Issues revolving around discrimination based on either gender, race, or religion have been existent for as long as the colonialism era. These societal problems have impacted many aspects of human living from acquisition of education to the equal distribution of job opportunities. Much recently, this trend of discrimination has been to expand even to politics and health. The most prevalent type of discrimination experienced in the U.S. has been based on race with the two dominant races, the whites, and the blacks, seeking to have authority over the other. Ever since the mid-20th century, significant racial struggles were recorded to have between the two. Decades down the line, this rift between the two racial factions keep getting bigger and bigger. This paper takes a look into the whites, analysing their lifestyle, areas of dominance, and how interracial harmony can be developed in this group of individuals.
Geographic location
The white people are a group of people who are seen to be of a Europid Ancestry. The ‘white’ implies the complexion of their skin which is very light. Most of the white race group of people are found in Europe. Other than these primal areas of occupation, they are also found in other multiracial societies like in the United States of America, South American countries like Brazil, North Africa, South Africa, as well as the Middle East. In the United States of America and the United Kingdom, this group of individuals is found in large numbers, and they surpass other races like the blacks and Indians who are said to be minority groups.
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Lifestyle
The way of living for the whites is much different from any other race. For instance, the whites, especially in America, have always wanted to have a settled life (British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), 2014). They are not people who are associated with moving from place to place over time. Once they have found a favourable place, they establish themselves there and start engaging in activities to boost their stay there. They are known to have a way of demanding for these provisions in the case where they seem to be at threat of losing or not acquiring one in the first place. They tend to believe that land is a sacred thing should not be sold or abandoned at any cost.
As a result of this ‘settle’ characteristic, the whites are largely farmers. They depend on agriculture for the better part of their lives which provides for them and ensures that they have plenty of food for domestic use and sell (BBC, 2014). This can be evidently seen when examining whites in the U.S. Most of them own huge ranches where they rear all sorts of livestock as well as grow cash crops in large scale. Significantly, this aspect can be seen in the way most of them are located in the most fertile areas of the U.S.
Moreover, the whites are primarily Christians and atheists (BBC, 2014). The largest number of whites have a denominational affiliation where they practice their religion. Some believe in the existence of God while others believe that He is non-existent. Nevertheless, other religions like the Muslim are not heard of in this racial group. As for the Christian divide, they are further sub-divided into Protestantism and Catholicism. Regardless of their categorization, they are strict in their religious beliefs and take action for any violations noted.
Again, they are greedy for power and are always willing to take any measures to earn it. For the longest while now, American politics has been dominated by the white community with the rest having little or no positions in government. It was not until recently when President Obama came into power that this monopoly was broken. The reason for this is majorly because the whites view other races as insignificant and incapable of being in power. They have always viewed themselves as the superiors and thus taken control without allowing others to have a similar chance.
Education among the whites is also taken seriously (BBC, 2014). They take their children through the education system of whatever state they are in and ensure that they get to highest levels possible. For this race, education forms the basis of moulding their children to become better people in their adult life. They have, however, been known to have a specialized kind of educational system that is different from the rest of the races.
How Social Human Services can Assist
It is as a result of these above-mentioned factors that the white community is known to have most wealthy individuals. They are the people who have the best job opportunities as well as positions with the rest of the races being subjected under their rule. They play a supreme role as they have developed a certain kind of control over matters that involve not only their respective States but the world as well. Their belittling of other races and the creation of unethical racial ideologies is what has resulted in the ever growing imbalance between the various races in the world. A lot of wealth that is amassed is kept within the white circles and is spread amongst them.
As it is widely known, the whites have always been segregated from other races as they sought to expand their superiority. In the 1900s, schools for the whites were created, which were not supposed to accommodate any other race. The same case applied to health facilities and infrastructure. Moreover, there were jobs that’s were solely for the whites and others for the other races. Jobs for the whites were top notch and well-paying whereas the rest of the individuals from other races acquired low wage jobs that could hardly sustain their families. They were offered jobs such as cooking for the whites and cleaning their laundry as well as homes. Hard labour on the farms was a no-white job. Such cases were evidently rampant in the U.S. and South Africa.
Primarily, this kind of racial prejudice towards other races is said to be as a result of attitudes they have towards them. Richardson & Nussbaum (2003) present a duly researched methodology that they believe is significant in overcoming this kind of attitudes in the whites. First and foremost, the two researchers bring about the pre-eminent fact that racial discrimination is still being experienced in the modern day and age. Areas like job provision and education are still not fully integrated to incorporate all the races, and as a result, there is a need for change (Richardson & Nussbaum, 2003). In their research study, they compared the impact of two methodologies: multiculturalism and color blindness. They used a group of college students in their study to determine the most effective strategy of the two.
Whereas colour blindness proved to have some positive effect on the students, multiculturalism stood out as the most viable and result-oriented strategy. Multiculturalism advocates for the seeing and treatment of other people who are different from one as if they were their equals. Through the coaching on developing a multicultural ideology, individuals learn how to see themselves through the eyes of other people whom they consider to be less important. It looks at the brighter side of the differences that individuals have and how they can harness it for the greater good of all.
Following the success of this strategy, the white community should be taught to embrace it at all costs. They should appreciate that not everyone will be similar to them and that being different is a part of life. This way, they should feel free to intermingle with people from this other races and allow them to access even services that are withdrawn from them. When it comes to the offering of jobs, one should not discriminate another on the grounds of race. The minority races also need to be recognized as equally important as the whites. Moreover, it will become clear that equality is the way to leading a successful life in every aspect of human existence.
Constitutional amendments have been made from time to time to ensure that race is no longer a limiting factor for any individual. Nevertheless, these cases are always rampant and are reported on a day to day basis. On one day it is the case of a minority racial group worker bullied at the workplace, and on the next day, there is a case of white police brutally handling blacks. In essence, the government that is supposed to be protecting the people has become their source of destruction. Whereas the law seems like the most promising way to handle this problem once and for all, it all starts from the alteration of perspectives on an individual level. There have been cases of racial individuals who have become non-racist after they have learned of the beauty in diversity that comes with race. The trend of passing multicultural ideologies should thus be carried on even on the younger generations to ensure that they grow up learning to embrace it.
References
Richeson, J. & Nussbaum, R. (2003). The impact of multiculturalism versus colour blindness on racial bias. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 40 , 417-423.
British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). (2014). White American’s attitudes . Retrieved on 8 April 2017 from http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/history/shp/americanwest/conflictrev3.shtml.
