Kamie Pearson

HIST1700
Term Paper
The topic I have chosen for this term paper is more based around a question. Does the slaver
that occurred one hundred ears a!o still continue to affect "merica toda# Some sa es$ others ar!ue
not so much$ but I believe that the issue !oes much deeper than most are %illin! to loo&. 'ecause of the
scars and %ounds it has left on "merica(s histor as %ell as the people$ it has become a ver delicate
and sensitive issue. "nd ri!htl so. I believe that slaver has !reatl affected "merica since it %as
abolished in 1)*+. ,ontinuin! stereotpes$ absurd la%s and the s&e%ed media clearl displa this. -e
have made some pro!ress but still have so much more to !o.
"fricans arrived in .ir!inia in 1*1/. 0ntil 1*)0 the number of "frican slaves remained small
because the served for life and as a result %hite servants %ere much cheaper. 0ntil about the later
decades of the 1700(s man of the poor %hite servants sociali1ed and had relationships %ith "frican
"mericans. 2a%s %ere made after that time to encoura!e racism and to brea& up the poor class so as to
prevent more rebellions a!ainst the upper classes. These la%s included outla%in! interracial marria!es$
la%s that made it near impossible for masters to free slaves$ the also stirred up hatred and contempt
to%ards blac& .ir!inians$ also onl !ivin! le!al ri!hts to slave o%ners to %hip the blac& slaves onl.
The poor %hite .ir!inian servants 3considered their blac& .ir!inians their natural inferiors. The could
pride themselves on sharin! %ith %hite !entlemen the same s&in color and on bein! their equals in the
ees of the la%.4 567perience Histor$ *78 It too& man ears and althou!h not everone %as in favor
of abolishin! slaver for the ri!ht reasons$ it finall came to pass. -ith it(s abolition in place$ slaver
still had a couple hundred ears of instillin! fear$ hatred and i!norance into the hearts of "mericans$
%hich meant an uphill battle %as to be fou!ht before its abasin! notions %ere uprooted.
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HIST1700
"lthou!h it %as abolished in 1)*+$ racist and slaver attitudes continued on and %ere
encoura!ed and fed. 9an of the stereotpes %e continue to have toda are stemmed from the 3:im
,ro% la%s.4 Shortl after abolition$ a poor %hite actor named Thomas Dartmouth ;ice started
performin! in 39instrel sho%s4 %earin! blac& face ma&e up and inventin! stereotpical "frican
"merican characters for these plas. Some of these stereotpes include the 3:im ,ro%4 as the happ
!o<luc& "frican "merican man$ the 3dar&ie=coon4 character as the !ood dancin! "frican man$ the
3mamm4 character as the loud$ boisterous mother fi!ure$ the 3sambo4 character as the tpical "frican
"merican little bo$ and the 3pic&aninn4 characters as the ra!!ed children. 5:im ,ro% 6ra8 '
1)>)$ :im ,ro% %as bein! used as a racial slur and %as ver offensive.
The result of these minstrel sho%s resulted in a lon! line of la%s$ or 3:im ,ro% la%s.4 :im
,ro% la%s %ere se!re!ation la%s desi!ned to &eep blac& and %hite people a%a from each other. The
had different areas for sittin! in restaurants$ hotels$ movie theaters and an%here that %as not deemed
public such as streets and stores. "lso included into these la%s %ere a set of standards and behaviors
that %ere acceptable for "frican "mericans. ?or e7ample if %hite people %ere %al&in! to%ards them
on the side%al& and there %asn@t enou!h room$ blac& people had to !et off the side%al& and %al& in the
street for them. "lso a blac& man %as not allo%ed to even loo& at a %hite %oman %ithout ris&in!
severe punishment$ most often death.
"lthou!h the theme at the time %as 3separate but equal4$ the %ere anthin! but. :im ,ro%
la%s induced more fear and influenced people to have more preAudice a!ainst anone different than
them. "nd althou!h slaver %as no more$ a different &ind of oppression had a hold of "frican
"merican descendants at this time. These stereotpes persisted because of people(s fear of anthin!
different of forei!n to them. The lon! term influence of the :im ,ro% la%s caused people to continue to
Kamie Pearson
HIST1700
be afraid. 9an people in this period of time believed that %hite and blac& people had different
diseases and !erms. ;emar&abl it too& until 1/+B for the :im ,ro% la%s to be struc& out. :ust as the
remnants of slaver still lin!ered in the minds of the people after its abolition$ the influence of :im
,ro%s la%s still too& man ears of %or& to tr and reverse the attitudes and preAudices instilled in the
hearts of "mericans durin! the time that la%s %ere in effect$ and I believe that %e are still in the
process of chan!in! attitudes and becomin! more acceptin! of those %ho are different.
"nother aspect that continues to be an issue for oun! "frican "mericans !oin! to school is
facin! stereotpes and preAudices at school. " stud called the D26 5Diverse 2earnin! 6nvironments8
conducted b ;obin Cicole :ohnson<"horlu a student at Ho%ard 0niversit studin! diversit. She
found that "frican "mericans %ere the onl !roup that identified stereotpes as the bi!!est pitfall for
success in academics. "ccordin! to :ohnson<"horlu$
3Specific to education$ "frican "mericans have consistentl been stereotped as
unintelli!ent and la1. This stereotpe has served as the basis for the !roup to be denied
equal access and opportunit %ithin our education sstem. 9ost intri!uin! is that
stereotpes cannot onl harm "frican "mericans in the phsical realm$ but the can
have pscholo!ical consequences as %ell.4
This recent research sho%s si!nificant harm done to oun! "frican "mericans toda. 6ven
thou!h slaver %as abolished over a hundred ears a!o. The stereotpes that %ere causin! problems for
"frican "mericans in "merica affects their chances at succeedin! in school. This stud also tal&s about
stereotpe threat. Stereotpe threat is defined as 3"n7iet or stress tri!!ered b the fear that one mi!ht
fulfill or be associated %ith a relevant stereotpe.4 5Steele$ 1//D$ 1//7E Steele F "ronson$ 1//)8. These
studies found this so called stereotpe threat to be influencin! the attitudes and success of these
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HIST1700
particular colle!e students. I(m sure the are not the onl ones %ho deal %ith these feelin!s. "nd
althou!h the stud does not sa %hether the !ot these feelin!s from home$ from friends$ or the %a
that others act around them$ it is still present and is causin! academic failure for oun! students. It is
also found that
3The most %idel researched consequence of stereotpe threat is its po%er to impair
academic performance. ;esearch demonstrates that stereotpe threat lo%ers test
performance in particular In addition to depressin! test scores$ stereotpe threat can also
cause students to disen!a!e in class$ not see& out academic support$ or even not
participate in stud !roup sessions.4 5:ohnson$ D00)E Steele$ D0108.
This sho%s that the stereotpes made durin! the :im ,ro% la% era as a result of the preAudice
from slaver have persisted and are still poisonin! all "mericans minds. Includin! the oun! "frican
"mericans %ho need to be raised havin! Aust as man ri!hts and privile!es as an other children in the
0.S.
"lon! %ith the stereotpin! that can affect "frican "mericans in school$ there is also hu!e
stereotpes that e7ist %ithin the media toda. ?or e7ample$ one notable stereotpe e7ists in sports.
9an believe that "frican "mericans are best successful in athletic capacities onl. -hen in fact$
accordin! to statistics$ there are far more "frican "merican la%ers than athletes. 56mploment8
"nother %ell &no%n stereotpe$ is that "frican "mericans have !reater phsical capabilities than
others. :ohn Hoberman$ a specialist studin! racial norms in "merica shares his opinion and
e7perience$
3" fe% ears a!o$ one blac& "merican lon! resident in Thailand sent me a letter in
%hich he commented on the effects of this relentless barra!e of blac& athletic ima!es.
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HIST1700
'ased on %hat their media sho%ed them$ he reported. South "sians had no reason to
believe that "frican<"merican abilities e7tended beond the %orld of sports. -hile it is
temptin! to repl that "mericans &no% better than that$ !iven our &no%led!e of %hat
blac& people have done in man fields of endeavor$ our o%n domestic realit still
resembles the !lobal sta!e that presents C'" stars and other pop culture icons as
representative "frican "mericans. That is %h relievin! blac& men of the involuntar
athletic identit that has been inflicted on them over the past one hundred ears is part of
the unfinished business that faces "merican societ in the t%ent<first
centur.45Hoberman$ :ohn8
"s the author states$ %e need to relieve blac& men of these athletic identities. It is also
interestin! to note that this is a %orld%ide stereotpe that %e as "mericans promote as %ell as believe.
-h does the media do this# Such ridiculous e7pectations$ and false ideas about race are unfair. It is
de!radin! to spread s&e%ed messa!es amon! "mericans that if ou are blac&$ the onl %a ou can be
successful is throu!h phsical$ sports capabilities. -hen this certainl isn(t true. Gr also if ou are a
different race other than "frican "merican to believe the stereotpes presented to ou throu!h the
media. This %ill onl cause further harm to future !enerations. -e can see that these stereotpes and
biases have developed from the time of slaves and its continuin! effect on our societ toda.
"nother hu!e problem that has stemmed from slaver and its resultin! stereotpes are also the
stereotpes presented on the ne%s. 9an ne%s stations are s&e%ed and preAudiced. The seem to
activate or e7acerbate racial stereotpes. " stud completed b the 0niversit of Illinois found 3?irst$
people of color are often associated %ith criminalit on local ne%s pro!rams. Second$ this
pro!rammin! can activate crime stereotpes re!ardin! "frican "mericans that can be used in
subsequent Aud!ments.4 5Di7on$ Travis 2.8
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HIST1700
These findin!s sho% that the %a the ne%s media portras and presents is also teachin! bias
and preAudice.
In conclusion %e can see ho% slaver has scarred our nation. "s %ell as the %a it has shaped
it. Ho% continued la%s$ bias and fear have in their o%n ri!ht continued the 3slaver tpe4 attitudes and
have in turn made resultin! stereotpes and s&e%ed opinions. "lso ho% these opinions are bein! tau!ht
to future !enerations throu!h the media. Sports$ movies$ commercials as %ell as the ne%s all teach this.
"n tpe of stereotpin! of an race should be non e7istent. "ll people should be able to move past
that and reali1e that there are stereotpes for everone no matter %hat race$ reli!ion or ethnicit ou
are. 6verone is different and %e are all Aust as capable at achievin! %hatever it is %e %ant to achieve.
-e all Aust need to !et past these stereotpes and move for%ard. I believe that "merica is finall
%a&in! up and reali1in! this. 'ut %e need to start enforcin! and actin! on this. Then and onl then %ill
thin!s be!in to be better and chan!ed.
There need to be a little more tolerance and understandin! bet%een all races. "s %ell as a clear
presentation and celebration of each individual race. "merica needs to unite under it(s differences and
push for%ard in all its pursuits. I believe there is a reason %e are called the 30nited4 States of "merica.
If %e can !o for%ard despite our mista&es and !ive everone the due respect the deserve I believe %e
can rid "merica of the preAudices and hate that has so lon! pla!ued it. 'ut it has to start in the la%s$ in
the !overnment and the media. Gnce those corruptions start$ %e can be!in a healin! and chan!in! of
mind sets.
Kamie Pearson
HIST1700
-or&s ,ited
H:im ,ro% 6ra.HJim Crow Era.4 C.p.$ n.d. -eb. 17 "pr. D01B.
Davidson$ :ames -est$ et al. Experience History: Interpreting America's Past. Vol. 2. Salt Lae
Comm!nity College. 'ostonI9cJra% Hill 2earnin! Solutions$ D011. Print.
Steele$ ,. 5D0108. -histlin! .ivaldi and other clues to ho% stereotpe threat affects us. Ce% Kor&I
Corton.
Steele$ ,$ F "ronson$ :. 51//)8. Stereotpe threat and the test performance of academicall
successful "frican "mericans. In ,. :enc&s F 9. Phillips 56ds.8$ The 'lac&<-hite test score
!ap 5pp. B01<BD78. -ashin!ton$ D,I 'roo&in!s
H69P2GK96CT.H"lac#emograp$icscom. C.p.$ n.d. -eb. 1) "pr. D01B.
Di7on$ Travis 2. 3%etwor& %ews an' (acial "elie)s: Exploring t$e Connection "etween %ational
*ele+ision& %ews Expos!re an' Stereotypical Perceptions o) A)rica Americans., :ournal of
,ommunication. :unD00)$ .ol. +) Issue D$ p>D1<>>7. 17p. + ,harts.
Hoberman$ :ohn. The Price of 3'lac& Dominance4. Societ. 9ar="prD000$ .ol. >7 Issue >$ pB/<+*. )p.
Kamie Pearson
HIST1700