Rhetoric And Composition: Let's Talk About Racism
Let’s Talk About Racism
Kelsey Perst
Rhetoric and Composition
Professor Evans
October 8, 2013
Let’s Talk About Racism Racist tweets towards Miss America, the Travon Martin trial, and many other examples of racism appears to be a popular topic in American media, but what about the United Kingdom? Although the United States has more racism, the United Kingdom’s willingness to discuss the topic makes racism less severe. According to a poll done by ccn.com, only one in eight Americans say that their racist (Poll, 2006), compared to a poll done by dailymail.co.uk, saying that one in three Britons admit to being racist (Reilly, 2012). What exactly do these statistics prove? Because the UK is more …show more content…
willing to discuss the racism in its country, the population is constantly exposed to it. Whereas the USA is the opposite. Emphasis on being politically correct, and unwillingness to discuss racism as a topic, hides the need for change. Americans have an easier time ignoring the problem of racism because, as a society, they have been taught to cover up the issue instead of fix it. In the United Kingdom, racist slurs are commonly heard at sporting events.
British futbol fans are encouraged to do this, but in turn are not offended by what is being said. The Independent, an online British newspaper, stated “This everyday tolerance has resulted from greater contact in a more diverse Britain” (Katwala, 2013). Exposing Britain to a more diverse population has decreased its overall racism and increased its tolerance. On The Daily Show, a group of white Americans were questioned about racism, they stated, “that not only is racism not a big deal anymore, it’s already half non-existent” (Dolan, 2013). The topic of racism made some of them uncomfortable. This shows that Americans are barely ready to admit there is a problem let alone confront …show more content…
it. In America, 63% of people are considered white, 12% black, 17% Hispanic and 8% other (Population, 2011).
This population break down is vastly different from the United Kingdoms. 90% of the United Kingdom is white, with 1% black and 9% others (Population, 2011). A country, like America, with more diversity is more likely to have more racism. America is known throughout the world as ‘melting pot’ because of how many different ethnicities make up the foundation of its society, but this is a double-edged sword. The more variety, the more likely a society will experience a problem with racial ties.
The United States has more racism than the United Kingdom, but refuse to admit the problem. Americans are required to stay politically correct and encouraged to ignore the problem. The United Kingdom on the other hand, has a less severe racism, because of their liberal upbringing and tolerance for the situation. America also has a more diverse population than the United Kingdom, and there for will have more race and ethnicity issues. The bottom line is America needs to take example from the United Kingdom and understand that you cannot fix the problem of racism unless you admit there is
one.
References Dolan, E.W. (August, 2013). The Daily Show indicates the cleft between black and white Americans on the issue of racism. The Raw Story. Retrieved from http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/08/07/the-daily-show-illustrates-the-cleft-between-black-and-white-americans-on-the-issue-of-racism/
Katwala, Sunder. (2013, April 23). Attitudes toward race really have improved. The
Independent. Retrieved from http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/attitudes-to-race-really-have-improved
Poll: Most Americans see lingering racism -- in others. (December, 2006). U.S. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/12/12/racism.poll/index.html?_s=PM:US
Population Distribution by Race/Ethnicity. (March, 2011). The Henry J. Kaiser Family
Foundation. Retrieved from http://kff.org/other/state-indicator/distribution-by-raceethnicity/
Reilly, Jill. (May, 2012). Is Britain a racist nation?. Mail Online. Retrieved from
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2151056/Is-Britain-racist-nation-One-Brits-admits-racist-according-poll.html
Kelsey Perst
Rhetoric and Composition
Professor Evans
October 8, 2013
Let’s Talk About Racism Racist tweets towards Miss America, the Travon Martin trial, and many other examples of racism appears to be a popular topic in American media, but what about the United Kingdom? Although the United States has more racism, the United Kingdom’s willingness to discuss the topic makes racism less severe. According to a poll done by ccn.com, only one in eight Americans say that their racist (Poll, 2006), compared to a poll done by dailymail.co.uk, saying that one in three Britons admit to being racist (Reilly, 2012). What exactly do these statistics prove? Because the UK is more …show more content…
willing to discuss the racism in its country, the population is constantly exposed to it. Whereas the USA is the opposite. Emphasis on being politically correct, and unwillingness to discuss racism as a topic, hides the need for change. Americans have an easier time ignoring the problem of racism because, as a society, they have been taught to cover up the issue instead of fix it. In the United Kingdom, racist slurs are commonly heard at sporting events.
British futbol fans are encouraged to do this, but in turn are not offended by what is being said. The Independent, an online British newspaper, stated “This everyday tolerance has resulted from greater contact in a more diverse Britain” (Katwala, 2013). Exposing Britain to a more diverse population has decreased its overall racism and increased its tolerance. On The Daily Show, a group of white Americans were questioned about racism, they stated, “that not only is racism not a big deal anymore, it’s already half non-existent” (Dolan, 2013). The topic of racism made some of them uncomfortable. This shows that Americans are barely ready to admit there is a problem let alone confront …show more content…
it. In America, 63% of people are considered white, 12% black, 17% Hispanic and 8% other (Population, 2011).
This population break down is vastly different from the United Kingdoms. 90% of the United Kingdom is white, with 1% black and 9% others (Population, 2011). A country, like America, with more diversity is more likely to have more racism. America is known throughout the world as ‘melting pot’ because of how many different ethnicities make up the foundation of its society, but this is a double-edged sword. The more variety, the more likely a society will experience a problem with racial ties.
The United States has more racism than the United Kingdom, but refuse to admit the problem. Americans are required to stay politically correct and encouraged to ignore the problem. The United Kingdom on the other hand, has a less severe racism, because of their liberal upbringing and tolerance for the situation. America also has a more diverse population than the United Kingdom, and there for will have more race and ethnicity issues. The bottom line is America needs to take example from the United Kingdom and understand that you cannot fix the problem of racism unless you admit there is
one.
References Dolan, E.W. (August, 2013). The Daily Show indicates the cleft between black and white Americans on the issue of racism. The Raw Story. Retrieved from http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/08/07/the-daily-show-illustrates-the-cleft-between-black-and-white-americans-on-the-issue-of-racism/
Katwala, Sunder. (2013, April 23). Attitudes toward race really have improved. The
Independent. Retrieved from http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/attitudes-to-race-really-have-improved
Poll: Most Americans see lingering racism -- in others. (December, 2006). U.S. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/12/12/racism.poll/index.html?_s=PM:US
Population Distribution by Race/Ethnicity. (March, 2011). The Henry J. Kaiser Family
Foundation. Retrieved from http://kff.org/other/state-indicator/distribution-by-raceethnicity/
Reilly, Jill. (May, 2012). Is Britain a racist nation?. Mail Online. Retrieved from
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2151056/Is-Britain-racist-nation-One-Brits-admits-racist-according-poll.html