The Civil Rights Act was made into law in 1964. Before that day, it was legal to treat people of color as thought they weren’t actually people at all. The United States – and most predominantly white nations – were founded on racism, genocide, mass-murder, and terrorism. Even with positive steps forward it is impossible to erase the past, and those bloody foundations still have a hold of culture today. Racism isn’t extinct; it exists, and in some places it even thrives. Racism effects the lives of people of color every day in their jobs, on the street, and more. In order to properly discuss and hopefully change these issues for the better, it is important to understand it and the terms involved. This includes understanding what racism itself is, prejudice, and institutionalized racism. Furthermore, this paper will be discussing how racism negatively impacts child welfare imbalance, as well as racism found in education, particularly when it comes to white-washing or erasing parts of history. These systems need to change in order to make life better for people of color throughout the nation.
Racism is discrimination against certain races or races that are perceived as inferior. In particular, this refers to white people being racist against people of color, Jewish people, and the like. Institutional racism is built of off this, as it is a system of inequality that is based on race. It can occur in government, in the hierarchy of jobs, in schools, and more. Racism exists as long as there is privilege in society; for example, white men are at the top of the privilege ladder. Because they do not have to face racism, they are given better access to jobs, paid more, and aren’t the victims of racial violence. For people of color, it affects every aspect of their lives, and knowing that there is a problem is the first step to trying to fix it.
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For example, when it comes to child welfare imbalance. This relates primarily to the foster care system. There is a disproportionate number of children of color in the foster system than white children. Often, these kids were taken from their homes and families in situations that white children would never have been. Furthermore, children of color are far less likely to be adopted than white children. According to Dorothy Roberts, author of Shattered Bonds: The Color of Child welfare, children of color make up 31% of the nation’s population of children, but actually account for 59% of the children in foster care, and a staggering 61% of kids waiting for adoption. She further adds: “National statistics show that 54 percent of all children are eventually reunited with a parent, but only 46 percent of Black children are reunited with their parents.” This is a horrific imbalance when it comes to child welfare, but it’s just the tip of the iceberg. Roberts also states: “For example, suspected abuse of African American children is reported more often, charges are more likely to be substantiated, Black children are less likely to receive mental health services in foster care, they have fewer visits with parents and siblings, their families receive fewer services, families have fewer contacts with caseworkers and parents’ rights are more likely to be terminated.” She notes that the factors involved in this exist both inside and outside of the system, but that race is a driving force behind it, and that it is a situation that needs to change drastically, in order to help all of those children. (Roberts, Dorothy).
When it comes to racism in education, it can be seen the most when it comes to teaching history. Or rather, the way that America’s school’s teach a highly edited form of history. It starts with early education. Kids are taught about Thanksgiving – how the pilgrims and the Native Americans became friends and had a big meal together. The truth is something far darker: that the Native Americans were slaughtered. Other parts of history suffer the same treatment. When kids learn about the founding fathers, they learn about how great and smart they were – but less attention is put on the fact that most of them owned slaves, and were quite racist themselves. Other important historical figures like Abraham Lincoln are celebrated as believers of equality, when in fact they were nothing of the sort. Then there are important historical figures like Beethoven were actually people of color, but have been reported as being white to the point where no one is taught their true race. This is a form of racism called erasure, and it is very prevalent in education. Learning about it is the only way that these lies in history can change, and then we can learn from those mistakes. Pretending that that history didn’t happen means that we are doomed to repeat that history, and doing that will only make things worse.
Racism is still a big part of society today. It can be found in the government, in the child welfare system, in education, and in our history. It continues to exist as long as people ignore the problem, and as long as we can face the facts of racism and work to change things, it is possible to learn from the past. As it is, it is a serious problem, one that has deadly consequences. However, with reform to the education system, to the child welfare system, and in the government, change for the better is possible.
- Roberts, Dorothy. “Racism at the Root of Racial Imbalance in Child Welfare”
