Racism
Theories of Racism
Types of Racism
DEFINING RACE
There is no single concept of race. Rather, race is a complex concept, best viewed for
social science purposes as a subjective social construct based on observed or ascribed
characteristics that have acquired socially significant meaning. In the United States,
ways in which different populations think about their own and others’ racial status have
changed over time in response to changing patterns of immigration, changing social and
economic situations, and changing societal norms and government policies. In the late
nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, for example, some European Americans, such
as Italians and Eastern European Jews, were regarded as distinct racial groups.
Although these distinctions are no longer sanctioned by the U.S. government, some
segments of the population may still act in ways that are consistent with such
distinctions. For certain populations and in some situations, race may be difficult to
define consistently; for example, many Hispanics consider themselves to be part of a
distinct racial group, but many others hold no such perception. Because concepts of
race and ethnicity are not clearly defined for many Hispanics and because of the
discrimination they have faced, we include Hispanics, along with specific racial groups,
in our discussion of racial discrimination. The ambiguity involved in defining race has
implications for how data on race are collected. The official federal government
standards for data on race and ethnicity currently identify five major racial groups (black
or African American, American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Native Hawaiian or other
Pacific Islander, and white) and one ethnic group (Hispanic) that may be of any race.
These categories are used by federal program and statistical agencies to collect data
through self-reports (preferably) or by assigning individuals to one or more categories.
The federal racial categories have changed over time, in part reflecting the changing
conception of race in the United States. The government standards are not always
consistent with scholarly concepts of race or with concepts held by individuals and
groups; as a result, it may be difficult to obtain data on race and ethnicity that are
comparable over time or across different surveys and administrative records.
Theories of Racism
Marxism, a body of doctrine developed by Karl Marx and, to a lesser extent,
by Friedrich Engels in the mid-19th century. It originally consisted of three related ideas:
a philosophical anthropology, a theory of history, and an economic and political
program. There is also Marxism as it has been understood and practiced by the
various socialist movements, particularly before 1914. Then there is Soviet Marxism as
worked out by Vladimir Ilich Lenin and modified by Joseph Stalin, which under the name
of Marxism-Leninism (see Leninism) became the doctrine of the communist parties set
up after the Russian Revolution (1917). Offshoots of this included Marxism as
interpreted by the anti-Stalinist Leon Trotsky and his followers, Mao Zedong’s Chinese
variant of Marxism-Leninism, and various Marxisms in the developing world. There were
also the post-World War II nondogmatic Marxisms that have modified Marx’s thought
with borrowings from modern philosophies, principally from those of Edmund
Husserl and Martin Heidegger but also from Sigmund Freud and others.
Political Theory as Connected Social Criticism
If a contextually bounded political theory is to be convincingly described, an idea of
immanent criticism must be unpacked that is grounded in the internal logic of
conventional argument while somehow looking beyond it. However difficult, the goal
must be to combine the roles of participant and anthropologist in our political culture and
thus try to get a critical purchase on our practices that can then be used to generate
adequate standards for normative argument about them. This is the project attempted
in Spheres of Justice, Interpretation and Social Criticism and other recent writings by
Michael Walzer.
Types of Racism
Say the word "racism" and many people might imagine someone in a white hood.
However, discrimination is much more complex and comes in different types. In reality,
ordinary people perpetuate racism daily.
Racism doesn’t just concern a dominant racial group overtly oppressing minorities.
There’s also subtle racism, slight snubs or racial microaggressions based on race.
Racism includes colorism within minority groups, in which lighter-skinned people
discriminate against their darker-skinned counterparts.
Internalized racism is an issue as well. It occurs when minorities experience self-hatred
because they’ve taken to heart the ideology that dubs them as inferior.
Does Reverse Racism Exist?
People have claimed they’ve been victims of this form of racism in which whites fall prey
to discrimination.
Do whites ever face racial bias? The U.S. Supreme Court has decided so in a few
landmark cases, such as when white firefighters in New Haven, Connecticut, were
prohibited from being promoted because their minority counterparts didn’t qualify for
promotions as well.
All in all, however, whites are rarely on the receiving end of racial discrimination. As a
growing number of states ban affirmative action, it has become even harder for whites
to say they’ve been reverse racism victims.
Examples of Subtle Racism
Subtle racism, or racial microaggressions, doesn’t make the headlines that, say, reverse
racism does, but it’s likely the form of discrimination that people of color most often
experience.
Victims of subtle, or covert, racism may find themselves snubbed by wait staff in
restaurants or salespeople in stores who believe that people of color aren’t likely to be
good tippers or able to afford anything expensive. Oprah Winfrey has described this
happening to her during a shopping experience outside the U.S.
Targets of subtle racism may find that supervisors, landlords, etc., apply different rules
to them than they do to others. An employer might run a thorough background check on
an applicant of color while accepting a job applicant from a prospective white employee
with no additional documentation.
Racial prejudice is the driving force behind subtle racism.
Internalized Racism
In a society in which blonde hair and blue eyes are still widely regarded as ideal and
stereotypes about minority groups persist, it’s not hard to see why some people of color
suffer from internalized racism.
In this form of racism, people of color internalize the negative messages spread about
minorities and come to loathe themselves for being "different." They may hate their skin
color, hair texture, and other physical features. They may intentionally marry interracially
so their children won’t have the same ethnic traits that they do.
They may simply suffer from low self-esteem because of their race, such as performing
poorly in school or in the workplace because they believe their racial background makes
them inferior.
Pop icon Michael Jackson was long accused of suffering from this kind of racism
because of the changing color of his skin and multiple plastic surgeries.
What Is Colorism?
Colorism is often viewed as a problem that’s unique to communities of color. It occurs
when minorities discriminate against those with darker skin than they have. For years in
the black community, lighter skin was viewed as superior to darker skin. Anyone with
skin color that was lighter than a brown paper lunch bag was welcomed into elite
organizations in the black community, while darker-skinned blacks were excluded.
But colorism doesn’t exist in a vacuum. It’s a direct offshoot of a white supremacist
ideology that values whites over people of color and equips Caucasians with what’s
known as white privilege.
Colorism also exists outside of the African-American community. In Asia, sales of skin
whitening products remain sky-high.
Wrapping Up
To eradicate racism, it's important to understand the different types of racism that affect
society. Whether you're experiencing racial microaggressions or helping a child to
overcome internalized racism, staying educated on the issue can make a difference.
Works Cited
Brunell, Laura, and Elinor Burkett. “Feminism | Definition, History, & Examples.” Encyclopædia
Britannica, 8 Feb. 2019, www.britannica.com/topic/feminism.
M. A., English and Comparative Literary Studies, and English B. A. “From Colorism to
Microaggressions, Look at 4 Types of Racism.” ThoughtCo, www.thoughtco.com/4-different-
types-of-racism-2834982. Accessed 10 July 2020.
McLellan, David T, and Henri Chambre. “Marxism | History, Ideology, & Examples.” Encyclopædia
Britannica, 3 Oct. 2018, www.britannica.com/topic/Marxism.
“Political Criticism.” Cdlib.Org, 2020, publishing.cdlib.org/ucpressebooks/view?
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Walzer, Michael. 1987. Interpretation and Social Criticism . Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
