Institutional racism has been a reality in the U.S. even after the success of the civil rights movement in the 1960S. America was founded on the legacy of slavery, and despite efforts by various leaders and activists to ensure that there was equality for all American citizens, institutions such as the school and justice systems are still used as instruments to propagate social inequality. Inner city schools do not enjoy the resources or financing that is evident in affluent neighborhoods. At face value, the inequality does not appear to have any racial connotations (Hadjar & Gross, 2016). However, after in depth analysis, it is clear that the schools which are poorly funded and equipped are mostly in predominantly black neighborhoods. The implications of inequality in the school system translate to increasing wealth gaps, crime, crime, and other social issues for the African American community and other disadvantaged communities. Even though inner city children still have access to education, there is a large gap in terms of funding and quality of education, subjecting the affected communities to social inequalities and injustice.
Race and Inequality
Many American children grow up without the necessary skills or academic qualifications to better their lives. Inequality persists causing long term problems for the affected groups. However. There are still debates on the impact of educational inequality in the states. Some of the arguments which are used to dispute that racial discrimination is the main cause of the inequality are the performance of Asian minorities in the standardized test scores against the performance of white and non-white students (Goyette, 2017). The presumption that drives such conversations is that inequality now exists in the public school system. Therefore, the low performance rates are justified by factors such as genes, lack of effort, and culture, among other simplistic explanations. Such assumptions and arguments that undergird the argument are blind to an important reality. The accurate assessment of the situation is that the poor performance of minority children can be attributed to unequal access to important resources including a quality curriculum and qualified teachers. Even though the U.S. is one of the most industrialized and advanced nations in the world, its education system has numerous shortcomings. In contrast, countries in Europe and some parts of Asia fund their education system in an equal manner through a centralized system (Hadjar & Gross, 2016). The gap in the U.S. is hard to miss based on the fact that 10 percent of the wealthiest school districts spend 10 times the amount allocated to the 10 poorest districts in the U.S. (Hadjar & Gross, 2016). In addition, even though there are obvious differences in terms of class sizes, funding, and quality of resources, some factions of the U.S. society still feel that students fail to achieve due to their own shortcomings. Therefore, the only way to understand the problem is to look deeper into the factors that cause inequality in the school system, and this is only possible if the issue of race is brought up.
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In the 1960s, segregation in schools was a common practice. African Americans, Native Americans, and Latino students were educated in separate schools which were subjected to poor funding and infrastructural support when compared to white schools. In addition, access to higher education was restricted to these disadvantaged communities based on race. Legal segregation came to an end in the 1970s in an effort to make education more inclusive. For example, there were deliberate efforts to equalize funding and the results showed a significant improvement in the test scores of the previously marginalized communities. The gap that was evident in every major national test narrowed substantially up to 1990. For example, the SAT scores of African American students rose by 54 points between 1976 and 1994, while those of their white counterparts remained the same (Goyette, 2017). Despite the progress made in the mentioned period, research carried out across several American cities including Louisiana, New York, Texas, New Jersey and Alabama showed that there was a significant shortage of qualified teachers, funding, and equipment when compared to schools which serve predominantly white students (Kozol, 2012). According to a report presented to the U.S. congress in 1991, it was noted that inequitable distribution of resources had a detrimental impact on the disadvantaged children. Therefore, the poor school districts cannot offer the same quality of education when compared to the schools in the richer districts. However, the legacy of slavery and Jim Crow means that inequality and race are inseparable (Butler & Watt, 2007). Years of segregation, slavery, and inequality have trapped African Americans into a vicious cycle or poverty which continues to be sustained by inequalities in the education sector.
According to Savage Inequalities by Jonathan Kozol, there were significant differences between schools serving white students and those of color. For example, in Detroit, students in MacKenzie high lacked word processors, despite having a word processing course. A similar case was observed in East St. Louis Senior High, where the students lacked basic laboratory equipment (Kozol, 2012). The nearby suburban schools in the mentioned cases had access to the latest computer technology and laboratories that rivaled leading industries. In addition, schools with larger populations of poor students from minority communities are given fewer instructional material when compared to their counterparts within a school district. Such policies leave students from the targeted communities with fewer learning resources, teachers, and limits access to quality education. In some cases, the lack of resources means that some of the schools do not offer science and math courses needed for college education.
Sociology Theories
Sociology theories can be used to analyze further the racial inequality in the American school system. Social inequality occurs when a society is segmented and organized in hierarchies. As a result, there is unequal opportunity for people who are perceived to be of a certain class. According to functionalist theorists, inequality is unavoidable and desirable in any society. The theory further states that inequality is important for the functioning of society. People who hold important positions in a society require more training and hence they should be given more rewards (Butler & Watt, 2007). Therefore, since the whites are considered to be the leading race in the U.S., more resources are set aside to educate and train them for their role, resulting in more rewards for them in the long term. In contrast, some communities are denied similar opportunities and due to their position and role in the society (Butler & Watt, 2007). Most African Americans came to the U.S. during the slave trade, meaning that they were under the white community. This social segmentation or stratification has prevailed even after the emancipation of slaves and the emergence of civil rights movements. Institutions such as schools are used to maintain the status quo, by limiting the resources and opportunities accessed by the minority resources in favor of the white majority.
According to conflict theorists, inequality arises when people in power choose to dominate people with less power. However, unlike functionalist theorists, they believe that inequality is destructive since it hinders progress (Baldus, 2017). Those in power suppress those under them in order to maintain the status quo. The theory can be used to describe the inequality in the American education sector. Education is being used as a weapon to prevent the social mobility of African Americans and other targeted communities. Since the emancipation of the community and efforts to ensure that there was equality for all, institutional racism has been used to guarantee white privilege. By ensuring that the minority communities do not have access to the right skills and resources, they are trapped in poverty and other social inequalities that prevent them from challenging the status quo. As a result, the white majority retains their power at the expense of the progress and development of African Americans. Based on the two theories, it is clear that inequality is a result of a dominant group trying to keep hold of its power and the advantages that come with it. Therefore, it is unlikely that the dominant group would willingly give up its advantage and position in the society.
Conclusion
Racial inequality is one of the legacies of slavery and segregation in the U.S. Even though inner city children still have access to education, there is a large gap in terms of funding and quality of education, subjecting the affected communities to social inequalities and injustice. As a result, the school system is used as a tool to promote racial inequality, which in turn leads to other social inequalities for African Americans and other minority communities. Therefore, a solution can only be found if the race issue is addressed.
Reference
Baldus, B. (2017). Origins of inequality in human societies . New York: Routledge.
Butler, T., & Watt, P. (2007). Understanding social inequality . London: SAGE Publications.
Goyette, K. A. (2017). Education in America . Berkeley University of California Press
Hadjar, A., & Gross, C. (2016). Education systems and inequalities: International comparisons . Bristol, UK: Policy Press.
Kozol, J. (2012). Savage inequalities: Children in America's schools . New York: Broadway Paperbacks.
