Born into Racism?

Many sociologists and historians have researched and studied the origins of racism. There have also been prominent historical leaders that have contributed a large amount to the racist ideology. Josiah Strong, Adolf Hitler, and Josef Stalin are a few historical figures that come to mind when I personally think about racist influencers. It is commonly known that racist groups such as the Ku Klux Klan attract white people who have experienced some sort of disadvantage that favored minorities. These people seek a way to get back at the group they believe wronged them. In reality, this reason is far from why those people are disadvantaged. Similarly, people who have been raised to think in a racist manner are much more likely to become racist themselves.

People who are racist are obviously very closed-minded. They do not like change and do not wish for equality among the races. However, a thought that interests me is to what extent does your upbringing, meaning your familial environment, have on your views of race? I am unaware of any evidence that racist beliefs can be genetic, so this thought centers entirely on the nurture portion of the nature-nurture argument. Some areas of the United States are considerably more racist than others, possibly due to historical events, government programs to help minorities that in some way negatively affected the dominant white society, or loss of jobs to globalization. Individuals born in areas predisposed to racist beliefs will obviously be more likely to be raised by racist parents. A child is extremely influential at a young age, and being subjected to racist ideas and words during this stage of their lives will almost certainly cause the individual to become racists themselves.

One can compare this idea, although the meanings of the two drastically different associations cannot be compared, to religion. A person born to two Christian parents is not very likely to convert to Judaism, unless due to marriage. This can go both ways. I am in no way saying Christianity is better than Judaism or Judaism is better than Christianity. Merely, I am asserting the point that what you are born into pre-determines what much of your life and thoughts will be like.

One important note here is that, as shown in the video entitled “Prom Night in Mississippi,” education most likely plays a role in whether one has racist beliefs or not. There were a few white citizens of Charleston, Mississippi who believed separation of the races was meant to exist. It could be reasonably ascertained that a few of these citizens also had a very low education level. If an individual does not receive a high level of education, they are less likely to challenge preconceived notions about topics such as race. They are also very unlikely to become aware of structural racism and the impact it has on minority groups. Personally, I believe that if a racist individual receives a post-secondary education of some sort, they are much more likely to rethink their previously held beliefs about race.

If more people become educated and develop the ability to challenge previously held beliefs, it is possible that racism would decrease directly as a result.