Institutional Racism: An American Evil

Black Princeton professor Cornel West was among the group of protesters arrested in Ferguson, Missouri in August after an 18-year-old African-American boy was shot and killed by a white police officer. Racial tensions remain high, principally stemming from a culture of institutional discrimination.

Police officers in protective clothing arrested numerous religious representatives, including black Princeton professor Cornel West. On Monday, racial tension in Ferguson, Missouri was running high even though the death of Michael Brown, the young African-American killed by white police officer Darren Wilson, dates back more than two months. But the fundamental issues still remain. The recent death of 18-year-old Vonderrick Myers, another black teenager killed by an off-duty white police officer, has sparked the return of racism simmering just below the surface. New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof, born during the Jim Crow era, is not one to beat around the bush: “[W]e need a Mandela in this country,” he says, adding that “the United States has made remarkable progress concerning civil rights, and also in its election of a black president, but the country remains a deeply unequal society.”*

On an individual level, racism still exists, but has lessened somewhat. However, many recent events involving altercations between white police officers and the African-American community demonstrate that this so-called institutional racism is well and truly rooted in Obama’s America. The issue here isn’t social phenomena such as the Klu Klux Klan, which during the struggle for civil rights became a marginal racist organization. The issue is concerned with democratic institutions that continue to churn out racist policies.

The goings-on in Ferguson, where the African-American community makes up two-thirds of the total population despite being poorly represented in local politics and the police force, are in this way symbolic. During the weekend, thousands of demonstrators gathered in the streets of St. Louis, carrying placards bearing the words “Ferguson October.” Four days of national rallies were organized in order to protest against police violence and discriminatory behavior. Well aware of this downward spiral, Attorney General Eric Holder has called for a complete revision of the police system, in a way that has not been seen since the likes of Lyndon Johnson.

In a revealing inquiry, the Washington Post has investigated the practices of local police forces in Ferguson since Michael Brown’s death. The findings are worrying. Despite both local, federal and state intervention, which then led to further investigation of the affair, nothing seems to have deterred local police from maintaining their obviously discriminatory policies. Since August, Ferguson police officers have pointlessly arrested several hundred protesters on the grounds of violating several unofficial laws, including illegal gatherings or excessive noise production. Many of them were kept in custody without even being told why. Certain police officers imposed what they called the “five-second rule,” meaning that any protester who did not keep moving during this time was likely to face arrest. The Washington Post also confirmed that at least one police officer present at the protests was wearing a bracelet with the words, “I am Darren Wilson.” This is the name of the officer who shot and killed Michael Brown, and whose fate will soon be determined. A grand jury is currently in the process of investigating his case. For the moment Wilson is on compulsory leave from the force, but no charges have been filed against him.

Institutional racism is wreaking havoc in America; prisons are full to the bursting point with African-American inmates. But Jim Crow is no longer the reason behind it all. In fact, the reason why black citizens often receive much longer sentences is due to a series of laws passed during the “war on drugs” in the 1990s. This occurred during Bill Clinton’s term in office, a man who was often depicted as “America’s first black president” for the support he offered to a population which now makes up the country’s second biggest minority. Yet, during this period, the number of black citizens arrested for breaking the law on drug abuse saw incredible growth. Now, more than half of America’s prisoners are African-American or Hispanic. However, Obama has successfully convinced Congress to pass the Fair Sentencing Act, which has gone some way to setting things right. Minority groups are no longer exclusively given the longest prison sentences.

But institutional discrimination is not just a modern day issue. Democratic president and advocate of progressivism Franklin Roosevelt also urged the adoption of a fundamentally discriminatory housing act, targeting black citizens. With this in mind, Roosevelt’s New Deal policy is, in part, responsible for Chicago’s black ghetto scene. And finally, Social Security, also established in the 1930s, has spent years doing little to benefit the African-American society.

*Editor’s Note: This quotation, accurately translated, could not be verified.