Stereotyping, Prejudice And Racial Discrimination

“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character” – Martin Luther King Jr. Racial discrimination is one of the most controversial issues that take place internationally. Racial discrimination takes place when a person or groups of people are treated less favorably than others in a similar situation, because of their color, race or ethnic origin. Racial discrimination can occur as a result of stereotyping, prejudice and bias. Stereotyping involves attributing the same characteristics towards a group of people, in this case a race. When stereotyping comes into play, people ignore the fact that every individual is different,
So if there were to be an African student at school, the other students would most likely judge, bully and mistreat this student, because this individual appears to be an outcast of the society. Racists usually have a low self-esteem, and wish to transfer their negative feelings onto others who appear weak in society. If a person were to love them selves, they would appreciate and respect other people. A person who is already low on self-esteem would want to drag people down with them, so that they can feel powerful and superior. In reality, the racists are the ones who are actually weaker and lower than the victims. The causes of racial discrimination, obviously lead to the effects of racial discrimination. Victims can become angry, upset and violent. Such emotions are catalysts to the destruction of one’s self-esteem and violent crimes. According to Cornell News Service’s studies taken place in the year 2009, it is proven that black people have a poorer mental health, because of the discrimination pressures that they have to face on a daily basis. Unfortunately, black people are the main targets towards society in terms of racial discrimination. These individuals have to face unbelievable pain and anger from the overwhelming amount of hatred they are receiving from others. Depression and anger may lead people into having aggressive and violent thoughts towards others. A 15-year-old boy named Charles Andrew Williams from the United States pulls out a gun during school, killing two classmates and leaving 13 wounded. The reason why Charles committed this violent crime is because he was self-hated and felt betrayed. Charles was getting severely bullied due to his differences. He was not able to tolerate his depression and then explodes his rage. Charles’ cases clearly displays that when others mistreat or place hatred onto an individual, that individual will feel anger and sadness. This not only leads