waauw wrote:Symmetry wrote:I think that's where the concept of institutional racism comes in to play. The individuals in the institution are not necessarily racist, but the structure of the system they operate in is inherently discriminatory and enforces a larger racist system.
I know, I know, sounds like academic nonsense, but it's pretty solid if you look past the big words. The Black Lives Matter movement is the same argument from grassroots. Targeting individuals who are racist does nothing when the system is the problem.
Well, I have to be honest here. I don't actually know THAT much about american institutional workings. All I know is what I've seen on the news, which is people protesting and blaming certain cops who were merely doing their job.
I'm more interested in american foreign and economic policy than this topic.
Fair play to you. The protests are largely about institutional problems, of which the individual cases are symptomatic. The cop who shot an innocent man and called his union rep before calling paramedics? The disparity in cases brought to prosecution, and the disparities in sentencing? Just a tonne of stuff at play that goes beyond a few racists, and demands a deeper level of reform.
I hope that makes sense as a basic explanation.
