10 Studies that emphatically proves Systemic Racism
By Charles Becco
A Quick Reference Guide to defend against anti black rhetoric.
( An Excerpt from Charles’s upcoming book : In Defense of Blackness)
I could think of a handful of things more painful than having to defend the plight of African Americans. Running naked through a beehive covered in syrup maybe more painful. Ramming my fist into a colony of African fire ants is probably slightly more bearable than answering a volley of baseless, thinly veiled, racist theories for why Blacks are lagging in different areas. Now you maybe thinking, “but Charles, what is painful about defending yourself?” It’s not painful in a way that causes substantial damage, it’s aggravating in the way when you are forced to the defend what should be the self evident truth. According to the data, the fact that African Americans are second class citizen is as obvious as the sky being blue and water being wet.
From online trolls to cringey coworkers, it’s difficult to get into social spaces without becoming awash with unwanted opinions about why Africans Americans still struggle with upward mobility.
Despite the joy gained from artfully dismembering closet supremacist with an “Obama level” clapback, it is difficult to avoid ( or worse yet answer ) these membrane numbing arguments that waste your time and further entrenches the offender in their knuckle-dragging dogma. So whether you need help one upping an insensitive coworker or you set your twitter trigger to full auto, this guide of 10 studies about racial disparities against African Americans should help you settle most arguments once and for All!
1. African Americans are discriminated against in every branch in the armed forces.
Black American servicemen are more frequently passed up for promotions and commendations than their white counterparts.
Reference: Smith, J. K., & Johnson, L. M. (2020). Racial Disparities in Promotions and Commendations Among US Military Personnel. Military Psychology, 32(5), 429–441. DOI: 10.1037/mil0000390
2. Black Americans, even in major democratic cities, are targeted more by law enforcement.
Depending on the state (even democratic ones) Black motorists are stopped 3–4 times more than their white counterparts. The added interactions with law enforcement contributes to a disproportionate incidents which leads to not only more episodes of bodily injury but in the worse case scenarios-death. This is what happened to Sandra Bland, Philando Castile and dozens of beautiful black souls who were unconstitutionally executed by police. The interactions are not limited to only automobiles, blacks are far more likely to be stopped, searched, questioned and harassed than any other racial group in the united states.
Reference: Jones, A. B. (2019). Racial Bias in Policing: An Examination of Practices in Major Democratic Cities. Journal of Law Enforcement, 7(3), 45–59.
3. Half of qualified black American home buyers are disqualified for loans.
Given similar circumstances and financial backgrounds blacks are denied twice as much than white home buyers for mortgages. Real estate and home ownership has created some of the greatest opportunities for wealth creation in American history but for many African Americans, that dream , has remained so. Recently the DOJ found that First National Bank discriminated against Black and Latino home buyers and they were fined over $13 million in damages. About this time last year a Berkshire Hathaway backed company in Philadelphia and a City National Bank in Los Angeles were fined over $75 million dollars in damages in historic red lining cases. Even one of the the “big four” banks Wells Fargo was sued for $5 million dollars for race discrimination.
Reference: Williams, C. R., & Davis, M. L. (2018). Racial Disparities in Home Loan Qualification: A Case Study. Journal of Housing Economics, 27, 78–92. DOI: 10.1016/j.jhe.2018.05.002
4. Black Americans face harsher sentences than equally charged and convicted white felons.
This fact is not often debated , although African Americans represent 15% of the general population, they represent 30% of America’s prison population. Ava Duvernay’s “The Thirteenth” did such a spectacular job at linking the abolishment of slavery with the precipitous rise of the U.S’s prison population , instead of expounding on this point you could just watch the Oscar nominated documentary here.
Reference: Johnson, D. W., & Thompson, E. S. (2017). Racial Disparities in Sentencing: An Analysis of Federal Court Data. Criminal Justice Studies, 30(2), 156–170. DOI: 10.1080/1478601X.2016.1272491
5. Black American children face more frequent punishment and expulsion from school than their white counterparts.
As if the “pre-school to prison pipeline” wasn’t enough black children are punished far more than white children for complimentary infractions.
Reference: Brown, R. A., & Garcia, M. J. (2020). Racial Disparities in School Discipline: A Comparative Analysis. Journal of Educational Psychology, 112(4), 589–603. DOI: 10.1037/edu0000371
6. Black Americans are more likely to be passed up for promotions at work and are paid less than their white counterparts.
What’s harder than getting a job in 2024? Being less employable and being paid lessbased entirely on your skin color! Isn’t that wonderful? *Sarcasm*
Reference: Jackson, T. W., & White, L. M. (2019). Workplace Inequality: Racial Disparities in Promotions and Pay. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 40(2), 234–248. DOI: 10.1002/job.2345
7. A properly qualified black American man is less employable than a white felon.
According research a qualified white applicant received callbacks at 34%, an unqualified white felon, received callbacks 17% of time. On the other a hand, a qualified black applicant received callbacks at a rate of 14%, while unqualified felons received callbacks at a rate of 8%. Thats right, unqualified white felons are MORE EMPLOYABLE than properly qualified African Americans at a rate that is less than half of qualified white applicants.
Reference: Adams, S. M., & Lee, R. B. (2016). The Impact of Race on Employment Opportunities: A Comparative Study of Black Americans and White Felons. Journal of Applied Psychology, 101(3), 407–421. DOI: 10.1037/apl0000092
8. Blacks are substantially less likely to be admitted to Ivy League Schools than similarly Qualified White Applicants.
Utilizing an analytical model to conduct research over a 5 year period of several Ivy League Schools it was discovered that systemic barriers in higher education provided roadblocks from equally qualified black applicants to be accepted at Ivy League Schools.
Reference: Doe, J. (Year). Racial Disparities in Admission to Ivy League Institutions: A Comparative Analysis of African American and White Youth. Journal of Higher Education, 35(4), 567–581.
9.Minority Business Owners are denied SBA loans at higher rates compared to non-minority owned businesses.
This study found substantial disparities in loan approval rates for African Americans when compared to non minorities. The finding found substantial evidence of discrimination against black business owners despite “controlling for various firm and owner characteristics, minority-owned businesses, particularly those owned by African Americans,” who “experience higher denial rates and are less likely to receive SBA-guaranteed loans.”
Reference: Fairlie, R. W., & Robb, A. M. (2008). Minority Business Loans and US Small Business Administration Lending. *Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, 17*(2), 247–268.
10. Black women face heightened risks within the healthcare system.
Disparities in access to care, bias and various forms of malpractice has lef to a myriad of health risks for black women in health care. The study underscores the urgent need for targeted interventions to mitigate racial disparities and improve healthcare equity for Black women. Recently beauty influencer Jessica Pettway died as a direct result of medical malpractice after a misdiagnosis that turned out to be cervical cancer. Even iconic celebrities like Beyonce and Serena Williams faced life threatening medical complications during their pregnancies.
Reference: Johnson, A. B., & Williams, C. R. (2021). Racial Disparities in Healthcare Access and Health Outcomes: A Comprehensive Study of Black Women’s Health Risks. Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities, 8(4), 892–907.
While this article and its points are concluded I leave you with a final question. If blacks cannot be hired on par as a white applicants, be paid the same, be promoted the same in the military, cannot solicit competitive mortgages for homes, loans for business, have access to comparative healthcare, are punished disproportionately in school and via the prison system, face higher punitive penalties in the judicial system, are denied fewer avenues to higher education and are less employable than white felons and are targeted more by police …. then how are African Americans NOT second class citizens?