Preszilla Celis

Professor Brody

17 May 2019

Eng 301

Writing Critique #1

The Difference Between Understanding Today’s Racism

In the U.S. today there are many social norms that we the citizens accept but disagree on

because of social norms. Racism is a common topic that's debated about and more rampant

today than it was in the past.Some people will disagree on that and say that there's no longer

racism and were all treated as equals.However the reality is that racism still exists and people

who don't understand/ never experienced it are either color blind or have never experienced it

and can’t experience the criticism that many people face today.In 2005 the aftermath of

Hurricane Katrina left many people in New Orleans specifically people of color and poor in the

ruins of their city.Who were unable to leave the city due to financial reasons left many people to

question why was this demographic left behind. Authors ​Cheryl I. Harris and Devon W. Carbado

wrote about those left behind in the article "Loot or Find”.They wrote about how those left

behind were poor and of color flooded the shelter but those with money and white were not

affected as much. While ​Linda ​Holtzman and Leon Sharpe's Article "Theories and Constructs of

Race" argue that the reason as to why they were left behind was because of social norms,

political and economically norms.In Holtzman and Sharpe article and Harris and Carbado article

they both tactile the issues with racism and what factors contribute to the continuation but differ

in what the media's input of the definition of race means.

 According to Harris and Carbado article “Loot or Find” depicts how news outlets

interpret those trying to survive the aftermath of a hurricane.In one picture a African survivor is

seen as”looting” food versus a white survivor “finding” food.These photos sparked outrage that

two photos were captioned in different ways one in a negative and the other positive. People

argued that the photos were depicting African people as criminals and whites as scavengers. In

Holtzman and Sharpe "Theories and Constructs of Race" article they argue that the reason as to

why people react in a different way is due to how the definition of race is perceived. “The

historical mutability of race is significant because of how it has been used as a marker of group

identity and a means of access to privilege in this country and elsewhere. The possession of

whiteness represents a valued status that confers upon its owners a set of exclusive citizenship

rights (Lipsitz 1998)”. In Holtzman and Sharpe article "Theories and Constructs of Race"we are

taught as children the history of the immigration of Europeans and their struggles but what about

the other races. This stereotyping and color blindness we are taught contributes to how we

interpret racism and the definition of race as we grow older. It also contributes to how the media

interpret this information and how the government passes laws and restrictions to minorities and

the poor. The continuation of looking down and restriction minorities continues to inflict harm

and more social norms that the people continue to accept. There is opposition that minorities are

being treated as second class citizens to people who are white thanks to laws specifically

targeting minorities like the Housing Act restriction which families can get loans for buying

houses. By keeping the poor poorer and the rich richer it keeps that dividing line that white

people are better than minorities and that people who are African are criminals and ended up in

their bad situation by their own actions thus continuing the social norms.
Work Cited
Holtzman, Linda, and Leon Sharpe. Media messages: What film, television, and popular
music teach us about race, class, gender, and sexual orientation. Routledge, 2014.
Harris, Cherly I.,and Devon W. Carbado, “Loot or Find: Fact or Frame” Rereading
America 10th (2014)