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Steven Park

ESL5

Essay2

The Reality of Racism

Have you watched the news concerning the tragic death of George Floyd, or regarding

the “Black Lives Matter” protests? What are your thoughts about racism? Have you ever thought

about racism? The recent death of George Floyd, who was killed when a Minneapolis police

officer’s knee pinned him down to the ground during a questionable arrest, made explosive news

in the general media and on social networks, revealing the harsh reality of racism. It is time to

seriously think about and address the problem of racism. There are multiple factors contributing

to racism.

First, the polarized attitudes which exist amongst and between whites and people of color.

In the article “Colorblind”, Alex Kotlowitz explores the unsolved death of a young black man

which reveals that people clearly have different racial attitudes. Eric McGinnis, who was a black

teenager found dead in the St. Joseph river in southwestern Michigan, calls out the different

thoughts held by both the white and black communities. The white community believes that the

teenager accidentally drowned in the river, whereas the black community are convinced that the

teenager was most likely killed by white people, because he was dating a white girl at the time.

This incident clearly shows the realistic racial differences between the two major ethnic groups.

In his article, Mr. Kotlowitz states that “we became buried in our myths, certain of our truths-and

refuse to acknowledge what the historian Allan Nevins calls “the grains of stony reality

embedded in most legends” (137).

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Secondly, some people tend to see what they want to see rather than looking at the entire

picture. George Floyd died shortly after being apprehended by the police, which made headlines

for months and created a national movement (and the famous slogan) “Black Lives Matter.”

Floyd’s death has awakened the black and other minority communities’ voices, to be strongly

heard by the mainstream society. In the article “What We Know About the Death of George

Floyd in Minneapolis” by the New York times, the preliminary autopsy report stated that

“George Floyd’s death resulted from the combined effects of his underlying health condition and

the way the in which the police restrained him” (N.Y Times). However, the black community has

only raised their voice against the white community rather than rallying together to reform the

police and justice systems.

Thirdly, the myth about “reverse discrimination” creates more tension between the white

and black communities. In the article “The Myth of Reverse Racism”, written by Vann R.

Newkirk - a senior journalist and editor with “The Atlantic” magazine, Newkirk insists that

many Americans do perceive reverse racism to be a significant societal problem. The data

gathered from the 2016 Public Religion Research Institute poll, shows that 57% of all white

people, and 66% of the white working-class, believe that discrimination against white people is

as big a problem in America as is the discrimination against black people. Furthermore, other

studies show more white students believe they are victims of the “reverse racism system”,

denying them the ability to be admitted into colleges or get a job because of their white race.

This may require school committees to review the current system to ensure that everyone gets a

fair chance.
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Education is one solution to help address racism. In the Article “A future we can all live

with: How education can address and eradicate racism”, by Cecilia Barbieri, an American author,

Barbieri shows the global data on education points on the malignancy of racism. School

disciplinary policies disproportionately impact black students in which black children are 3.6

times more likely to receive out of school suspensions than white children, increasing to 4 times

as likely in grade s k-12, and more than twice as likely to face to school related arrests and

referred to law enforcement (US department office for Civil Rights, 2016).

Teacher’s expectations differ by students’ race. Many studies have found a correlation between

teachers’ expectations and students’ educational outcomes including academic achievement and

completion of higher education (Boser et al 2014). She says, “Education systems and educational

institution have an important role and responsibilities in address and eliminating racism”

(Barbieri). No one denies children is our future, educate our next generation to learn how to

embrace difference cultures and be open minded. Unfortunately, this critical change to our

society will not shift overnight. Racism in America has long history, an entrenched mindset that

has been living with us for hundreds of years, and it will take a lot of effort and time to reverse it.

The harsh truth is that racism has always existed and been a hot topic in the U.S.A. and

around the world, and nobody has a clear answer nor a solution to the problem. That being said,

there are well known options and approaches which would contribute in easing racial tensions,

such as educating our children to be more open minded, reform the current social systems that

were built in error, and proactively embrace each other as a unified community.
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Work cited:

The New York times: “What We Know About the Death of George Floyd in Minneapolis ”

https://www.nytimes.com/article/george-floyd.html

Samantha Vincenty: “Being "Color Blind" Doesn't Make You Not Racist—In Fact, It Can Mean

the Opposite”

https://www.oprahmag.com/life/relationships-love/a32824297/color-blind-myth-racism/

Cecilia Barbieri & Martha K. Ferede: ”A future we can all live with: How education can address

and eradicate racism”

https://en.unesco.org/futuresofeducation/ideas-lab/barbieri-ferede-education-eradicate-racism

Vann R. Newkirk:” The Myth of Reverse racism”

https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2017/08/myth-of-reverse-racism/535689/

Alex Kotlowitz: “Colorblind” The Writer’s Reponse”: Wardsworth 2010