Is racism on the decrease?

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   rajan jollyposted 12 years ago

   Is racism on the decrease?

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   Indigitalposted 12 years ago

   No. In the last 10-15 years I'd say racism has increased. Ever since 9/11, many people have never looked at Muslims as they used to - or anyone from the Middle East, which is stupid, because as we all know almost ever single Middle Eastern citizen is not a terrorist and has never adopted their ways.
   
   In my country, England, the last election seen a 3% increase on the BNP's stand in elections, a crushing figure to non-racist politics. There was also a 1% rise in the EDL, which is another racist party.
   
   So, to answer your question, I don't think racism is on the decrease, I think people seem to hate the Muslim culture in the Western world because of the war in Afghanistan and some of us are just coming round to the fact many are brilliant people, wise and intelligent, just like us, and should be given a fair chance.

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   Doc Snowposted 12 years ago

   I think so, but it's a slow and uneven process.  As Indigital notes, there has been a rise in anti-Muslim bigotry in the West since 9/11.  (Though is that 'racism,' technically?  It's religious in origin, not racial.)
   
   But casual racism was so prevalent a few decades back, and accepted so completely and with so little awareness, that I have to think that on balance we're better off than we were.

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   Dave Mathewsposted 12 years ago

   I do not see racism as being on the increase. I do see lines being drawn in the sands over religious beliefs though.

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   wingedcentaurposted 12 years ago

   Hi, rajan jolly!
   
   You know, it actually depends upon what you mean by 'racism.' You could be referring to bigotry (and its precursor, prejudice), which is quite different from racism, even if you are talking about so-called "races."
   
   Social justice activists will tell you that 'racism' has a precise, technical meaning, at least in the United States, where I am communicating to you from. Racism is understood to be: the ability of a dominant power group to take a prejudice that has historically flowed from that group to one that has been traditionally the recipient of it -- and degrade the quality of the day-to-day life of the latter group because they, the former, hold that prejudice.
   
   "Racism," in this sense, then, has concrete economic, social, and political consequences for the targeted group. We often refer to 'institutional racism.' If that is what you mean by 'racism,' we would have to answer that question by comparing series of data between different periods, say the late 1960s and today, and if we were to consider African Americans, looking at data for housing access, employment access, unemployment rates relative to whites, outcomes in the criminal justice system, and other things, the results would come back as a "mixed bag" at best -- AT BEST!
   
   If you are talking about the expression of prejudice, manifested in bigotry like, say, if you see a black man walking down the street, will you automatically get on the other side of the street? If you're talking about that kind of thing, I would say yes, this kind of bigotry is on the decrease in the United States -- it can't help but be on the decrease, as we are such a multi-cultural society, and the cross-pollination on numerous fronts seems to be increasing everyday.

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   poshcoffeecoposted 12 years ago

   Rajan, sadly I don't believe it is on the decrease. There are and will always be elements of society who think they are better than everybody else and will cause great pain to innocent people of different cultures because they don't want to understand the culture of someone who is different and has different up bringing and cultural qualities. Bullying and bigotry go hand in hand and is ever prevailant even on the football pitch as well as on the terraces and in every town and city the world over.
   It would be a nice thought that one day it could be eradicated but I fear there will always be bigots and bullies. Or is this just me being synical?

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   Rosemary Banksposted 12 years ago

   No it's getting worse by the days, it's just all undercover.

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