Introduction
‘Whites swim in racial preference’ is the title of Tim Wise’s article, which reveals the looming racial imbalances in American society. The author asserts that even after criticizing affirmative action at the University of Michigan, president Bush failed to understand the magnitude of Whites’ privileges (Wise par. 5). There are many ways as shown in the article that the Whites have used to perpetuate their racial preferences in schools and particularly in colleges. This essay seeks to point out the various traditions as described in the article that supports racial preferences in favor of the whites in the United States.
Social control and stratification
Social control is one of the mechanisms used by the United States to segregate minority populations. These groups include blacks Americans, Latin Americans, and the Red Indians. The article explores some aspects of social control that were tailored in the early American colonial era. The current effect of social control in the United States is traced back to the 17th century when racism was very rampant. During that period, black Americans and the other minority communities were not allowed to own factors of production. The whites controlled all the available resources, which gave them a lot of power.
Generations later, the same power was passed to their descendants causing the current situation where the whites control almost the entire economy. Social control is the act of forming or establishing a generalized opinion about a group of people to segregate them. The notion formed by the older generations about the minority still lingers in the current generation and even today whites’ preference is a reality in American society. The minorities are poorly paid compared to the whites and most of the lucrative job opportunities are reserved for the whites (Wise par. 4). This promotes the social belief that whites are superior to other races in the United States.
Labeling theory and racial profiling
The labeling theory argues that social behaviors are as deviant as society wants them to be. This means that society decides on which behaviors are pleasant and which ones are not hence creating social standards. The whites, as shown in the article, have created a social standard that undermines other races. Alluding to the affirmative action in the University Of Michigan, the writer argues that both whites and blacks are given some privileges (Wise par. 7). The University of Michigan offers 20 points to students from low-income backgrounds (Wise par. 7). In the same comportment, students from the minority races are awarded 20 points to equalize their chances with the other students from affluent backgrounds.
Nonetheless, the 20 points given to students from the minority groups have been criticized and termed as unfair privileges but no complaints are raised against the privileges received by the poor white students. The White people argue that the privileges given to the minority races are influenced by racial preferences. Racial profiling on the other hand is equally rampant in American society. Black Americans are always viewed as the most violent and unruly population in the United States. Drugs trade, robbery, and all kinds of unlawful activities are attributed to black society and that is why the whites are preferred when it comes to the selection of students.
Labeling and racial profiling have the effect of causing people to have low self-esteem hence reducing their self-worth. Consequently, a continued loss of self-worth is likely to spark a feeling of rejection and this may cause rebellion and deviant behaviors. The past generations of the whites thought of the minority races as the races of deviant behaviors. This label has lived ever since and although America has undergone numerous changes in social interactions, it still exists. Whites’ preference has a very long institutional history in the United States of America.
Prejudice and Whites preference
There are so many schools in the United States, which the black people cannot attend due to their racial d and economic backgrounds. Several factors hinder them from getting the chance to attend such schools. This compromises their viability in the job market and consequently their social standards. Ultimately, it influences their ability to break social control. Blacks are disadvantaged by the color of their skin in the American job market and they are often discriminated against in remuneration.
The Whites believe that they are in their positions due to their hard work and merit. Very few of them can attribute their success to any form of luck. This is why they get agitated when they hear about “affirmative action”. Many feel that the racial privileges enjoyed by the minority groups are unfair and discriminating. However, this argument is inconsistent with reality. According to the article, the University of Michigan offers 20 points to any student who comes from a low-income family regardless of their race (Wise par. 17). Therefore, even the whites enjoy the same privilege if they fall under this category of financially disadvantaged students. However, poor blacks do not benefit from this privilege since they already have the 20 points awarded for being members of minority groups. The author sees this as prejudice against minority groups.
Conclusion
American political history has shaped and aligned the country’s resources in a way that only the whites are benefiting at the expense of the other minority groups. As early as in the 17th century, 10% of the entire American land was allocated to private landowners and all of them were Whites (Wise par. 8). This gave wealth and provided opportunities to the whites at the expense of the rest of the races in America. Policies such as voting rights for the whites-only also played a significant role in putting the whites ahead of the rest of the races. In the 17th century, only whites could own land, vote, and become natural citizens hence blocking other races from migrating to America, and those who did become slaves.
The famous social security act of 1935 was the cleverest mechanism used by the government to maintain wealth among the whites and to channel all the opportunities to their offspring. The act offered a pension plan for all the workers but excluded the agricultural workers and the domestic workers who were primarily the minority groups. This essay has shown how American society has discriminated against the minority population. It is clear that white’s preference is widely spread in American society and efforts to push for affirmative actions against it are proving to be futile.
Works Cited
Wise, Tim. Whites Swim in Racial Preference. 2003. Web.