Racism Awareness

Hi there! We are a group of 5 students who hope to raise awareness of racism around the world and bring together a larger community of people to combat this issue. Our site will feature fun, educational posts as well as articles surrounding the topic of racism. Do stick around to see our upcoming posts! We hope you enjoy our content and, in the process, learn more about racism and why we should put an end to it. (If you are new, it will be good to take a look a our older posts first for a quick intro to racism!)

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What do you know about Racism now?

http://www.quiz-maker.com/Q93GEWU

Like our first post, here is another quiz to test how much you know about racism. We hope that you have learnt a lot more about this wide topic that affects nearly every one of us in the world. Keep fighting against racism!

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How to deal with racism

Here are some ways to deal with racism if you become a victim of it. Never give up and give in to the suffering it causes. Fight back, so that the next generations won’t have to suffer the same fate, and will know how to win the fight against racism.

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How can I combat racism? (Part 2)

Source: BanG Dream! References: https://www.kickboardforschools.com/blog/post/6-ways-to-prevent-racism-in-schools https://puu.sh/CC1tl/9beed8f028.png

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How can I combat racism? (Part 1)

Source: Charlotte

This meme shows campaigns that actively go against racism, such as the ENAR (European Network Against Racism), and the Rise against Racism Campaign (Singapore).

In their words (https://www.enar-eu.org/About-us), ‘ENAR is the only pan-European anti-racism network that combines advocacy for racial equality and facilitating cooperation among civil society anti-racism actors in Europe.’ Should you want to take a firmer stance against racism, and reside in Europe, this is the campaign to join.

For Singapore, only half a year ago, about 3000 people gathered in a walk against racism thanks to the Rise against Racism Campaign (https://www.riseagainstracism.sg/), showing the amount of open backing for their cause. If you live around here and want to show your support, you might want to join the next one if more news of it is released.

These campaigns were put together by people who do not wish for either themselves, others, or both, to continue suffering from the rampant discrimination against other races by another. As this is a large problem worldwide, campaigns such as these have been launched to help combat racism in their areas/regions, and joining or supporting them will help to show support for their causes.

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Historical Racism: Canadian Residential Schools

Source: Kaguya-sama: Love is War

Canada might seem less xenophobic in general than the United States, and it probably is. However, it does have its fair share of history telling of darker times. For example, the Residential school system. This was something that was in place for centuries, and its purpose was to ‘assimilate’ the natives of the land into western society. However, what actually happened was the severe mistreatment of all those unfortunate enough to find themselves inside the schools. One survivor reports undergoing physical and sexual abuse during her time there, and the death toll is estimated to be up to 6000. This clear dehumanisation of the indigenous people shows the lengths that even the government can go to due to racism.

The 11th of June, 2008, was the first time that the government apologised for the schools. The last one had been taken down only 12 years prior to this. It was the first step towards an apology, although the president of the time forgot to mention a few indigenous peoples. Later on, in 2017, another apology was made in full for the atrocities committed. The president acknowledged that an apology couldn’t hope to make up for the wrongs done, but hoped that they could share the burden by accepting their historical failures. References: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jun/06/canada-dark-of-history-residential-schools https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2015/05/31/how-many-first-nations-kids-died-in-residential-schools-justice-murray-sinclair-says-canada-needs-answers.html https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/residential-schools https://www.macleans.ca/news/canada/read-justin-trudeaus-apology-to-residential-school-survivors-in-newfoundland/

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“Racism is man’s gravest threat to man – the maximum of hatred for a minimum of reason.”

This quote from Abraham Joshua Heschel highlights one of the fundamental problems of racism - that the number of negative consequences that it has brought to its victims are far greater than what it actually should. Racism is an issue that brings those who believe in it to harass others of different races, by doing things that can range from limiting their freedom to outrightly attempting to near-lynch them simply because their circumstances are different. Yet, this is not logically justified in any shape or form, and that is what this quote emphasises on.

What racism brings about is unreasonable. Should someone be discriminated against because the colour of their skin is different from another person? Should someone be separated from the rest due to their cultural practices? They should not be. There is no sensible reason why it should occur, but it still does.

Although racism becoming less extensive, it is still a major issue in society that will not go away without our help. Everyone needs to help and discourage those who believe in it in order to prevent them from continuing on with life in that mindset so that they do not hurt others with their harmful thinking. Perhaps one day, racism will eventually be stamped out, once everyone realises how baseless it is.

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Current efforts to raise awareness of racism

There are many efforts to raise awareness of racism. For examples, there are many campaigns and non-government organisations that hope to combat racism in the world. In many schools, the students are educated on the issue of racism and are taught from a young age how they should interact with people of different races. Furthermore, there are movies and cartoons such as The Hate U Give that brings people’s attention to racism!

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Racism: Nurture not Nature

“Racism is taught in our society... it is not automatic. It is learned behavior toward persons with  dissimilar physical characteristics.” - Alex Hayley https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/74386-racism-is-taught-in-our-society-it-is-not-automatic

Source: https://www.parent24.com/Family/Parenting/how-do-you-talk-to-kids-about-racism-20161124-2

No one is born a racist. So how and why does someone become racist? Or start to practice racism? Well, it’s due to one’s environment and the people they are surrounded by. Every child learns from their parents, teachers, peers, etc. If one were to have a racist parent, they are likely to follow their parents’ example and be racist too. However, this can all be prevented with proper education! By guiding youths and educating them on issues like race and religion, they will be able to understand people who are different from them. Youths are the future of our society, by playing your part, we can combat against racism!

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Racism: Health Impacts

Many people today fail to see how far racism can impact a person, be it emotionally or physically. People feel that the impact of it is just momentary, while they are being insulted itself. However, the impact of racism can be long-lasting, especially when it occurs for a prolonged period of time. Apart from emotionally scarring the victim, it can also cause health risks for them in the long run, like high blood pressure and other examples mentioned in the article. These effects of racism are something that we should be very aware of, as this knowledge would make you or anyone else think twice when they think of passing a racist comment, whether consciously or subconsciously. References: http://theconversation.com/racism-impacts-your-health-84112

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Racism: The impact on the young

“One of the worst things about racism is what it does to young people.”

-Alvin Ailey, Dancer

One of the most adverse effects of Racism today is that children are bullied at schools for being of a different race from the majority. Young Minds are the most susceptible to new ideas, especially because when they are not able to differentiate right from wrong easily. When children see forms of racism somewhere, they feel that it is okay for them to replicate the same actions. Even if we are not able to change the mindsets of those who are racist, the most we can do is to make sure that the following generations are properly educated about racism and how it's wrong. If a child’s morals are built correctly, they will follow it sincerely and will grow up to be a responsible and virtuous citizen, possibly advocating against racism themselves. Racism is an issue that runs through the generations, and it is our duty to abolish it by spreading awareness about it so that the next generations can live in peace.

Take a look at more quotes here: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/alvin_ailey_363876?src=t_racism

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How you unknowingly contribute to racism

The huge mistake that we do, despite actively protesting against racism, is that we fail to confront our counterparts that are racists or contribute to racism by their actions and ideologies.

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Examples of Racism Part 6: Racism that is fuelled by colourism - South Korea

Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/01/opinion/south-korea-racism.html The 2010-2014 World Values Survey showed that 34.1 percent of Koreans would not want to live next to someone of a different race. This is compared with 5.6 percent of Americans and 18.8 percent of Hongkongers.A 2015 survey by the Seoul Institute found that 94.5 percent of foreigners in Seoul had experienced discrimination, compared to 30 percent of foreigners in Japan, according to a 2017 study by its justice ministry. In fact, racism in South Korea had become such a serious matter that it became a national issue. In 2012, when President Moon Jae ran for elections, he vowed to pass an anti-discrimination law. ‘ Kanika Copeland, 41, a black woman who lectures at Dongguk University in Seoul, recalls an incident in a bar several months ago involving a white friend of hers. “A random Korean man came up to her and asked her why she was here with a black girl,” Copeland says. Fortunately, such experiences are rare, “but only because I limit my interactions with Korean people”.  All this makes little difference for people like Kislay Kumar, an Indian student who was turned away from a club in Seoul last June and told by the bouncer, “No Indians. It is a rule. No Kazakhstan, no Pakistan, no Mongolia, no Saudi Arabia and no Egypt.”. Lee says scholars were becoming aware of the problem, but the public should also be prepared to face some inconvenient truths. “We have many cases where Chinese have committed homicide, and while we are witnessing such cases more and more [frequently], many Korean people begin to form feelings against Chinese people because many Chinese people commit very serious crimes. Rape and killing.”However, a March 2015 report by the South China Morning Post regarding Seoul’s Chinese neighbourhoods, found the crime rate was 3.75 per cent for Koreans and 1.71 per cent for foreigners. “Immigrants in Korea, including the Korean-Chinese, are criticised but foreigner crime rates are only half that of the national average,” says Park Kyung-tae, a sociology professor at Sungkonghoe University. “Koreans are more frightening when you look at statistics.” ’Absurd Stereotypes are common too: “Female white Americans teach English the best!” he says. “People from Southeast Asia are all poor. Chinese people are rude and dirty. Japanese people can’t be trusted. Black people smell funny and are dangerous.”However, not all South Koreans are bigots. Data polled from June 20 2018 revealed that 39 percent supported accepting Yemeni refugees, while some 49 percent opposed. There are also high-profile voices of reason. “How could we possibly ask our children to love this world if we discriminate against other races, other nations and other religions?” Jung-Woo sung said, a South Korean actor and goodwill ambassador for the United Nations refugee agency, at a public forum. Resources: 

1. 

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/01/opinion/south-korea-racism.htm

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2. https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/2122913/south-korea-ready-take-racism-first-it-must-admit-it-exists

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How to act when you see a racist incident

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2hzcHNiLoao

Racism can be easily prevented when the offender’s mistake is corrected immediately. Standing up against people with racist mindsets when they pass racist comments will decrease the likeliness of such an incident happening again. If it risks your own safety, you can video the incident and show it to someone of a higher authority so that they can take action, like what the video mentioned. Actively fight against racism, but do not risk your own safety for it!

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Examples of Racism PArt 5: Racism that is fuelled by colourism - The Philippines

Filipino brand ‘GlutaMAX’  tells women to become ‘whiter’ to fight discrimination.

Note how the advertisement demeans the black woman for not being fair-skinned- meanwhile, the lady with fair skin is described as ‘ivory’.

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Plus we all make pretty great snaccs ;)

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Examples of Racism Part 4: Racism that is fuelled by colourism - India

Source: http://www.analyzenbd.com/unilever/fairnlovely-test/ AD: The girl is suddenly deemed beautiful, and loved by others because of her sudden transformation to a fair-skinned woman. Previously, she is ostracised and unliked by everyone, and is shown as a failure (of everything). Notice how the Fair and Lovely tube is placed on the African Continent.

Source: http://www.emamiltd.in/brands/74/169/fair-and-handsome-fairness-cream-for-men.php

Being “fair” and light-skinned is equivalent to being manly and handsome. Bollywood personalities appear in commercials, endorsing skin-whitening products.

Some blame the obsession for fair-skin as a result of supposedly unrealistic European beauty standards imposed during the British colonial rule. The powder-white skin was unrealistic especially for the fact that they were natural, western cultural features (hence, MNCs have taken advantage of these colonial beauty standards to profit).

Colourism is largely prevalent in the country, and even religions have fallen prey to it. The obsession of fair-skin in India can be seen from the fact that soap operas that depict Hindu Epics have fair-skinned Indians to play the roles that are described as “dark and divine” in ancient Sanskritized scriptures. One example is how the Hindu deity, Krishna, is portrayed as light-skinned in dramas when in reality the name “Krishna” itself means "black, dark".

Fortunately, there have been movements to challenge this fair-skin fever, such as #unfairandflovely (mocking the fair and lovely brand above) and projects like the Dark and Divine.  The Dark and Divine project hires dusky models (who struggle to with their modelling career because of their skin colour) to portray as Hindu gods, to eradicate the notion that being white is superior. References: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-42637998

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Significant Figures - Nelson Mandela

Nelson Mandela Source: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Nelson-Mandela Nelson Mandela was the president of South Africa from 1994-1999. However, that is not the main reason why he is renowned today. When Mandela was part of the African National Congress, he was imprisoned for 27 years. Why, you may ask, was a person who was part of congress jailed? Mandela was jailed for sabotage, as he had fought against apartheid which had existed in South Africa then. As can be seen from one of our earlier posts, Apartheid was the ideology where it was compulsory for people in the country to be registered and grouped according to their race and each racial group would receive different treatment from the other races. Despite knowing the dire consequences that would arise because of his actions, Mandela was willing to sacrifice his freedom for 27 years, so that the people of his country would be free from the Apartheid. Shortly after serving his time in prison, he was elected as the president, where his government worked to completely erase all traces of the Apartheid ideology in South Africa. Because of his sacrifice, he is one of the most reputable figures who fought against racism in the past.