By Rawlings Khoza
Racism is one of the most important social issues of the modern world. It has affected millions of people worldwide, and is one of the deepest social problems in history. The basic dictionary definition of racism is prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one’s own race is superior but what comes to mind when the word racism is mentioned? To most people racism is when one believes that he/she is genetically or physically better than the characteristics of another race. But what does not comes mind to some people is racism did and can lead to the elimination of another race ,division of a nation and the enslavement of another race , as what took place in history
Racism is one of the world’s major issues today. Many people are not aware of how much racism still exists in our schools workforce, and anywhere else where social lives are occurring. It is obvious that racism is bad as it was many decades ago but it sure has not gone away. Racism very much exists and it is about time that people need to start thinking about the instigations and solutions to this matter. Many people believe that it depends on if a person was brought into the world as a racist or not but that is not the case at all. In fact, an individual cannot be born a racist but only learn to become one as they grow from child to adulthood.
Unfortunately, racism can be seen almost everywhere….even in a high school. Teasing, name-calling, bullying, verbal abuse and exclusion – all these forms of racism can be nowadays observed in high schools, where all kinds of people – be it teachers, pupils or workers – face with negative effects of racism. Students representing different races find it extremely hard to make friends with their peers from the other “races circles”. When things like that happen, sociability is compromised, which means there is no social growth observed within the communities. One more reason why racism should be eliminated lies within the fact that some students reject their own parental and culture values. When being discriminated for their culture, students begin to make themselves fit the mainstream culture.
As a result, they abandon their parental and cultural values just to avoid prejudice. This leads to the identity confusion. Young people don’t know who they are anymore and what place they really belong to. Racism has also been one of the core reasons of drop out cases at schools. Being discriminated, students start hating school and, as a result, stay away from it. They give preference to stay in rather than meet the ones who tease them. It’s no wonder that they end up dropping out of school. This, in turn, has a major negative effect on their lives. They end up getting frustrated and even involved on crimes in order to somehow make a living
To begin with, frustration is a very common cause of racism. If one is having some sort of a social problem, they tend to get very angry with people who are not even concerned with their situation. For instance, when a person is having a tough time economically, they find it easy to blame immigrants for taking away their jobs or creating fewer opportunities. This type of an analysis is very easy to make but when one makes this assumption, it usually leads to hate towards any minority group. The psychological factor is also common disturbance that is found as the root of racism. People with tough childhood may sometimes produce anger and hate towards others. This kind of person is inclined to dominate others as these qualities attract to racism because of the way racism divides the world into superior and inferior. In these types of situations, one can only picture of what might go through the heads of such individuals. However, in some cases aggravation is only created by the mental thought. Change is a particular device that people cannot handle at all times.
People act abusive or have aggressive behaviors towards member of another race on the basis of a belief. Throughout the world, people are being made fun of or making fun of someone because of their race. Name calling is probably the start of people acting towards another race. Black people are called “kiffirs” and “Negros,” and so on. There are so many different racial slurs for one race. People can have aggressive behavior towards another race by threatening them by saying “I’m gonna kill you, you nigger!” Other aggressive actions people do are riots. Riots were a big thing during the 1960s, when the Civil Rights Movement was happening, the black community wanted racial equality in the world. One of the most significant riots outside of South Africa was the Watts Riot of 1965. The Watts Riot was a racial riot that included an African American neighborhood in Los Angeles in the 1960s.
Racism hinders social development. With all of the racial hate, it can lead to acts of discrimination. Discrimination is the act, practice, or an instance of discriminating categorically rather than individually. For example, Pretoria school for girls saga. The black children were discriminated for wearing their beautiful afros big and with so much pride. These children had to go through a lot from racial names to possible suspension for simply growing their natural hair big. Prejudice is another thing that can hinder social development. Prejudice is an irrational attitude of hostility directed against an individual, a group, a race, or their supposed characteristics. In South Africa, some of the underpayment women in the work force, like maids in hotels, are treated unfairly because of their race, color, etc. “Isolated” discrimination is performed by a single individual based on personal prejudice. This can lead to routine behavior on a group based on personalized prejudice towards the group.
Racism is all over the world and it seems that racism will continue on throughout the years. Over all, I think racism is very hurtful physically and mentally. Physically and mentally, racism can hurt someone on the inside and outside. This is why I disagree with racism. I strongly believe everyone is equal to each other and that with a little more effort everyone and not just me can see this too, I think the world would be a very much better place and with a zero percentage racism rate if we were all color-blind. No one would see color before they decide to engage with the next person, no one would intentionally hurt the next person if we all looked the same because it would seem like self-harm and I doubt anyone can intentionally hurt themselves.
A white man once said “By the time we (white people) have come to love, they (black people) would have come to hate”. From my clear observation of the current state of the world, I think that time is now, unlike when racism started the white people were the oppressors, the racist and all this is no secret but now though black people are “free” they are not the oppressors and sadly some have become the racists. If we let racist progress any further, I am afraid we will live on a very bitter and hateful earth. The more sad part is that racism has matured some much that it has given birth to tribalism, which is as bad if not worse. We have seen what happen in Limpopo, Vhuwani, the same race circles are now slowly but surely divided within themselves. I don’t know about how the rest of South Africa and the world feel about this but I for one cannot stand what has become of the world!
It is not a beautiful site; it does not inspire ones’ confidence to bring onto this world, the next generation to come, if I am no longer comfortable living in the world as it is, how am I going to bring another person to this hateful world? If I am not the only one who feels like this, what will become of the human race when it stops bringing new people onto the world? Is a world without humans what the future holds for us? I think not, but it could be if we don’t start doing whatever needs to be done to ensure that the world is once again a place of happiness and love and not site of racism and hatred for one another! I am willing and if the world is also willing, it can be done.
Racism not only affects the youth in school or just the youth in general, racism is so widely spread that almost every race sees an enemy when they look at other race circles. Racism exits in many work places where difference races encounter. At first this might look like it only has a negative effect on the oppressed but where racism is present it affects the progress of the society as a whole. In most societies, unity brings progress when people can fairly engage in the running of the community, where everyone regardless of race is treated with the same dignity and respect. If everyone works together to build such a community, the children will grow to such unity and no child will discriminate against another child, this way no child will be reluctant to go to school or go to the park because the child will know no color, the only that can differentiate between children can the hairstyle they are wearing, not the color of their skin. After all on earth there’s one race and that is the human race. We are all one and the same, we should all treat each other like family, the beauty of a society where family is not confined to blood relation but just the fact that you are human makes you my family, and this is world I yearn for, this is the world I will use my platform and whatever resource is at my disposal to ensure that it comes to life.
By Rawlings Khoza (Blog – Rowling’s Diary)
Rawlings Khoza is a young man from a small but active village of Magorho then and now Tiyani. From a young age, Rawlings has always been into literature. Rawlings only started writing his own material in the year 2011, at age 13. But the love, passion and interest for literature started from as early as age 10. He would read, memorize and recite poems from
