What is Racism? - Opinionated Writing by Ryan v.

Racism in America has always been a touchy issue, even to this day. From immigration to slavery, a plethora of factors and circumstances have made this nation a melting pot, but a hot-spot for ethnic friction and tension as well. Today, racism has declined in intensity, but the notion that racism has begun it's decline in America doesn't curtail that racism doesn't exist. One instance was seen in the actions of former conservative talk radio host Laura Schlessinger, who on August of 2010 was relieved of her job after dropping the "n-bomb" 11 times in response to the question of a black woman's question of, ironically, how to deal with racism for being married to a white man.

However, racism today is a two-edged sword, and by definition, racism is favoritism for one race as being superior to another. An instance of this could be seen in the American policies of "affirmative action", or policies that disregard race, creed, color or origin in evaluation of individuals for employment. Begun by President Kennedy in his Executive Order No. 10925, affirmative action, though ideal in theory, has led to controversy for, ironically, favoritism based on racial origin and ethnicity. In certain nations such as France and the UK, among other European nations, affirmative action is frowned upon and considered illegal for it's bias towards individuals based on origins rather than working capabilities.

In short, racism is on the decline, but remains an unfortunate presence within society. It is not known how long it will take for such biases and ethnic borders to be torn down, if they do, but the intensity of racism has decreased significantly. Nevertheless, it may take lifetimes beyond our own for this issue, which had been prominent until half a century ago in the 1960s, for America to overcome long-standing prejudices and sins from past societies. One can only hope that this day may come sooner than later, but for now, racism is an issue that is far from solved.