Color-Blind Racism

Color-Blind Racism

The chapter "Color-Blind Racism" by Eduardo Bonilla-Silva deals with the idea that people hide their racism by saying they only care about what is on the inside. I believe color-blind racism is not a real problem. People who actually have an issue with the color of someones skin are usually not afraid to come out and say it. For example, the author said "instead of whites relying on housing covenants or on the Jim Crow signs of the past (e.g., 'This is a WHITE neighborhood'), today relators steer blacks into certain neighborhoods." In my opinion this accusation is false. I live in a very nice area predominately filled with white people, but I do have people of color in my community as well. I feel like color-blind racism is not present in todays society because in reality, if people of color can afford to live in a nicer area, realtors will sell them the home. It doesn't make sense any other way because the realtors are there to make money and to make their clients happy, and they would put those two qualities over the color of someones skin. On the other hand, it is natural to want to be surround by people who make you comfortable and in many cases that means people of the same race. Realtors and people in general are not hiding there racism or trying to make it less apparent, they just aren't racist. The signs are not there for a reason, fountains are not separate for a reason, people can sit wherever they want on a bus for a reason, and that reason is that racism is a dying concept. 

Racism is dying concept and it is upsetting to see people try to make up reasons as to why different colored people don't along. In this chapter it implies that white people say they do not judge colored people by the color of their skin, but rather hide that by saying they care about what they have to offer, and what is on the inside. This claim is incorrect, society has grown to the point where color truly does not matter and people are judged mostly on what they can bring to the table. That being said, in many cases, darker people do not have the opportunities and the education that white people have and therefore by default, have less to bring to the table. No one is hiding anything, times have changed and peoples opinions and outlooks on life have genuinely changed as well. 

Learn English or Else

Unit 4

"Tennessee Judge Tells Immigrant Mother: Learn English or Else" by Ellen Barry was a chapter that really caught my attention because it dealt with a mother who could have possibly had her child taken away because she did not speak English. This problem cannot automatically be solved for more reasons than one. Most people would jump to the conclusion and say the Tennessee mother lives in America and therefore should learn English, is an unfair statement to make because it is easier said than done. Learning a whole new language is something that takes a lot of time an effort, which a parent of a young child does not have. To add, no where in the constitution does it say all American citizens need to know English so I do not believe there needs to be such a strong emphasis for the mother to do so. On the other hand, the child's life could be at risk and the mother can be seen as an unfit parent if she continues to fail at raising her child safely.  There is no correct way to solve this issue. The main point of this whole situation is to keep the child as safe as possible. You need to think, will the consequences of a mother who is unable to speak English and support her child in a state where English is the only means of communication outweigh the trauma caused by the child having to grow up without a mother to love, nature and cherish her? The answer to that question, weather or not the mother is fit enough for the job, is specific to her case and her family.