Terms & Definitions in this post:
- Intersectionality – (Definition seen in banner above.)
- Bigotry – Obstinate or unreasonable attachment to a belief, opinion, or faction, in particular prejudice against a person or people on the basis of their membership of a particular group.
- Prejudice – Preconceived opinion that is not based on reason or actual experience.
- Discrimination – The unjust or prejudicial treatment of different categories of people, especially on the grounds of ethnicity, age, sex, or disability.
- Antiracist – Fighting against racism.
- Minority Group – An ethnic, religious or linguistic minority is any group of persons which constitutes less than half of the population in the entire territory of a State whose members share common characteristics of culture, religion or language, or a combination of any of these.
- Racism – Prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism by an individual, community, or institution against a person or people on the basis of their membership in a particular racial or ethnic group, typically one that is a minority or marginalized.
Discrimination is known as prejudiced treatment of different categories of people. It can happen to a myriad of groups of people, including black people, women, the LGBTQ+ community, people with a physical handicap, and so many more. Intersectionality is when prejudice against any groups are combined. While intersectionality is much less spoken about than racism, sexism, or nearly any other bigotry, it has been around just as long as prejudice has been, and that means forever, even though the term was coined only 34 years ago.
Examples of Intersectionality, so you know what to look for:
- Black women facing disadvantages based on both race & gender.
- Working class gay men facing discrimination due to their sexual identity & social class.
- Missing Indigenous women facing a lack of police/government/social interest both because of their gender & their ethnic group.
- Working class Black Trans women facing discrimination over their social class, race, and their gender identity.
- People in the LGBTQ+ community w/ disabilities facing unfairness due to their sexual and/or gender identity and their disability.
Transcript of highlighted section of Photo:
“Whenever systems of oppression intersect, their power compounds- those of sexism and racism in particular.”
– Girlhood, Melissa Febos
“We can be led to believe that racism is only about individual mindsets and actions, yet racist policies also contribute to our polarization. While individual choices are damaging, racist ideas in policy have a wide-spread impact by threatening the equity of our systems and the fairness of our institutions. To create an equal society, we must commit to making unbiased choices and being antiracist in all aspects of our lives.”
– Being Antiracist, National Museum of African American History & Culture
Types of Racism, According to the National Museum of African American History & Culture:
- Individual Racism – Refers to the beliefs, attitudes, and actions of individuals that support or perpetuate racism in conscious and unconscious ways.
- Interpersonal Racism – These are public expressions of racism, often involving slurs, biases, or hateful words or actions.
- Institutional Racism – These are discriminatory treatments, unfair policies, or biased practices based on race that result in inequitable outcomes for whites over people of color and extend considerably beyond prejudice.
- Structural Racism – The overarching system of racial bias across institutions and society. These systems give privileges to white people resulting in disadvantages to people of color.
Racism is not something that a person is born being. It’s something that’s developed, sometimes unconsciously, and is something that can be pushed on to a person by family, people in a position of authority over another person, even an educator, or their own community. Even children, by seeing racism, can imitate the people around them, and show racism towards others. Children are tiny human sponges, they soak up everything around them, from language to dialect to mannerisms to world views. It’s our responsibility, not just as social workers but as decent human beings, to curb this behavior, and to educate them on the effects of racism.
Transcript of photo:
“‘Black women sometimes experience discrimination in ways similar to white women’s experiences; sometimes they share very similar experiences with Black men.’ writes Kimberlé Crenshaw, who coined the term intersectionality. ‘Yet often they experience double-discrimination- the combined effects of practices with discriminate on the basis of race, and on the basis of sex. And sometimes, they experience discrimination as Black women- not the sum of race and sex discrimination, but as Black women.'”
– Girlhood, Melissa Febos
Hate Groups
There are over 900 active “hate groups” in the US – a 60% increase since 2000 — and are found in all 50 states. These include: the Ku Klux Klan, Black Separatists, Racist Skinheads, White Nationals, Neo-Nazis, Neo-Confederates, Christian Identity and Anti-LGBT (Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgendered).
– Social Justice Recourse Center, https://socialjusticeresourcecenter.org/facts-and-figures/racism/
Hate Groups are social groups that practice hostility, violence, & hatred towards groups of people. These groups reside in and have members in all 50 states of the U.S. and they strive to strip rights from, hurt, and even kill people from other ethnicities, races, sexual identities, gender identities, religion, and more. These groups can also be known for being intersectional in their bigotry. Take the KKK, for example, who are well known to be white supremacists. While this is true, a large margin, if not all members of the KKK also happen to be extremely homophobic and would commit harm to a person of the LGBTQ+ community as well as any colored person, and a black person that is part of the LGBTQ+ community would and could be seen as even less than the other previously stated groups by a member of the KKK. It’s also important to note that despite being an organization that promotes violence & even murder, the KKK website is open to the public, and open to influencing young minds.
It is a social workers responsibility to fight against racism & intersectionality, the same way it is a social workers responsibility to fight for any marginalized group. It is far too common in everyday life for racism & discrimination to affect the world & individuals within it. Social workers strive both to fight the large fight against racism, and what could be seen as the small fight, making a difference in people’s lives after they’ve experienced racism or knowingly or unknowingly inflicted racist & bigoted views against others, who didn’t deserve that hate.
Kenese Faamu
Hey Hailey, great blog and I definitely agree that racism is something that’s been taught not born with, I was taught that we all bleed the same color and breathe the same air. I’m also surprised by how many hate groups there are. Racism is something that needs to stop, and I believe that social workers can play a big part in that.
Hailey Luder
Hi Kenese, I’m glad that we can agree on that. Thanks for reading!
Myah Sundby
Hailey, your blog structure is impressive! Your artistic efforts complement your writing and make your message more impactful. I appreciate how you started with definitions that set the tone and helped readers understand what to expect. I also appreciate your insight into how racism is developed. It’s a vital point many people realize later in life, but recognizing it is the first step towards ending it. It’s shocking to learn that there are 900 hate groups in the U.S. It’s a sad reality. Lastly, I love your perspective on how social workers fight small- and large-scale fights. I personally agree with your opinion.
Hailey Luder
Hi Myah! Thank you so much! I tried really hard to make it as cohesive as I could and to do that while still including absolutely everything I wanted, and also not overwhelm it, and I think there was a pretty fine balance. I’m glad you appreciated it, and I’m glad I could bring some new news into your life in learning about the hate groups.
David Shelton
Hey, Haile you’re spot on. Racism is a learned behavior, and it’s crucial that we actively work to combat it, especially by educating and guiding our children toward a more inclusive and empathetic mindset.
Kaylila Johnston
Hello Hailey,
Your blog is grand! It is well-structured and very descriptive. Education is very important, especially for these types of problems. I agree that racism is taught and it is not something that people are born with. It is sorrowful that people go through such things. I do believe that small changes could make big impacts.
Ariel Oviatt
Hello Hailey,
I really appreciated your blog post. I think the section that resonated the most with me was the section in which you stated: “Children are tiny human sponges, they soak up everything around them, from language to dialect to mannerisms to world views. It’s our responsibility, not just as social workers but as decent human beings, to curb this behavior, and to educate them on the effects of racism.” The statement there reminded me of a theory I learned about in a previous sociology class called “Tabula Rasa”. It was proposed by John Locke and it suggests that humans are born without any built in mental concepts, but they are learned later on in life through sensory input or learned experiences. Do you think this principle applies to just racist tendencies or do you feel that it applies to all stigmatic tendencies? How do you think we as social workers can help people fill their slate with healthier and more accepting perceptions?