Racism Argumentative Essay

While growing up, I didn’t think about race much at all. It didn’t apply to me, I thought. Racism isn’t a thing anymore, I thought. I remember being in middle school and asking my Mom why we didn’t have a “white club” at school. I don’t recall her response, but I do remember feeling vaguely angry that there was a “Latino” club and a “Chinese” club but not a “white” club. It seemed unfair. Why did they get to have something that my heritage didn’t? I felt I had America all figured out. If you work hard and follow the American Dream, you’ll get ahead. If you’re not succeeding in life, it’s because you made bad decisions. If you were arrested, it’s because you broke the law, and if you broke the law, you’re likely to be black. I knew this was true because America treated black people terribly but that was fixed during the Civil Rights movement, so now we’re all

My teacher taught us how not all white people are white supremacists, but all whites benefit from the white standard. I didn’t understand. And as the year continued, I learned how our systems benefit from racism, and how African Americans are pulled over more, and how police brutality is a real issue, and suddenly I realized I had been lied to over the years. I only understood America through white eyes. I had maintained this idea that we used to be bad, but now we’re not. My view of life then shifted. I came to realize that although I may not be a white supremacist, I still benefit from these racial hierarchies. Even though I’m not racist. How did this work? I needed explanation and so I read books, magazines, online articles and I asked questions, and I finally understood that white is the standard. White is what everything is compared to. I asked my Dad what this means to him, and he explained how it’s white until further notice or proven otherwise. He explained to me that this has to do with power, the cultural impression that white has on