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4 The Root

America’s first African American president, Barack Obama, said around the time of the rioting in Ferguson, Missouri, after the shooting of Michael Brown that “America still has a problem with race.” Former Democratic vice-presidential candidate, Tim Kaine, echoed those sentiments in the following comments on August 4, 2016, at the National Urban League Conference.

I learned when I started to practice civil rights that anybody who is a person of color, frankly anybody who has been a religious minority, you kind of have to learn the ways of the majority as a survival instinct. You have to learn our kind in order to survive the ways of the majority. So often those of us in the majority, we are not forced to learn the ways of anybody else. And we can insulate or wall ourselves off, even without intending to. We have to force ourselves out of our comfort zone to learn about the realities of all the beautiful parts of this wonderful American tapestry (4).

Tim Kaine acknowledges the racial inequalities that African Americans and other racial and ethnic minorities experience in America. He acknowledges the need to assimilate into the culture of the dominate majority in order to have a measure of success in the United States. Tim Kaine also acknowledges the superiority subculture thinking of the dominate majority group. This is often referred to as white privilege.

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To further illustrate the plight of black America, Civil rights activist and former school teacher Jane Elliot reported during an interview that “we [whites] have been taught and conditioned that we are superior (7).” Her comments do not, by any means, represent the entire Caucasian community anymore than former extremist, African American leader, Malcolm X, represented the entire black community. However, with the increased racial tension between the Caucasian and African American communities, she makes a valid point relating to the growing tension between the two groups.

G.I. Bill

The history of violence and oppression toward African Americans is vast and exhaustive. The topic is far too great to expound upon in a single book. However, considering the relative nature of the current plight of black America, it is worth noting a few highlights. Planet Earth’s greatest war to date, known as World War II, resulted in approximately thirty-four million deaths among forty-eight nations that were directly involved. The United States accounts for approximately four hundred and fifteen thousand of those deaths. World War II forever affected the Earth’s demographic make-up. After the war, the Soviet Union broke ranks with several nations such as Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, and more.

America now has multiple, robust military installations in Germany, United Kingdom, Japan, Italy, Belgium, and other nations. The Japanese Empire, on the other hand, was once a robust and feared world power. At one point, the Japanese empire conquered the entire Asian peninsula, brutally occupying countries such as Korea and China. Since World War II, it has not engaged in a single military conflict. Nevertheless, despite the glorious and multiple acts of immense honor and valor by American servicemen and women, an equally dishonorable culture was present in America’s military forces.

African Americans have fought in nearly every war and/or conflict in American history since their arrival to North America. The greatest of these conflicts were the Civil War and World War I and II. Up to World War II, African Americans were forced to fight in racially separate units. Unfortunately, even after fighting bravely in most of these great wars, black soldiers came home to face repulsive treatments from white American citizens, for whom they had just served in combat to protect.

Former University of California Los Angeles professor and historian Dr. Karen Brodkin reported that “during and after the war, there was an upsurge in white ←26 | 27→racist violence against black servicemen, in public schools, and by the Ku Klux Klan. It spread to California and New York. The number of lynchings rose during the war, and in 1943 there were anti-Black race riots in several large northern cities (2).”

Despite the dire circumstances related to the last epic world war, African Americans faced subsequent post-war challenges related to racism. Not only did they have to engage in dangerous combat situations, but they also faced them with less supplies and leadership support due to racial prejudice and intense discrimination. African Americans fought in combat arms against both the Germans and Japanese forces while also fighting for freedom in their own nation of birth. “Black GIs who served in the thoroughly segregated armed forces during World War II served under white officers. African American soldiers were given a disproportionate share of dishonorable discharges, which denied them veterans’ rights under the GI Bill (2).”

In addition, other minority groups such as Native American and Hispanic soldiers were permitted to serve in white units but not African Americans. In retrospect, one could clearly see that it was units of color that made inevitable contributions toward allied success and America’s ultimate victory. Many argue that without the aid of the Navajo language message encryption service in regard to communication lines, along with the aggressive and effective fighting of black units, victory would not have been attained so quickly. German forces were able to decode American messages of every language except the Navajo language. Likewise, African American units such as the Tuskegee Airmen, fought valiantly contributing to major air combat victories, including the thwarting of a close defeat of British forces by the Germans.

Despite the African Americans’ aid in America’s victory, they were still treated unfairly after the war. Naturally, social and economic adjustments occurred in post-war America as hundreds of thousands of service men returned home from combat and started to seek to reenter the labor force. Jobs once held by women and minorities were now being demanded back by the dominate white male majority. “Although there was a wartime labor shortage, black people were discriminated against when it came to well-paid defense industry jobs and housing. In 1946, white riots against African Americans occurred across the South and in Chicago and Philadelphia (2).”

President Roosevelt initiated several legislative acts to boost the U.S. economy during this transition. One of the more notable acts was the Service Members Reenlistment and Readjustment Act, which became known as the G.I. Bill. In recent years, after the 9-11 attacks, this act was changed to the Post 9-11 G.I. Bill.

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The G.I. Bill, initiated by President Roosevelt, provided low interest rates, zero-down home loans, tuition subsidies for higher education, vocational training and more, for active-duty personnel and veterans. These opportunities are often the necessary ingredients needed for upward economic advancement. Hundreds of thousands of Caucasian veterans took advantage of the program, which was unavailable for African Americans. It was this bill that African Americans needed to advance their communities out of poverty after decades of brutal oppression, as expressed in the following statements:

“Employment has the potential to improve health by providing income, increasing access to insurance, providing contact with coworkers that could increase social support, and providing opportunities for feeling a sense of accomplishment or control (5),” says social worker Dr. Flavio Marsiglia and sociologist Dr. Stephen Kulis. Unfortunately, African Americans were denied the riches of the G.I. Bill and their communities suffered greatly from it, still to this day. Anthropologist Dr. Karen Brodkin, stated that “theoretically they (G.I. Bill benefits), were available to all veterans; in practice women and black veterans did not get anywhere near their share (2).”

Altogether, both the economic and social implications of the above discriminations were repulsive. One can only imagine the difficulty faced by African American veterans returning from war with service-connected injuries, attempting to regain their social lives and to move their families upward economically. The very nation they just served in war violently opposed them and robbed them of opportunities to advance in society.

It was these insurmountable barriers, built and enforced by the dominant majority, that led to impoverished communities also known as “black ghettos.” To this day, black communities are struggling to recover from the combination of much-needed government assistance along with the denial of higher paying jobs that only Caucasians were permitted to occupy. These systemic, racist acts wreaked havoc in black neighborhoods. Many of them went from poor to poorer resulting in higher crime rates, increased violence, and even greater dependency on government aid for basic living conditions, which remains visible today.

At the present, black neighborhoods have some of the highest social welfare utilization rates. Abortion clinics, such as Planned Parenthood, have the highest concentration of activity in black neighborhoods, and as mentioned earlier, incarceration rates for African Americans also remain disproportionally high.

Interestingly, some scholars argue that black people living abroad, in predominantly white nations, receive better treatment than those living in the United ←28 | 29→States. Dr. Brodkin’s research revealed that “native-born black Americans experience levels of urban neighborhood segregation nearly three times higher than native-born black British citizens (2).”

In any case, one can clearly see that the objective to dismantle the vigor and vitality of the black community post the World War II era was largely was successful. The denial of GI benefits and educational opportunities combined with biased employment and labor practices resulted in dismal neighborhood conditions for African Americans and also to greater disparity and tension between the white and black communities. Drs. Marsiglia and Kulis reported that “the legacy of slavery and oppression of African Americans can still be seen in persisting racial disparities in education, economic advancement, and in health care (5).”

It is not difficult to take a conscious or unconscious position of superiority for any racial group that dominates and controls the majority of a nation’s social and economic enterprises. Caucasians are the majority race in the United States. Still today, they dominate and control the country’s greatest industries from ownership of professional sports teams, to telecom companies , accounting firms, technology, shipping and manufacturing enterprises, and all major financial firms. The nation’s largest banking and financial institutions such as J.P. Morgan Chase, Wells Fargo, and Bank of America are largely controlled and governed by white leaders. The majority of America’s local, state, and federal governments positions are overwhelmingly filled by middle aged, white American, conservative males.

Caucasians dominate higher education in terms of holding the majority of senior level and the highest paid, salaried academic positions as well as representing the majority of the student body. They make up the majority of student bodies, and well-paid leadership positions such as university presidents, deans, and provosts. White Americans even rule the Internet, the world’s communication superhighway. The majority of commerce websites world-wide are U.S. based. Caucasian Americans also own the majority of small and large businesses and even lead the majority of churches in the country. Therefore, it is not difficult and is quite understandable for them to develop a sense of superiority over other races, especially minorities.

A major tenet of American history was the institution of slavery. It was a lucrative industry that propelled America economically and into becoming the superpower that it is today. The topic of slavery in the United States is quite vast and exhaustive. Volumes of books have been written on the subject.

At one-point African Americans were not considered fully human. They were viewed as three-fifths of a person. Fast forward a few hundred years to 2020, many argue that this subtle viewpoint remains alive and well today. Warning, ←29 | 30→the evidence presented in this book is both factual and compelling; read on with courage but keep in mind that the barriers to rebuilding the African American community can be both overwhelming and unpleasant to read.

It’s All Linked to Racism

The majority of the ailments that the black community suffers from today is linked to racism. In modern America, the research relating to outcomes of systemic racism and ACEs are exploding. Social scientists and other related researchers are sprinting to this groundbreaking research field as more patterns to human behaviors have been linked to ACEs and racism. Researchers Vanessa Sacks and Dr. David Murphey commented on a recent study regarding the issues. They reported that “along with many other researchers, the study authors believe that the experience of racism itself have toxic effects. It may be useful, as some researchers have done, to distinguish between catastrophic (acute) stressors and routine (chronic) ones, of which the experiences of racism is an example. ACEs (including racism) can make people physically and mentally ill (8).”

Racism has a colossal impact on the ability for the black community to recover from its brutal experience with slavery, Jim Crow laws, and other forms of oppression. In addition racism has been linked to mental illness, high unemployment rates, poor health outcomes, and low standardized test scores such as the SAT (scholastic aptitude test) and the GRE (graduate record examination) exams.

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) published an article regarding the subject of diversity and standardized test scores in American higher education. In August 2019, Douglas Belkin of the WSJ reported that “the College Board, the New York-based nonprofit that oversees the SAT, said it has worried about income inequality influencing test results for years. White students scored an average of 177 points higher than black students and 133 points higher than Hispanic students in 2018. Asian students scored 100 points higher than white students. The children of wealthy and college-educational parents outperformed their classmates (1).”

In the past few years, hate crimes in America have been on the rise. One would imagine that considering the Civil Rights era passing the nation over fifty years ago would have decreased the intensity and frequency of hate crimes and racial issues. Unfortunately, racism and racial tension have climaxed to epic levels.

University campus hate crimes and racially biased incidents have soared. Victoria Nelson of, American Progress, reported that “experiences of racism can cause racial trauma, especially for Black students. The theory of racial battle fatigue ←30 | 31→maintains that race-related stressors, such as exposure to racism and discrimination on campuses, and the time and energy African American students expend to battle these stereo types, can lead to detrimental psychological and physiological stress (6).”

By this point, you have been informed of some developing research, data, and information related to the ailments caused by racism. There is far more to come. Chapter Seven of this book dives thoroughly into ACEs, the nemesis of the black community. Ultimately, between the atrocious experience and the destructive factors of ACEs lies the chief barriers to the rebuilding of the black American community.

A major study was released in 2019 regarding the issues and effects of racism and ACEs primarily in the black community. Research from the University of Wisconsin-Madison revealed some disturbing results. “ACEs are especially prevalent in low-income, minority patient populations. African Americans are disproportionally exposed to stressful and traumatic events particularly in urban areas, and the combination of traumatic, racial, and socioeconomic stressors contributes to reduced life expectancy. Racial and ethnic minority populations that experience significant health disparities are vulnerable to historical traumas.

African Americans are particularly susceptible to the intergenerational transmission of trauma through multiple mechanisms including ongoing discrimination and epigenetic inheritance. African Americans are at greater risk of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), than the general population, and are more likely to receive mental health care from primary care providers than whites. Mental health care is not easily accessed or accepted among black Americans as a result of the potential stigma of receiving a formal diagnosis and the cultural mistrust stemming from numerous racial disparities in health (3).”

References

1. Belkin, D. (August 2019). College board drips plans for SAT student adversity scores. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved from https://www.wsj.com/articles/college-board-drops-plans- for-sat-student-adversity-scores-11566928181

2. Brodkin, K. (1994). How Jews became white folks and what that says about race in America. New Brunswick, NJ. Rutgers University Press.

3. Goldstein, E., Topitzes, J., Birstler, J., & Brown, R. L. (2019). Addressing adverse childhood experiences and health risk behaviors among low-income, Black primary care patients: Testing feasibility of a motivation-based intervention. General Hospital Psychiatry, 56, 1–8. Retrieved from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0163834318303189

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4. Koenig, K. (August 2016). Kaine highlights civil rights work in urban league address. NBCnews.com. Retrieved from https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2016-election/kaine-highlights-civil- rights-work-urban-league-address-n623106

5. Marsiglia, F., & Kulis, S. (2015). Diversity, oppression, and change. London, England: Oxford University Press.

6. Nelson, V. (August 2019). Addressing racial trauma and hate crimes on college campuses. American Progress. Retrieved from https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/race/news/2019/08/09/473299/addressing-racial-trauma-hate-crimes-college-campuses/

7. PBS.org. (2003). An unfinished crusade: An interview with Jane Elliott. Retrieved from https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/an-unfinished-crusade-an-interview-with-jane-elliott/

8. Sacks, V., & Murphey, D. (2018). The prevalence of adverse childhood experiences, nationally, by state, and by race or ethnicity. Child Trends. Retrieved from https://ncvc.dspacedirect.org/handle/20.500.11990/1142

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