The coherent society is characterized by numerous appeals to eliminate any discrimination and inequality that could affect people and deteriorate the quality of their lives. The shift of priorities towards humanistic values and democracy contributed to the increased importance of guaranteeing equal rights to all people no matter what their race or gender is. However, the issue remains topical because of the increased complexity of the problem and a number of concerns that go along with it. Nevertheless, people still believe the idea that it is possible to eliminate all barriers and judge people by their actions, not by the color of their skin. The given statement could be considered one of the most important tasks of the modern society.
The problem is extremely topical for the USA as for the bigger part of its history it had been the state that depressed different social classes and races because of their otherness. Due to the unique nature of this region, the USA was characterized by the wide usage of slaves, mostly African-Americans ones, who worked in different spheres of the industry. Besides, in the 20th century, the situation started to alter. The rise of peoples consciousness resulted in the appearance of numerous civil rights movement aimed at the improvement of the depressed classes state. However, the situation still remained complex as people with a different color of skin suffered from the biased attitude and discrimination. It was executed at the governmental level as race served as the main factor to determine an individuals status and provide him/her with different opportunities.
For instance, in the 1930s the government created the Federal Housing Administration which main task was to provide loans to people and help them to improve their housing conditions (California Newsreel, 2010). Better Housing program was a great step towards the gradual enhancement of the quality of peoples lives and the creation of an available dwelling. Thousands of people engaged in the program and obtained new houses. Being a unique phenomenon in the social life of the USA, the initiative, at the same time, created the ground for numerous debates. The fact is that after the WWII millions of African-American GIs returned back to the segregated society dreaming of their own houses.
However, the Better Housing program did not take into the account needs of this group of people. Their claims were ignored, and they were not sold houses. Moreover, the governments guidelines stated that the presence of even one or two nonwhite families could deteriorate the real estate values of new suburbs and undermine the whole program (California Newsreel, 2010).
Segregation was fixed in governmental reports and recommendations. Additionally, in the 1930s the government officials institutionalized the national appraisal system where race became one of the most important factors that determined the life of a person and opportunities available for people (California Newsreel, 2010). For this reason, the majority of African-Americans who wanted to obtain a new dwelling were deprived of an opportunity to get loans and get a new house. The financial risks were considered too high, and only white communities were given preference. Only in the 50s and 60s, nonwhites were given an opportunity to obtain new dwelling, but it mostly was a rental market, and they had to pay rent. People were not able to generate wealth and guarantee good future for their children.
It is evident that depressed minorities were not satisfied with their status and biased attitude to them. The race was the main factor that determined their lives and introduced numerous barriers that limited their existence. The situation was ridiculous. People who experienced the hell of war and fought for their state were treated in a different way and deprived of any opportunity to integrate with society because of segregative laws that introduced several behavioral patterns that should be followed. It is evident that African-Americans were not satisfied with their status and engaged in the struggle for their rights hoping to attain reconsideration of the attitude and equal rights. For this reason, numerous civil right movements appeared and altered the American society.
At the moment, we could observe the great impact above-mentioned processes had on the society. Race does not serve as the main distinguish criterion anymore. The government of the USA guarantees equal rights to all citizens of the state, no matter what their ethnicity, culture, religion, and race are (Rothenberg, 2016). We could see African-Americans working in different spheres and participating in numerous social processes. They are also provided with numerous opportunities for generating wealth and guaranteeing future to their children. At the first gaze, the situation might seem ideal. Unfortunately, there are still numerous problems.
Though the government proclaims that people are equal, there are still some manifestations of the biased attitude to African-Americans in the US society, and they might face numerous barriers when trying to attain success and integrate with the society. For instance, the percentage of students in high education establishments is not equal as whites prevail (Rothenberg, 2016).
Moreover, comparing the average household incomes, nonwhites also have a worse position (“Eleven facts about racial discrimination,” n.d.). The biased attitude to African-Americans also results in the fact that they are arrested more frequently than whites, and they receive 10% longer sentences (“Eleven facts about racial discrimination,” n.d.). The given statistics demonstrate that race still remains an important factor that is taking into account by people living in the USA. Despite all efforts to provide equal rights and eliminate discrimination, the problem remains topical.
In this regard, there is a great need for the further alteration of the attitude to minorities in the USA as the biased attitude to them results in the appearance of numerous problems and cultivation of racism. First of all, it is crucial to alter peoples mentality as they have inherited some behavioral patterns and attitudes. Unfortunately, it is a long term process that is hard to affect because of the lack of motivation and peoples inability to abandon stereotypes. We still see not people, but the color and use it to judge. It results in the existence of numerous barriers that deteriorate the quality of these peoples lives greatly.
Altogether, we could state that segregation has always been an ongoing issue for the USA because of the unique history of this very region. In the 20th century, people still suffered from this social stigma and were deprived of any opportunity to generate wealth and integrate with the society. The situation altered, and nowadays the government proclaims that all individuals are equal and should not be judged by their skin or culture. However, there are still numerous barriers that nonwhites face in the USA, and we could hardly eliminate them all because of the peculiarities of peoples mentality and the lack of motivation to act in this way.
References
California Newsreel (2010, Sep. 24). Race the house we live in [Video file].
Eleven facts about racial discrimination. (n.d.)
Rothenberg, P. (2016). Race, class, and gender in the United States: An integrated study. London: Worth Publishers.