
The common notion that racism in America has not changed ignores the immense progress it has made in the past decades, writes Coleman Hughes of Quillette. Lynchings of black people, which occurred three times a week in the beginning of the 20th century, no longer happen. In 1958, only 4% of the country approval of intermarriage between black and white people. Today, that number is 87%, a hugely positive change. Some argue that the suffering of black people in modern America is because of systemic racism. This isn’t true, in particular, poverty and representation in certain jobs are strongly influenced by internal cultural factors.
Keep on reading at QuilletteThe rise of Donald Trump, who has trumpeted anti-Muslim and anti-Mexican ideals, has inspired a huge rise in American racism, holds Suman Raghunathan of The Nation. Hate crimes against Muslims, Arabs, South Asians and Middle Eastern people rose by 45% in 2017. One out of five violent and hateful incidents that were documented mentioned the president, his policies or one of his sayings. Trump has spread false information about Muslims and Mexicans, encouraging prejudiced behavior against these and other groups. Because of the messages coming out of the White House, America is seeing a surge of racist beliefs and attacks.
Keep on reading at The Nation