CH 1

Christian Holmes

ENG102

Research Essay

May 6, 2024

Seeing In True Color

People of color have long faced challenges that are outside of their control and can lead

to a lifetime of struggles. These challenges are present from a young age in school, and

throughout their lives both personally and professionally. Beginning very young, children of

color face discrimination and bias in school, leading to harsh discipline, academic

underachievement, and a negative relationship with the educational system. There is not only a

significant gap in the graduation rate of children of color, but also in the degree of punishment,

specifically suspension/expulsion. Of course, other factors are relevant and include home/family

support, neighborhood environment, presence of law enforcement officers and other school

factors unrelated to teachers. These children facing challenges from a very young age often find

it hard to get ahead in life, and struggle to make a wage adequate to support their families.

Racial bias is even more prevalent in the workplace and is evident by the wage gap in our

country.

The disparity in graduation rates and unequal disciplinary treatment is a small aspect of a

larger trend of inadequate access to proper education. The disproportionate number of

suspensions and expulsions that students of color experience are a worrying trend. Written in the

article “The School to prison pipeline”, “African American students, for instance, are 3.5 times

more likely than their white classmates to be suspended or expelled” (Elias par. 9). This harsh

disciplinary strategy feeds the cycle of academic underachievement and disengagement while
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exacerbating pre-existing disparities. Though some might contend that these disciplinary

measures are necessary because of behavioral problems, it's critical to acknowledge how implicit

bias and cultural insensitivity influence disciplinary procedures.

The surroundings in which students of color are raised can have a big influence on their

academic performance outside of the classroom. Race and socioeconomic factors, like poverty

and lack of access to affordable housing and healthcare, frequently interact to exacerbate the

difficulties these students face. When individuals find themselves struggling for the basic needs

in life like food, shelter and clothing, concentrating on schoolwork and adopting a healthy

relationship with school becomes less of a priority. A piece from the article “Inequality at

School”, “Yet the biases that contribute to the discipline gap can be subtle. Stanford University

psychologists Jennifer Eberhardt, PhD, and Jason Okonofua, PhD, explored this in a sample of

57 female teachers of all grade levels from across the country, the majority of whom were white.

They asked the teachers how they’d handle certain instances of misbehavior and found racial

stereotypes didn’t influence the teachers’ decisions after a student’s first infraction. But when the

students misbehaved a second time, teachers were more likely to stereotype the black students as

troublemakers and recommend harsher discipline” (Weir par. 18). Furthermore, a community's

propensity for crime and violence may erect more obstacles to education, which would increase

the opportunity gap. In addition, systematic problems in the school itself may be a factor in the

inequities that students of color face. Underfunded schools in underprivileged areas frequently

lack basic supplies like modern textbooks, competent instructors, and functional facilities.

Furthermore, curricula that do not adequately represent the range of experiences and viewpoints

held by students may cause them to feel disengaged and alienated. In order to address these

inequalities, a multifaceted strategy that recognizes and addresses the systemic obstacles that
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students of color face, is needed. Culturally responsive teaching strategies that acknowledge and

celebrate each student's unique experiences and backgrounds must be used in schools.

Furthermore, in order to guarantee justice and equality for every student, regardless of race or

ethnicity, policies and procedures pertaining to discipline need to be reevaluated. Policymakers

need to focus on eliminating the structural injustices that support educational inequalities outside

of the classroom. This entails making investments in schools that lack adequate resources,

increasing early childhood education and other services’ accessibility, and tackling the

underlying issues that contribute to poverty and inequality in marginalized communities.

Another major issue within the education system is known as the school-to-prison

pipeline. There are too many school districts across the country that implement discipline

policies that push students out of the classroom and into the system. According to “The School

to Prison Pipeline”, “In Jefferson Parish, La., according to a U.S. Department of Justice

complaint, school officials have given armed police ‘unfettered authority to stop, frisk, detain,

question, search, and arrest schoolchildren on and off school grounds” (Elias par. 1). This not

only puts fear into students but deters some from coming to school altogether. Mainly due to the

harsh treatment people of color continue to receive from authorities. There are numerous

strategies to help schools avoid perpetuating the pipeline. The increase of support and positive

reinforcement policies would be a strong start. Provide a course for the teachers to take, training

them on various ways to support an at-risk student. Most importantly, teachers need to improve

themselves by taking a more responsive role in the classroom. Teachers know their students

better than administrators that issue disciplinary measures. If they can provide a more

welcoming space for their students, more students are likely to complete their education and stay

engaged throughout the process. Many children of color grow up with a negative view of the
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police. They see people in their neighborhoods being arrested, or worse, for crimes they have

not committed. In order to change this perception, schools must work with local police

departments to limit overall arrests at school and limit the overall number of on-duty officers at

schools. Some may think that by having police officers on campus would help students to feel

safer, but in many cultures, this has the opposite effect.

It's hard enough for many kids of color to feel safe in school, but even harder for many

outside of school. This has been shown more in the media throughout the last few years but has

been a major issue for some time now. Many historians date it back to slave patrols and slave

codes. When these enforced codes were released, in the antebellum South, white citizens were

expected to supervise to movements and actions of black slaves. These codes were expected to

limit people of African descent and strip them of their rights to own property, buy land, travel

freely among and with others in public spaces, and basically control enslaved people. There

wasn’t much change unfortunately after the Civil War ended and the 13th amendment was passed

formally ending slavery “except as a punishment for crime” (Walsh par. 6). Even after slavery

was abolished, there will still limits on black freedom, and punishments for white businessmen

who offered higher wages to black workers. However, some felt the freedoms afforded to the

black communities were unjust. This is when white supremacist organizations, such as the Ku

Klux Klan truly began taking control of the South. It seems like some police still “fight crime”

with race and ethnicity in mind, discriminating against people of color. This cycle of inequality

and disparity has been perpetuated to no end. The disproportionate rates at which people of color

are wrongly arrested, convicted, and killed over their white counterparts is alarming. According

to an article published by the Harvard Gazette, “Solving Racial Disparities in Policing”, “Black

Americans are killed by police twice the rate of white Americans, and Hispanic Americans are
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also killed by police at a disproportionate rate” (Walsh par. 15). Just looking at the number of

schools, establishments, and public streets/places where people of color are stopped and frisked

without probable cause is astonishing.

These particular actions being perpetuated across this length of time, is what leads to

people of color fearing for not only their livelihood but their lives and the lives of the people they

care about. The New York Times published an article that highlights that point by saying,

“These experiences changed the way I felt about the police. After the third incident I worried

when police cars drove by; I was afraid I would be stopped and searched or that something worse

would happen” (Peart par. 6). Officers of the law come to many elementary schools and give

presentations on what they do for work and how they’re supposed ensure our safety. However,

when we look at the statistics, what other way are we supposed to feel except fearful. The abuse

of authority against people of color has gone on for far too long and the cycle needs to be broken.

There was a lot of solid data found by the Pew Research Center just a short time ago on the

mistreatment of colored people, by authorities, compared to their white peers. “In a 2019 Center

survey, 84% of Black adults said that, in dealing with police, blacks are generally treated less

fairly than whites; 63% of whites said the same. Similarly, 87% of blacks and 61% of whites

said the U.S. criminal justice system treats black people less fairly” (DeSilver, Lipka and Fahmy

par. 5). This may just be a survey from both ethnicities, but it speaks volumes that even a

majority of the white community sees these disparities. All parties coming together could end up

leading to the breaking of the cycle, or at least a start to eliminating the abuse of power by

authorities.

Multiple factors go into the inequality people of color face in the workplace. Black and

brown workers all across the country with the same or similar set of skills and experience as their
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white counterparts are paid decidedly less, given fewer opportunities and provided less

opportunity for promotion. Similarly, applying for different jobs or other work positions, people

of color are left behind their white counterparts. Another piece added to the cycle of people

being overlooked purely for the color of their skin. An obvious example of racial inequality in

the workplace is the continuous pay disparity that exists between white workers and workers of

color. People of color are routinely at the lower end of the pay scale even though they are

equally skilled at performing similar tasks. According to “Black Workers Still Earn Less than

Their White Counterparts”, “On average, black men earned 87 cents for every dollar a white man

earned by white men” (Miller par. 5). This phenomenon highlights the widespread impact of

systemic biases embedded in organizational structures in addition to jeopardizing their economic

stability. Studies have revealed that racial minorities continue to earn significantly less than

white people, even after adjusting for variables like experience and education. These wage

disparities not only perpetuate generations of poverty within communities of color, but they also

reflect ingrained prejudices and widen the wealth gap. The gap in education and experience at

one time did play a factor as white workers were more likely to have a college degree or to have

attended some college. As people of color close that gap, it does not seem to matter. According

to Understanding black-white disparities in labor market outcomes requires models that account

for persistent discrimination and unequal bargaining power, “African Americans have made

considerable gains in high school and collect completion over the last four-and-a-half decades –

both in absolute terms as well as relative to white – and those gains have had virtually ne effect

on equalizing employment outcomes” (Wilson and Darity, Jr. par. 2). Furthermore,

discriminatory hiring practices that consistently disadvantage people of color hinder the progress

towards economic equality. Even with similar credentials and abilities, racial minorities
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frequently face more barriers to employment opportunities. Aspiring people of color face

significant obstacles due to the systemic barriers of favoritism and discriminatory recruitment

practices, as well as the presence of unconscious biases among hiring managers. Research has

demonstrated the widespread presence of racial bias in hiring practices by showing that resumes

with names that sound traditionally white are more likely to be called back than resumes with

names that sound ethnically distinctive. People of color are consequently disproportionately

forced into underemployment or unstable employment, which impedes their ability to move up

the socioeconomic ladder and feeds the cycle of marginalization. In essence, the persistence of

racial disparities in the workplace is a sign of more widespread structural injustices ingrained in

society. People of color's opportunities are still limited by past traces of systemic racism, such as

redlining, unfair lending methods, and unequal access to education, which still have an impact on

our work environment. Contemporary issues like mass incarceration, which disproportionately

affects communities of color and perpetuates cycles of poverty and exclusion, exacerbate the

long-lasting effects of these injustices. As a result, individuals of color face a variety of

intersecting obstacles that prevent them from taking advantage of economic opportunities and

feed the cycle of inequality.

In conclusion, the difficulties that people of color, especially children of color, encounter

in the workplace and in the educational system serve as a symbol of larger structural injustices

that have lasted for generations. Deeply ingrained biases and structural inequalities are reflected

in the disparities within these institutions, which range from differences in graduation rates to

disproportionate disciplinary actions and the damaging school-to-prison pipeline. Despite being

designed to be a symbol of hope and upward social progression, the educational system

frequently acts as a microcosm of social injustices. Academic success is made difficult for
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students of color through a variety of factors, such as institutional lack of funding, implicit bias,

and cultural insensitivity. Students of color experience disproportionately high rates of

suspensions and expulsions, which not only impedes their academic progress but also feeds the

cycle of marginalization and discrimination. As reported in the American Psychological

Association publication, “…black students were 54 percent less likely than white students to be

recommended for gifted-education programs, after adjusting for factors such as students’

standardized test scores. But black students were three times more likely to be referred for the

programs if their teacher was black rather than white” (Weir par. 7). Apart from the educational

system, the workplace represents an additional space for racial equality battles, as individuals of

color encounter systemic obstacles for employment. Racial minorities are often disregarded and

undervalued despite having qualifications that are on par with or better than others, which feeds

the cycle of marginalization and economic inequality. It is critical to make coordinated efforts in

the workplace to combat discriminatory hiring practices, address wage disparities, and expand

diversity and inclusion. All people, regardless of color or ethnicity, can benefit from more

equitable opportunities if society recognizes and addresses structural injustices and systemic

biases. There is no quick-fix solution for these longstanding, generational issues. Creating a

truly diverse and inclusive professional environment takes time and some serious dedication, and

often means some drastic changes or the organization. Elected officials, educators, employers,

and communities must all work together with unwavering commitment to break the cycle of

inequality. We can strive for a future in which every person, regardless of background, has the

chance to prosper by opposing long-standing discriminatory structures and establishing

environments of inclusion and equality.

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Works Cited

Desilver, Drew, Michael Lipka, & Dalia Fahmy. “10 Things We Know About Race and

Policing in the U.S.” Pew Research Center. June 3, 2020.

https://www.pewresearch.org/shortreads/2020/06/03/10-things-we-know-about-raceand-

policing-in-the-u-s/

Elias, Marilyn. “The School-to-Prison Pipeline.” Learning for Justice. Spring 2013.

https://www.learningforjustice.org/magazine/spring-2013/the-school-to-prison-pipeline

Miller, Stephen. “Black Workers Still Earn Less than Their White Counterparts.” June 11, 2020.

https://www.shrm.org/topics-tools/news/benefits-compensation/black-workers-still-earn-

less-whitecounterparts#:~:text=On%20average%2C%20black%20men%20earned,by

%20a%20white%20male%20worker

Peart, Nicholas K. “Why is the NYPD After Me.” New York Times. December 17, 2011.

https://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/18/opinion/sunday/young-black-and-frisked-by-the-

nypd.html

Smedley, Audrey. “Racism”. Fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica. Last

Updated May 1, 2024. https://www.britannica.com/topic/racism

Walsh, Colleen. “Solving Racial Disparities in Policing.” The Harvard Gazette. February 23,

2021. https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2021/02/solving-racial-disparities-in-

policing/

Wilson, Valerie, & William Darity Jr. “Understanding Black-White Disparities in Labor Market

Outcomes Requires Models that Account for Persistent Discrimination and Unequal

Bargaining Power”. Economic Policy Institute. March 25, 2022.

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https://www.epi.org/unequalpower/publications/understanding-black-white-disparities-in-

labor-market-outcomes/

Weir, Kirsten. “Inequality at School.” American Psychological Association. November 2016.

https://www.apa.org/monitor/2016/11/cover-inequality-school#:~:text=Research

%20shows%20that%20compared%20with,lower%20expectations%20from%20their

%20teachers