Ethnic Groups and Discrimination

by Christine Morgan

Introduction:

 There are many ethnic communities within the United States. Most of  these ethnic communities have migrated into the United States over the  years. Many indigenous ethnic groups or Native Americans like the red  Indians have been marginalized extensively especially due to foreign  occupation of the land over the last two decades. On this essay I will  analyze a migrant ethnic group whose migration into the United States is profoundly different from all the others.

 African Americans:

 African Americans are an ethnic group in the United States whose  ancestral homes are mainly in sub-Saharan Africa. African Americans just like many other ethnic groups in the United States migrated into the  United States for over the last decade. Unlike other immigrants African  Americans in the United States did not migrate into the United States  out of their own volition.

 The earliest African American immigrants in the United States were  actually slaves who were shipped into the United States in order for  them to work in white plantation farms. Most of these were usually  captured forcefully and then sold to slave merchants along the east  African and west African coast and then traded to slave ships and  brought across the Atlantic ocean in what was famously referred to as  the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Although a majority of African Americans have an African ancestry there are around 17% of African Americans who  have a European ancestry and there is still a significant group that  have an Indian or Native American ancestry.

 On matters of prejudice, segregation, and racism: African Americans have faced many ills during their long stay in the  United States. African Americans have faced hostility from other ethnic  groups ever since the days of slavery up to date. Although in recent  days the hostility is not widely spread it is still evident and ripe  deep inside the American society. Due to this prejudice African  Americans were denied their liberty, the chance to pursue their own  happiness and even denied life in the following ways. Firstly African  slaves were not recognized as humans but as property of the slave  owners. In addition slaves were denied the right of freedom of worship and  association. African slaves once shipped into the United States, they  were separated from their wife's and children. Furthermore, slaves who  were extremely emaciated on arrival in the 'land of opportunities', were usually left to die due to the fact that they had no economic value to  the slave lords. In this respect African Americans have faced all kinds  of prejudice which are cognitive prejudice, co native prejudice and  affective prejudice. In this respect African Americans have been  discriminated against in the electoral process, educational sector,  public transportation, legal system as well as many other fields.

 African Americans have found themselves segregated against when it comes to the family unit where for a long time many other ethnic communities  in the United States sometimes considered inter-marriages to African  Americans a crime and sometimes they would even kill their kinsmen if  they were found out to be involved with African Americans. Besides this  African Americans have faced vigilante violence especially in the form  of lynching during the Jim Crow era. The Jim Crow era is a period of  time when the Jim Crow laws were in existence. These laws constitutionally allowed for racial segregation against  blacks. They were in existence until 1964 when they were abolished,  after the passing of the civil rights act of 1964, especially due to  black movements mainly led by martin Luther king.

 Explanation:

 There are many reasons why African Americans have been discriminated  against, but the main reason why they have been discriminated against is due to the color of their skin. The black skin of African Americans is  considered by many to be inferior to other skin colors and thus they do  not see the reason why a black person should be more prosperous than  they. Apart from this there are other people who hold the cognitive  prejudice that Africans and in extension African Americans were not  created but actually evolved. This belief makes them view African  Americans as resembling apes and thus they belief these people should be living in zoos.

 On the issue of institutional discrimination:

 Institutional racism or discrimination is not foreign to American  culture. African Americans have been on the receiving end and they have  been highly affected by it. On this perspective many African Americans  have faced many occupational and educational disadvantages due to  ingrained stereotypical views that are still deeply rooted in the  American society like blacks are inherently criminals. This has denied  many African Americans many privileges enjoyed by other races like a  good education, the best occupations as well as a just legal structure.

 Cultural identity:

 Everyone has a right to belong to a certain culture. Although I would  like to associate more with the African American culture, I will have to recognize the fact that the American society is multiracial and thus I  have to equally relate not only to the African American culture but I  also have to identify with the general American culture.

 Conclusion:

 Acts of racism, discrimination, and segregation are not unique to the  American culture. The system of apartheid or racial segregation was  legally in existence in South Africa until 1994. In many other countries people of other nationalities or ethnic backgrounds are always  discriminated against.

 All what needs to be done is for people all over the world to be made to understand that whether a person is a red Indian, a black American, a  Punjabi or whatever, people need to realize that beneath the skin we  all have the same color of blood, the same body organs and that above  all we all have one heart, one soul and one chance to live in this  lifetime.

 References: John Hope Franklin, Alfred Moss (2001), From Slavery to Freedom. A  History of African Americans, McGraw-Hill publishers.

 Patricia J. F (1983), Ethnic and Immigration Groups: The United States,  Canada, and England, Institute for Research in History (New York),  Haworth Press. Shapiro Thomas M (2004), The Hidden Cost of Being African American: How  Wealth Perpetuates Inequality, prentice-hall.

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