Prejudice And Discrimination Essay

The concept of discrimination and prejudice have both existed almost since the foundation of society itself. It is generally accepted and seen that prejudice and discrimination are common throughout the world, both different from each other, but still directly relating to one another. Both can be seen and observed in most places in different forms, styles, and degrees. Prejudice and discrimination are intrinsically related to each other but are also two different concepts as well. Prejudice has to do with the inflexibility and irrational attitudes and opinions held by members or groups in society about another group. While discrimination refers to behaviors directed against another group or rather an unequal treatment of one group in society
by another. Most of the time one leads to the other. Being prejudiced usually, means having preconceived beliefs about groups of people or their cultures. Conversely discrimination is often the result of an attitude of prejudging of some sort, usually in a negative way. There can be examples of positive prejudice, which involves one group (sometimes their own) exaggerating the virtues or accomplishments of another group. Prejudice and discrimination can have far-reaching effects on society. People who believe that they are being judged negatively or who are treated as inferior may struggle to perform to the best of their ability, especially if they experience prejudice or discrimination on an ongoing basis. To continue and go further some examples of discriminations could be things such as gender or race discrimination. An example would be when an employer offers a lower wage for a woman doing similar work as a man or offering a lower wage to a new immigrant having similar experience/skills as a non-immigrant. Another example of discrimination is how women were not given the right to vote for years until 1920 when the 19th Amendment was ratified. Perhaps the most prevalent and well know example of discrimination in the U.S was the institution of slavery. Despite the eradication of slavery in 1865, racial segregation was legal until the famous 1954 court case of Brown v. The Board of Education. Examples of groups facing prejudice would be the LGBT community, a group that has faced frequent prejudice and discrimination. Same-sex marriage was still not recognized in many parts of the United States until 2015 when the supreme court made gay marriage legal nationally. Although some states are enacting legislation to prevent discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, prejudice is still widespread in many areas.
Many homosexuals or even transgender people face, on a daily basis, hate, violence, prejudice and discrimination as a result of their identities, and only a few states have protections against discrimination and prejudice on the basis of gender identity or expression. Many members of the LGBT youth continue to become homeless often being kicked out of their home by family members due to their lifestyle. However, ultimately the concepts of prejudices and discrimination formed as a result of certain individual fearing strangers or feelings of superiority over others. As societies became more and more complicated, due to an increase in population and in the ways to group people, such as through social classes and multiple ethnic groups, prejudices and discrimination also became much larger and broader in scope. Because prejudice and discrimination often involve multiple factors, both at the individual and group levels, it can be difficult to find specific causes for either of them. In addition many people do not willingly reveal their prejudices or are even fully aware of their prejudice. Some people may have become prejudiced through some traumatic event they experienced in their lives. While others are simply conforming to the society in which they live, expressing the same prejudices as parents, popular political leaders, or fellow
employees. While discrimination occurs because a group in power wants to continue to protect their way of life. Those in political power in some countries have used discrimination and segregation to hold their positions and status. Discrimination against women stemmed from the desire of men in an organization to maintain the status quo. In other cases, people discriminate against others based on the perception that their lifestyles or behaviors are immoral. Overall, both discrimination and prejudice are caused when one group of people wants to control or bring down another due to that groups fear or hatred of the group they want to mistreat. Finally, in Jonathan Kozol’s Still Separate, Still Unequal article he discusses the discrepancies between minority education and white education, such as the low funds, the segregation, and the lack of importance and attention these issues attract. Kozol points out the reality of the current situation as well, why educational outcomes for minority children are much more a function of their unequal access to key educational resources, including skilled teachers and quality curriculum than they are a function of race. Kozol also comments on how schools where minorities are dominant severely lack funds. Many of today’s minority school buildings are in very poor conditions with cracks, leaks, poor ventilation, windowless, and in need of additional facilities. Students who attend these schools are viewed as not being worth the effort, their education is less valued and funded which results in unfair advantages for some over others. Many individuals continue to refuse to notice or accept this particular situation as a problem despite stark differences in funding, teacher quality, curriculum, and class sizes, the prevailing view is that if students do not achieve success in school, it is completely their own fault. Similarly, Kozol also talks and provides examples of how the wealthy view this situation. Many wealthy people believe that money won't solve the problem of unequal distribution of educational resources. However, even though they say that money won't fix this problem and will not provide a better education, they continue to spend large sums of money on their children’s high-end education. The children of the rich are bought and given an unfair advantage because they get a preliminary education, such as preschools and other programs while minority children don't receive these resources and many times don't get the chance to qualify for them let alone afford them. These social forces are in place for one group to continue to grow and control society, giving them the ability of high-quality education, jobs, opportunity and lifestyle allowing them to continue to control those at the bottom. If we are ever to get beyond the problem of the color line, we must confront and address these problems head on. Society as a whole needs to take notice of this growing problem and take action towards making meaningful changes.