Colorblind Society: Race and Skin Color in America Essay

The American society has been trying to strive for a state that is non-discriminative but is yet to succeed. These inequalities started during the colonial and slavery periods. During the difficult racial segregation period, races such as African Americans, Asian Americans, and Latin Americans were discriminated by the whites.^[1]

In addition, they were mainly deployed on the white man’s land as sources of cheap labor for the whites.^[2] They were not accorded fair rights, such as freedom to acquire education, to vote, or to be citizens. In America, discrimination was based on race and skin color.

Most processes in the American society are executed based on the ethnic and social status of the affected individuals. In my perspective, the discriminations from the past have hindered the progress of colorblindness in the United States. It has made our society unable to truly practice colorblindness because of the racial discrimination that deteriorated people’s value and generated poverty as well as negative stereotype.

The creation of Jamestown in Virginia in the year 1657 serves as a perfect example of racism and discrimination. Jamestown was characterized by bushes and trees. The natives who spoke Spanish chose to improve the appearance of Jamestown. The Englishmen assimilated and cooperated with the natives by learning Spanish. However, it was only for the sake of the personal benefits of attaining wealth and control over the natives.

Several Englishmen started to move in to James town with the passage of time. They settled and enslaved the natives to work on the lands owned by the whites. As a result, the whites perceived themselves as a superior race with special duties of dominating the world and civilizing it^[3]. The slaves were forced by the colonies to till the land in preparation for planting tobacco while the white men took the management and sales jobs.

This case demonstrates the whites and their ideology, which civilizing the native of this town is their mission. It also reveals how color has always influenced several processes in the United States. Whites formed an idea in which an individual who wanted to share privileged in the society must be assimilated to whites.

The whites forced other Americans to become whites in order to be treated fairly by the authorities.^[4] Such an idea from the early 17^th century hindered people from progressing to a colorblind society. In my opinion, this was actually the beginning of the idea of Manifest Destiny, which white men have power over any other races in the world.

The influences of racism and Manifest Destiny were demonstrated in the job market of the United States during the 19^th and 20^th centuries. All the white-collar jobs were offered to the white Americans while other races were given substandard jobs. The working conditions were poor for the non-white Americans.^[5]

The Mexicans were not allowed to participate in politics, own properties, go to the same schools with other Caucasian students. For example, their major economic practice (nomadic farming) was also being prohibited^[6]. In addition, Mexicans, who declined to be labeled as whites, did not earn the rights to be citizens until the constitutional changes in the mid-20^th century.^[7]

Ultimately, they were forbidden from practicing the Chicano culture in the U.S because it classified them as illegal immigrants in America. Since they were foreigners in America, they were denied all the services expected from the government. They were forced to adopt the white culture and pretend to be white in order to enjoy the privileges enjoyed by the whites in the U.S during the early 20^th century^[8].

In my opinion, changing their identity to another skin color was the only way to save Mexicans in the American society. Since the color of skin equaled to social status, being a Mexican has been nothing more than being a property. With the twisted value form by the racial discrimination, it actually became something that was normal to do.

Racial discrimination exists at times without the consent of the perpetrator. Immigrants from Africa usually experience the highest degree of racism due to their dark complexion. The stereotype of the poor living condition of blacks has been deeply injected into people’s mind. It is one of the main reasons why discrimination is taking place.

These poor immigrants are assumed as unfortunate people who are intending to grab the American resources^[9]. The poor education institutions that students go through do not fully equip them to be self-reliant after completion of their studies^[10]. The fact that the non-white immigrants face challenges in the U.S makes the idea of colorblindness a fable.

The levels of literacy among most African Americans are low due to the educational institutions that favor white students^[11]. Justice systems are also different. The punishments that the two distinct legislations are likely to impose on acts of crime differ greatly.^[12] The American constitution is one of the best since several laws and policies have been implemented in order to eliminate disparities. Reforms have been witnessed in various government sectors.

These reforms aim at reducing incidences of social disparities. For instance, the Magnuson Act of 1943 ensured that all Chinese immigrants in the U.S. were nationalized. It invalidated the Chinese Exclusion Act that suspended the migration of Chinese people in America. In addition, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 also played a major role in the fight against all forms of discrimination.

As much as the current America is perceived as a transparent and integral state, researchers and anthropologists in biology and social science argue that race is a cultural aspect among human beings^[13]. Racism still exists in some parts of America. Minorities have difficulties to fit in some practices that are dominated by the whites^[14]. In my opinion, this has become one of the major reasons of the domination of several state departments by the whites.

I believe this domination of whites in the United States is due to the prolonged advantage over any other races for centuries. As much as the American constitution is rational, some segregation still exists. These segregations have led into groupings whereby people associate with individuals of the same skin color. Once again, the culprits of racial discrimination are usually the African Americans.

They are minorities and their skin color makes them impossible to be treated as whites like other minority races. The black Americans have their own culture and occupy the same habitats. However, the white Americans, on the other hand, have a very different culture to the blacks. For instance, their residences are also located in areas where blacks do not reside.^[15]

Back in the post, World War II, Caucasians claimed that wherever blacks lived, the neighborhood was inevitably deteriorated.^[16] Furthermore, they referred to the black migration as an invasion and penetration to the community. This systemic discrimination which existed in the past has continued to the present. This discrimination of separating and creating communities for different ethnic groups in the past has inadvertently caused discrimination.

The communities inhabited mostly by minorities became poorer neighborhoods because they were discriminated from opportunities and facilities. As a result, they could not invest much into their communities. As a result, the Caucasian majority neighborhoods have a better real-estate value when compared to the local blacks’ neighborhood. Such phenomenon still exists in present day but happens passively in the society.

Even though minorities are not forced to stay in certain areas anymore, they still stay in poorer neighborhoods. Not only because they cannot afford to move to a better one, but also the negative stereotypes generated from the past in which minority neighborhoods are below standard.

If the Americans had been color blind, the immigrants and settlers who are non-whites in America would have been more successful and welcomed. The level of segregation that is witnessed in America results from racism associated with the differences in skin color. There exist two major societies, namely the whites and the others. Since the whites have possessed privileges for many years, their social status is automatically higher.

They prefer segregating themselves into the white settlements commonly located in the suburbs^[17]. These scenarios and many others described above highlighting several processes that are affected by the skin color, the ethnicity and the type of citizenship of an individual. As much as America strives to observe integrity, the ghost of segregation that defines the American history is still around. Moreover, various processes still witness the unequal treatment of American citizens.

Americans of different races are treated differently in the public. For instance, there was a case when five American police officers fired gunshots to a black person in New York. They shot the man forty one times because he was not of their race^[18]. This case does not merely display the different treatment of races; it also reveals how individual discrimination forms the worst form of violence.

Moreover, the African Americans and the Mexicans are perceived by the whites as arrogant people and are thus treated inhumanely by government officers especially when the officers are white. This has heightened tension between the whites and blacks resulting thereby into indifferences on how the law enforcers should handle such cases.

Our modern day experience to achieve a colorblind society has increased our tolerance but it is still a question of whether we are in a colorblind society. Individual, institutional, and systemic discrimination that still exists in our society has been hindering progress of our society to be color blinded. Even though living with a variety of races causes so many incidents, there are still splendid positive outcomes.

For instance, multi-culture is still the most unique aspect of America. Our nation is known as the melting pot because we are able to identify ourselves to the different races. However, we are yet to be able to live together. We need the distinction of race to uphold the culture and tradition that belong to it. I believe that the ideal society would not be colorblind. It should be able to accept people from different ethnic backgrounds.

Footnotes

1. Horsman,“Race and Manifest Destiny: The Origins of American Racial Anglo – Saxonism,” in Critical White Studies: Looking Behind the Mirror,140
2. Roediger, “Whiteness and Ethnicity in the History of ‘White Ethnics’ in the United, 2
3. Horsman, “Race and Manifest Destiny: The Origins of American Racial Anglo – Saxonism,” in Critical White Studies: Looking Behind the Mirror (1997),143
4. Martinez, “Mexican-Americans and Whiteness”, Harvard Latin Law Review, 210
5. Edmund, “Toward Slavery,” and “Toward Racism,” in American Slavery American Freedom: The Ordeal of Colonial Virginia , 298
6. Martinez, “Mexican-Americans and Whiteness”, Harvard Latin Law Review, 212
7. Martinez, “Mexican-Americans and Whiteness”, Harvard Latin Law Review, 211
8. Martinez, “Mexican-Americans and Whiteness”, Harvard Latin Law Review, 210
9. Omi &Winant, “Racial Formation,” in Race Critical Theories(2002),135
10. Omi &Winant, “Racial Formation,” in Race Critical Theories(2002),135
11. Omi &Winant, “Racial Formation,” in Race Critical Theories(2002),137
12. Edmund, “Toward Slavery,” and “Toward Racism,” in American Slavery
    American Freedom: The Ordeal of Colonial Virginia , 295
13. Omi &Winant, “Racial Formation,” in Race Critical Theories(2002),124.
14. Omi &Winant, “Racial Formation,” in Race Critical Theories(2002),129
15. Martinez, “Mexican-Americans and Whiteness”, Harvard Latin Law Review, 210
16. Thomas J. Sugrue. Crabgrass- Roots Politics: Race, Rights, and the Reaction against Liberalism in the Urban North, pg 71
17. Omi &Winant, “Racial Formation,” in Race Critical Theories(2002),138
18. Omi &Winant, “Racial Formation,” in Race Critical Theories(2002),130