Racial Discrimination

In a world with different skin, hair, noses, and just appearance in general, Racism is a big
part of it. People in every ethnic background make racist statements about each other,
such as blacks to white and Hispanics to blacks, so on and so forth. Racism is not even a
word; Human kind has invented this even though all these ethnic groups are from the
same species-Homo sapiens. This is a reasonable statement which the majority of the
world has not even stopped to consider. The word Racism started to make its first
manifestation in the early twentieth century but the idea that a certain group of people are
superiors than other has been around in the word for an extensive time.
In the beginning of the 1900s, certain US churches hung a piece of pine wood attached to
a comb on the entryway. Only those with skin that was lighter than the wood and with hair
that could be combed without a snag were welcome. The 19th century German professor,
Johan Friedrich Blumenbach maintained that Caucasians were the ideal race. A White
House official confirmed that President Obama indicated he was a Black/African
American when filling out the 2010 census. Official police numbers highlight the fact that
cops are most likely to stop and frisk dark-skinned Americans than white Americans. In
2007, researchers Joseph Price and Justin Wolfers claimed they found National
Basketball Association referees were more prone to determine fouls for ball players who
differed in race than themselves Federal statistics: 1 in 4 students report race
discrimination at school per year. A recent NY Times report cited bias in the jail system,
with black prisoners are 4 times as likely to be punished than white prisoners and more
likely to be disciplined with solitary confinement (and for longer durations) than their
white counterparts.US employment practices insurance claims oftentimes involve
discrimination lawsuits.
From 2013 to 2017, white patients in the US received better quality health care than
about 34% of Hispanic patients, 40% of Black patients, and 40% of Native American
patients. Black women are 3 to 4 times more likely to experience a pregnancy-related
death than white women, even at similar levels of income and educations on Black
Americans are more likely than white Americans to be arrested. Once arrested, they are
more likely to be convicted, and once convicted; they are more likely to experience
lengthy prison sentences. Black Americans and white Americans use drugs at similar
rates, but Black Americans are 6 times more likely to be arrested for it on average, Black
men in the US receive sentences that are 19.1% longer than those of white men convicted
for the same crimes. In the US, Black workers are less likely than white workers to be
employed in a job that is consistent with their level of education.
Why are people racist? “Why do people continue to be racist after so many articles,
videos and talks about how racism is dumb?” — Will, 15
“Why is racism even a thing anymore? Haven’t we moved past that?” — Ruby, 16
Ending racism is both our individual and collective task. Here, it is helpful to recall socio-
cultural anthropologist Franz Boas’ (anthropologist) ideas challenging Eurocentrism. He
argued that culture is not something absolute. There is no one size fits all, and culture
relates to its context. He pushed for a democratic understanding of culture and race,
respectful of differences so that no single group is considered as the jewel in the crown. At
an individual level, overcoming racist perspectives and stopping racist behaviors’ start
with changing our worldview. We should blur the concept of self and others and simply
treat everyone, whatever their skin color, equally. We can start by stop believing in white
supremacy and ending the vilification of dark skin.
Ethnicity is one of the keys to understanding Nigeria's pluralistic society. It distinguishes
groupings of peoples who for historical reasons have come to be seen as distinctive--by
themselves and others--on the basis of location origins and a series of other cultural
markers. Experience in the post independence period fostered a widespread belief that
modern ethnicity affects members' life chances. In Nigerian colloquial usage, these
collectivities were commonly called "tribes." In the emergent Nigerian national culture,
this topic was discussed widely as "tribalism," a morally reprehensible term whose
connotations were similar to American terms, such as "discrimination," "racism," or
"prejudice." Nigerian national policies have usually fostered tolerance and appreciation
for cultural differences, while trying at the same time to suppress unfair treatment based
on ethnic prejudice. This long-term campaign involved widespread support in educated
circles to replace the term "tribe" or "tribal" with the more universally applicable concept
of ethnicity. Nevertheless, older beliefs died slowly, and ethnic identities were still a vital
part of national life in 1990.

By now, we know what happened to George Floyd who died after a US police officer
kneeled on his neck. His tragic death has sparked worldwide protests against racism and
police violence. The protests have moved US lawmakers to introduce a bill to end
excessive use of force by police. In the UK and Belgium, statues of racist colonial figures
were removed. And films and TV shows that promote racism have been dropped. The
police killing of George Floyd as bystanders watched shows us how the US struggles with
racism. But structural racism is not exclusive to the US. Like the COVID-19 pandemic
we’re currently facing, racism is present in every nook and corner of this planet.
To solve this problem we should embrace our beauty, strength and identity. Take Good
care of ourselves and learn to cope with people. Stand up for ourselves. Strategize and
know the consequences before you act. Reach out and organize: Don’t do it alone.
People really are stronger, and safer, when they stand together. 

I believe as we must work together in combating COVID-19, we must also curb racism
globally.
Reference List: 
https://www.equalityhumanrights.com
https://www.journals.uchicago.edu
https://humanrights.gov.au
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
https://en.wikipedia.org
https://www.dosomething. org