Transcript Dismantling Racism: Where are You?

Dismantling Racism: Where are You? Where is Charlotte?
Marcus Gaddy, Charlotte Community Scholar, BSW Class of 2016
Susan McCarter, PhD, MS, MSW - Associate Professor of Social Work
University of North Carolina Charlotte
How do YOU define racism?
BEFORE reading any more of this poster, please take a pen and an
index card and write down how you define racism. Then, consider
systems where you know disproportionality and disparity exist.
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Student
Social Serv.
Other
Not Employ.
Law Enfor.
Education
Courts
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Respondents
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Terms/Definitions
Race - Race has been defined as historically provisional social constructs or
characterizations (Bobo & Fox, 2003).
Racism - Racism has been defined as “social and institutional power combined with
race prejudice. It is a system of advantage for those considered White, and of
oppression for those who are not considered White” (Race Matters for Juvenile JusticeRacial Equity Institute). Racism has also been defined as a belief that all members of a
particular race possess characteristics, abilities, and traits that make them inferior or
superior to another race or other races (Hoyt, 2012).
Institutional Racism - Institutional racism is the manifestation of racism in social
systems & institutions (National Association of Social Workers (NASW), 2007). It is the
combination of polices, practices, or procedures embedded in bureaucratic structure
that systematically leads to unequal outcomes for certain groups (NASW, 2007).
Disproportionality- Disproportionality can be defined as the overrepresentation of a
particular group of people in a particular institution or system (American Public Human
Services Assoc., 2015)
Disparity- Researchers have defined disparity as the unequal or inequitable treatment
of one group in comparison to another. (American Public Human Services Assoc., 2015)
Implicit/Unconscious bias- Implicit bias refers to the attitudes or stereotypes that
affect our understanding, actions, and decisions in an unconscious manner. These
biases, which encompass both favorable and unfavorable assessments, are activated
involuntarily and without an individual’s awareness or intentional control. The implicit
associations we harbor in our subconscious cause us to have feelings and attitudes
about other people based on characteristics such as race, ethnicity, age, and
appearance (The Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity, 2015).
Vision: A Charlotte Mecklenburg community where the composition
and outcomes of juvenile courts cannot be predicted by race or
ethnicity.
Mission: To build a collaboration of community stakeholders who will
bring their constituencies to the table and partner in the courts’ efforts
to reduce disproportionality and disparities.
Visit: www.rmjj.org
Can you think of any way that your work will change
as a result of participating in the DR workshop?
“Yes, I am excited to use what I have learned in my
courses. I think my students will greatly benefit from this
information.”
“Opening the dialogue…we’ve been scared to talk about
this too long.”
“Yes – in intentionally building anti-racist teams and
practices.”
“Addressing the issue of race in all areas of work and
paying closer attention to disproportionate outcomes.”
Survey Respondents' Field
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DR Training Survey Respondents’ and Results
Race Matters for Juvenile Justice with the Racial Equity Institute offered 5 two-day Dismantling Racism
(DR) trainings between February 19th and June 10th 2015. Each participant was asked to complete a < 7
minute, pre- and post-test online survey. One hundred and forty individuals completed the pre-test
between February and June, 66 completed the post-test between during that same period, and 42
individuals responded to both the pre- and post test surveys with at least 50% survey completion.
Of those 42 respondents, 7 identify as male, 35 identify as female, and 0 as other. Fifty-two percent (22)
identify as White, 41% (17) as African American/Black, and 2 respondents identify as another
race/ethnicity and one identifies as Asian. Two of the respondents who identify as “other” indicated they
are also Hispanic/Latino and one respondent who is White also identifies as Hispanic/Latino.
Respondents’ ages varied with three individuals between 20-29; 30-39 – 16; 40-49 – 12; 50-59 – 9; and two
were 60+. The majority of the respondents hold graduate degrees (28 with graduate degrees, 13 with
undergraduate degrees, and 1 with HS/GED). The majority also work in the education field (Education 23; Courts - 7, Other - 5; Social Services - 3; Law Enforcement - 2, Student - 1; Not Employed - 1) with 14
respondents working at their current position between 1-5 years (< 1 year – 6; 6-10 years – 5; 11-15 years
– 2; and 16+ - 4). Most were raised in the Southeast (Southeast – 31, Northeast – 8, Outside of the US – 2,
and Central US – 1) and most also considered their families of origin to be in the middle class – 23 (upper
class – 1; upper middle – 12; upper lower – 5; and lower – 1).
Survey Respondents Define Racism
Before the DR Training
“Prejudicial opinions and or treatment of a person
based on their race.”
After the DR Training
“ Oppression of a group of people based on race.”
“Faulty beliefs about a specific race that typically
implies one race is superior to another and
discrimination of another race based on beliefs and
assumptions.”
“Discrimination based on a social construct that is
not biologically valid.”
“Prejudicial treatment of any person based on race; “Oppression of any group by another with a view
treatment that stereotypes others based on race and toward maintaining dominance by the oppressing
creates barriers to their success.”
group.”
“A belief that members of a race have certain
“It's more of a system than I originally thought, and a
characteristics across the board and feeling they are construct created by those in power to oppress
inferior to another race.”
people of color in order to maintain their power.”
Secondary School Suspension Rates 1972/73 – 2009/10
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11.8
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8.4
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Black
Latino
White
American Indian
Asian/PI
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2.3
2.4
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1972-73
2009-10
http://civilrightsproject.ucla.edu/resources/projects/center-for-civil-rights-remedies/school-to-prison-folder/federal-reports/out-of-school-and-offtrack-the-overuse-of-suspensions-in-american-middle-and-high-schools/OutofSchool-OffTrack_UCLA_4-8.pdf
Although students of color and White students are suspended from school at
proportionate rates for mandatorily reported offenses, for discretionary
offenses, African-American students had a 31% greater likelihood of
disciplinary action when compared with other identical White students.
Besides education, consider other systems with disproportionality and/or
disparate outcomes.
Conclusions
1) A clear understanding and acknowledgement of
racism and its effects in America is essential to an
equitable society.
2) Racism is larger than individual acts of
meanness – both implicit biases as well as
institutional racism need to be examined.
3) Because racism is a race-focused problem,
dismantling it requires a race-focused solution.
4) We are all gatekeepers and all (regardless of
race) should explore a race analysis/training.
5) Policymakers and systems need to conduct
racial equity impact analyses to assess
disproportionality and disparate outcomes.
For more information, contact:
Marcus Gaddy at
[email protected] or Susan
McCarter at [email protected]