Introduction to the Systemic Racism Read-Along
The structures and institutions of America are not neutral; they advantage certain groups and disadvantage others. These are not failures but features of our systems. Policies ostensibly designed to address inequalities have often failed or even made inequity worse. The impact of ingrained racism is cumulative, and we must closely examine the causes and effects if we want to generate truly beneficial solutions.
In this read-along, I will be making my way through the edited volume Systemic Racism in America: Sociological Theory, Education Inequality, and Social Change. As with the last read-along, I will read chapter by chapter and share my thoughts, analysis, and reflections on this blog. I encourage all of you to read deeply, ask questions, and examine your own preconceived notions as we move forward.
The introduction to this volume makes it clear how this publication is situated within the contemporary moment. It addresses how we do not live in a post-racial world thanks to the election of Obama, nor is racism a topic that is a problem of the past. The elections of Trump, the reckoning with police brutality and the social push back to the BLM movement, as well as the unequal impact of the covid-19 pandemic have all made it very clear that the systems and structures of this country at best do not serve marginalized people, and at worst actively oppress and murder them.
If we look deeper into the pandemic, we see ways in which multiple systems can interplay to create greater inequalities. Black people have been three times more likely to die from covid than white people. People of color who worked frontline and “essential” jobs are put in danger often without proper protections, hazard pay, or compensation. Many were forced to put their own lives, and the lives of their families at risk so that wealthy people wouldn’t have to wait longer for their amazon deliveries or face supply chain issues in their grocery stores, or have to help their children with Zoom school.
People of color also have less access to healthcare when they do get sick. Additionally, if they do get medical care, there is racism within medical education that tells doctors falsities like black people have thicker skin and higher pain tolerance than white people. There is also a stigma against black people expressing their pain as drug-seeking behavior. Redlining and Jim Crow also play a part, often meaning people of color live in close proximity, making the spread of covid easier. Housing policy, education, healthcare, capitalism, and segregation all work together to create that statistic about how much more likely a black person is to die from COVID.
This volume seeks to directly address racism, and demonstrate the interplay between the underlying structures and institutions that perpetuate racism in modern America. Part One is titled “Systemic Racism and Social Theory. It features writings from Hoda Mahmoudi, Eduardo Bonilla-Silva, Liann Yamashita, Aldon Morris, Matthew Hughey, and Michael Rosino. This section focuses on the systemic racism and prejudice within social systems, as well as the necessary inclusion of traditionally excluded academic voices and theories. It concludes with a chapter discussing how Trump's election was in line with the white supremacist machinations in our country and was not a mistake or blip, but a feature of our society.
Part Two is titled “Systemic Racism and Education Inequality.” It contains entries from scholars including Prudence Carter, Odis Johnson Jr., Earl Edwards, and Pedro Moguera. This section tackles the education gap, standardized testing, and the macro lens of structures that undergird racial disparities in education. It also addresses the achievement gap and related policies, as well as the overlooked factor of homelessness in academic performance. As someone highly enmeshed and invested in the world of academics, I am particularly interested to read the analysis in these chapters.
The final section tackles “Systemic Racism and Social Change.” It faces a particularly difficult endeavor and seeks to offer genuine solutions, which are often absent from such a complex discussion. Contributors include Chandra Reyna, Simone Durham, Beth Cohen, and Rashawn Ray. They cover a wide berth of topics including how universities can address racism, the ways that media outlets diverge on issues related to BLM, and how privileged students across groups try to build solidarity with marginalized people. The volume concludes with Dr. Ray’s assertion about the importance of progressing from learners to advocates. I hope through the journey of reading and examining this volume, we are able to take steps away from simply listening and learning, to become capable of actively enacting anti-racism and equity.
About the Author
Stella Hudson is a Graduate Assistant with the Baha’i Chair for World Peace. She graduated from the College of William and Mary in 2021 with a B.A. in English. She is attending the University of Maryland and pursuing a Master’s of Library and Information Science.