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Institutional racism (or structural racism or systemic racism) refers to a form of racism which occurs specifically in institutions such as public bodies, corporations, and universities. The term was coined by black nationalist, pan-Africanist and honorary prime minister of the Black Panther Party, Stokely Carmichael. In the late 1960s, he defined the term as "the collective failure of an organization to provide an appropriate and professional service to people because of their colour, culture or ethnic origin".^[1] Image File history File links Unbalanced_scales. ... Image File history File links Question_book-3. ... Manifestations Slavery Racial profiling Lynching Hate speech Hate crime Genocide (examples) Ethnocide Ethnic cleansing Pogrom Race war Religious persecution Blood libel Paternalism Police brutality Movements Policies Discriminatory Race / Religion / Sex segregation Apartheid Redlining Internment Ethnocracy Anti-discriminatory Emancipation Civil rights Desegregation Integration Equal opportunity Counter-discriminatory Affirmative action Racial quota... Manifestations Slavery Racial profiling Lynching Hate speech Hate crime Genocide (examples) Ethnocide Ethnic cleansing Pogrom Race war Religious persecution Blood libel Paternalism Police brutality Movements Policies Discriminatory Race / Religion / Sex segregation Apartheid Redlining Internment Ethnocracy Anti-discriminatory Emancipation Civil rights Desegregation Integration Equal opportunity Counter-discriminatory Affirmative action Racial quota... For other uses, see Corporation (disambiguation). ... For the community in Florida, see University, Florida. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Pan-Africanism is a term which can have two separate, but related meanings. ... The Black Panther Party (originally called the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense) was an African American organization founded to promote civil rights and self-defense. ... Stokely Standiford Churchill Carmichael (June 29, 1941 – November 15, 1998), also known as Kwame Ture, was a Trinidadian-American black activist active in the 1960s American Civil Rights Movement. ... The 1960s decade refers to the years from 1960 to 1969. ... For other uses, see Culture (disambiguation). ... The concept of ethnic origin is an attempt to classify people, not according to their current nationality, but according to where their ancestors came from. ...

Classification

Institutional racism is distinguished from the bigotry or racial bias of individuals by the existence of systematic policies and practices within the institution, that have the effect of disadvantaging certain racial or ethnic groups. Certain housing contracts (see restrictive covenants) and bank lending policies (see redlining) are seen as forms of institutional racism. Other examples can include racial profiling by security and law enforcement workers, use of stereotyped racial caricatures by institutions (such as "Indian" mascots in sports), the under- and mis-representation of certain racial groups in the media, and barriers to employment or professional advancement based on race. As with the more general term of "racism", "institutional racism" carries with it a socially negative connotation which can make accurate classification contentious^{[citation needed]}. For people named Bigot and other meanings, see Bigot (disambiguation). ... A restrictive covenant is a legal promise made in a deed by the buyer of real estate to do or not to do something, and not to sell it without exacting the same promise from the next buyer. ... For the automotive term, see redline. ...

Some have distinguished between institutional and structural racism. With the former focusing on the norms and practices within an institution and the latter refering to the interaction between institutions that produce racialized outcome. One of the things that is important about structural racism or structured racialization is that it cannot be reduced to individual prejudice or the single function of an institution. It is also important to note that once a structure is in place, it is likely to impact not just specific racialized groups but the entire population. Structural racialization also bring into focus many of the institutional arrrangements that are often identified as American exceptionalism such as the lack of a labor party, weak unions and a fragmented government system. Structural racialization borrows from system theory which looks at the interaction between institutions or entities and rejects reductionist thinking. There is a mutual and cumulative causation instead of a single cause. The use of the sytems approach for structural racialization also call into question of rather race of class in the United States is more important. Instead, it suggest that there is an interaction between race and class and they have an impact both on institutional design and meaning.

Examples of institutional racism

Examples from U.S. history can help clarify the nature and effects of institutional racism.

1. In 1935, the U.S. Congress passed the Social Security Act, guaranteeing an income for millions of workers after retirement. However, the Act specifically excluded domestic and agricultural workers, many of whom were Mexican-American, African-American, and Asian-American. These workers were therefore not guaranteed an income after retirement, and had less opportunity to save, accumulate, and pass wealth on to future generations.
2. The U.S. property appraisal system created in the 1930s tied property value and eligibility for government loans to race. Thus, all-White neighborhoods received the government's highest property value ratings, and White people were eligible for government loans. Between 1934 and 1962, less than 2% of government-subsidized housing went to non-White people.^[2]

These examples depend not on the individual, isolated, and idiosyncratic beliefs or biases of individuals, but rather on biases embedded in social structures and in institutions. Moreover, in the first example, no "race" was specifically named to be excluded from the Social Security Act, but the Act effectively allowed wealth benefits to accrue to certain racial groups and not to others. There need not be, therefore, any explicit intent associated with institutional racism in order for it to benefit certain races over others. The Congress of the United States is the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States of America. ... United States Social Security Card Social Security is a social insurance program administered by the Social Security Administration under the authority of the United States federal government. ...

The use of standardized testing has also been termed institutional racism by some commentators, who claim that this kind of assessment is significantly biased towards people of a certain cultural and social background, with the supposed result that in much of the Western world racial minorities tend to score lower. Detractors of this view point out that the tests are usually intended to determine the aptitude of the candidate for the subject that is being tested, and if it so happens that a particular racial minority has a lower than average aptitude (just as if a particular racial minority has a higher than average aptitude) then that is simply a fact and as such cannot be racist, institutionally or otherwise. Standardized testing is: in theory: a tool to ensure that student knowledge and aptitude in a given subject are examined with the same criteria across different schools. ... Occident redirects here. ...

Charges of institutional racism have been applied to other governmental, social, and educational policies as well. For example, institutionalized racism affects general health care as well as acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) health intervention and services in minority communities. The over-representation of minorities in various disease categories, including AIDS, is partially related to racism. The national response to the AIDS epidemic in minority communities has been slow, showing an insensitivity to ethnic diversity in prevention efforts and AIDS health services.^[3] For other uses, see AIDS (disambiguation). ...

Institutional racism in the UK

In the Metropolitain Police Service

Further information: Stephen Lawrence

In the UK, the inquiry following the murder of Stephen Lawrence found the investigating police force to be institutionally racist. Sir William Macpherson of Cluny used the term as a description of "the collective failure of an organisation to provide an appropriate and professional service to people because of their colour, culture or ethnic origin", which "can be seen or detected in processes, attitudes and behaviour which amount to discrimination through unwitting prejudice, ignorance, thoughtlessness, and racist stereotyping which disadvantages minority ethnic people.".^[4] This definition is almost identical to that used by Stokely Carmichael. This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... A Police Constable of West Yorkshire Police on patrol The United Kingdom (UK) does not have one single police service serving the general public; with the exception of various special police forces and of Northern Ireland (which has one unified force, the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI)), police forces... Clan Macpherson is a Scottish clan from Badenoch, on the Spey River, Scotland. ... Stokely Standiford Churchill Carmichael (June 29, 1941 – November 15, 1998), also known as Kwame Ture, was a Trinidadian-American black activist active in the 1960s American Civil Rights Movement. ...

The Macpherson Report, and the public reaction to it, were a major factors in decisions of the Metropolitan Police to address the issue of institutional racism. Metropolitan Police redirects here. ...

Recently the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, Sir Ian Blair has also called the media institutionally racist,^[5] a comment which provoked a heated response from the media despite being welcomed by the Black Police Association.^[6] The Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis (usually just referred to as the Metropolitan Police Commissioner or, more colloquially, as the Met Commissioner) is the head of the Metropolitan Police Service in London. ... Sir Ian Warwick Blair, QPM (born 19 March 1953) is Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police (head of the Metropolitan Police Service). ... The National Black Police Association (NBPA) is a British police association, founded in November 1998, which seeks to improve the working environment of black and minority ethnic (BME) staff in UK police forces and to enhance racial harmony and the quality of service to the BME communities of the United...

Institutional racism in Sri Lanka

The neutrality and factual accuracy of this article are disputed. Please see the relevant discussion on the talk page. (February 2008)

Further information: Black July

When the British conquered the island of Sri Lanka, they discriminated against the majority Sinhalese population (74% of the total population) because of their unwillingness to work for the British^{[attribution needed]}. The minority Tamils were easier to control than the Sinhalese, so they were granted an elevated status in Sri Lankan society by the British^{[attribution needed]}. The impoverished majority Sinhalese population suffered a lot of discrimination during the colonial period^{[attribution needed]}. When the British left the power went back to the hand of the Sinhalese majority^{[attribution needed]}. Image File history File links Emblem-important. ... Location of Sri Lanka Black July is the commonly used name of the pogroms starting in Sri Lanka on July 23, 1983. ...

In Sri Lanka Tamils were discriminated at certain levels. In 1956, the Sinhalese government introduced 'Sinhala Only Act', which replaced English with Sinhalese as the official language of Sri Lanka. “Quotas” were introduced to stop Tamil students entering universities. LTTE terrorist attacks on the Sri Lankan army unleashed riots againt Tamils living in South were to North and East of Sri Lanka. Huge number of Tamils fled the country for good leaving all their property and wealth behind.

In the late 80's, as a token gesture to blunt international criticism, the use of Tamil was permitted in the north and east of the island, where the Tamil homelands are located.

However, with the government and military, the use of the Tamil language in government has not been systematically reduced over the years. This was not an intentional eradication of a language as claimed by the LTTE with is designated as a terrorist group.

A number of states including USA, UK, EU, India, human rights groups and media organisations have begun acknowledging that Tamil grievances do exist. Many have asserted a need to recognise Tamils’ fundamental rights - to live free from discrimination and language rights amongst others.

The most prominent recent convert to this ‘Tamil grievance’ position has been the United States, which in a promising step forward, acknowledged the legitimate political aspirations of the Tamil people. The United States has also been leading the way in the LTTE which is a terrorist organistation.

See also

• Affirmative action
• Ketuanan Melayu
• State racism
• Teaching for social justice
• Race and health
• White privilege

Manifestations Slavery Racial profiling Lynching Hate speech Hate crime Genocide (examples) Ethnocide Ethnic cleansing Pogrom Race war Religious persecution Blood libel Paternalism Police brutality Movements Policies Discriminatory Race / Religion / Sex segregation Apartheid Redlining Internment Ethnocracy Anti-discriminatory Emancipation Civil rights Desegregation Integration Equal opportunity Counter-discriminatory Affirmative action Racial quota... United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) Youth Chief Hishammuddin Hussein brandishing the kris (dagger), an action seen by some as a defense of ketuanan Melayu. ... State racism is a concept used by French philosopher Michel Foucault to designate the reappropriation of the historical and political discourse of race struggle, In the late seventeenth century. ... Teaching for social justice is an educational philosophy that proponents argue provides justice and equity for all learners in all educational settings. ... Race and health research is mostly from the US. It has found both current and historical racial differences in the frequency, treatments, and availability of treatments for several diseases. ... White Privilege is the concept that White people are inherently more deserving of consideration than non-white people. ...

Footnotes

For other uses, see Guardian. ... is the 112th day of the year (113th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see BBC (disambiguation). ... is the 26th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see Guardian. ... is the 27th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

References

• Stokes, DaShanne. (In Press) Legalized Segregation and the Denial of Religious Freedom

External links

• ERASE Racism A multifaceted definition of institutional racism
• Institutional Racism Instructional A detailed "instructional" on the functioning of institutional racism
• Race: The Power of an Illusion Interactive resource tracing the history of race in America and the effects of institutional racism
• Defining Institutional Racism Definition and history of the term
• Paying the Price: The Human Cost of Racial Profiling On causes and effects of institutional racism in the Canadian criminal justice system
• Arabic Workers Network Eliminating prejudice against Arab and Muslim Australians
• Newham Monitoring Project Monitoring racist incidents and statutory response, especially policing, in East London
• Weaver v NATFHE (now part of UCU) Racial discrimination case - tribunal reports and documents. Also known as the Bournville College Racial Harassment Issue.
• Equality of Tamil a facade
• Indictment against Sri Lanka

v • d • e Topics on racism
History of racism	Apartheid • The Holocaust • Racism in the United States • Anti-racism • Civil rights movement
Racist ideologies	White supremacy • Black supremacy • Social Darwinism • Nazism • Aryanism
Acts of racism	Institutional racism • State racism • Racial profiling • Racism by country • Hate speech • Racial segregation • Stereotype • Scientific racism • Slavery • Crime of apartheid
Racial violence	Ethnic cleansing • Hate crime • Race war • Genocide • Lynching
Racism against groups	Native Americans • Arabs • Armenians • Blacks • Chinese • Iranians • Irish • Italians • Japanese • Jews • Mexicans • Poles • Roma people • South Asians • Whites
Racist groups	Ku Klux Klan • Neo-Nazis • Grey Wolves • South African National Party • Nation of Islam
Anti-racist groups and movements	NAACP • Anti-Defamation League • Anti-Fascist Action • Civil Rights Movement • Southern Poverty Law Center • Searchlight