Preston Burkhart

Professor Edward Hightower

History 2112

4/28/2021

Racial Injustice

The United States of America was founded on the principles of liberty and happiness.

Why then, in our modern society, seemingly unkept from the bounds of our previous

generations, do black people feel less free and less happy than ever before? There are many

places to point the finger but one of the largest culprits is racial injustice. Often referred to as

modern racism, these societal cancers are lingering hierarchies between those who feel entitled

and those who suffer as a consequence. The entitled groups often white, known colloquially

today as white privilege. This racial prejudice dates back to the slave era of the United States.

We will attempt to look at the history of racism, examine modern-day racism, view supporting

evidence for this racism, and suggest reparations for the future.

Racial injustice begins with the advent of slavery in the 1600s. Upper class white

Europeans viewed themselves as superior beings with the God-given right to enslave those that

were beneath them, in most cases it was African natives. Early America was no exception,

enslaving native Americans and Africans to perform manual labor. Over generations, slavery

became widespread as farmers needed cheap labor to keep up with the demands of a growing

nation. As America became more independent and as the government became stronger, black

slaves began to revolt and demand change at the hands of government. They found it ironic that

America was the epitome of freedom yet restricted the freedom of their own citizens. The Jim

Crow era of the United States is often regarded as the height of racism segregation. In this post-
slavery era, many states (most of which were southern), created laws to enforce segregation.

Based on the outcome of the case Plessy v. Ferguson, these laws were mandated on the premise

of “separate but equal”. These laws included the black codes which created a system that defined

how black people could work and dictated how much they could make. In comparison to today’s

standards many of these codes were deplorable. Most blacks were paid well below any living

wage. And despite the passing of the 13th amendment, many blacks were not free, they were just

under a different form of slavery. Despite these difficulties, many black people continued to fight

over the next decade. With numerous small victories in the 14th and 15th amendments black

people gained more freedom and independence but were continually segregated until the modern

civil rights movement. Through the fight and voice of Martin Luther King Jr. and other civil

rights activists the Civil Rights Bill of 1964 and subsequent bills were passed. This gave modern

rights, protected under law, to black people. Overt forms of racism slowly dissipated and gave

rise to a more subtle and potentially more dangerous version of racism.

Modern racism is best described as symbolic racism and is more of a general term that is

specifically related to subliminal prejudice towards black people. Some other terms that relate to

this form of racism include: “racial resentment, subtle prejudice, racial ambivalence, and

aversive racism” [3]. A failure to believe that racism still exists is the most common form of

symbolic racism. David O. Sears and P.J. Henry characterize symbolic racism as the expression

or endorsement of four specific themes or beliefs: “1. Black people no longer face much

prejudice or discrimination. 2. The failure of black people to progress results from their

unwillingness to work hard enough. 3. Black people's continuing demands are unwarranted. 4.

Black people's increased advantages are also unwarranted” [3]. With these beliefs in place, it is

easy to see why this form is more difficult to treat. This implicit form of racism stems from the
long history of overt racism and is passed from one generation to the next. Symbolic racism is

influenced by other beliefs. “Whitley and Kite cite six underlying factors that contribute to

symbolic racism: 1. Implicitly anti-black affect and negative stereotypes, 2. racialized belief in

traditional values, 3. belief in equality of opportunity, 4. low belief in equality of outcome, 5.

group self-interest, and 6. low knowledge of black people” [5]. Most forms of symbolic racism

are expressed as a verbal sentiment but can sometimes evolve into unconscious actions. While

these actions are the focus of mainstream media, the true culprit lies in the rooted beliefs of

individuals. To help dig out the beliefs, it is important to remain informed so we can form our

own opinions.

Symbolic racism propagates through socialization and is often reinforced by one or two

bad encounters. To stop this trend, we must breakdown factual evidence regarding racism and

make this information widely available. Evidence for this discrete form of racism is shown by

comparing various quality of life measures between black and white people. According to the

Bureau of Labor Statistics the employment–population ratio for 2018 was “58.3 percent for

Blacks, 60.7 percent for Whites, … [and] 62.9 percent for individuals of Two or More Races.

Among adult men (20 years and older), black men had the lowest at 63.7%, also continuing a

longstanding pattern.” [1]. Income also differs between races. “The median usual weekly

earnings of full-time wage and salary workers in 2018 were $680 for Hispanics, $694 for Blacks,

$916 for Whites, and $1,095 for Asians” [1]. Even when you equate the occupation, average

incomes still show a disparity. “The earnings disparity across the major race and ethnicity groups

for men holds for nearly all major occupational groups. For example, median usual weekly

earnings of Asian men and White men working full time in management, professional, and

related occupations (the highest paying major occupational group), at $1,732 and $1,488,
respectively, were considerably higher than the earnings of Hispanic men ($1,174) and Black

men ($1,164) in the same occupational group” [1]. Prior to the passage of the Fair Housing Act

of 1968, blacks were refused the privilege of living in more affluent communities forcing them to

take residence in more impoverished areas. Because of this history of segregated housing,

modern-day black neighborhoods lack government funding in key public sectors such as the

school systems. This affects the quality of education for younger generations, further

perpetuating the gap between whites and blacks. According to a report from the nonprofit

EdBuild: “for every student enrolled, the average nonwhite school district receives $2,226 less

than a white school district” [4]. Beyond economic gaps, this prejudice extends into the police

force. A Harvard study “examined 5,494 police-related deaths in the U.S. between 2013 and

2017. Rates of deadly police encounters were higher in the West and South than in the Midwest

and Northeast. … Racial disparities in killings by police varied widely across the country, with

some metropolitan areas showing very high differences between treatment by race” [2]. This

study concluded that “black Americans are 3.23 times more likely than white Americans to be

killed by police” [2]. This compelling evidence gives firm grounds for the veracity of modern

racism. Now that the cards are stacked against all non-white races, what can be done?

There is hope. It starts with small steps that compound over time into large changes. It

cannot be a topic of casual conversation that is forgotten about 10 minutes later. Individual

efforts must be taken by all people, both of color and white. The first step is to write to local

legislation to voice your concern. By speaking out you become a small step towards change.

Second, we should vote on legislation that aids to eliminate the occupation disparities and

housing inequality the black people face. The federal government can enact and enforce laws to

help close the socioeconomic gaps between races. But symbolic racism will never truly be
eliminated until young generations are taught about the evils of racism and are raised in

households that uphold non-racist views.

[1] Bureau of Labor Statistics. “Labor Force Characteristics by Race and Ethnicity,

2018 : BLS Reports: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.” Bureau of Labor Statistics, 9 Oct. 2019,

[Link]/opub/reports/race-and-ethnicity/2018/[Link].

[2] Harvard School of Public Health. “Black People More than Three Times as Likely as

White People to Be Killed during a Police Encounter.” Harvard School of Public Health, PLOS

ONE, 8 July 2020, [Link]/news/hsph-in-the-news/blacks-whites-police-deaths-

disparity.

[3] Henry, P. J., and David O’Keef Spears. “Symbolic and Modern Racism.”

Encyclopedia of Race and Racism, 1st ed., vol. 3, Macmillan, 2013, pp. 111–12.

[4] Lambardo, Clare. “NPR Cookie Consent and Choices.” NPR, 26 Feb. 2019,

[Link]/[Link]?origin=[Link]

school-districts-have-so-much-more-money.

[5] Whitley, Bernard, and Mary Kite. The Psychology of Prejudice and Discrimination.

2nd ed., Belmont, California, Wadsworth Publishing, 2009.