Analysis: George Floyd, Racism, and America

The issue of racism needs no introduction in the modern world, and neither do the recent protests that are taking place in the United States. But for the sake of those who haven’t caught up with the news in the last week, here are the highlights:

A man named George Floyd, of African-American origin, was murdered by a police officer. This was caught on video, where it is clearly visible how the cop pressed his knee to Floyd’s neck for 4-5 minutes, resulting in Floyd’s death.

Protests Against Racism (Source: The Jakarta Post)

When the video surfaced, most of America went into outrage, and most people started flouting lock-down rules by coming down on the streets and protesting. From Minneapolis to Los Angeles to even Washington DC, protests against police violence and institutional racism were happening everywhere in the USA.

But this wasn’t limited to just the States. Over the past 7 days, similar protests have been taking place all over the world, in cities like Paris, Melbourne, The Hague, and Tel Aviv, all of whom have been facing their own forms of racism in one way or another.

Institutional Racism

This article is not about what happened to George Floyd. It was homicide, plain and simple, brought on by police brutality and a blatant misuse of powers. There is no question, and no room for debate on that.

This article is not about whether Trump and the US government could have reacted more favorably to prevent these protests. We’re all way past the point of trying to defend Trump and his actions, and he will get what’s coming to him in November.

Trump and America (Source: The Boston Globe)

This article is not about the looting that have been taking place in the name of protests. Anyone who believes that looting shops and stores will help in their fight for justice for Floyd is too far gone to be convinced by rational arguments.

No, this article is on something broader. Something we all see, but choose to ignore, because ignoring it is so much easier than acknowledging it and facing the problem.

And the problem is institutional racism.

The issue of institutional racism has been so deeply ingrained in our society that it is a part of our lives. A protester in the US was seen carrying a placard that read, “Racism is so American, that when you protest against racism it feels as though you are protesting against America.” Which is true on a lot of counts.

Racism and USA (Source: AS English)

Consider this: The US has the highest rate of child mortality across 21 western countries, and for every white child dying, 2.1 African American children die. Across all age groups African American death rates are 20% higher than average US mortality. Moreover, the US has the widest income inequality between the top and bottom 10% of its population, according to the World Bank. Despite being a mere 10% of the American population, the percentage of black prisoners in American jails is disproportionately high.

All of these facts point towards a divide: a racial divide, but one that is caused and propagated by economic and social inequalities. And this is something which is not very likely to change, considering the capitalist economy and the lack of sufficient political willpower. After all, if you solve the racism issue, how can you contest elections on the racism issue, right?

Where does racism originate from?

Racism is a historical problem (Source: Medium)

While an argument can be made that racism is a centuries-old problem that originated from the times of the slavery, maybe it is time to consider the economic reasons for racism in the modern situation.

In history, racism originated from colonialism. When European countries captured African nations, they looked upon the residents of those states as inferior due to the color of their skin. This was a popular practice even in America, until thousands of people gave their lives in an effort to make America racially equal, which they did, politically at least.

However, modern day racism has a new backing, and that is the economic inequalities, caused and fueled by the wealth-income divide.

Blacks and Poverty (Source: LA Times)

The income - wealth divide, and its role in propagating economic inequalities especially along caste lines, cannot be understated. While the efforts of Martin Luther King Jr. and similar activists succeeded in making all races politically and legally equal, economic equality is a little harder to obtain.

Now here’s the thing. There are two facets to economic inequality: wealth and income. Income refers to how much you make in a year, which might include your salary, your returns on investments etc. Wealth, on the other hand, is your net worth and the sum total of all your assets. As a general rule, it has been observed that greater wealth leads to greater income, simply because having more assets will give you greater incomes.

Thus, for those who don’t have wealth, or haven’t inherited it, getting income might be a very difficult task indeed. And this leads to the African American community being among the poorest communities in the United States, simply because they haven’t inherited tons of wealth like their white counterparts.

Is This the Only Reason for Racism?

Racism is too ingrained in the society (Source: Al Jazeera)

No, definitely not. The general lack of opportunities and the bias faced by them also contribute a fair share to the racism in the country, and the current American presidency is not huge on racial equality, and this gives white supremacists a free reign to do what they wish to do.

George Floyd was by no means the only black person to be a victim of police brutality. He was merely the first one caught on camera.

It’s not about police brutality either. It’s not about the fact that the cop did what he did. The bigger problem is that he thought he could get away with it.

In our rat race of capitalism wherein there are not enough resources to meet everyone’s needs, it is inevitable that those who are economically not so well-off might be considered inferior. This, when coupled with the history of abuse against the black population, represents a much deeper problem than just police brutality.

(Source: Bainum Family Foundation)

It represents how capitalism, even with all its merits and advantages, is unwillingly help fuel and fan the fires of racism in the country. No one can deny that it is the best economic system, and therefore it is up to us, the people, to stop letting money define our lives.

Let us end this era of hatred and bigotry. Let us purge our governments and institutions of racism. Let us together build a country, and a world, where everyone is equal.

As is said in the US Constitution, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness”

-NK