Institutional Racism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Institutional Racism - Essay Example This paper illustrates that in 2004, statistics indicated that per capita income for Whites, African Americans, and Hispanics in the USA are $25,203, $16035, and $14,106 respectively. Similarly, the 2005 unemployment rate for Whites, African Americans and Hispanics was 4%, 8.5%, and 4.5% respectively. Those covered by private health insurance for Whites, African Americans and Hispanics for the same period were 71.4%, 53.9%, and 41.7% respectively. The education sector also suffers from institutional racism. Education continues to gain value in modern society and parents would like their children to get the best possible quality of education. Consequently, there has been an increase in the number of international students seeking further education in foreign continents such as America and Europe. Education in these continents is perceived to be of higher quality. These students are presented with unique opportunities for international exposure even as they greatly contribute to the ec onomic growth of the host countries. At the same time, international students are faced with a myriad of challenges beyond their control and sometimes they have to endure until the end of their studies. Institutional racism refers to patterns in the society whereby adverse, unfavorable or oppressive conditions are applied towards certain identifiable groups based on their race, ethnicity and skin color. As an international student from the United Arab Emirates and studying at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, the author encountered institutionalized racism in various forms, to the detriment of international students. They have incidences for instance where black and other colored students are physically abused by their white counterparts on campus. A recent episode of open campus racism occurred when some students believed to belong to a fraternity threw a party in commemoration of Martin Luther King’s birth and black students were mocked. Nonblack students donned loose -fitting basketball shirts, flashed signs of gangs and drunk from hollowed-out watermelons to send a message of mockery to their black counterparts. Although the entire student fraternity received the incident with disbelief, outrage, and contempt, it showed how deep racism is institutionalized in the education system.