Different Forms of Racism

Racism is the practice of discrimination and prejudice based on racial classification supported by the power to enforce that prejudice.

Three subtle types of racism are captured in the concepts of symbolic racism, aversive racism, and micro-inequities.

a) Aversive racism: is another subtle form of prejudice. People who engage in the practice see themselves as non-racists, but they will do racist things, sometimes unintentionally, or they will avoid people without overt racist intent. What they believe about themselves and will attest to is the importance of fairness, equality, and justice, but because they have been exposed to the ever-present societal racism just by living in the United States, they will reflect it in their conduct (Durrheim & Dixon, 2004; Tatum, 1997).

b) Symbolic racism: is expressed by those who may or may not perceive themselves as racist, but justify their negative judgment of others by asserting that the others do not abide by traditional values of the dominant group. People can perceive themselves as being fair and practicing equality by holding forth certain values, such as “individualism” or “work ethic” or “self-reliance,” and take negative action because the focal group does not share those values. So they perceive themselves as operating based on certain “objective” standards or “universal truths” rather than in opposition to the group based on their race (Durrheim & Dixon, 2004).

c) Micro-inequities: Finally, good people can do bad things to others in ways for which there is no formal grievance, but still have negative (sometimes unintentionally) effect. This refers to micro- aggressions or micro-inequities. Micro-inequities are “those tiny, damaging characteristics of an environment, as these characteristics affect a person not of that environment. They are the comments, the work assignments, the tone of voice, the failure of acknowledgement in meetings or social gatherings. These are not actionable violations of law or policies, but they are clear, subtle indicators of lack of respect by virtue of membership in a group” (Rowe, 1990). These are forms of racism that as members of this society we all commit. People of color may commit these acts or maintain these attitudes against other people of color. The charge is to become able to recognize them and move ourselves and others beyond them to facilitate systemic change.

Also see:

Internalized racism: In contrast to white privilege, internalized racism is the development of ideas, beliefs, actions, and behaviors that support or collude with racism against oneself. It is the support of the supremacy and dominance of the dominant group through participation in the set of attitudes, behaviors, social structures, and ideologies that undergirds the dominating group’s power and privilege and limits the oppressed group’s own advantages (Potapchuk et al, 2005; Tatum, 1997).

Orientalism:  The idea behind Orientalism, according to Edward Said, is that the West has created a dichotomy between the romantic, exoticized notion of “the Orient,” and the reality of “the East.” Asia and the Middle East are viewed through a prism of racism and prejudice; they are constructed as a singular, monolithic race that is backwards, and without culture and history. In order to enlighten the primitive societies, (“modernize”) the West has created culture, history and a future for them. The vantage point from here is from “the West,” versus “the Other.”

Through Orientalism, women are objectified, their nationalities reduced to the “uncivilized,” and their identities to static, gender tropes. Asian women, for example- meaning women from anywhere within the continent of Asia- are products of this mysterious “Orient.” Western culture, as noted, depicts the “Orient,” as a savage, patriarchal land of harems, samurai and geishas. Elements from differing cultures around Asia are obscured and exoticized.

Shadism: is a form of internalized, racial “self-hatred.” It is a legacy of cultural imperialism, and  is a form of skin tone bias that identifies groups and individuals on the basis of their degree of pigmentation. It is an evaluation of people that registers traits such as skin color, hair, and facial features in order to construct racially charged social hierarchies.