The most powerful and richest country on the planet is still arguably the poorest in moral values and social and racial equality. It is suffering a shock to its democratic system.
The days when black people in the southern states of the United States of America (US) had to use special seats in the back of buses, go to separate drinking fountains and restaurants, their children forced to go to separate schools and churches and live lives segregated from white people, may be over, but the great civil rights movement and the march on Washington led by Martin Luther King Jr. in August 1963 did not end racism in the country.
The attitudes still persist and may be worse than ever. The new president, Joe Biden, has a mighty challenge ahead of him.
Racism has many facets and causes much hurt, suffering, anger, hatred and social unrest. It is when one group discriminates, oppresses and dominates another because of the colour of their skin—be it black, brown or olive—or facial features and ethnicity. It oppresses other segments of society because of their economic weakness, poverty and lack of opportunity
Racism is exclusion, it exists in the minds and hearts, beliefs and attitudes of a single dominating group that treats others as inferior, even less than fully human. Racism perpetuates itself wherever social, economic and cultural equality are absent. The dominant group denies others equal opportunity and education to rise out of poverty. It is a vicious circle of the oppressed.
Those that discriminate and reject people of colour as having equal rights are known as white supremacists. At the behest of former US president, Donald Trump, their champion, they invaded and briefly took over the US Capitol on 6 January 2021. They are not a minority and consider themselves racially superior to black or brown-skinned people.
Racism is exclusion, it exists in the minds and hearts, beliefs and attitudes of a single dominating group that treats others as inferior, even less than fully human. Racism perpetuates itself wherever social, economic and cultural equality are absent. The dominant group denies others equal opportunity and education to rise out of poverty. It is a vicious circle of the oppressed.
Institutional racism denies almost all opportunities to the people of different skin colour and they will always remain poor, disadvantaged and blamed because they are considered racially inferior.
In 1921, racial violence broke out. The community was attacked by jealous white supremacists. They bombed 35 city blocks, killed 300 black people, seriously injured 800 and 900 were made homeless while white supremacists looted and burnt everything to the ground.
When the Black American community did prosper and proved them wrong, they were annihilated by the white supremacist groups. This is what happened in the thriving, prosperous black community in Tulsa, Oklahoma, whose members were well off and owned property, banks and businesses and had a superior school system for higher education. Some rich families owned their own airplanes.
In 1921, racial violence broke out. The community was attacked by jealous white supremacists. They bombed 35 city blocks, killed 300 black people, seriously injured 800 and 900 were made homeless while white supremacists looted and burnt everything to the ground.
The dominant racist group need not be in the majority as was the case in apartheid South Africa where a small minority of white people of European descent ruled the nation and segregated the black majority. This was reversed by the anti-apartheid movement led by Nelson Mandela with the help of the international community that imposed sanctions.
In the Philippines, the indigenous people of different ethnic heritage and darker skin color, such as the Aeta or Manobo people, suffer from racial discrimination, slurs and bullying. Most of them remain in poverty. In Myanmar, the ethnic Rohingya have been so discriminated against that accusations of genocide are levelled against the Myanmese ruling class who forced them to flee their villages to Bangladesh where they make up the largest single refugee camp in the world.
Historically, Europe’s conquering nations colonialised the people of the world and robbed them of their wealth while millions of natives died and more were enslaved and impoverished like many of the native Americans today. Slavery became the basis of the colonialist’s economic prosperity.
As we celebrate the 500 years of Christianity in the Philippines. The Chaplaincy to Filipino Migrants organises an on-line talk every Tuesday at 9.00pm. You can join us at:
https://www.Facebook.com/CFM-Gifted-to-give-101039001847033
The native American population was corralled into reservations. Colonialists imported captured people from Africa to north and south America. In a period of 300 years, 13 million Africans were shipped across the Atlantic Ocean in slave ships built to purpose. The descendents of these slaves are the victims of institutional racism. It is this culture of exclusion, discrimination and racial bias that is the open wound in America today. While many white people support the rights and dignity of African-American people, many do not.
Nowhere else is racial inequality more apparent than in the relations of the black community with law enforcement. Poverty, inequality and lack of education of many young black people, who suffer from broken homes and dysfunctional families, drive them to join the drug culture. This is a source of income and escapism from the frustration, pain and hopelessness of high unemployment and uselessness of life.
Nowhere else is racial inequality more apparent than in the relations of the black community with law enforcement. Poverty, inequality and lack of education of many young black people, who suffer from broken homes and dysfunctional families, drive them to join the drug culture. This is a source of income and escapism from the frustration, pain and hopelessness of high unemployment and uselessness of life.
US law enforcement is predominantly white, male and a culture of racism prevails. Last July 2020, a research paper published in the proceeding of the National Academy of Sciences found that one black boy or man in every thousand is likely to be killed by police sometime in their lifetime and that black males are 2.5 times more likely to be victims of police shootings than white males. It found that the leading cause of death among young black men is police violence. Here are some shocking statistics from the survey.
One in 11 black adults are currently under correctional control (in prison or on parole/probation); one in 230 young black people are detained in juvenile facilities; one in three black families have zero or negative wealth; one in 2.5 black adults were unemployed or temporarily furloughed on April 2020; one in 2.5 black women will die within five years of diagnosis of endometrial cancer; one in 1,350 black Americans have died of Covid-19; one in 13 black Americans of voting age are disenfranchised;
Eight in 10 black adults with at least some college experience report having experienced racial discrimination.
It is this and much more, along with the killing of many black people by police, that has given the Black Lives Matter movement impetus to has grow and spread around the world. We can only hope that Joe Biden will do all he can to bring justice and equality to the lives of the 41.4 million African American community.
Father Shay Cullen
www.preda.org
