Vang 1

Gwenaviere Vang
Yonamine
Senior Inquiry
May 23, 2016
Systemic Racism, A Silent and Deadly Killer
When a teacher, someone a student is supposed to put their trust into, does not attempt to
help disrupt an injustice- it can become disheartening to discover new biases they hold. It is hard
for others to come to term with the fact that racism is ongoing, the common rebuttals are, I am
not racist. I dont say derogatory words to people of color. Isnt racism something that
happened in the fifties? When the system is made to accommodate and to keep the dominant
group in power, it allows racism to grow systemically. When racism is not addressed as a present
day problem, it allows the ignorance to grow exponentially. When racism is viewed from an
individualistic viewpoint, it is a great disservice to the many people who have suffered from acts
of hatred and malice through systemic racism.
In much of societys mainstream media, who is often depicted as the hero and who is
often depicted as the villain? Who is often casted to play a historically African-American, AsianAmerican, or Polynesian character in movies, films, Broadway musicals, and etc..? A majority of
the women and men we see in fashion magazines, who are they? Society has molded the minds
of young children, teenagers, and adults to believe what beauty and masculinity looks like
through media. A majority of the time, people of color do not see models who represent them,
and in turn can adopt a twisted view of themselves as a person in this society.
The film industry chooses to cast white people because they believe that those actors and
actresses will appeal more to an international audience. The message that is then promoted is that
people of color are not good enough to be their own ethnicity. Each year that Chris Rock has
hosted The Oscars, he made sure to announce to the whole nation that The Oscars are racist.

Vang 2

However, he lost meaning in his words when he belittled what it meant to be a Civil Rights
activist. It makes one wonder, is this the effect of systemic racism? When an individual has the
platform to speak towards a good cause and then they just lose the focus. Shaun King, a writer
for the New York Daily News, explains that much of what Rock had said was distasteful,
uncomfortable, and just plain wrong.(King, Chris Rocks Opener Dropped the Ball..) It felt as if
he had to go back and consider the well-being of his career and through the process of that he
had to defend the actions of the Academy.
There is a misconception that racism is a thing of the past. It doesnt happen anymore;
more and more people are treating each other equally. Who are the people saying this? The
people who get to sleep with a good conscience at night. The people who dont have to worry
about the police stopping and frisking them. The people who dont have to tell their children how
to walk in public so they dont become targets of the corrupt justice system. These are nonracists and they do not contribute anything towards interrupting systemic racism. In fact, they are
contributing to systemic racism by viewing it through an individualistic lens and not a critical
eye. Saying that one is not racist does not stop racism from occurring. Saying that you dont call
a person of color a derogatory name doesnt mean that another bigot wont. Systemic racism
conquers by allowing people to believe that they are separate and individual when in reality
everyone is a part of a socialization. With individualistic views comes misconception of what it
means to be an ally.
On the night of November 20, 2014, Akai Gurley lost his life to the careless actions of an
NYPD officer, Peter Liang. One would think that Officer Liang would come forward to take
responsibility for his actions, but this was not the case. Officer Liang was initially convicted of
manslaughter and many members of the Chinese-American community in New York protested to

Vang 3

free Officer Liang. They labeled him as a scapegoat for all of the other police officers who were
not convicted for the killing of other young Black males. On April 19, 2016, Brooklyn Supreme
Court Justice, Danny Chun, sentenced Officer Liang to five years probation and 800 hours of
community service. This has caused tension and hostility between the African-American
community and the Chinese-American community. Annie Tan, a special education teacher in
Chicago and whom is the niece of Vincent Chin, writes, The anger and protests in support of
Officer Liang are misplaced...one tragedy, two victims does not apply here. (Peter was Justly
Convicted-Hes Not Victim). This was a response to when Officer Peter Liang was first
convicted of manslaughter. It is the people who have a voice like Annie Tams that are not heard
in the media. Instead the media chose to broadcast posts about the supporters of Officer Liang.
There is a group of Asian-American who stand in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter
Movement. There are Asian-Americans who feel that Officer Peter Liang was justly convicted
the first time around. However, in order for the dominant group to take control from the
minoritized groups they must create ways to separate them. If the groups are separated then there
is no way to disrupt the corrupt justice system that works against them.
To be in solidarity means to stand by and support a person, group, or cause and interrupt
all injustice. In order for the rest of society to fully support and stand against systemic racism,
they must acknowledge that racism is real and ongoing. They must be educated on the difference
between anti and non. Systemic racism isnt an issue that goes away overnight, but it can be
expelled from our society when every minoritized group and their allies work together to make a
statement.