The Prevalent Issue of Racism
Racism, as the name suggests, is a belief that different races possess distinct characteristics, abilities or qualities, especially so to distinguish and entitle them as superior or inferior.
Racism is based upon the various stereotypes passed down to a particular caste or class by their ancestors, which often leads to poor opinions about other classes leading to large amounts of differentiation between each other. Adding to that, fighting against racism is a struggle, a long struggle that has been going on for a long time. Unfortunately it has not ended yet even though many laws and rules have been made.
The damage racism has cost people is unimaginable. Whether it was the Apartheid in South Africa or The Slave Trade between Europe, North America and Africa.
Racism can emerge in many forms;
Disconnection from society
Oppression of Minority
Suppression of a minor Religion
Taking the case of South Africa, the black people were discriminated against and suppressed for almost 50 years. They lived in slums, had poor facilities, and were often provided with the worst in the scenario.
Nelson Mandela along with the black population struggled to find independence from this uncertainty. This has rightly arisen a sense of unity between people of South Africa and that of the world.
Another example can be that of Rosa Parks. Rosa Parks was an American activist who once sat on a seat marked for the whites, when she was asked to get up she simply refused which led to the Montgomery Bus Boycott Movement where more than 50,000 blacks protested against the racial whites. From many horrific experiences and incidences, many movements such as Me-too Movement, #BlackLivesMatter started coming into prominence.
Whether it be murder of Breonna Taylor or the murder of George Floyd. The amount of racism which is faced by blacks is unaccountable.
Barbara Smith, an american critic, is one of the main feminine figures to fight racism. She formed the movement Black Feminism, which depicted “ Black women are inherently valuable, that liberation is a necessity not as an adjunct to somebody else's but because of our need as human persons for autonomy.” She fought for her life, dignity and finally earned her respect amongst society.
However, these facts and this knowledge about the past is something most of us possess, and acknowledge.
To be a bit more specific, I would like to talk about the problem of racism in India:
In India, racism is one of the most common problems. People are discriminated against and suppressed based on their religions. Some places are so holy that a person of another religion is not even permitted to enter. Racism also takes place with foreigners who come to India.
Additionally, according to reports published by the World Values Survey, 43.5 % of people don’t want a person of different creed as a neighbor. The point I am trying to convey here can be proven by the recent attacks on African Students in India, which has been marked as a highly sensitive subject. According to many reports, India has been marked 2nd in the list of racial intolerance. As much as we decline it, Racism is a cruel reality in India.
By
Kabir Singh Ahuja