African American Equality Issues in the US

African American Equality Issues in the US

African American equality issues in the United States have been a longstanding problem that has yet to be fully resolved. According to the National Urban League’s 2021 State of Black America report, African Americans continue to face significant disparities in the areas of economic, health, and social justice. The report also highlights that despite some progress in recent years, structural racism and discrimination still hinder the full participation of African Americans in society. As stated by Davis (1981), “In a racist society, it is not enough to be non-racist; we must be antiracist” (p.150). This quote underscores the importance of addressing and dismantling systemic racism in all its forms. This paper aims to analyze African American equality issues in-depth by examining their historical factors, current issues, affected groups, and proposed changes.

Historical Factors

African American inequality in the United States has deep historical roots that can be traced back to slavery, which began in the early 17th century and lasted until the end of the Civil War in 1865. During this time, millions of Africans were forcibly brought to America and subjected to brutal conditions, forced labor, and the denial of basic human rights. The legacy of slavery, segregation, and racial discrimination has had a lasting impact on African Americans, shaping their economic, social, and political status in American society.

Despite the end of slavery, African Americans faced continued discrimination in various forms, including the establishment of Jim Crow laws that enforced segregation and denied them access to education, employment, housing, and other basic rights. This system of segregation was dismantled in the 1950s and 1960s, thanks to the efforts of the Civil Rights Movement, which mobilized African Americans and their allies to fight for their rights. Healy et al. (2019) examine the extent of diversity in the US population. The authors derive their point by affirming that some states have a huge foreign population compared to the local

population, such as New York, whose foreign-born population accounts for 35% of the local

population. This demographic implies that the US faces a complex problem when it comes to

managing the affairs of individual ethnic and racial affairs.

The Civil Rights Movement led to significant legal changes that sought to eliminate racial discrimination and promote equal rights for African Americans. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibited or outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, gender, or national origin in employment, education, and other sectors. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 ended discriminatory voting procedures that had kept African Americans from voting. Despite these legal victories, African Americans continued to face discrimination and marginalization in various aspects of their lives. They experienced unequal access to education, employment, and housing, which limited their economic opportunities and social mobility. This inequality was reinforced by systemic racism, which perpetuated racial stereotypes and biases that prevented African Americans from fully participating in American society.

In the 1980s and 1990s, the War on Drugs and tough-on-crime policies led to the mass incarceration of Black men and women, further exacerbating the social and economic disparities in African American communities. These policies disproportionately targeted African Americans and resulted in harsher sentences for drug offences, leading to the imprisonment of a large portion of the Black population. This cycle of poverty and disinvestment in Black communities has resulted in further social and economic disparities, perpetuating a legacy of inequality that has yet to be fully addressed.

Current Issues

African American equality issues in the United States are complex and continue to evolve. While progress has been made in certain areas, such as legal equality, several challenges remain. Economic inequality remains one of the most significant challenges facing African Americans in the United States. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated this issue, with African Americans experiencing higher rates of job loss and financial hardship than their white counterparts. The racial wealth gap is another critical issue. African Americans own only a small fraction of the wealth held by White Americans, which significantly impacts their ability to accumulate intergenerational wealth and achieve economic stability. This gap results from various factors, including discrimination in the workplace, a lack of access to education and business opportunities, and discriminatory housing policies that have limited African Americans’ ability to accumulate wealth through homeownership.

Social justice is also a major area of concern for African Americans. Systemic racism in the criminal justice system and police brutality remain persistent issues affecting African Americans’ lives. The Black Lives Matter movement has highlighted the need for systemic changes to address these issues, including reforming the criminal justice system, ending racial profiling, and holding law enforcement accountable for their actions. Health disparities are another significant challenge facing African Americans in the United States. African Americans experience higher rates of chronic health conditions, including diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease, than their White counterparts. Additionally, African Americans have shorter life expectancies than White Americans. The causes of these discrepancies are complicated and numerous, with factors like access to healthcare, environmental conditions, and systematic racism all having a part.

Affected Groups

The issue of African-American inequality in the United States affects people of all ages, genders, and socioeconomic backgrounds, but it disproportionately affects low-income and marginalized communities. According to Taylor (2019), inequities in the American healthcare system disproportionately affect persons of colour. The inequalities impact healthcare coverage, access, and outcomes for some segments of the population. To that end, African Americans bear the brunt of an unequal US healthcare system. At the core of African Americans’ exclusion from healthcare coverage is the limited access to healthcare insurance. Further, Bleich et al. (2019) examined the likelihood of African Americans being in conflict with the law. African Americans experience strained interactions with law enforcers. As such, Black teenagers and adults are likelier to encounter police stops or searches in public.

African American youth are also significantly affected by systemic racism, with lower graduation rates and higher rates of juvenile incarceration. The number of Black students graduating from high school is increasing, but the gap between Black and White graduation rates is still too large. Furthermore, a disproportionate number of Black and Brown students are being pushed into the school-to-prison pipeline, where they are more likely to be suspended or expelled and end up in the juvenile justice system. The impact of these disparities is profound, as it limits the opportunities available to African American youth and reinforces the cycle of poverty and marginalization. Hinton et al. (2018) also delve into how the US criminal justice discriminates against Black people. One worrying African American equality issue is the overrepresentation of Black Americans in the US justice system.

Proposed Changes

Several changes could be implemented to address the persistent issues of African American equality in the United States. To begin with, economic changes could focus on reducing the racial wealth gap and providing more economic opportunities for Black Americans. One proposed solution could be the implementation of reparations or wealth redistribution programs. According to a report by the Brookings Institution, reparations could help close the racial wealth gap and, in turn, reduce racial inequality. This idea has gained momentum in recent years, with several local governments, such as Evanston, Illinois, implementing reparations programs for their Black residents.

Social changes could also help address the issue of inequality. One solution could be police reform, including training officers to recognize and confront implicit biases and implementing community policing strategies. When there is appropriate investment in decreasing bias in policing, there is a reduction in the kind of encounters that lead to the use of force and other types of harm, and more trust is developed in communities.. Another social change that could help address inequality is the implementation of anti-discrimination laws in various sectors, such as education and housing. For example, in the Netherlands, the government has implemented affirmative action policies in education to increase the representation of minority students in higher education institutions. This has helped address the underrepresentation issue and increased the number of minority students who go on to secure high-paying jobs.

Legal changes are also necessary to address African American equality issues. One possible solution could be reformed to the criminal justice system, such as the elimination of mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenses, which have disproportionately affected Black Americans. Another solution could be to focus on alternative forms of punishment, such as community service or drug treatment programs, instead of incarceration. Bradley (2019) delves into how international democracy can be used to end racism. The author avers that international treaties can be used to set global human rights standards that cannot be contravened anywhere. In the long run, treaties will pressure national governments to ensure human rights are incorporated into the system.

These changes have been attempted before, and some have been successful. For example, in Canada, the federal government has implemented a reparations program for Indigenous people who were taken from their families and forced into residential schools. This program has helped address the historical trauma and economic injustices faced by Indigenous people. Additionally, community-based interventions, such as investing in education and community development programs in marginalized communities, have successfully reduced poverty and increased economic opportunities in countries like Brazil and Colombia.

Conclusion

In conclusion, African American equality issues in the United States are a complex and ongoing problem that historical and contemporary factors have shaped. The legacy of slavery, Jim Crow laws, and systemic racism have created enduring challenges for African Americans in terms of education, employment, housing, and access to healthcare. While there have been some positive developments in recent years, such as the election of the first African American president and the passage of civil rights legislation, these gains have been tempered by ongoing racial disparities in wealth, income, and representation. However, several changes could be proposed to address these issues, like reforming the criminal justice system by, for example, eliminating mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenses. While progress on these issues may be slow and incremental, it is essential that work towards a more just and equitable society for all people, regardless of race or ethnicity, continues.

References

Bleich, S. N., Findling, M. G., Casey, L. S., Blendon, R. J., Benson, J. M., SteelFisher, G. K., Sayde, J. M., & Miller, C. (2019). Discrimination in the United States: Experiences of Black Americans. Health Services Research, 54(S2), 1399–1408. https://doi.org/10.1111/1475-6773.13220

Bradley, A. S. (2019). Human rights racism. Harv. Hum. Rts. J., 32, 1.

Davis, A. Y. (1981). Women, race, & class. Random House.

Healey, Joseph F, et al. (2019) Race, Ethnicity, Gender, & Class: The Sociology of Group Conflict and Change. 8th ed., Thousand Oaks, California, Sage Publications, Inc,

Hinton, E., Henderson, L., & amp; Reed, C. (2018). An unjust burden: The disparate treatment of Black Americans in the criminal justice system. Vera Institute of Justice, 1(1), 1-20.

Taylor, J. (2019). Racism, inequality, and health care for African Americans.

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Overview

Assume you are an investigative reporter for a major publication (magazine or newspaper) who has been assigned to research important issues (ethnic, racial, gender, or class) that are causing problems and affecting people in a local area, workplace, or specific part of the world. Your goal is to provide both an in-depth analysis of and put a human face on this issue by writing a series of articles that the editor plans to publish in two major parts. For this assignment, you will write Part 1 of your series of articles, which focuses on the history, current issues, problems caused by the issues, and proposed changes.

Requirements:

Write a 5–6 page (or approximately 1,300–1,400 words) paper in which you:

In the first 1–2 paragraphs, introduce the topic area you chose in Week 2 with a quote, question, and/or statistic (from your credible sources), along with an overview and a thesis statement. (Grab the reader’s interest.)

Explain 3–5 major historical factors (social events/attitudes, wars, laws, economy, political environment, et cetera) in the past 50–100 years that have contributed to the current issue(s) and problems for this topic area. Explain how historical factors impact current issues.

Analyze 3–5 major current issues/problems (economic, social, political, legal, et cetera) for this topic area.

Describe 1–2 groups of people affected by the issue/problem, including 2–3 quotes and/or paraphrased comments from the people affected (from your reliable sources).

Propose 2–3 changes (economic, social, political, legal, et cetera) that could possibly improve the situation. (Changes can be proposed and extracted from examples from other countries, localities, or workplaces that you found in your reliable sources.) Explain the interventions attempted to rectify the issue.

Include 5 or more credible and reliable references in addition to the textbook.