Being part of a minority group I felt that I knew what I was
about to get myself into. Often times while talking about race with peers with
whom I share the same ethnic background I hear the same concerns and
complaints. I have become bored of the same comments when this topic comes up
that I have tried to avoid bringing it up all together. My friends routinely
bring up the fact that this country is racist, and for that same reason it is
commonly too difficult for minorities to carry out a lifestyle that the White
community has for the most part privatized. Unfortunately, I have found this
statement to be true in many occasions. The reason I avoid this topic is that
most times it is brought up, my peers have used race as an excuse for anything
negative that happens to them. I am an individual who believes that we are in
the land of opportunity, and that if we work hard enough we can attain the
socio-economic status that the White public has always hogged.
While
trying to fulfill my last general education course, I realized that my options
were limited for the ethnicity portion. I did not want to find myself in a
course where students go in and complain about the treatment they receive from
the White community, I had seen plenty of that from my friends. Not looking
forward to what I expected the class to present, I signed up and hoped that it
would all be over quick. I was pleasantly surprised when I attended my first
lecture. I realized that my expectations for this course were inconsistent with
the material that it would actually cover. I found myself immersed in most of
the readings. It was insightful to study why the White race has remained
dominant in this culture and how the Black community has fought back to have
their voices heard and to be respected as part of the human race. The assigned
reading that has been most eye-opening is George
Lipsitz’s chapter on “The White Spatial Imaginary”.
This
reading was able to answer many of the questions I had regarding the Black
community. Before studying this work, I, like many other individuals, believed
that the Black and other minority communities were not taking advantage of the
opportunities that they have by living in the United States. To me, minority
groups were wasting their time and resources on unproductive activities such as
gangs, drug dealing, prostitution, and crime. As part of the minority group
however, I realized that only a small percentage of our population was actually
involved in these activities. One thing was certain though, most of the
individuals that appeared in the news for such crimes where usually part of a
minority group, rarely did I see a White individual being charged for these
criminal activities. It is frustrating to see that time after time members of
the minority group reinforce the stereotypes that the White community has
summoned upon us.
Through
the “White Spatial Imaginary” I have finally been able to understand why the
minority community has not been able to match the success of White America. I
often wondered why, after many years of being “free” and “equal”, the Black and
Latino communities were still struggling to be appropriately represented in
society. White America was able to maintain the traditions of the slavery age
through legislation and economic practices that favored the White individual
but only made matters worse for those of a different ethnic background
(Lipsitz). Housing legislation for example, is a big component for why White
and Black communities have been spatially separated. It is because of legislation
like the Federal Housing Authority of 1934 and Fair Housing Act of 1968 that
the Black community, as well as many minority groups, has had to condense
themselves in cities (Lipsitz). Living so closely together and being spatially
separated has left them with little government assistance to better their
living conditions. What legislation has created is a poorly funded neighborhood
with inadequate access to good quality education and health.
Through
all this new insight, I still hold the belief that we live in the land of
opportunity. Unfortunately many minority groups have been blinded by the living
conditions that Whites have forced onto them. Because of this I do agree that
Whites have an unfair advantage in terms of education, health, and general
safety, but I also agree that if we really want to achieve equality we must
fight for it and stop victimizing ourselves. To make ourselves heard and
respected, it is important to show our power and importance to this country.
This can be achieved by realizing that even though we are at a disadvantage,
and even though we must work harder, it is possible for us to represent
ourselves just as capable, if not more, than the White individual. Whites, like
minorities, may not be aware of how this segregated society was formed. Unlike
Whites however, people of color have suffered the negative consequences of
segregation, and even though we may not be responsible for current conditions,
it is in our best interest to educate our race and motivate them to pursue true
equality and respect.