Analysis of Racism: Impacts and Mitigation Strategies

Desklib provides past papers and solved assignments for students. This literature review explores the concept of racism and its impact.

1
Racism
Literature review on Racism

2
Racism
Racism and its impacts
Racism can be defined as the belief of people in which one race or people are thought to be
superior based on their race or caste or ethnicity. The term race cannot be defined in a single
sentence, it has a deeper meaning. This research study is done to have a deeper look at the
concept of race and racism. The aim of this research is to analyze the effects of racism on
society and the ways by which it can be mitigated from the world. This study will focus on the
term racism and its impacts on society at large. Racism is the practice which has been prevalent
in the world since ages. This is a practice which cannot be abolished completely from the world.
The idea behind the concept of racism is that people of past ages thought and believe that
humans can be easily divided into categories on the basis of their work, skin colour and origin of
birth. Although this is not in accordance with humanity. People are divided into subclasses on
the basis of their social behaviour and personal potentials. They are categorized as superior and
inferior.
According to research, the best examples of racism can be derived from the apartheid In South
Africa, Slavery in the US and Latin America. There are many more examples of racism in the
whole world. The two terms racism and ethnicity are considered to be different in today’s world
but in the past period, the two terms had the same meaning. Racism affects the political situation
of a country or place and the social actions of the people. Racial discrimination is done on the
grounds of culture and society. Racial discrimination has a great impact on the social behaviour
of the people living in a society. It influences social diversity. It is not at all good for society and
its peace (Quigley, 2011).

3
Racism
In the words of the authors Kaholokula, et. al., (2012) racism is often misunderstood as the term
multiculturism. In fact, racism is the negative aspect of diversity where people are distinguished
on the basis of their social status and ethnicity. The term multiculturism is the positive aspects of
diversity. It is important to respect each and every culture (Kaholokula, et. al., 2012). According
to a convention on social racism by the United Nations, the discrimination on the grounds of race
is socially untrue. It is considered dangerous for society. It is scientifically false to distinguish
people according to their race. There are many countries in the world which have passed various
laws and rules to abolish racism and racial discrimination (Quigley, 2011).
According to the UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization,
all human beings are born from a single stock and are a single species. The rights and interests of
all human beings on this earth are equal and same and no one can breach the rights of human
beings.
In the words of the authors Evans, et. al. (2012). although there are numerous laws and rules so
that racial discrimination can be controlled and even mitigated from the society but there are still
some traces of racism and racial discrimination in some parts of Asia and South Africa. It is very
strange to know that in some counties race is one of the main elements of an individual’s
personality other than age and gender (Evans, et. al., 2012). The race is still considered to be
important for decisions alike marriage in some countries. People believe that marrying in the
same race is good for future generations. But f this aspect is seen in a scientific manner,
marrying in the same race can lead to physical disabilities in the children.
The study has been conducted after research of various literature and would be helpful to various
other researchers to carry out their research work.

4
Racism
Lastly, to conclude on the concept of racism, it can be said that racism can only be controlled and
-abolished from society by the acts of anti-racism. Anti-racism promotes an egalitarian society in
which people are not differentiated on the grounds of race. There were certain movements like
the Anti-Apartheid Movement and Nonviolent Movement which supported the anti-racism. The
government of every county must adopt strict rules and laws so that there is peace in the society
and people do not face any discrimination or prejudice (Brandt & Reyna, 2012).

5
Racism
Reference
Brandt, M. J., & Reyna, C. (2012). The functions of symbolic racism. Social Justice
Research, 25(1), 41-60.
Evans, A. B., Banerjee, M., Meyer, R., Aldana, A., Foust, M., & Rowley, S. (2012). Racial
socialization as a mechanism for positive development among African American
youth. Child Development Perspectives, 6(3), 251-257.
Kaholokula, J. K. A., Grandinetti, A., Keller, S., Nacapoy, A. H., & Mau, M. K. (2012).
Association between perceived racism and physiological stress indices in Native
Hawaiians. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 35(1), 27-37.
Quigley, W. (2011). Racism: The Crime in Criminal Justice. Loy. J. Pub. Int. L., 13, 417.

6
Racism