This Disregard for Black Lives is an Echo of the Past

By Tiffany / Spring 2020

As large flames engulf the Minneapolis Police Department’s 3rd precinct and fireworks erupt in the backdrop, the presence of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Trayvon Martin, Rodney King and countless other innocent black souls stand hand in hand with every brave protestor taking a stand to America’s corrupt system. The year of 2020 seems like a snippet out of an overplayed, apocalyptic future/thriller movie. From over 200,000 deaths in America alone and 31 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 across the world, to live tweets of America’s impeached president threatening his own citizens for protesting the wrongful death of George Floyd with military forces—this is a sight that no one could have ever predicted, however most are not surprised. As peaceful protests turn into riots with the destruction of gentrified buildings and police departments, some can taste the revolution in the air while others question these actions. “Violence is not the answer”, some comment under a video of the burning police department, “What does destroying the city do for the cause?”. There are mixed opinions regarding this approach, however an influential one by Dr. Martin Luther King comes to mind:

I feel that violence will only create more social problems than they will solve… But at the same time, it is as necessary for me to be as vigorous in condemning the conditions which cause persons to feel that they must engage in riotous activities as it is for me to condemn riots. I think America must see that riots do not develop out of thin air. Certain conditions continue to exist in our society which must be condemned as vigorously as we condemn riots. But in the final analysis, a riot is the language of the unheard. And what is it that America has failed to hear? It has failed to hear the plight of the Negro poor has worsened over the last few years. It has failed to hear that the promises of freedom and justice have not been met.

It’s a seemingly difficult idea for some, but the constant and blatant racism and murders of innocent black people is exhausting and can no longer be the norm. Americans are fed up of how the system continuously favors one skin color over the other-- we are in the 21st century and it is no longer just to blindly follow and enable this ideology. The stories of slavery and segregation are told as if it happened a lifetime from where we are now, but the truth is that these ideals are still present in our culture, just in subtle and less obvious ways. When looking at our country’s history, a lot of Americans overlook historical events that aren’t publicized by our educational system and that is the systematic and institutional oppression of minorities, especially Black Americans, that significantly affects their daily life, health, and safety. These oppressive techniques come from within our government and stems racism throughout our nation, more so these days with the help of Donald Trump. It is much greater than slurs and stereotypes-- it is the structure of our country that has been created by our founding fathers and is the structure that we continue to live I n to this day. For this reason, I would like to build this essay around this quote by W.E.B Du Bois: A system cannot fail those who it was never meant to protect.

America’s previously glorified use of slavery is embedded in our history, so much so that our country nearly split because of it. Slavery was a widespread idea across the world in the past. Back then, people used indentured servitude as a way to pay off debt or as a way to be punished for their crimes. As Native Americans began to die at increasing rates due to disease in early America, our country searched for a source of labor from other parts of the world to acquire efficient servants. This included people who were considered “outcasts” and “convicts” from Europe, Germany, Ireland, and Africa (Takaki, 49). During this time, white and black servants were both exploited and faced with abuse and mistreatment by their owners with the hope that in the near future they would be freed and start a new life as landowners in America. If they committed crimes, they were punished with brandings, whippings or with additional years of enslavement; but black slaves were penalized to serve longer and harsher sentences regardless of the crime. Soon instead of adding an additional year or so as punishment, black slaves were punished to a lifetime in slavery which became the norm. Soon, black slaves were inherited and passed down in families and auctioned, with black slaves valuing more than white slaves as they and their future generations would be considered as lifetime property to owners. White slaves were only kept until their sentence was up.  This concept of chattel slavery, where humans were considered legal property and were sold and kept forever, was a drastic shift from the widespread use of indentured servitude.

Laws were also made to single out black slaves, stating that all men were allowed to bear arms “excepting negros” (Takaki, 50). When white slaves fulfilled their sentence and realized that being a landowner wasn’t as easy as advertised, an uprising ensued which consisted of current and past slaves of black and white descent. This uprising of laborers, titled ‘Bacon’s Rebellion’, concerned Americans as they were worried about the risk of future armed rebellions and what that would do to their social order. America then decided to primarily open slave trading with Africa and make enslaved Africans their main source of labor to eliminate the risk of armed rebellion, which further established America’s order as defined by class and race (Takaki, 54). This decision was the defining step that embedded the dominant ideology of white supremacy in American culture as there was now only one dominant race versus an enslaved one. A hundred years later, the enslavement of Africans and their children were the absolute norm in American society and was our only source of labor. Owners profited off of those enslaved through their work on plantations, whether it be for sugar, cotton, or other resources. Cotton was considered “the major independent variable in the interdependent structure of internal and international trade” and would send America into an economic boom-- of course not without the exploitation of black slaves (Takaki, 66). 

As white supremacy ruled the minds of our country, not everyone felt like this system was just. President Thomas Jefferson voiced his concerns and guilt about slavery throughout his life although he owned over 600 slaves and profited greatly off of their labor (Stanton, 106). He pushed for the emancipation of slaves as his conscience couldn’t look past the lack of morality that the slavery system had. He had fears over the potential race-war and the “deep-rooted prejudices entertained by the whites… [that] will divide us into parties, and produce convulsions, which will probably never end but in the extermination of one or the other race” (Takaki, 61).  If emancipated, he suggested freed slaves to be deported as he believed that blacks and whites could never coexist together as blacks were far too inferior due to their skin color and their lack of intelligence. Around this time, our founding fathers adopted the Declaration of Independence that preached, “all men are created equal” in 1776 which prompted some owners to free their slaves mostly in the northern states. Slavery was later abolished in the northern states by 1804 and in the southern states in 1863.

As we can see, although many acknowledged that slavery was immoral, this idea of white supremacy encouraged them to continue. Those like Thomas Jefferson believed that they should be free, but at the same time felt the need to exploit them for personal benefit. He felt guilt and pain for them but at the same time didn’t see them as equals and looked down on them. This idea that white skin is superior than dark skin seemed to be used as a reasoning by Americans to push the belief that somehow, black people deserved to be enslaved and exploited because they were lesser than a person. Sadly, this ideal is not something that has been eradicated from American minds. This idea of white supremacy remains prevalent after slavery is abolished and even now.

America’s deep-rooted ideas of white supremacy continued on as America created a society based off of their fear and hatred for black Americans, where the institutions that governed them were structurally built to disregard and further the division between the races. Following the abolishment of slavery, comes the age of segregation where America marginalized black people with the implementation of a system where blacks and whites were divided-- leaving black people with unfavorable buildings, neighborhoods and broken systems. They were told where to walk, eat, go to school, etc. and it would be considered a crime if they didn’t comply. They were mocked in the media with black-face and drawn in newspapers with dehumanizing anti-black caricatures with animalistic features. In addition to this, they experienced discrimination, violent hate crimes, murders, lynchings and lived in constant fear for their lives.

During this time, red-lining was used to further segregate black people on a bigger level, by homing regulations. This segregation can be explained by Richard Rothstein in his book, The Color of Law. Under these regulations, African Americans would be prohibited from buying a home in a known white neighborhood. The government even zoned neighborhoods economically by pricing it at a price point that lower, working class people (mostly black Americans) could never afford. As they kept black Americans and other minorities out of specific neighborhoods, they pushed them into “industrial zones”. These zones were where liquor stores, polluting factories and other unfavorable businesses were only allowed to open. Federal loans that were offered by the government to help struggling homeowners were not offered to black Americans and those of color as they were considered “risky investments” and was only offered to white Americans. These loans were not even offered to white developers with the intentions of developing a suburb with community facilities for black Americans forcing developers to construct a “skimpier” home design that lacked a lot of the aspects that made up the white suburbs. As residential segregation declined over the years and desegregation began, white Americans are still more likely to live in the predetermined white neighborhoods which further this divide in modern time.

 Although these regulations were enforced in the 1930s, there is still a lasting effect on communities to this day which correlates to differing prices and demographics in each area. The Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH) rule was implemented by President Obama and promoted accessibility to affordable housing in desirable and thriving communities. This ensured opportunities for all citizens and their families without the influence of our past discriminatory zoning laws (“Understanding AFFH: What It Is and How Does It Work?”). Trump’s abandonment of this rule in July was confirmed after he tweeted that citizens “will no longer by bothered or financially hurt by having low income housing built in [their] neighborhood”. This act, fueled by our country’s past ideals, will push our country back in our progress in restructuring and reforming our communities in an equal way.

The 1950s was when the Civil Rights movement began to advance where black Americans began to stand up to the government through boycotts and peaceful protests popularly led by activist Dr. Martin Luther King (MLK). This movement prompted permanent changes in our government which not only benefitted black people but all other ethnicities. One of the most popular boycotts was the Montgomery Bus Boycott, which was sparked by Rosa Parks’ refusal to give up her seat for a white person which led her to be arrested for civil disobedience. As a result, black Americans (which made up 75% of Montgomery’s bus patrons) decided to boycott the use of public transportation. After 381 days, the U.S Supreme Court deemed it unconstitutional to keep buses segregated. Another largely impactful demonstration led by MLK was the March to Washington, where a crowd of over 200,000 people peacefully marched and congregated to protest the freedom of African Americans--for the abolishment of discrimination and segregation. Here, he spoke on his dreams of America and refers back to a line from the Declaration of Independence that freed slaves once before, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal". This demonstration urged our government to pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibited the discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, and included equal access to public spaces, employment, desegregation of all schools and the right to vote (Bond-Nelms).

As America reformed existing laws and focused on desegregation, new policies were put in place that kept this division alive. One way that the educational system upheld division was by proctoring IQ tests that were racially and culturally biased with the purpose to wrongfully place young black children into special education classes, restricting their education and as a way to segregate from the general population. Nearly 60,000 black students were enrolled and categorized as ‘special ed’ in California in 1968 (Romney). In the San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD), 50% of the identified ‘special ed’ students were black. Like many other black children in SFUSD, Darryl Lester was given an invalidated IQ test without his mother’s permission in class and was deemed an “educable mentally retarded” member by his elementary school in the 1st grade. The questions asked in the test consisted of misleading math problems and reading questions, which didn’t work in Darryl’s favor as he had a reading disability. After the test, the school decided to move him into the special ed classroom. His mother, knowing that he had reading disabilities assumed that it was a class designed to help his needs. During his time in school, he stated that his class would focus on concepts like reading and math for only ten minutes at a time and spent the rest of the time going on field trips—with no focus on learning at all. Years went by until it was brought to light that he was wrongfully placed. After Darryl’s mother and five other parents filed a lawsuit in 1971, Darryl’s mother moved his family to Tacoma, WA where Darryl was placed in the eighth grade with a third-grade reading level. Sadly, when moving to his new school, his lack of education landed him in the special ed program where he was again was not being taught by teachers or by books but instead working at a local Safeway. Soon, they placed him back in the general high school classes with no supplemental help, leading to him dropping out of high school. He continued on with his life without the ability to read and without a general education. This is the sad reality for many black Americans like Darryl-- a long and systematic battle where a child is restricted from proper education and is continuously let down by the education system which affects their entire life and pushes them further and further behind (Lee).

Although this brief recap on America’s history makes it seem like our country’s mistakes occurred so long ago and is far from where our country is today, black Americans are still faced with domestic terrorism from hate crimes and police brutality today. From the racially driven lynchings of young black men like Emmett Till and Trayvon Martin, to the wrongful deaths of Tamir Rice and Michael Brown by police brutality. Deep-rooted racial bias seems to be taught and enforced by law enforcement and leads to wrongful, unreasonable murders, and rulings in the justice system. Campaign Zero found that the San Diego Police Department “stopped black people at 219% higher rate per population than white people. Once stopped, black people were more likely to be searched, arrested, and to have force used against them”. At night, black Americans are less likely to be stopped by police which suggests bias as it’s harder to see skin color at night (Pierson et al.). They are also more likely to be arrested for petty crimes and are subject to longer sentences compared to white people with the same crimes-- a familiar story that we’ve seen in past rulings of crimes committed by white and black slaves (United States Sentencing Commission). Statistics also show that black people are three times more likely to be killed by police than white people, with little to no consequences as 99% of the murders committed by police have led to no conviction (Mapping Police Violence). These statistics are hard to look at but is necessary for America to see that racial bias still lives in our systems today and this disregard for black lives is an echo from the country’s biased society from before.

The year of 2020 is the year of realization. Regardless of how many times we collectively say we condemn racism, slavery, and segregation, these statistics show otherwise. For so long, the mistreatment of black Americans has been overlooked and normalized. We live in a country where our government historically undermine Black rights and finds loopholes to treat our brothers and sisters lesser than they are. Now is not the time to claim that you “don’t see color”. Now is the time to open your eyes, research and acknowledge the mistreatment that this country has done, check your privilege, and take in the cries of those oppressed and lend a supporting hand. Instead of criticizing protests and riots, take the time out to understand this anger that black Americans and their allies have instead of creating a bigger divide in society. Remember that it’s a privilege to turn off the TV and dissociate from this issue because no matter how uncomfortable it is, it is still happening to our neighbor, our coworker, our classmate, and our friends.

Growing up, we may be taught things that we now understand are problematic. As an Asian American coming from a widely anti-black community, I have been warned and taught by my family as a child about the dangers of black people. Imagine my confusion when the black people they’ve vilified, became my classmates and friends and were nowhere near the way they were described. As I experience life and learn about the history of systemic oppression by our country, I began to see the faults in myself, my community, and our biases. The truth of our country’s history is normally pushed under the rug and sugar coated by our education system, which causes misconception and false narratives to spread within our communities. We, Americans of all races, need to collectively move away and unlearn this narrative. We need to take the time to re-learn the history of our country, research about the deep-rooted ideals, regulations, and the exploitation of black Americans that created America. Take the time out to educate yourself, your family, friends, and community from making the mistakes that our country seem to want us to make. I hope that this essay is able to push you to be a compassionate, understanding ally and to use your voice as an American to help reform our country into one that truly sees all men as equal.

Works Cited

Bond-Nelms, Cheryl. "Key Events During the Civil Rights Movement." AARP. N.p., 9 Feb. 2018. Web. 3 June 2020.

Campaign Zero. Evaluating Policing in San Diego. Campaign Zero, 2018. Web. 14 June 2020.

"G: The Miseducation of Larry P." Prod. RadioLab. 7 June 2019.

Lee, R. "A legacy of mistreatment for San Francisco’s black special ed students | KALW." N.p., 15 Jan. 2015. Web.

Mapping Police Violence. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 June 2020.

Murray, Liz. "Understanding AFFH: What It Is and How Does It Work?" Alliance for Housing Justice. N.p., 29 July 2020. Web. 22 Sept. 2020.

Pierson, Emma, Camelia Simoiu, Jan Overgoor, Sam Corbett-Davies, Daniel Jenson, Amy Shoemaker, Vignesh Ramachandran, Phoebe Barghouty, Cheryl Phillips, Ravi Shroff, and Sharad Goel. "A large-scale analysis of racial disparities in police stops across the United States." Nature Human Behaviour (2020): n. pag. Web. 14 June 2020.

Rothstein, Richard. The Color Of Law: A Forgotten History Of How Our Government

Segregated America. Liveright, 2017.

Stanton, Lucia C. "Those who Labor for My Happiness": Slavery at Thomas Jefferson's Monticello. Charlottesville: U of Virginia P, 2012. Print.

Stevenson, Megan and Mayson, Sandra Gabriel, The Scale of Misdemeanor Justice (March     21, 2018). 98 B.U. L. Rev. (2018 Forthcoming); 98 Boston University Law Review 731, 2018.

United States Sentencing Commission. Demographic Differences in Sentencing: An Update to the 2012 Booker Report. United States Sentencing Commission, 2017. Web. 14 June 2020.