Are we a nation of racists?
"Racism"
is generally defined as: "a belief or
doctrine that
inherent differences among the various human racial groups determine
cultural or individual achievement, usually involving the idea that one's own race is
superior and has the right to dominate others or that a particular racial group is inferior to the
others." Accordingly, a "Racist" is a person who is prejudiced against or antagonistic toward people on the basis of their membership in a particular racial or ethnic group, typically one that is a minority or marginalized.
The other
day a heard someone comment that he was an "Italian American." I have to ask: "Is an Italian American somehow better
than a French American or a native American?" Whatever happened to the notion that those of
us who are bonafide citizens of the United States should simply refer to
ourselves as Americans? If an American
migrated to Italy would anyone there refer to that person as an
American-Italian?
One
has to wonder where this popular term "African-American" came from? The vast majority of Americans who happened
to have black skin were born in the US as were their parents; hence, they are
not from Africa and are, in fact, Americans.
Are
we a nation of racists? It seems the
average person is constantly confronted with surveys, employment applications,
medical forms, and other types of inquiries that request information on race,
nationality or ethnic background. The
FBI and various police organizations provide statistics as to how many
prisoners are Hispanic, Caucasian, Oriental or African-Americans. Even the up-coming ten-year US census
requires a national origin response - why?
What
difference does race or ethnic background make if this country is merely trying
to count how many people live within its borders. It would appear the only important question
the Census should ask is whether the person filling out the form is actually a
citizen of the US which should have some affect on the
membership count for the House of Representatives.
Unfortunately,
the black vs white issue continues to be a serious national problem along with
a developing sex issue of male vs female and sexual identification.
Why not identify
ourselves simply as "Americans?"
If we, as a society, refer to
ourselves in terms of national, ethnic or racial origin, then this nation shall
never solve the problem of prejudice or racism.
Piper's Papers