Ending Racism
Maybe not a solution, but a start:
Pass a law that would require all organizations to remove questions based on race, ethnicity, and religion from their paperwork. I see these questions
on census forms, hospital admission forms, drivers license applications, job applications, etc. I feel that they are unnecessary in most cases, and
only serve to divide us as a people, and to perpetuate racism.
For example:
From a Virginia State Job Application:
[B]Check the block for the racial or ethnic group with which you identify:
White (includes Arabian)
Black (includes Jamaican, Bahamians and other Caribbeans of African but not Hispanic or Arabian descent)
Hispanic (includes persons of Mexican, Puerto Rican, Central or South American or other Spanish origin or culture)
Asian & Asian American (includes Pakistanis, Indians & Pacific Islanders)
American Indians (includes Alaskans)
These questions are usually accompanied by the following disclaimer:
Pursuant to federal regulations, we collect responses to the questions below for record keeping purposes. This information will NOT be kept with
your application for employment. Federal law prohibits unlawful discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, age, national origin, religion, or
disability.
If Federal law prohibits unlawful discrimination on the basis of race, color, etc., then why ask these questions at all?
I think that, if we put more emphasis on our similarities, rather than our differences, we would be taking the first steps in the elimination of
racism.
Our states may be United, but our people are not.
