Practical Ways to End Racism
By Maryan Hajir
Leaders who promote the “colorblind” ideology cannot solve the issue of racial discrimination. Racism refers to any act that despises one ethnic group while showing preferential treatment to another.
For several decades, various groups have unsuccessfully tried to eradicate the vice from modern society. The United Nations and other lobby groups fail partly because of using the wrong approaches. Some groups use sports to address the matter, while others promote the “colorblind” ideology, which is premised on the idea that people access equal opportunities in society irrespective of their skin color. Racism destabilizes society and stifles development, but discouraging nationalism, promoting cultural competency, and confronting some social structures could eradicate it.
The first step to ending racism is by shunning all acts and policies that promote nationalism. Leaders encourage racial bias by enacting policies that enhance nationalistic ideas in the disguise of patriotism. While people should be loyal to their countries, they should not go to the extent of secluding others. People with such ideas believe in the superiority of their nations and tend to pursue selfish ambitions at the dignity of other racial groups. Kowner and Demel (2015) confirm that nationalism is a predictor of racism because it inspires people to be more focused on the interests of their countries than on the wellbeing of other communities. Racism will persist unless leaders motivate their followers to treat everyone with respect.
Promoting cultural competency across all social groups could also have a significant impact on the eradication of racism. The lack of cultural intelligence drives some people to harbor racial hatred toward others. Cultural competency helps people to understand, accept, and support diverse practices of various groups in society.
The acceptance of other racial groups as rational beings enhances social cohesion once people recognize that the variance in cultural practices does not suggest ethnic superiority. Using this approach elicits a change in mindset, even in the workplace. Research findings show that cultural-awareness workshops reduce racial discrimination and stereotypes in working environments (Shepherd, 2019). In other words, cultural intelligence helps people to accept that no one deserves maltreatment regardless of ethnic background.
Structures that exacerbate racism should be changed. Some of the strategies that different lobby groups employ do not solve the problem since the matter is systemic. Leaders contribute to racial discrimination by passing laws that ignore the plight of others. For example, the belief that members from particular ethnic groups cannot occupy specific offices encourages racism.
Similarly, promoting the idea that racism does not exist amounts to a “colorblind” assumption since people do not take the necessary measures to end the issue. Structural racism occurs when social systems and policies implicitly favor one racial group over another. In the United States, this discrimination manifests in education, employment, and housing inequalities (Bailey et al., 2017). Challenging structural racism will allow everyone to access jobs and other positions.
Ending racism demands honest leaders who value the dignity of every human being. The belief that a country’s national interests take precedence is a notion that should be opposed because it fosters the maltreatment of minority groups. Other members of society need to acquire cultural competency to accept other people in their uniqueness instead of belittling or opposing them.
However, the two strategies may not be effective without changing the structures that allow racism to spread systematically. All policies should be approved in consideration of all racial groups as opposed to focusing on the majority. The implementation of these recommendations would transform the world to become a home to every person.
