Essay: Prejudice and Discrimination

In the modern world, there is a direct link between prejudice and

discrimination. Prejudice is defined as the unjustified negative attitudes that
some people hold against others of a certain group of people. Prejudice can
include attitudes such as sexism, racism, homophobia, and religious
persecution. Prejudices are pre-formed and have no reasonable
basis. Discrimination includes all of the actions that people take against others
they have prejudices toward. The segregation of blacks and whites during the
American Civil Rights Movement is an example of discrimination. A modern
example of discrimination might occur if a male employer were to pay a female
employee lower wages due to his own sexism. However, discrimination can
also consist of more subtle, passive-aggressive behavior, such as dirty looks, or
refusing to patronize a business because the owners or managers are of a
certain race, gender, or religion.

There is a self-fulfilling prophecy involved with prejudice and discrimination as

well. Those who have been discriminated against begin to expect those around
them to be prejudiced. This leads to defensive behavior, further fueling the
tension between the in-group and the out-group. Furthermore, members of the
in-group then feel justified in their beliefs, because those in the out-group are
acting accordingly with the in-groups preconceived impressions.

Discrimination and its self-fulfilling prophecy play a major role in the

maintenance of prejudice and inequality. First, it causes society to play the
blame game. The victims of discrimination blame those who act in
discriminatory ways. In turn, those with prejudice blame the out-group for
putting themselves into their own predicament, and harbor resentment against
them for pointing fingers. Most often, neither group is willing to cooperate or
see from the others perspective, and the reality of the situation is ignored. The
result of all of this is the perpetuation of stereotypes, which provide a backbone
for discriminatory practices.

Take for example the uproar caused by the re-election of President Obama for
his second term as President. After his re-election, some states began
threatening to secede from the United States for completely asinine reasons;
claiming that a black man could not run a country, or that Obama wasnt truly a
US-born citizen. These opinions, which have evidence that prove the contrary,
are rooted in racism. In this case, the racism was the prejudice, and the threat
to secede was the discrimination. The self-fulfilling prophecy comes into play in
several ways. Obama supporters might say that the secessionist states are
acting in a typical racist way. Their opposition could respond by saying Obama
supporters only support him because of his race. Both of these stigmas have
been reinforced, and the conflict continues on.
Another issue which examines many aspects of inequality is the controversy
over affirmative action plans in colleges and workplaces. Affirmative action
committees were formed in order to provide equal opportunities to minorities, so
that every school or professional organization would include a certain quota of
people from all races and ethnicities. These programs protect individuals of
minority race, religion, gender, and sex. However, some argue that because
these programs are focused on socioeconomic factors instead of on individual
merit, they are inherently unfair because they are disadvantageous to the
majority population, and it is sometimes referred to as reverse
discrimination. Here, the prejudice stems from good intentions for bettering the
life of minorities. The discrimination is the exclusion of the majority
population. The self-fulfilling prophecy might hold that the majority population,
by opposing affirmative action, is practicing the very oppression that these
programs were originally designed to deter. Therefore, the need for these
programs seems to be reinforced.

Whether intentional or not, prejudice and discrimination ensure the continuance

of inequality in the United States. Even subconsciously, we are furthering
inequality through our actions and reactions with others. Our feelings, or
prejudices, influence our actions, or discriminations. Because these forces are
universally present in our daily lives, the way we use them or reject them will
determine how they affect us.