Racism and dr. martin luther

Racism is one of the biggest problems in the world today. Racism still exists in our schools and everywhere people gather around. People have the wrong idea about racism and its causes. They think that that people are born with racism which in fact is a myth. Racism depends on how people are raised and what they see as they are growing up. By the time children are in kindergarten, they start seeing different colors of students and start to question their teachers and teachers tell them not to discriminate and live in equality. But unfortunately, teachers aren’t the only influence that children have, while teachers tell them one thing, parents can also tell them differently. A child’s mind is filled with what it is taught at a very young age. Unfortunately those aren’t the only causes of racism. Xenophobia, the fear of people who are different, is one of the major causes of racism today. Immigrants are among the majority of victims of these kind of racism. People judge them before they even get to know them and that is not their fault because they don’t hate them but they are just afraid of them and fear can result in violence motivated by racism. Bullying has also a great effect on racism. When you bully someone too much, it can end in one of two things: suicide or passing on the bullying. The person being bullied needs to feel ok, to feel he is worth something and this can result in that person wanting to feel superior to others. These circle goes on and on but the victims don’t realize that, they feel they are being hated on because of their color when in fact they are bullied because they are weak. Most people use the first amendment, freedom of speech, as an excuse to participate in racism. They say that the United States is a free country and they should be allowed to say or show what they want even though it is insulting to other races. In his famous “ I Have a Dream” Speech, Dr. Martin Luther King stated, “ Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred” on regarding how to deal with racism in America. Having more class than your opponent and keeping ones dignity is still possible when pursuing equality, though it may not always be easy. Judith Ortiz Cofer tells in her essay, “ The Myth of the Latin Woman”, what it is like growing up a Puerto Rican woman in white America, also that one does not need violence or cruelty to overcome racism and stereotypes or to gain equality. Today, actions and demonstrations may not be seen so vividly or clear as before in strappingly forcing servitude upon a particular race or outcries of violent attacks on these groups of people. Rather it is transformed into something new and created fresh masks to hide its meaning of racism. It is still there but it is camouflaged. Due racism individuals have faced “ up-front violence , the physical assaults, the name calling and the spitting. “( Mukherjee, Bharati “ an invisible women”) Studies show that racial discrimination has an impact on black American’s mental health. In 2009 Cornel news service did a study on racism and it showed that black people have poor mental health because of racial discrimination. Being discriminated against is not an easy thing, it can interfere with people’s whole world and they become mentally unwell, depressed and anxious. Racism can have a lot of effects on its victims. It can make them mad, violent and bitter. It destroys communities and self-esteem and creates division in society. Works cited: 1. I Have a Dream Speech, Dr. Martin Luther King. 2. The Myth of the Latin Woman, Judith Ortiz Cofer. 3. An invisible women, Mukherjee, Bharati.