The history of racial discrimination should not be determined by slavery only as its origins expand in time and forms, including ancient civilizations’ differences, religious and geographical diversity, and political regimes, affecting American society.
Bailey, Z. D., Feldman, J. M., & Bassett, M. T. (2021). How structural racism works – Racist policies as a root cause of US racial health inequities.New England Journal of Medicine, 384(8), 768-773.
In their article published in 2021, Bailey et al. define racism as a durable feature of American society and underline the importance of understanding its structural basis. American police continue killing civilians of the color of their skin more often than in other countries. Racist policies founded in the 18th century became the root cause of inequalities in health care, education, and other spheres. Despite such limitations as statistical data being left out, I will use this article to support the historical evaluation of racism in the United States and add ineffective policing to the origins of racism.
Bowser, B. P. (2017). Racism: Origin and theory.Journal of Black Studies, 48(6), 572-590.
In 2017, Bowser introduced a review of racial discrimination as a concept with its specific theoretical development. Being coined at the beginning of the 20th century, racism was significantly revised in the 1930s (antisemitism) and the 1960s (civil rights activists). Race relations are never simple, and activist movements prove the burden of racism in America. The theory of racism has to be reconsidered from the point of view of European Americans and White elites. I will add this study to my list even if it is limited to theoretical aspects only, as it contains the analysis of historical events that represent institutional and cultural racism.
Hanchard, M. G. (2018). The specter of race: How discrimination haunts western democracy. Princeton University Press.
This book by Hanchard was published in 2018 to examine various democratic institutions that lead to unequal and questionable ideas like slavery or discrimination. Racial hierarchies and social movements were rooted in ancient Greece, the Persian Wars, and Athenian culture and were based on religious beliefs. The author leaves statistics and current examples out but focuses on past political events and racial regimes to define the origins of racial discrimination in America. I will use Hanchard’s findings to strengthen my historical evaluation of the topic.
Mejia, R., Beckermann, K., & Sullivan, C. (2018). White lies A racial history of the (post) truth. Communication and Critical/Cultural Studies, 15(2), 109-126.
The results of the 2016 presidential elections provoked Mejia et al. to create an article about racial amnesia and publish it in 2018. The authors want to clarify why racial concepts denied years ago become acceptable today and use the post-truth concept. I will rely on the findings of this article to show how general ignorance about black experiences affects American politics and society. Although this work is limited to one election, attention to the Marxist approach and historical materialism reveals critical racial histories.
Rattansi, A. (2021). Racism: A very short introduction (2nd ed). Oxford University Press.
In 2021, Rattansi published a book to show that racism is not only a social problem with its roots in wrong decisions and injustice. The author explains the origins of racism from biological, cultural, and political perspectives and offers extensive discussions about the topic. I find this book a good source for my study as it discusses cultural and color-blind forms of racism and Islamophobia as reasons for racial discrimination.
Seth, V. (2020). The origins of racism: A critique of the history ideas.History and Theory, 59(3), 343-368.
In 2020, Seth created the article to criticize the history of racial ideas and the origins of racism globally. The goal is to introduce the analysis of ancient, medieval, and early modern events and show that contemporary politics become the origins of current racial problems. This article will be used in my future project to show that past experiences are not always as critical as current decisions.
Small, M. L., & Pager, D. (2020). Sociological perspectives on racial discrimination.Journal of Economic Perspectives, 34(2), 49-67.
Small and Pager published their article in 2020 to demonstrate that historic discrimination has serious consequences in today’s society. Although their study is limited to the 19th century only, the recognition of the real estate and federal law’s impact on race relationships makes this source current and valuable. I will read the article to add several economic factors as the origins of racial discrimination in America.