“Being black in U.S. society means always having to be prepared for antiblack actions by whites – in most places and at many times of the day, week, month, or year. Being black means living with various types of racial discrimination from cradle to grave” (Feagin, 167). Racial discrimination is still happening today and is currently affecting the life chances and life situations of the minorities in the United States that have witnessed discrimination. So, that is when we ask ourselves, what does it mean to be black? What does it mean to be white? W. E. B Du Bois uses the term double consciousness to identify the issues of race. Du Bois mentions double consciousness in ways that influenced the impact on history to create a pattern of significance. A major source of black people’s stereotypes is the media. Research has shown that television shows and movies tend to exaggerate African Americans as living in poverty, not wanting to live in two-parent homes, and having criminal backgrounds. This gives the assumption to Caucasians that African Americans have a different lifestyle and different family values than Caucasians. Although our African American men face more discrimination or racial slurs than our African American women, however Caucasian men today still consider African American women as sex objects. In previous centuries, Caucasian men have been the standard male icon for handsomeness, masculinity, and manly virtue. Also, Caucasian women have been the icon of female beauty. Therefore, Caucasians have identified African American women as ‘ugly’, their hair is too ‘wooly’, and their skin is too ‘dark’ (Burt, Simons, & Gibbons, 2012).
In the documentary ‘Race: The Power of an Illusion’, the authors defined race as, “simple external differences rooted in biology are linked to other complex internal differences, like athletic ability, musical attitude, and intelligence” (‘Race: The Power of an Illusion’, 00:01:43-00:01:53). The students, in this documentary, collected blood samples from each other to determine if they had similarities in their DNA. More so, the students were asked to explain whom they believed they shared similar characteristics with and who they thought were different. Most of the student’s answers were based on facial features or skin color. If a certain person looked like them or was their skin color, they believed that that person would share the same DNA with them. After the data was obtained, the students examined the results to notice that the person that looked like them did not share much of the same DNA, but those who did not look like them showed similarities in their DNA. Therefore, their observations, about people that looked like them or shared the same skin color as they were false.
As said in the video, “Race is not based on biology, but race is an idea that we ascribe to biology” (‘Race: The Power of an Illusion’, 00:04:58-00:05:05). The part where they say “race is an idea that we ascribe to biology”, to me that means that there are more genetic differences within any racial group, and just because we look like them does not mean that we are exactly like them. However, we may share the same characteristics or traits as someone in another ethnic group rather than our own. Also, the majority of the world does not believe this or consider this because they base their decisions on outer appearance or history. Instead of doing research, the majority just believe what they were always taught or based on their mindset. I personally believe that race is said to be a social construct because we tend to forget about genetics when discussing race and ethnic groups. Based on experience, people who are the same color associate with each other more. People who share different skin color is less likely to associate with each other. It is classified as a social construct because the world has the mindset that certain people or certain skin colors are the superiors and other skin colors are inferiors. People are known for labeling others due to the idea of ‘race’. With not much of an attempt to change, the world will continue to label others where they see fit.
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The documentary states that “how a society constructs or understands race varies across societies and even across parts of one society”. Different societies see race in many ways, and they categorize it differently. People were raised differently, so everybody was taught differently. For example, if someone’s family view race as a biological concept, then the children to come will also believe that race is a biological concept. However, some people become curious about ‘race’ due to current events, and that is when some branch out and do some research. Depending on how most of the world was raised, they will more than likely believe their parents in whatever they tell them. It is just how the world operates.
So, what does it mean to be white? In my opinion, it usually means dealing with the ideal person in the United States. To my knowledge, being white means more power and authority. A white man does not have to worry about not being able to find work, or faces discrimination or racism, not getting harassed by the police, and not getting accused of a murder they did not commit. Which now leads to the question, what does it mean to be black? In my opinion, being black means sudden hatred. Rather a white person is racist or not, when they see a whole crowd of black people, they instantly begin to worry or become terrified. A black person easily lives in the fear of not returning home whenever they leave out, due to police brutality. Not only that but being a black person in America, especially a black man, it is very easy to become a target of the white man. Therefore, some African Americans live up to the stereotype that was brought upon them because that is what society thinks of them, criminals for example. In my opinion, racism still exists, and it will never end unless society wants it to end. When society learns to accept other races as one equal society, then the world would be at peace in a way. As W. E. B. Du Bois explained about double consciousness, “It is a peculiar sensation, this double-consciousness, this sense of always looking at one’s self through the eyes of others, of measuring one’s soul by the tape of a world that looks on in amused contempt and pity”. If the world could understand this statement more, then more citizens would have their own identities. Society would always be miserable and will always feel cautious. We all live in the same society and we all undergo some of the same problems, so why should skin color matter? We as a society should not have to live in a world that constantly bashes another race for being a color that they did not choose.
To conclude, race is often defined in numerous ways, and everyone has their own definition of race. Race can be determined by influencers and a person’s surroundings. Race has many dimensions and is said to be a social construct.
References
- Burt, Callie Harbin et al. “Racial Discrimination, Ethnic-Racial Socialization, and Crime: A Micro-Sociological Model of Risk and Resilience”. American Sociological Review, U.S. National Library of Medicine, Aug. 2012, www.ncbi.nlm.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3777442/
- Horowitz, Juliana Menasce et al. “The Role of Race and Ethnicity in Americans’ Lives”. Pew Research Center’s Social & Demographic Trends Project, 31 Dec. 2019, www.pewsocialtrends.org/2019/04/09/the-role-of-race-and-ethnicity-in-americans-personal-lives/
- Newsreel, California. YouTube, YouTube, 24 Apr. 2014, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8MS6zubIaQ
- PBS. Public Broadcasting Service, 2003, https://www.pbs.org/race/000_About/002_04-background-01-03.htm
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