social policysocial workpsychology
Racial Inequality
1
Submit a 2- to 3-page proposal that addresses the following:
· Provide a brief synopsis of the social problem you selected in Week 2.
· Provide a brief synopsis of the policy you selected in Week 4.
· Explain your selection of a policy—why, as a policy advocate, did you select this specific policy to promote change regarding the social problem?
· Identify the person or group who enacted the policy and explain their motivation or reason for advocating for this policy. How does the reason differ from your own advocacy and change goals?
· Describe the ways in which the policy impacts the populations and discuss the consequences—intended and unintended. Hint: Build on your answer to the following part of your Week 4 Assignment:
· Explain how this policy affects clients you might see in a clinical setting and why, as a clinical social worker, it would be important to advocate for change.
· Describe your initial work to change the policy (i.e., plan for social advocacy).
Be sure to incorporate the sources you found using standard APA format.
Mariyam Al-Naiem
Walden University
SOCW-6361
WK2Assign1
· Describe a current social problem
and the vulnerable population it impacts
Racial inequality has become a growing social problem for several years now. Racial inequality is commonly defined as “imbalances in the distribution of power, economic resources, and opportunities” in social science. Racial disparities in wealth, poverty rates, educational chances, unemployment rates, bankruptcy, housing patterns and crime levels are all examples of racial inequalities happening in American culture.
Specifically males within the African-American population struggle the most with racial inequality. African-American males have been treated within our society as second-class citizens for decades. Loury (2019) stated that African-American young boys that are the most vulnerable in this social problem, because of the likelihood of them being unable to attain their full human potential to the extent that they do not have the experiences needed. They are not exposed to positive influences, and often have to struggle their way through life and injustices in order to avoid “sinking”. This lack of development is the root of the continuing and widening racial gaps in income, wealth, education, family structure, and other areas.
· How/when has this problem been identified historically, and what were the actions taken to address this concern?
The social problem mentioned has been identified as historical trauma of communities of color. An incident, or a series of events, that occurs to a group of people who have a common identity is referred to as historical trauma. That common identity can be shaped by these factors: nationality, tribal origin, ethnicity, and/or race. Each individual event in historical trauma is highly traumatic, and when events are considered collectively, they create a history of prolonged cultural disruption and devastation in society.
Slavery in the United States lasted from 1619 to 1865. During the 18th century alone, it is estimated that 6 to 7 million Africans were brought to the United States. Slavery became a category that was associated with African origin. Slaves were typically denied the opportunity to learn to read and write, as well as the ability to form groups. Slave murder was legal if the slave was “resisting” or if it was done “under moderate correction.” Slave women were frequently raped and sexually abuse.
“Concrete measures are being taken to improve the human rights situation of people of African descent in a number of countries worldwide.” A couple actions are reported by UNESOCO. For instance, UNESCO has created instructional content for various levels of education based on the General History of Africa (including curriculum outlines, textbooks, films, radio programs, teacher’s guides, and illustrated books) in effort to combat widespread misunderstanding of African history. UNESCO is also improving on forming a worldwide coalition of artists for the General History of Africa in order to reach out to youth and the general public with the messages.
· How have the populations affected by the social problem changed over time?
The affected population have the potential to adapt to what has happened in the past and what is happening now. These historical traumas, however, have a long-term impact not only on the older generation, but also on the current and future generations. That’s why current policy makers need to address the social problem.
Though they are not categorized as slaves anymore, they still experience now the racial gaps they had before in income, wealth, education, family structure, and other areas. Sadly, in the past few years there has been a rise in homicides and racism against African-Americans.
Reeves and colleagues (2020) mentioned the likelihood of children in low-income households advancing up the income ladder. In terms of their individual income, African-American men reared by low-income parents had twice the probability of remaining locked in intergenerational poverty (38%) than Black women (20%), according to research. It implies that African-American young boys raised poor are most at most risk of remaining stuck in the poverty cycle than not.
· How might this social problem be incongruent with social work values/ethics?
These negative social problems reinforce societal biases, which are not limited to White American culture. It’s because everyone has biases and stereotypes about a certain group of people. No one is free from being a racist. They can be implicit, which means we didn’t choose to feel that way and are unaware of it. However, this is not an excuse on not battling such social problem. It takes great collective effort from us, not only to the affected but those who inflicted as well.
· Describe the next steps for how you will identify a policy.
Identifying policies by location and identification of key policy areas to address are the steps. As what mentioned, societal biases resulting to racial inequality are not limited to White American culture. There must be action plans at a macro level and local levels, because there are different policy areas and levels of severity in each designated locations. Speaking of policy areas, Maciolek (2020) wrote 6 policies to address social problems affecting African-American particularly boys and men. Two of them are improving the education system and criminal justice reform. This would greatly impact livelihood and improve socio-economic status for African-Americans.
References
2
Mariyam Al-Naiem
Walden University
SOCW-6361
Racial Inequality Policy
Victimization and denial of justice continue among African Americans due to racial discrimination. Despite having various laws like the Equality Act 2010 that protects black people from discrimination in the workplace and society, racial inequality is still in practice. Unfortunately, media plays a part in popularizing the issue (Ciszek & Logan, 2018). The study identified the following after reviewing the racial inequality policy in the United States. The state of racial inequality, techniques in which inequality exists, and the contexts where the disparity occurs. The outlines in which racial inequality exists were provided a justification on how former racial inequality was identified and the appropriate actions plans. However, some information was not apparent, while others were missing. Therefore, the study will describe the various methods that can be implemented to reduce racial disparities, discuss the potential punishment for those found guilty of discriminating against others, and justify the types of discrimination that the racial inequality policy is protecting as well as the benefits of practicing racial equality in the society.
Methods of Reducing Racial Disparities
The first method can be to review and restructure the various policies and practices in the criminal justice system. This is an inclusive process that requires input from all relevant stakeholders like criminal justice leaders, policymakers, and members of society. For instance, drug policies can be restructured to prevent abuse and create awareness on the same rather than arresting and fining those involved. The policy implementation strategy should change and employ a concept that brings all people together despite their race. A community-based initiative or program that is independent of the criminal justice system should be incorporated into the policy to create awareness of substance abuse. This can reduce racial disparities since unlawful activity may be effectively addressed. The involved may tend to adhere to the relevant regulations since they are involved and show the way other than being harassed.
The second method can be strengthening the federal and state policy initiatives to advocate for equal access to justice. To start with, the justice system should be composed of individuals from all races and establish a system that embraces community-based sentencing options. This will bring hope to members of society and gain confidence in the justice system. Justice and fair rulings may be assured and warn individuals who discriminate against others against their race. The third method assesses the racial impact of current criminal justice decision-making. A proposal should be made in congress justifying how unwarranted disparities in federal prosecution can be analyzed and responded to when appropriate. This should be implemented in the justice systems to reduce racial disparities.
Guilty of Racial Discrimination
Pager (2008) justifies those criminal measures can only be supplementary and not provide an adequate framework for ending racism. However, appropriate punishments for those found guilty against racial discrimination are one step towards reducing and preventing it from occurring. First, some of the possible punishments include imposing a jail term of not less than five years for a person found guilty of publicly discriminating an individual or a group of people against race, color, religion, descent, or national or ethnic origin. Second, set a minimum fine to be applied to those found guilty. Third, federal courts define what constitutes racial-based incitement that leads to violence and hatred.
According to the Equality and Human Rights Commission report (2021), discrimination occurs when an individual is favored in a similar situation with others, and it can not be objectively or reasonably justified. Human rights commissions can not protect an individual from racial discrimination, but specific laws like the Equality Act 2010 can. Therefore, the racial inequality policy protects people from the following discriminations. The first is direct discrimination. It occurs when an individual is treated worse than another person in a similar situation because of their race. The second is indirect discrimination. It occurs when an organization has specific policies or ways of running business operations that may disadvantage a particular group of people because of their race. The third is harassment discrimination. It occurs when an individual is humiliated, offended, or degraded. Fourth is victimization discrimination. It occurs when one is mistreated because of raising race discrimination complaints as per the Equality Act 2010.
First, racial equality is important to members of society as they are provided with equal jobs, education, health opportunities, and other social amenities. Second, practicing racial equality can significantly influence society’s economy and, eventually, the entire nation. When a country reduces the racial disparities in economic areas like health, education, and employment, its economy is likely to develop. The most talented people will grab the available opportunities without discrimination against their race, providing quality services and products. Third, it leads to better leadership and governance in society. When an assurance of equal opportunities despite one’s race is created, individuals with quality leadership can arise from undermined backgrounds or political power and get elected to transform the society.
References
Ciszek, E., & Logan, N. (2018). Challenging the dialogic promise: How Ben & Jerry’s support for Black Lives Matter fosters dissensus on social media. Journal of Public Relations Research, 30(3), 115-127.
Pager, D. (2008). Marked: Race, crime, and finding work in an era of mass incarceration. University of Chicago Press.
The Equality and Human Rights Commission (2021). Article 14: Protection from discrimination. https://www.equalityhumanrights.com/en/human-rights-act/article-14-protection-discrimination
