaps these elements of discrimination affect the quality of life that people enjoy in various parts of the world. The most common form of discrimination is racism that ails many nations, the leading democracies not left behind. As far as racism is concerned, two major categories emerge namely the biological and social aspects of racism. From the onset, it would be appropriate to deduce that racism is principally a myth as emphasized by Jefferson Fish. This is because various medical practitioners and scientists have conducted a myriad of studies and unanimously concluded that race has no scientifically basis and is merely a myth propagated by the elite in their efforts to oppress their potential threats (Lauer and Lauer 347). Lauer and Lauer note that Biological race is the most prevalent form of racism where people humans are grouped into Caucasoid, mongoloid, Negroid races based on their physical appearances such as the color and textures of their skin, eyes, and hair (376). In essence, this is not true but a mere fallacy that is intended to create the impression that humans possessing certain physical outlooks are superior to their counterparts. Indeed, the developed states are the usual suspects of this form of colonialism with the black people falling victims in many occasions. This notion does not negate the fact that the black skinned people cannot be racists themselves. The acts of racism extend even to government institutes and authorities for instance during census, the bodies charged with the counting process group and present their data in form of color and skin. Another form of race classification is the social race that is concerns mainly with how people classified a particular group in the ancient times in addition to their cultural and religious backgrounds. The social race is undoubtedly one of the modern day discrimination, as people tend to look down upon those who do not conform to their standards or simply people who dot belong to certain status within the society. In all these tenets of classifying race, one myth that tends to impede the potential of many people is that no person can change their race, be it social or biological. This gimmick has been one of the tools employed by those fear competition, have some form of innate prejudice, or are discriminatory in nature. Perhaps the most outstanding myth is the classification of human intelligence according to the biological race an individual is perceived to belong. More often than not, this kind of myth has always worked in the favor of the light skinned especially the whites, who look up to themselves as being the superior beings courtesy of their physical appearance (Lauer and Lauer 388). While many people and states are reluctant to admit the reality, prevalence and gravity of race as a lifestyle in many societies, several elements of racism are evident in their deeds and speeches. Many people subconsciously inject some element of discrimination in their everyday activities with some under the cover while others are outright. Although humans have for many years, conceptualized racism as the discrimination based on color, recent developments prove that there is more than meets the eye as far as the aspect of race is concerned (Top Documentary Films “How Racist Are You?”). Over the years, humans have given the race aspect two categories, the myths behind them notwithstanding. The first and the most outstanding aspect of race is the one that heavily anchors on people’s natural appearance for instance the colors and textures of skin, eye, and hair. With this kind of racism come the major classifications that include the mongoloids, the Negros, and the Caucasoid. The good news about this myth is that it enables people to know which demographic group they belong to but the sad news associated with this myth is the fact that some elements in the classification especially the Caucasoid use this classification as a measure of intelligence. Racism, especially involving the whites and the African Americans, has been a raging problem more so in the US (Tattersall and DeSalle 56). It is a common phenomenon to see a white person discriminating against the blacks and this ailment has penetrated most government institutions where they perpetuate the myth that whites have better intelligence as compared to the blacks. In fact, scientists have refuted this myth by categorically stating that race has no scientific background. Furthermore, the genetic makeup of humans does not vary a great deal as beneath the skin is more or less the same body structure (Top Documentary Films “The Facade of the American Dream”). As seen, simulating any kind of racist regime with the objective of enlightening people on their negative aspects might not always work for the better. Race is a myth that exists only in the subconscious mind and if one tries to bring out the reality of racism, they might elicit varied opinions with some going for the positive side while some criticizing that the approach only fuels racism (Top Documentary Films “How Racist Are You?”). As many people believe, the whites are not always the perpetrators of racism because any person can have racist ideas and philosophies at various levels. Sometimes even the so-called Negroids keep racists ideas that may directly undermine their dignity as they also may look down upon themselves. A case in point is the African people, who due to continued regimes of apartheid have developed a sense of inferiority complex (Tattersall and DeSalle 42). This is actually a myth whereby the Africans and the world at large, perceive the African community as being of lower intelligent than their colored counterparts. This myth has had adverse effects on their victims in that it specifically threatens to derail the American dream. The initial dream favored by most Americans was to see a prosperous nation free of any racist culture and myths (Top Documentary Films “The Facade of the American Dream”) According to Maume, a number of aspects surface considering the fact that human social spheres are more diverse than any other aspect of human life. More often than not people tend to segregate based on one’s personality, political or religious affiliation, cultural backgrounds, and social status (538). These, when viewed from a rational point of view are just myths that are ingrained in the minds of human beings but in the actual sense, they do not exist. This means that all persons belong to the same race, the human race irrespective of their socio-cultural or political association. Most of the social aspects of race are merely human creation and they vary a great deal depending on the geographical location, political systems, and the prevailing economic circumstances. Due to these fluctuations that influence the social race, it is prudent to infer that the inconsistency encountered diminishes the authenticity or race as a realistic human factor to a mere human creation (Top Documentary Films “The Facade of the American Dream”). Tattersall and DeSalle state that the problem that has continued to ail the modern day America is the myth of race that has no scientific or religious background (28). The aggravating factor is the government institutions that follow suit in that, race, especially the biological race, plays a major role as far as allocation and distribution of national resources is concerned (Maume 538). The American dream has been torn apart because of both biological and social race issues, ideas that only exist in the minds of individuals but cannot pass the scientific test proven facts. The irony in the American race factor is that the African Americans worked for the whites in the ancient days as slaves and did not have any lesser intelligence in delivering their duties and if anything, they are the reason for the American success. Nevertheless, today racial discrimination against the African Americans is so rampant that even the schools brainwash the African American children to instill a sense of inferiority in them by the exceptionally low regard and superficial treatment that the African American children receive as compared to their white counterparts (Top Documentary Films “The Facade of the American Dream”). Although there are some deliberate efforts from some quarters to keep the fire racism ablaze, various institutions have countered this vice by equally strong efforts to negate the mental illusion that tends to classify human beings without tangible facts. The efforts have especially bore fruits in the sports sector especially the international soccer that embraces the talents of footballers not matter what their skin and eye color may look like or their socio-cultural background. The common victims have proved in the sports sector that no race is inferior to the other as we can perform given tasks in an equally efficient and intelligent manner, the race factor notwithstanding (Maume 546). From a personal point of view, I think that the racial factor is a mindset issue that most people especially the elite, have used to exploit the people they think could give them a run for their money. Since race has two facets that include the biological and the social aspects, the two clearly show that racial myths and beliefs are not consistent with time and place. This is because the myths vary a great deal depending on the backgrounds of the people in question meaning that there is not a single truthfulness in segregating humans based on the racial factor. The color of the skin is a physiological phenomenon that is distinct to anyone even in the whites who vary significantly in the tone of their skin. Using race as a yardstick to measure and individual’s intelligence level is not only misplaced but also is a sign of hate at the highest level. Several icons have come out and proved that amid speculations and illusions surrounding the racial factor, it remains a myth. One example of such people is Ben Carson who had to endure racial discrimination in the biological sense, but perseverance and hard work saw him cross the barrier to the so-called ‘intelligent world of the whites’. One noteworthy point is the fact not only the light-skinned are the perpetrators of racial discrimination and not all the black people are the victims. Some of the black people have been so much used to racial segregation that they embody it as part of their lives with some even looking down upon themselves. In fact, some of the perceived victims might be the sole perpetrators of racial issues by believing through what they have inculcated over the years that indeed superiority varies according to the race one belongs to or their social backgrounds and affiliations. In summary, race is the most prevalent dividing factor in the human race. More often than not, people discriminate against their victims by applying beliefs that do not exist in the real world but in the virtual world. For example, the difference in skin color or the language that one speaks does not result from any notable difference in their genetic makeup. As Jefferson Fish observed, race is actually a myth created by the elite to further their personal interests by taking advantage of the minority groups within the society. Either way, any ‘race’ can fall victim to discrimination and racial attack depending on the prevailing circumstances like geographical location and the domineering society in that particular region. This means that race is actually a mental illusion ingrained in our minds to react in certain ways when dealing with people from diverse backgrounds. Works Cited Lauer, Robert and Lauer, Jeanette. “Social Problems and the Quality of Life” (12th Ed), New York: McGraw-Hill. Maume, David J. Jr. "Whitewashing Race: The Myth of a Color-Blind Society." Contemporary Sociology 33.5 (2004): 537-9.ProQuest. Web. 5 July 2013. Tattersall, Ian, and Rob DeSalle. Race?: Debunking a Scientific Myth. College Station: Texas A & M University Press, 2011. Print. Top Documentary Films. “ The Facade of the American Dream.” Web. 26 June 2013. Top Documentary Films. “How Racist Are You?” Web. 5 July 2013. Read More