New Racism Essay

Blatant racism is universally on the decline because of incessant campaigns by civil liberty activists. Racism is born out of the cauldron of scrambling for economic resources. Blatant racism was used as a vehicle for furthering white domination in the access to opportunities. Blatant racism was replaced by subtle racism that is indirect and procedural. The new form of racism does not appear to be racism but carries the same precepts of the blatant racism.
Racial stereotypes are the center of the subtle racism. They have taken roots in public and private institutions. Ethnic minorities find it difficult to the access professional services in public institutions and corporate entities. African-American women face the concrete ceiling in their endeavor to get top positions in their companies. Racial stereotypes are also evident in the sentencing and conviction of inmates. African Americans have a higher chance of conviction that their white counterparts. In some states, the African Americans make up half of the prison population yet they consist of 13.6 percent of the population.
According to Harris-Perry, the mammy image rose immediately after Slavery. She is fat and usually accompanied by her trade handkerchief. She has strong physical character traits that are used in the service of her master and controlling her male counterpart. She is loyal and kind; traits that are good for a mother. The Jezebel image gives the impression that African American women are sexually promiscuous and immoral. During the slavery era, African Americans were subjects of the sex terrorism, and the image has persisted to date. The Jezebel Stereotype reinforces the image that African-American women cannot be victims of rape since they always desired sex. The Sapphire image depicts black women as nagging persons who are prone to anger. The Sapphire is a gangsta girl who is as violent and hostile as her male counterparts are.
Harris-Perry describes the example of the mammy image in the television world. John Garry instructs Oprah Winfrey to give a distressed woman a hug and goes further to explain that Oprah will be her mommy. That was the prime reason Oprah did not have children, and she was the mother of America. Even successful women such as Oprah Winfrey do not escape the black women’s stereotypes.

Works Cited

Feagin, J. (2013). Systemic Racism: A Theory of Oppression. New York: Routledge.
Mellisa, H.-P. (2013). Sister Citizen: Shame, Stereotypes, and Black Women in America. New York: Yale University Press.