Introduction
Human existence has more than one thousand years, during which humanity has changed both biologically and spiritually. It is possible to notice, how through tens of past epochs, the structure of society changed: the ideas and opinions put in consciousness reflected a degree of development and tolerance of people. Stereotypes that were considered natural and deviations from which aside generated questions and doubts concerning human decency changed with time. Thus, slavery and humiliation of the Black and Arab community, which used to be traditional for the countries of Europe, Russia, and especially the USA, began to disappear with the strengthening of industrial society. This was due to the development of qualitatively new ideas about global rights and freedoms, rather than to a change in the economic course of states.
The developed modern world has clear views on the phenomenon of racism, which is unacceptable and chauvinistic behavior that should not be encouraged by the population. Politicians and celebrities express a hope that this will not happen again. Nevertheless, even today’s progressive society continues to show their dislike for diversity and their reluctance to interact with members of alternative races and ethnic groups socially. This raises the reasonable question of how natural racism is in the modern world. Leaving aside disrespect, resentment, and xenophobia, racism as a diversity of cultural codes, and the acceptance of uniqueness is organic. This paper aims to discuss the fact that racism a recognition of diversity is an integral part of the modern world.
Origins of racism
According to the precise biological science ideas, humankind was born more than 2.5 million years ago, when a representative of Homo was born from a great ape under the influence of the driving forces of evolution. Charles Darwin’s teachings have told that natural relations are based on a struggle for existence and natural selection, so “distinct advantages to an animal, giving it a much greater chance to survive and breed” (Masci para. 8). When people did not have the technology, science, and ideologies, humanity was not very different from the animal world — ancestors killed different individuals, humiliated them, and arranged mythological rites just because they wanted to survive.
It took hundreds of thousands of years before humans became so developed and conscious that they decided to find the first ancient civilizations. By that time, the gene pool of humankind was quite diverse, so one sample could meet representatives of the Negroid, Mongoloid, and Caucasian race, as well as their mestizos. As a result, the first urban communities became multicultural, and it is expected that members of some ethnic groups decided to dominate others. Over the years, the principles of power and cultural repression have been consolidated.
View of the modern world
It took many millennia before the developed person began to think philosophically and returned slaves to their natural rights to live freely and exist unconditionally. Modern society is not uniform or standardized — if one looks at a sample of hundreds of Americans, 60 will be White, 12 Black, 6 Asian, 18 Spanish, 1 Indian, and 3 mixed genotypes (Population Distribution by Race). At the same time, it is necessary to understand that the modern White or Black person can hardly be considered a purebred representative of the precise race because phylogenetic analysis would almost certainly show the presence of ancestors from other cultural and ethnic groups. From this point of view, some individuals’ statement about the uniqueness of their cultures and outright racism is hugely ironic. 21st-century society has the characteristics of multiculturalism and the diversity of traditional and ethnic forms, which is why it is essential to question racism.
Discussing racism
First of all, it should be specified that racism was most often perceived as an oppression of the Black population by White people. There is a stereotype around racism that only a member of the Caucasian race can dominate, while Negroids and less frequently Mongoloid individuals are negatively influenced by a more powerful class (Rattansi 7). This view is only a product that reflects a primitive and narrow vision of the broad term “racism.”
In general, racism is a set of ideologies and opinions based on ideas about the inequality of the human races. It follows that specific cohorts are crucial to the development of history and culture. Rapid analysis of the historical background shows that this phenomenon has accompanied humankind almost always. In Ancient Egypt, Jews were slaves; the colonization of wild countries was carried out with the natives’ enslavement; and at the heart of Hitler’s Nazi idea was a dislike for Jews, Gypsies, and Slavs (Matić 19; Spielvogel and Redles 10). Nevertheless, the physical subjugation, domination, and humiliation of certain ethnic groups is only one side of racism.
Without considering the ethical issues related to the relevance of racist views, it is safe to assert that racism, devoid of humiliation and domination, is a natural condition of contemporary society. It is essential to recognize that the people living in cities are different, both biologically and culturally. Behind each individual lies their baggage of accumulated knowledge and experience, which makes humanity diverse. Every day, a citizen faces a difference that is sure to resonate in their minds. Thus, a person meets people with the characteristic physical features of alternative races or ethnic groups — different height, outstanding features of the face, or color of skin. It generates internal conflict with the established picture of how the person should look, and therefore, in the observer’s consciousness, the interest is immediately born. From here, two ways are beginning: the individual can contemplate and study or conflict over a noticeable difference. It is necessary to note that the conflict can develop partially because the person as a biological being is inclined to fear for life. Whenever a person sees something different from themselves, whether because of the color of their skin or the difference in outlook, they begin to worry about their existence, after which the natural mechanisms of self-preservation are activated. If not suppressed, this can turn into an open confrontation, expressed as verbal or physical aggression.
Most likely, the choice between observation and conflict is the two ways of racism that cause tolerance or misanthropy. In other words, it is the recognition of biological and cultural differences as a fact that becomes the foundation for racism. Nevertheless, it should also be understood that modern human is far from the animal world, because “humans are unique in their capacities and hence rank highest in the chain of being” (Juergens 1). This fact should be an absolute condition for an individual to reflect on the degree of their development and subject them to critical thinking of their views. Thus, if racism and xenophobia, expressed in outright hatred and disrespect, are typical for citizens, they should reflect on how progressive their thoughts are. The representative of modern and developed society objectively evaluated the world’s diversity and understood that the Earth was not unified and did not belong to humans at all, so it was necessary to respect other races.
The mistake that racism as a struggle was a natural phenomenon could be confirmed by discussing the common misconception of genetic superiority. It was not unusual for White people to claim that Black people were the lowest category because their genetic pool was weaker, “Does Black People Have Bad Genes?” (Anonymous). People justify this with the increased Black crime, underdevelopment in Africa, and supposedly reduced intelligence among the race members. However, such views are nothing more than a wrong and unscientific notion. The genetics of different races are different, but there is no reference race from which deviations are considered the norm (Yudell 564). Those views which aim at the superiority of Whites may be mirrored concerning Asians or Blacks. Ultimately, this means that racism continues to exist as long as diversity exists against biological and cultural backgrounds. Another is the ability to manage one’s desires, fears, and emotions when interacting with alternative races, as this is the guarantee of the successful and harmonious development of civilization.
Conclusion
The modern world is not unified, and there are interactions between different races and ethnic groups. Often the intensity of such communication, especially in big cities, causes an open confrontation that results in aggression and racism. Racism as domination has a long history, and it has always accompanied humanity at different stages of development. Nevertheless, modern society is characterized by progressive attitudes and tolerance, so stereotypes that existed centuries ago should be eradicated. Some representatives of the 21st century still exhibit open racism against alternative groups. It was essential to recognize that racism as a conflict was not natural – such behavior was considered unacceptable and inadequate, and citizens were subject to sanctions. However, racism as an acknowledgment of genetic and cultural diversity in the modern world is quite a feature of society. For that reason, when asked whether racism was considered natural, it was necessary to understand further what was meant by that phrase.
References
Anonymous. “Does Black People Have Bad Genes?” Yahoo Answers, n.d., 2020. Web.
Juergens, Uta Maria. “Human and Nonhuman Animals: Equals in Uniqueness.” Animal Sentience, vol. 3, no. 23, 2018, pp. 2-8.
Masci, David. “Darwin in America.” Pew Research Center, 2019, Web.
Matić, Uroš. “De-Colonizing the Historiography and Archaeology of Ancient Egypt and Nubia. Part 1. Scientific Racism.” Journal of Egyptian History, vol. 11, no. 1-2, 2018, pp. 19-44.
“Population Distribution by Race/Ethnicity.” KFF, 2017, Web.
Rattansi, Ali. Racism: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press, 2020.
Spielvogel, Jackson J., and David Redles. Hitler and Nazi Germany: A History. Routledge, 2020.
Yudell, Michael, et al. “Taking Race Out of Human Genetics.” Science, vol. 351, no. 6273, 2016, pp. 564-565.