Racial Categories and Racism

Racial Categories and Racism

 Over the years, society has been comprised of people from different races. However, in the united states, racialization has attracted new races over the years, and this has been necessitated due to immigration into the United States. According to Vilna Bashi, racial categories matters in society due to the existence of racial hierarchies exist and matters¹. Racial categories have been viewed to emanate from outside the society set up and, in most cases, the race is usually accompanied by powers in the United States. For example, according to Vilna, a race with a minority is always considered not to have no powers to enjoy their rights. In the United States, the African-American, Hispanic and Arab makes the minor race hence not entitled to much powers¹. The existence of hierarchies necessitates having given the whites more powers are they are considered to be higher in hierarchies. However, the immigration of people into the United States have necessitated “self-construction” in the sense that they associate themselves to a certain group and create their own identity hence resulting in racial categorization¹. Furthermore, the racial categorization has proved to be paramount as it ensures that the new set of race is identified and given the desired attention which enables its to grow they are typically seemed to have less influence.

According to Coates, in the United States, the Police have failed in their duties of providing security and in turn, they have killed many people, and most of them do not get punishment². However, the reported cases indicate that the Police does not have control over their reaction and do not take time to access the suspect whether he or she is armed. For example, at one instant, a suspect was killed because he had a phone as he lifted his hand, and the Police thought it was a gun. Furthermore, according to the video by The Liberation News, there is evidence that the United States registers more killings by police years, statistics indicate that approximately 400-500 people are killed mistakenly by police yearly³. However, the statistics suggest that the majority of the killed people are African-Americans. The data provides that in every 24 hours, one African-American is killed mistakenly³.

Over the years, racism and capitalism have been more pronounced in the United States; however, it is worth to note that these vices have had a negative impact on the affected people and the overall development of United States. According to Dubois and Collins, racism has suppressed the potential of the blacks, and their emancipation led to the economic development of the United States as they contributed much to the economy. Furthermore, due to the burden of the race, the people of colour never had an opportunity to exercise their leadership which could have otherwise transformed the United States. During the slavery era, the people of colour were answerable to their masters who were majorly whites, and this made them suffer more, thus reducing their capabilities. The harsh conditions which racism subjects the people of colour makes them strive and, in some instances, their struggle goes beyond their strength as postulated by Dubois thus reducing their capabilities which could have otherwise be utilized in developing the United States. In the 20^th century, the colour-line prevented the people of colour from realizing their potential. Even after the emancipation, the blacks have remained to be excluded in some instances, thus declining their contributions to development in the United States.

References

1. Bashi V. Racial categories matter because racial hierarchies matter: a commentary. Ethn Racial Stud. 1998;21(5):959-968. doi:10.1080/014198798329748

2.Coates T. The Atlantic. The Paranoid Style of American Policing. 2015. https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/12/illegitimacy-and-american-policing/422094/. Accessed March 6, 2020.

3.Liberation News. No Justice No Peace: California’s Battle Against Police Brutality & Racist Violence.; 2013. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MSHuWFO1-MM. Accessed March 6, 2020.

4.Dubois W. The Souls of Black Folk. 2018.