Race Perpetuates Racism
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Politics and Activism

Race Perpetuates Racism

Maybe affirmative action isn't the answer...

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Race Perpetuates Racism
nicolamarven.wordpress.com

Imagine this scenario: There is a African American man named Xavier. He goes to an inner-city school, aspires to go to college -- Harvard, in fact. His GPA is a solid 3.6, and he's even in the top 20 percent of his class.

On the other side of the table is a Caucasian named Luke. He goes to a suburban school, one with many resources. He also aspires to go to Harvard. His GPA is a stout 3.9, and he's within a few students of receiving Valedictorian honors.

One of these students is far more qualified, but because of his albeit more fortunate circumstances, is arguable a better student. I'll leave it to you to select that student. Yet, the first student will be accepted in Harvard in the interest of creating a more diverse campus. This is called affirmative action. And you may say that this is necessary because the African American has far less opportunity. And that may be true -- well, by secondary educational standards, it is true.

But I would say that this practice is a form of reverse racism. No longer is the system based on merit but more of a point system. The more you fall under minority status, the more likely you are to be accepted into college or receive a job. You are African American, a point. Also a woman, a point; and so on and so forth. This means that someone less qualified could receive the job. How is that fair?

And furthermore, in my opinion, it also perpetuates traditional racism because with this policy in place, you are essentially saying one thing: that minorities are incapable of earning a job on merit alone. With that in mind, which is the more racist ideology?

I propose that we eliminate the concept of race altogether. If we don't destroy the concept, it will always be used to differentiate individuals, and that will further perpetuate racism, something that all but the KKK want to terminate.

Yes, I agree that there is a problem with the education that minorities receive. And I don't think that they receive the same opportunity in terms of educational resources. But thinking that it's because of some anti-minority sentiment is a fallacy. See, when sharecropping was still in existence en masse and the African American community was largely rural based, it was the Jewish population that made up the main component of inner-city people.

They were the ones skilled in basketball, so even the belief that people of color are inherently better athletes is also a fallacy. It's all about the situation that individuals are put into. Athleticism remains the best and most popular way for those with a less prominent educational background to escape the inner city lifestyle. Always has and always will be, so it's not a matter of race. And the common belief that it is a matter of race only perpetuates the fact. Whether you think it is or isn't, you are right.

We are approaching our issues in the wrong way. If we want to allow for more diversity in the workplace, we need to be increasing our systems efficiency at producing a more productive individual. This isn't a race issue; yes, some people are pig-headed bigots, but this situation is instead a class issue. We are divided about race in our country. And movements like Black Lives Matter, or Jewish anti-sentiment only go to perpetuate racism. And if we can't forget our differences, then how can we unite for change. The first step in fixing a problem is recognizing that there is one in the first place.

"When Jews Dominated Professional Basketball - Sociological Images." Sociological Images When Jews Dominated Professional Basketball Comments. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Apr. 2016.

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