There is no structural racism in America. There is only discretional racism in America. Discretional racism is the only racism that counts for anything. Structural racism existed before the 1960s . By definition. structural racism is racism codified in law. Apartheid South Africa and Jim Crow America had structural racism. If you believe there is structural racism in America all you have to do is point out one single law in America that explicitly dictates that white people be treated more preferentially compared to people who are not white. Just one law. There are none. But racism and preferential treatment of whites is almost as prevalent today as it was in Jim Crow America. Not as prevalent but for the victims of racism it feels no different. Contemporary racism in America is more accurately and more usefully to be called discretional racism and not structural racism. This is not merely a difference about term. It is a difference about an approach to racism that can be useful and effective in fighting racism and on the other hand an approach that is not only just plain wrong but more importantly ineffective in fighting racism. Changing the laws (a structural change) will be a waste of time without addressing the more pernicious problem of discretional racism. Judges, law rnforcement officers, teachers, store clerks, jurors, job supervisors, and recruiters are all people who are required by law to daily exervisectheir discretion in matters of substantial consequence in all our lives. In many instances the exercise of that discretionn is a matter of life and death for the subject of that discretional exercise. It is the discriminatory exercise of that discretion that is the basis for the mass incarceration of of Black people. It is that discretional racism that is responsible for the death of Michael Brown and Trayvon Martin. This discretional racism is inaccessible to and cannot be remedied by structural approaches. Discretional racism is the most potent way for racism to perpetuate itself even in a society that has constitutionally and legally obligated itself to nonracialism. How do we fight this discretional racism. Your thoughts.
Posted on: Thu, 11 Sep 2014 23:52:11 +0000
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