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Aditya Raju

Dr. Malcolm Campbell

UWRT 1103

October 28, 2019

Racism, Gone or Prevalent?

In 1960, four young black men staged a sit in at the segregated Woolworth’s lunch

counter in Greensboro, North Carolina. The four men: Ezell Blair Jr, David Richmond, Franklin

McCain, Joseph McNeil participated in this sit-in as an act of defiance and representation of the

minority crowd of African Americans at the time. Although this event was 59 years ago, the

same social issue still exists till this day. As we progress into the new decade, there are many

ideas and issues to reflect upon and consider changing as we develop as a society. Technology

has been on the rise for many years now and continues due to funding and intelligence that come

out of the world’s best universities. On the other hand, there are many social issues that have

been tried to be addressed for decades and still fall short from being resolved. One of these issues

being Racism. According to The Guardian, “Racism study finds one in three school students are

victim of discrimination.” Why? Why do we have so many educational institutions from

kindergarten till higher education but still not educate the kids about the racial discrimination

issue that continues to persist? Although there are individuals on both sides of the argument, I

believe that children who attend elementary school should be given the option to learn about race

and culture.
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I will be illustrating many of the horrifying events that have occurred in the past

regarding this controversy and how educating younger children about this will help future

generations believe in unity.

Educating younger students about a topic this sensitive is difficult and some parents may

not want their children learning about racial issues at a young age which is understandable.

However, I believe that an option should exist for parents and children to learn about our

society’s history regarding this topic. Currently, in my area of residence, the elementary school

that my sister attended had forms that parents had to sign for the child to learn about the Growth

and Development system in men and women. This was an optional unit and parents had a choice

of letting their kids learn or do an alternative assignment. I believe that this exact approach

should be used to teach kids about racism. Some parents may feel uneasy but on the other hand,

many parents would like their child to learn about these topics regardless of how sensitive they

are. There are many instances where teachers and students racially shame other students so this

would promote unity and well-being within the campus as well as society. The option will reside

with the parents whether they would like their kids to learn about it or not. If they consent, the

approved students will be allowed to go to a separate class with other students who are able to

participate and learn about the issues in the past and current issues in an appropriate manner for

the younger audience.

Rosa Parks, an inspirational female civil rights activist, was born in Tuskegee, Alabama

in 1913. Her grandparents were former slaves and her family had been part of the fight towards

the emancipation of slaves. Parks attended a segregated school where African Americans were

forced to go through different paths to get to and from campus and were restricted to using low-

grade materials versus the “superior” white men who used “high-grade” materials. This was the
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first taste that Rosa got as a child towards discrimination and this shaped her future forever.

Once Rosa had graduated school, she immediately married a man who was part of The National

Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), and this had caused her to be the

full-throttle activist that she is renowned as today. One of the most significant moments in her

life is when she got onto a bus and sat where the white men were supposed to sit. After refusing

many times to get up and leave to her spot, she was forced by the police and was arrested. This is

one of the many issues that have occurred in history displaying African American excellence and

determination to fight for their rights versus the white supremacists. However, this racial tension

between the Americans and African Americans still exists today.

June 17, 2015, a man named Dylann Roof, 21-year-old white supremacist, opened fire at

Emanuel African Methodist Church in downtown Charleston, South Carolina. When an

investigation was done on the young man, evidence was shown that the attack was planned 6

months prior and according to BBC News, “He said he wanted to start a civil war. He said he was

going to do something like that and then kill himself.” Although the origins of this thought

process can be argued between nature versus nurture, I believe that teaching the history of racial

issues at a young age can avoid situations like this to ever happen again. According to research

acquired from Johns Hopkins University, early education can play a critical role during this

important developmental period. Based on this information, teaching kids about our country’s

history regarding segregation and racial profiling to a certain extent will allow them to retain this

knowledge and understand right from wrong as they grow up into middle and high schoolers.

There are arguments that kids may not be able comprehend the ideas that they are taught in

regards to this topic, however surface-level information will be easy for the young ones to
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comprehend and in case they do have questions, they can ask their parents once they get home

because they will have regulation over the information they want their kids to know.

Although this problem seems to be reoccurring between the American and African

American groups, racism exists amongst many other groups in society and it is equally as

horrific to think about and witness. On March 15, 2019, New Zealand’s Christchurch Mosque

was struck by a shooting that was intended to kill the individuals practicing Islam inside the

building. The suspect, Brenton Tarrant, is a 29-year-old white supremacist who has a reputation

of performing hate crimes, killed 51 people and when testifying in court, he had zero emotion.

Although this man was well-educated, he did not see the impact that his actions had on society

and the consequences he will face once proven guilty. This unawareness can be eliminated by the

education system and teaching students right from wrong if their parents allow them to do so.

Teaching the younger students is no easy matter and will require a lot of time, effort, and

money but the result, which is societal awareness, will be worth the effort. According to David

Acosta’s “Breaking the Silence: Time to Talk About Race and Racism: Academic Medicine,” the

first step in the process is for faculty to receive training regarding this topic so that they know

their restrictions on what information and issue to talk about as well as help teachers who feel

uncomfortable talking about racial issues. Till now, race has been avoided in conversation and

education due to the controversy but one thing that teachers are failing to realize is that the topic

of racism does not always have to lead to bias. According to the journal, with ample training,

teachers will be able to teach students about racism without their own beliefs involved. On the

other hand, the counterargument is also addressed in the journal by stating, “witnessing

discrimination and openly discussing racism-can be overwhelmingly stressful for untrained

faculty,” which is understandable which is why the training is being suggested.

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Mr. Verwayne, a kindergarten teacher, has a strong belief that kids should have their own

identity and states, “I want my kids to be able to recognize who they are.” When defining an

individual, Race comes into picture. Race is a major factor in shaping an individual’s culture,

values, and morals so compatibility with other is partially from nurture and the other half is due

to the race, culture, and religion. According to Religion in America, in the modern generation,

nearly 18.2% of people do not follow a religion which is about 62,361,398 individuals out of the

whopping 329,954,498 residents in the United States. Although this is only 18% of the nation’s

population, there is still a drastic amount of people who do not follow a religion to guide them in

the paths they choose. Without a religious guide, they focus on the culture around them which

includes the issues around them. Race is a huge part of today’s society and shapes everybody’s

day-to-day life whether you realize it or not. For example, when you walk into a job interview,

there is an immediate assumption when the hiring manager sees you whether they explicitly state

it. They do not intentionally try and make these assumptions, but it is natural for any individual

to immediately come to conclusions. These facts are not known to majority of individuals

residing in the U.S so teaching the younger generation these basic facts will allow more

awareness and recognition of other people from different countries.

Overall, the education of racism to students attending early education is essential for

cultural awareness. Although there are arguments for both sides of the argument, the pros

outweigh the cons. Racism is prevalent. It needs to be taught. We can do it.

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Work Cited

Acosta, David. “Breaking the Silence: Time to Talk About Race and Racism: Academic Medicine.”

LWW, Academic Medicine,

https://journals.lww.com/academicmedicine/Fulltext/2017/03000/Breaking_the_Silence__Time_

to_Talk_About_Race_and.15.aspx. Accessed 15 Oct. 2019.

“Charleston Church Shooting: Suspected Gunman Arrested.” BBC News, BBC, 18 June 2015,

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-33190735. Accessed 16 Oct. 2019.

Cole, Kirsten, and Diandra Verwayne. “Becoming Upended: Teaching and Learning about Race and

Racism with Young Children and Their Families.” NAEYC,

https://www.naeyc.org/resources/pubs/yc/may2018/teaching-learning-race-and-racism. Accessed

20 Oct. 2019.

History.com Editors. “Greensboro Sit-In.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 4 Feb. 2010,

https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/the-greensboro-sit-in. Accessed 7 Oct. 2019.

“Religion in America: U.S. Religious Data, Demographics and Statistics.” Pew Research Center's

Religion & Public Life Project, Pew Research Center, 11 May 2015,

https://www.pewforum.org/religious-landscape-study/. Accessed 7 Oct. 2019.

“U.S. and World Population Clock.” Population Clock, United States Census,

https://www.census.gov/popclock/. Accessed 7 Oct. 2019.