ANTHROPOLOGY

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This past year has demonstrated that America is in the midst of a watershed

moment in dealing with its long history of racial inequality and systemic racism. These

issues have been tightly interwoven throughout the fabric of society. The discipline of

anthropology has long been front-and-center in debates surrounding these issues. This

discipline is essential in providing an opportunity to critically reflect on the value of

anthropological insights in helping to understand the current crisis America is dealing

with. Therefore, the discipline of anthropology is essential in helping society understand

the contemporary issues surrounding race, racism, and the systemic inequalities leading

to the unrest witnessed today.

According to Fredrickson George, racism in America is constantly challenged by

its victims and purported beneficiaries in the name of universal human rights. 1 He further

adds that "the affirmation in the Declaration of Independence that all men are created

equal has sanctioned major anti-racist reforms in the past and offers hope for the future." 2

However, for the longest time, American identity and citizenship have been based on

physical race, such as differences in skin color, to determine civic and social status.

The recent events based on racism show how one race is dominant across

political, economic, and social aspects in America. Most of these events are also based on

police brutality and oppression against the Black Community, unlike Whites, proving

how racial inequality is a menace in America. According to Fox et al., the united states

population by race consists of 61 percent Whites, 13 percent Blacks, 18 percent Hispanic,

and nine percent other races. 3 Furthermore, people shot and killed by police since 2015

1
Fredrickson, George M. The historical construction of race and citizenship in the United States.
New York, NY: (United Nations Research Institute for Social Development, 2003), iv.
2
Ibid., iv.
3
Fox, Joe, Adrian Blanco, Jennifer Jenkins, Julie Tate, and Wesley Lowery. "What we’ve learned
about police shootings 5 years after Ferguson." (Washington Post 9, 2019), 2.
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consist of 50 percent Whites, 26 percent Blacks, 19 percent Hispanic, and five percent
4
other races. These statistics show how constant racism and systemic inequalities have

led to social unrest in the past year and today.

According to a news report by Washington Post Staff, the video of the police

shooting of George Floyd by Minneapolis police triggered protests globally. It brought

5
renewed attention to the constant killing of Black Americans for the past decade. This

social injustice also brought attention to the ongoing concerns about systemic racism in

the criminal justice system in the United States of America. 6 The post further adds that

"Floyd's killing exposed the long-standing racial inequalities in every aspect of American

life and forced a deep reckoning across society." 7

Similarly, the Black Community pushed the former vice president, Joe Biden, to

select a Black woman as his running mate. The Washing Post Staff also wrote that

"Biden named Sen. Kamala D. Harris (D-Calif.) on Aug. 11, making her the first woman
8
of color on a major-party presidential ticket." After the selection, Kamala Harris has

devoted herself to work towards galvanizing Black communities across the United States

of America. As a result, companies and corporations have pledged to combat systemic

racism and promote social justice across the United States.

In Why race is not a Biological Concept, Blackburn Daniel argues that "powerful

arguments have been adduced those biological notions of race deserve to be repudiated as

typological, subjective, and based on misconceptions about genetics, human variation,

4
Ibid., 2.
5
"Resources To Understand America’s Long History Of Injustice And Inequality". 2020. The
Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/06/08/understanding-racism-inequality-
america/, 1.
6
Ibid., 2.
7
Ibid.
8
Ibid., 3.
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and human history." 9 He further adds that race is a social construct that does not meet
10
meaningful biological concepts. Moreover, human races have been categorized into

several tentative, subjective, and ephemeral categories over the decades. These

classifications are often constructed based on sociocultural factors. However, race

continues to be defined on ethnic terms, physical attributes, and political and religious

basis. 11

In Discrimination and implicit bias in a racially unequal society, Banks et al.

point out that racial discrimination was legally acceptable while racial bias was widely

adopted in American history. 12 White supremacy was a common metaphor for power. On

the other hand, minority races such as African Americans were the most common victims

of racial discrimination and bias in America. However, minorities have stood their

ground and opposed racial discrimination and bias. For example, the Black community

has developed resistance movements against black oppression, such as the Underground

Railroad, the Montgomery March, and the recent Black Lives Matter movement.

Historical racial inequality and systemic racism have arguably affected societal

constructs across all levels in the United States. Hirschfeld Lawrence, in Race in the

making: Cognition, culture, and the child's construction of human kinds assert that "race

and racial politics were culturally contingent and historically constructed." 13 according to

him, a race is created by political action and has neither specific explanation nor

biological basis. However, to understand how local people exist, it is crucial to

9
Blackburn, Daniel G. "Why race is not a biological concept." Race and racism in theory and
practice (2000), 3-26.
10
Ibid., 4.
11
Ibid., 6.
12
Banks, R. Richard, Jennifer L. Eberhardt, and Lee Ross. "Discrimination and implicit bias in a
racially unequal society." California Law Review 94, no. 4 (2006): 1169-1190.
13
Hirschfeld, Lawrence A. Race in the making: Cognition, culture, and the child's construction of
human kinds. (MIT Press, 1998), x.
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14
understand combined collections of tribes and kin, especially in small communities.

Understanding such aspects gives the society of how people represent themselves

mentally in their social or political groups.

In The persistence of racism in America, Powell Thomas elaborates that racism is

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a disposition that involves beliefs and attitudes. Powell explains that racism is a

persistent part of the overall societal culture in the united states of America. He further

argues that it is necessary to understand the history of racism to understand and explain

its persistence over the decades. Understanding racism requires an understanding of

people's beliefs, attitudes, feelings, opinions, and views regarding the concept of race.

Also, one has to critically analyze the enablers of racism to understand its persistence and

prevention measures.

Anthropological evidence collectively reveals that the persistence of

contemporary issues surrounding race, racism, and the systemic inequalities leading to

social unrest result from a lack of information and misunderstandings. Even though the

concept of race and racism is a sensitive issue that spikes different opinions and feelings

in society, understanding its functionality is essential for achieving successful campaigns

to abolish racial-related issues.

Furthermore, society should build interest in such matters and create awareness

among themselves. Society is filled with diverse cultures with different religions, beliefs,

and morals norms. Therefore, a common ground should be created and adopted to

eliminate race, racism, and systemic inequalities in American society. Many

anthropologists have argued that race is fiction according to biology, and racism is a real

14
Ibid., x
15
Powell, Thomas. The persistence of racism in America. (Rowman & Littlefield, 1993), ix.
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social problem. Understanding these anthropological and historical perspectives on the

social construction of race will go a long way towards developing concrete solutions for

the contemporary issues surrounding race, racism, and systemic inequalities that lead to

social unrest in the united states of America.

Bibliography
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Banks, R. Richard, Jennifer L. Eberhardt, and Lee Ross. "Discrimination and implicit

bias in a racially unequal society." California Law Review 94, no. 4 (2006): 1169-

1190.

Blackburn, Daniel G. "Why race is not a biological concept." Race and racism in theory

and practice (2000), 3-26.

Fox, Joe, Adrian Blanco, Jennifer Jenkins, Julie Tate, and Wesley Lowery. "What we've

learned about police shootings 5 years after Ferguson." (Washington Post 9,

2019), 2.

Fredrickson, George M. The historical construction of race and citizenship in the United

States. New York, NY: (United Nations Research Institute for Social

Development, 2003), iv.

Hirschfeld, Lawrence A. Race in the making: Cognition, culture, and the child's

construction of human kinds. (MIT Press, 1998), x.

Powell, Thomas. The persistence of racism in America. (Rowman & Littlefield, 1993),

ix.

"Resources To Understand America's Long History Of Injustice And Inequality." 2020.

The Washington Post.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/06/08/understanding-racism-

inequality-america/, 1.