SLAVERY AS THE CULPRIT
Slavery marked the start of institutional racism. Before we can discuss slavery being the culprit of institutional racism, let’s understand what exactly slavery is.
Long ago, starting in the 1600’s, slavery was established. The first set of African Americans were willingly brought to Jamestown, Virginia in 1619 to help in the production of crops (Slavery P.1).It was the beginning of a cold-hearted race oppressing another race based on their skin color. After 1619, because the African Americans were efficient in producing crop and were overall adept workers, they were taken advantage of by the whites and where forced in to slavery, working on the white master’s plantation. Blacks were considered to be cheap labor than indentured servants who were mostly European (Slavery P.3). Racism was then established because blacks were treated differently and discriminated based on the color of their skin. Slavery, in other words, was the legal and or economic system in which people were treated as property. In this case, blacks were the oppressed slaves who worked for the whites.
How did slavery leave an imprint of Institutional Racism?
Institutional racism, as discussed in the introduction, is negative treatment to a group of people based on their race. During the antebellum period, blacks were enslaved based on the color of their skin. They were treated poorly and pushed out of society, being labeled as savage beasts. It was unlawful for blacks to own land, participate in society, or be a part of the political and economic system. Because we all know that blacks were treated as property during the slave era, we should know that whites were the discriminators in treating blacks poorly and or negatively and were the ones who set laws to be separated from the blacks.
Right after slaves were set free by the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863, Jim Crow laws were quickly put into place starting, in the late 1800’s, to mistreat blacks and banned them from being citizens within a society.
" COLORED PEOPLE SIT IN THE BACK OF THE BUS"
"WHITES ONLY"
"COLORED ONLY"
"SCHOOL FOR WHITES ONLY"
"NO COLORED PEOPLE ALLOWED"
A majority of the white population was for slavery during the antebellum period. It was passed down from generation to generation and the more it was passed down, slavery became a part of the norm. When slavery was over, whites wanted to keep the structure of blacks not having the same privilege as them. The Jim Crow laws, or the white laws, affect the black’s way of living and owning an identity. Slavery had set the standards in separating blacks from whites, making the whites superior to the blacks, causing blacks to be treated negatively because of their race. Slavery was an institution in which whites mistreated and oppressed African Americans. In other words, slavery is the cause of the inequality we see today among blacks and whites and the advantages whites have over blacks. Slavery constructed the idea of inequality, racism, discrimination, and segregation.
Today's Institutional Racism
Today, the name “Freddie Gray,” who was beaten to death by Baltimore polices, and the phrase “Baltimore Uprising” is embedded in most minds and reminds us of the police brutality and violent power against young African American men. According to Hettie Williams article “The Baltimore Uprising and the Civil Rights Movement of the Millennial Generation,” the brutality of the city’s police culture—coupled with the routine (historical) denial of black person-hood and economic opportunity, exemplified in predatory policing practices, mass incarceration, and extreme unemployment—are the core causes of the “Baltimore Uprising.” Sounds familiar? If one considers historical circumstance, Freddie Gray might as well have been shackled, chained, and thrown into the boat hold of a slave ship while he screamed reprieve (Williams P. 1). The result of slavery and institutional racism, constructed from slavery, and the white supremacist beliefs has been transformed in a structural crisis faced in urban black communities today. Blacks did not choose to live a life of inequality or a life living in the worst conditions; rather local state, and federal practices facilitated through block-busting, red-lining, and unequal lending schemes targeted black communities which led to the Baltimore Uprising (Williams P.2). The video of Gray’s arrest seems to show that he was in the process of being denied human status because of his race and for the past five years, many people won settlements against Baltimore police for civil rights violation which suggest a pattern of institutional racism and creating the backdrop for the Baltimore Uprising (P.5). Therefore, institutional racism is alive today through police forces in Black communities.
Long ago, starting in the 1600’s, slavery was established. The first set of African Americans were willingly brought to Jamestown, Virginia in 1619 to help in the production of crops (Slavery P.1).It was the beginning of a cold-hearted race oppressing another race based on their skin color. After 1619, because the African Americans were efficient in producing crop and were overall adept workers, they were taken advantage of by the whites and where forced in to slavery, working on the white master’s plantation. Blacks were considered to be cheap labor than indentured servants who were mostly European (Slavery P.3). Racism was then established because blacks were treated differently and discriminated based on the color of their skin. Slavery, in other words, was the legal and or economic system in which people were treated as property. In this case, blacks were the oppressed slaves who worked for the whites.
How did slavery leave an imprint of Institutional Racism?
Institutional racism, as discussed in the introduction, is negative treatment to a group of people based on their race. During the antebellum period, blacks were enslaved based on the color of their skin. They were treated poorly and pushed out of society, being labeled as savage beasts. It was unlawful for blacks to own land, participate in society, or be a part of the political and economic system. Because we all know that blacks were treated as property during the slave era, we should know that whites were the discriminators in treating blacks poorly and or negatively and were the ones who set laws to be separated from the blacks.
Right after slaves were set free by the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863, Jim Crow laws were quickly put into place starting, in the late 1800’s, to mistreat blacks and banned them from being citizens within a society.
" COLORED PEOPLE SIT IN THE BACK OF THE BUS"
"WHITES ONLY"
"COLORED ONLY"
"SCHOOL FOR WHITES ONLY"
"NO COLORED PEOPLE ALLOWED"
A majority of the white population was for slavery during the antebellum period. It was passed down from generation to generation and the more it was passed down, slavery became a part of the norm. When slavery was over, whites wanted to keep the structure of blacks not having the same privilege as them. The Jim Crow laws, or the white laws, affect the black’s way of living and owning an identity. Slavery had set the standards in separating blacks from whites, making the whites superior to the blacks, causing blacks to be treated negatively because of their race. Slavery was an institution in which whites mistreated and oppressed African Americans. In other words, slavery is the cause of the inequality we see today among blacks and whites and the advantages whites have over blacks. Slavery constructed the idea of inequality, racism, discrimination, and segregation.
Today's Institutional Racism
Today, the name “Freddie Gray,” who was beaten to death by Baltimore polices, and the phrase “Baltimore Uprising” is embedded in most minds and reminds us of the police brutality and violent power against young African American men. According to Hettie Williams article “The Baltimore Uprising and the Civil Rights Movement of the Millennial Generation,” the brutality of the city’s police culture—coupled with the routine (historical) denial of black person-hood and economic opportunity, exemplified in predatory policing practices, mass incarceration, and extreme unemployment—are the core causes of the “Baltimore Uprising.” Sounds familiar? If one considers historical circumstance, Freddie Gray might as well have been shackled, chained, and thrown into the boat hold of a slave ship while he screamed reprieve (Williams P. 1). The result of slavery and institutional racism, constructed from slavery, and the white supremacist beliefs has been transformed in a structural crisis faced in urban black communities today. Blacks did not choose to live a life of inequality or a life living in the worst conditions; rather local state, and federal practices facilitated through block-busting, red-lining, and unequal lending schemes targeted black communities which led to the Baltimore Uprising (Williams P.2). The video of Gray’s arrest seems to show that he was in the process of being denied human status because of his race and for the past five years, many people won settlements against Baltimore police for civil rights violation which suggest a pattern of institutional racism and creating the backdrop for the Baltimore Uprising (P.5). Therefore, institutional racism is alive today through police forces in Black communities.