In his article “Racism without Racists?”, John Blake points to a number of studies that have shown people to be biased against minorities despite their (frequently honest) assurances that they are not. These studies, as well as commonsense, indicate that the widespread idea that racism has been vanquished is an artful fiction. This paper will briefly discuss the matter.
Bonilla-Silva means by “racism without racists” the idea that the root of racism does not lie in people’s overt pronouncements, or in explicitly racist nonverbal behavior—instead it lies in exploitative and disenfranchising institutions, policies, and attitudes. Therefore, racism can live, and even thrive, in a society in which overtly racist behavior is not tolerated. I agree with this view completely.
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"Racism without Racists".
There is a simple proof of the view. Blake points to the income disparity between Blacks and Whites. It is also the case that Blacks make up half of all prisoners in America, despite accounting for only around 15% of the total population. The proof of Bonilla-Silva’s view lies in these facts, together with the fact that: (1) Blacks are not less able workers, or less hardworking, than Whites; and (2) Blacks are not more likely to commit crimes (including violent crimes and drug-related crimes) than are Whites. This complex of facts is flatly inconsistent with the idea that the United States has put racism behind it.
It is a testament to the power of the racist ideas that Blake discusses that even he reveals his ignorance about race. First, he says early in the article that “Whites and racial minorities speak a different language when they talk about race”. This is very misleading, for it suggests that the matter is simply a normatively insignificant difference in practices. In fact, the idea that true racism must be explicitly avowed is simply a mistake. Hence, the way that the Whites Blake has in mind speak about race is not simply different; it is incorrect, as well as being tremendously harmful. Second, at the end of the article Blake suggests that everyone needs to look within themselves before forming their opinions about racially charged situations. This is again extremely misleading, suggesting as it does that Whites and Blacks are equally to blame for racism or racial bias. Blake’s language is itself an example of racism without the overt avowal of discrimination.
- Blake, J. (2014). The new threat: ‘Racism without racists. CNN, 27 November. Retrieved from https://www.cnn.com/
