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Aditya Raju

Professor Malcolm Campbell

UWRT 1103 H04

26 September 2019

Topic Proposal: Racism, Gone or Prevalent?

Introduction/Overview

As my topic proposal, I would like to address the highly controversial topic of whether

racism is still present in society and if so, what measures can be taken to exterminate this

ideology. From the earliest days of Abraham Lincoln passing the emancipation proclamation to

the great civil rights activist, Martin Luther King Jr, The United States has always been trying to

remediate their mistake of promoting racial discrimination 51 years ago. Although it has been

five decades since the last worldwide incident many of us know about, is it still prevalent today?

I believe that racism is still prevalent today in society, and even though it cannot be fully

diminished, public schools should take steps to educate younger children on our history with the

topic.

I will be illustrating many of the horrifying events that have occurred in the past

regarding this controversy and how educating younger children about this will help future

generations believe in unity.

Educating younger students about a topic this sensitive is difficult and some parents may

not want their children learning about racial issues at a young age which is understandable.

However, I believe that an option should exist for parents and children to learn about our

society’s history regarding this topic. Currently, in my area of residence, the elementary school

that my sister attended had forms that parents had to sign for the child to learn about the Growth
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and Development system in men and women. This was an optional unit and parents had a choice

of letting their kids learn or do an alternative assignment. I believe that this exact approach

should be used to teach kids about racism. Some parents may feel uneasy but on the other hand,

many parents would like their child to learn about these topics regardless of how sensitive they

are. There are many instances where teachers and students racially shame other students so this

would promote unity and well-being within the campus as well as society as a whole.

Rosa Parks, an inspirational female civil rights activist, was born in Tuskegee, Alabama

in 1913. Her grandparents were former slaves and her family had been part of the fight towards

the emancipation of slaves. Parks attended a segregated school where African Americans were

forced to go through different paths to get to and from campus and were restricted to using low-

grade materials versus the “superior” white men who used “high-grade” materials. This was the

first taste that Rosa got as a child towards discrimination and this shaped her future forever.

Once Rosa had graduated school, she immediately married a man who was part of The National

Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), and this had caused her to be the

full-throttle activist that she is renowned as today. One of the most significant moments in her

life is when she got onto a bus and sat where the white men were supposed to sit. After refusing

many times to get up and leave to her spot, she was forced by the police and was arrested. This is

one of the many issues that have occurred in history displaying African American excellence and

determination to fight for their rights versus the white supremacists. However, this racial tension

between the Americans and African Americans still exists today.

June 17, 2015, a man named Dylann Roof, 21-year-old white supremacist, opened fire at

Emanuel African Methodist Church in downtown Charleston, South Carolina. When an

investigation was done on the young man, evidence was shown that the attack was planned 6
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months prior and according to BBC News, “He said he wanted to start a civil war. He said he

was going to do something like that and then kill himself.” Although the origins of this thought

process can be argued between nature versus nurture, I believe that teaching the history of racial

issues at a young age can avoid situations like this to ever happen again. According to research

acquired from Johns Hopkins University, early education can play a critical role during this

important developmental period. Based on this information, teaching kids about our country’s

history regarding segregation and racial profiling to a certain extent will allow them to retain this

knowledge and understand right from wrong as they grow up into middle and high schoolers.

There are arguments that kids may not be able comprehend the ideas that they are taught in

regards to this topic, however surface-level information will be easy for the young ones to

comprehend and in case they do have questions, they can ask their parents once they get home

because they will have regulation over the information they want their kids to know.

Although this problem seems to be reoccurring between the American and African

American groups, racism exists amongst many other groups in society and it is equally as

horrific to think about and witness. On March 15, 2019, New Zealand’s Christchurch Mosque

was struck by a shooting that was intended to kill the individuals practicing Islam inside the

building. The suspect, Brenton Tarrant, is a 29-year-old white supremacist who has a reputation

of performing hate crimes, killed 51 people and when testifying in court, he had zero emotion.

Although this man was well-educated, he did not see the impact that his actions had on society

and the consequences he will face once proven guilty. This unawareness can be eliminated by the

education system and teaching students right from wrong if their parents allow them to do so.

Initial Inquiry Question(s)

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What problems do parents have with exposing their children to societal issues regarding

racism when there is a possibility that this might teach them right from wrong?

There is the obvious reasoning that they do not want their kids to get exposed to these

sensitive ideas before they mature but what are the other reasons?

(To Parents) If the lesson is left optional for parents, would you consider allowing this

idea to be implemented in the public-school system?

(To Teachers) Would it make you guys uncomfortable to teach this content to younger

children or would it feel like something that should be done to expand their awareness of

Americas history and society now as well?

My Interest in this Topic

I’m personally interested in this topic because frequently, there have been many hate

crimes towards certain cultural groups but when questioned, there was no reasoning to why that

action was taken. This lack of reasoning has shown me that they do not have their thoughts but

rather listen to a superior authority or follow an ideology that they have no reason to follow other

than being forced into it. Teaching kids at a young age will prevent this lack of awareness and

instead of being used as a puppet, one can make their own decision. Although there may still be

individuals that choose to perform these hate crimes, there will be a steep decline in the number

of people that perform these hatred acts.

1. I know that many people in this society would like to put a stop to the drastic increase

of hate crime that has been occurring for years. Although many would like to put a stop to it, it is

a process and I believe a change to the youth’s education is the right step towards change.
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2. As I continue to research this topic, I would like to learn the variety of different causes

that affect people to perform these disgusting crimes and potentially other methods that can be

used to remediate the issue.

Next Steps

As my next steps, I will investigate statistics provided by many penitentiaries and

investigate the percentage of people that are held in custody for hate crimes. After analysis of

this, I will proceed to investigate the reasoning and motives that individuals must perform these

crimes. Although there is no excuse to perform these crimes, analyzing the intentions of the

crime will allow us to differentiate the people that are being used as puppets and performing

these crimes versus the knowledgeable people who have a reason to do these crimes.
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Work Cited Page

Arjona, Ana. “Why We Need to Expose Children to the Troubles of the World.” TakePart, 12 May 2015,

http://www.takepart.com/article/2015/05/12/expose-kids-to-world-problems/.

Carter, Kenny. “Why Is Early Learning Important?” Johns Hopkins University, 28 Jan. 2010,

http://web.jhu.edu/CSOS/early_learning/index.html.

“Charleston Church Shooting - as It Happened.” BBC News, BBC,

https://www.bbc.com/news/live/world-us-canada-33181651.

“Rosa Parks.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 29 Aug. 2019,

https://www.biography.com/activist/rosa-parks.