Racial Equality

• what is prejudice

  belief that someone/a group of people are inferior to you/bias, e.g. sexism
• what is discrimination and what are the 2 types


  acting on prejudiced beliefs, illegal in UK but legal in some countries, e.g. homosexuality illegal in Nigeria

  
  

  direct - to an individual, e.g. Stephen Lawrence

  indirect - when an organisation has a policy that puts a particular group at a disadvantage (ie institutional)
• what is racism and what are some examples

  treating someone unfairly because of their: race, colour, nationality, ethnic/national origin

  e.g. history (slavery, Apartheid), Jim Crow laws, George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Brexit causing immigrant hatred, KKK
• what is racial equality


  an equal chance to live free from fear of prejudice, discrimination and racism

  in practice: respect, opportunities for work/education, welfare, access to justice, rights, power and influence
• what are equality and equity

  equality - same opportunity

  equity - same outcome
• why are people racist

  ignorance, environment, upbringing, misinformation (e.g. Trump), media, experience, history (colonialism), lack of education, fear, religion (KKK), role models and events (e.g. COVID and Brexit)
• what are the 3 different types of racism. explain

  instiutionalised racism - e.g. in schools (black people in lower tiers and 3x more likely to be excluded than other students, prevalent in universities, pay gap), in police force (e.g. Stephen Lawrence, George Floyd), in the workplace (bullying, fewer promotion opportunities, less likely to be hired)

  
  

  societal/structural racism - an attitude of white supremacy which is engrained in culture, politics, military etc. white privilege. linked to imperalism and colonisation, e.g. slavery and Apartheid

  
  

  individual racism - e.g. Stephen Lawrence
• what are the Race Relations Act of 1976 and the Equality Act of 2010

  Race Relations Act: prevents discrimination on the grounds of race within employment, education and public services

  Equality Act: replaced multiple anti-discrimination laws to make them simpler, outlining protected characteristics and preventing discrimination in the workplace and society.
• what are some Bible verses that appear to encourage racism

  Genesis 4 - God placed an invisible 'mark' on Cain for murdering his brother and lying about it. Many Christians interpreted this mark as black skin, justifying slavery

  Exodus 20 - 'Do not covet your neighbour's manservant' - doesn't condemn racism, but encourages one to not own a slave themselves

  1 Samuel 15 - God instructs the Jews to kill the Amalekites

  Exodus 21 - condones beating your slave

  Ephesians 6 - instructs slaves to obey their masters
• what are some Bible verses that encourage racial equality


  Leviticus 19 - 'If there is an alien living in your land, do not ill treat him' (being kind to foreigners)

  Galatians 3.28 - St. Paul said there should be no division between Jew and non-Jew, slave and free, male and female. All are equal

  1 Corinthians 13 - Paul describes love, highlighting that it shouldn't show anger or prejudice

  Story of the Good Samaritan

  Acts 10 - God doesn't show favouritism but accepts every nation

  Matthew 22 - Jesus taught us to love people as ourselves.
• evaluate the usefulness of the Bible on racism

  - in the modern day, most Christians (Quakers, RCC, who argued against Apartheid, and UK churches) condemn racism

  - lots of Bible verses not meant to be racist but can be interpreted like this; up to the individual

  - lots of the Biblical support is cherry picked (important to look at the social context and understand slavery was acceptable then)

  - NT takes precedence over OT because it's more recent and relevant

  - each book written with a different human perspective

  - slavery in the Bible not necessarily racist
• who was MLK and what was society like when he was around

  - a Christian Baptist minister who fought for civil rights

  - black and white people were totally segregated in America at the time due to the Jim Crow laws. they were not allowed to vote, were subject to curfews, unable to marry outside of their race and some black people were even killed
• what was the Montgomery Bus Boycott

  Rosa Parks refused to give up her 'coloured' seat on the bus for a white person, and was subsequently arrested and found guilty. King was elected to lead the boycott and for 382 days no black people got the bus. Legal action was also taken against the city police, resulting in Montgomery lifting the law mandating segregated public transport
• what was MLK's 1963 march on Washington like

  - 6 leaders of the most prominent civil rights group gathered due to government inaction

  - MLK delivered his famous 'I have a dream' speech, and was arrested later on in the protest

  - this led President Johnson to sign into the law the Civil Rights Act of 1964
• what was MLK's pacifist stance

  - MLK was inspired by Ghandi's non-violent and compassionate approach

  - this led King to take an active pacifist stance; he believed to be an absolute pacifist required too much faith in human goodness and was too passive

  - however, he did recognise the use of force in some situations
• evaluate the work of MLK

  positives:

  - affected legal change (ended segregation and employment discrimination)

  - highlighted the issue of racism globally and increased publicity

  - inspired people to fight and still does

  - changed public opinion through pacifist approach

  - made racism officially unacceptable

  - worked at a top level

  - helped educate people

  - made people question institutional racism

  - good example of faith having a positive impact on a modern issue

  - personal legacy: Nobel Peace Prize

  negatives:

  - racism still exists and is slightly different today (more anonymous and underground, use of social media) making it more difficult to pinpoint and target

  - racism may require a different response (is pacifism still useful)

  - Christian faith isn't universal so not totally relateable

  - long-term methods, change not seen for a long time

  - criticized by black leaders as pacifist approach led to death and injury of protestors

  - some legislation didn't work in practice

  - equality isn't possible due to factors, e.g. economy, culture and social class
• outline how each of these figures fought for racial equality:

  a) Huddleston

  b) Mandela


  Huddleston:

  - CofE vicar

  - one of the founders of the Anti-Apartheid movement

  - actively protested against South Africa's Apartheid policies

  
  

  Mandela:

  - Christian

  - first black president of South Africa

  - part of African National Congress, who fought against Apartheid

  - participated in Guerrilla warfare leading to him being put in prison for 27 years
• what are the roman catholic church views on racial equality and it's criticisms


  teaching on prejudice and discrimination laid out in the Gaudium et spes:

  - every form of discrimination on the basis of sex/race/colour/social conditions/language/religion must be eradicated as it's incompatible with God's design (based on NML precepts)

  - However, some argue that there's a contradiction as they don't allow female priests (because they argue the priest stands in the place of Jesus, a man)
• what are the church of england views on racial equality and their criticisms

  - all are equal in the eyes of God

  - General Snoyd: spoke out to defend Roma Gypsies and Irish travellers, calling for a halt on discrimination.

  - allowed female priests in 1994 and bishops in 2014

  - However, there are accusations of institutionalised racism (black messiah) and not enough diversity within the clergy, and they have apparently failed to properly handle accusations of racism within the church
• what are some general Christian views on racial equality

  - God created all humans in 'the image of God' so everyone should be treated the same

  - Acts 10 - God has no favourites as long as they do what is right

  - e.g. Desmond Tutu, who also fought against Apartheid

  - Jesus died for the sins of all people

  - Golden Rule
• what does Natural Moral Law say about racial equality

  - discrimination prevents us reaching eudaemonia and therefore fulfilling our God-given purpose

  - discrimination goes against: to live in an ordered society, to live and protect the innocent and to educate

  - do good and avoid evil is the main message

  - virtues important as well as good interior and exterior acts

  - Divine law gives humans natural rights (exist in themselves for all human beings and are absolute, unchanging)

  - humans are ends not means
• what does situation ethics say about racial equality

  - equality brings about the most amount of love

  - Jesus = role model and he taught a message of equality and a non-judgemental + tolerant approach (demonstrated by his visits to marginalised communities, e.g. tax collectors and women)

  - love and justice are the same, which he demonstrated using Sammy Davis. 'to hell with love we just want justice'. highlights that Christians were preaching love but actively allowing segregation
• what does Kant say about racial equality

  Respect for Person theory:

  - deontological (duty-bound)

  - an action is right if it represents the good will (highest moral duty)

  - no human should ever be treated as a means to an end (so no to killing/oppressing anyone, as this is wrong in itself)

  - one should not be valued over another (fairness, justice)

  - racism cannot be universalised so is therefore always wrong
• what do Buddhists believe about (racial) equality and what are the criticisms

  - enlightenment is accessible to all

  - prejudice and discrimination based on hatred and ignorance (3 fires). should be fought with 3 virtues

  - Right intention, speech and action (eightfold path)

  - ahimsa (principle of non-harm) extends to psychological harm

  - Buddhism rejects caste system due to inequality

  - within monk Sangha, all monastics equal (same robes, hair etc.)

  - Karuna: compassion for all

  - mindfulness: reflection, makes one think about actions

  - Buddha aims to alleviate suffering of all people

  - all equal as we're all subject to the natural laws of change, age, sickness, death and karma

  - Buddha says in Sutta Nipata: we all have the same anatomy, so to judge someone based on their skin colour is blind

  - However: monastic Sangha is still sexist, female monks considered inferior, western Buddhism mainly attracts middle class white, some BME Buddhists have reported discrimination and POC Sanghas set up as a result
• how useful are religious approaches on the issue of equality/racism. evaluate

  positives:

  - Christian approaches based on key religious figures, e.g. Jesus who shows compassion and humanitarian principles

  - religion celebrates diversity. Working Christian Council 'racism is an assault on Christ's values'

  - hateful few don't represent main message of religion

  negatives:

  - some approaches outdated

  - religious texts need interpreting in light of cultural differences (Biblical contradictions could reduce its worth)

  - racism in churches, who are resistant to societal change

  - some use religion to justify racism/own purposes (e.g. KKK = white supremacist Christian group, Islamophobia = racism due to a small number of Muslim terrorists, slavery: anti and pro both claimed Biblical authority, caste system = higher castes tend to have lighter skin so dark skin seen as lesser and English Defence League)
• what does utilitarianism say about racism

  - Bentham campaigned for abolition of slavery

  - J.S Mill's harm principle: minority protected if will of the majority would cause harm to them, e.g. slavery not permitted even if majority wanted it

  - Mill advocates freedom as the key to happiness, e.g. we can have freedom of speech but not hate crimes, as there are fundamental rights that are also necessary for society to be happy. in order to be free we need to lose some freedom

  - all culturally relative and can change
• what are some practical problems for governments with ensuring racial equality

  - ensuring human rights are applied in practice

  - equality of opportunity vs equality of outcome, e.g. all can go to uni but only some do

  - positive discrimination, e.g. additional support in schools, employment quotas

  - compensation for past wrongs is difficult