ABSTRACT
This study was intended to examine the impact of racism and discrimination on black lives in foreign countries using George Floyd’s Black Lives Matter as the case study. This study was guided by the following objectives; to examine the psychological distress among African Americans exposed to stressful life events and race-related stress, and to examine the implications of racism and discrimination on the living condition of black lives living in foreign countries. The study employed the descriptive and explanatory design; online questionnaires to Blacks living in foreign countries in addition to online research were applied in order to collect data. Primary and secondary data sources were used and data was analyzed using the chi-square statistical tool at 5% level of significance which was presented in frequency tables and percentage. The study findings revealed that racism and discrimination have significant impact on every citizen and non-citizen of a country; based on the findings from the study, citizens of any county should decist from every form of discrimination as every life, including black lives mater.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study
Police were called to the Cup Foods store on the corner of 38th Street and Chicago Avenue in Minneapolis on May 25 — Memorial Day — on a report of a man who was using fake bills to buy a pack of cigarettes, according to the 911 transcript. The caller tells a dispatcher they asked the man to return the cigarettes he bought but that the man is “drunk and not in control of himself” and refuses to give back the cigarettes.
According to Friday’s criminal complaint, Officers Derek Chauvin and his partner Tou Thao arrived at the scene as two other officers, Thomas Lane and J.A. Kueng, were trying to get Floyd into the back of a squad car. Floyd said he was claustrophobic and didn't want to get in the car, and that he complained of not being able to breathe even while he was standing up. Floyd “took himself to the ground” while handcuffed at 8:19 p.m., according to the charging document. That's when Chauvin placed his knee on Floyd's head and neck area while Floyd was lying prone on the pavement. A bystander recorded the incident and streamed it on Facebook. Floyd can be heard telling the officer he couldn’t breathe and onlookers could be heard imploring Chauvin to let Floyd up.
In the second decade of the twenty-first century, several sociopolitical developments in western democracies have suggested the resurgence of overt racism. Many social commentators initially heralded the 2008 election of US president Barack Obama – the country’s first African American president – as the culmination of a centuries-long struggle for full inclusion of racial/ethnic minorities. Yet, Obama’s presidency did little to alleviate racial inequalities in housing, education, and employment. Antiracist movements, such as the Movement for Black Lives, emerged to highlight ongoing issues related to the devaluation of black people, including state-sanctioned police brutality which has been disproportionately targeted at African Americans. Meanwhile, the 2016 US presidential election only served to legitimate resurgent white supremacy: US president Donald Trump and his supporters engaged in widespread racist, anti-immigrant, and anti-Muslim rhetoric, and the number of reported hate crimes targeted at racial, ethnic, sexual, and religious minorities subsequently increased (Levin, 2017).
These developments are not limited to the United States. In Austria, France, Germany, Greece, and elsewhere, far right, anti-immigrant political parties have enjoyed electoral gains. In the United Kingdom, the 2016 “Brexit” vote (for Britain’s exit from the European Union) was split across racial and ethnic lines. And, in Canada, where government rhetoric often focuses on embracing diversity and inclusion, indigenous/settler inequalities mirror black/white inequalities in the United States. In 2018, for instance, an all-white jury in Saskatchewan found a white farmer not guilty in the killing of 22-year-old Cree man Colten Boushie, whom he had shot in the head with a handgun. The role of the law in legitimating this racialized killing in Canada has much in common with the killing (with impunity) of Trayvon Martin as well as the many black, Latino, and indigenous youth and adults in the United States who have been killed by the police.
With such events in mind, social scientists today are grappling with such urgent and vital questions as: How, why, and to what extent is overt racism returning? What accounts for the resurgence of white supremacist movements? And how are racialized nonwhite groups and allies responding? To place these questions in context, this entry provides an overview of major sociological theories of racism and shifts in the framing of racism over three historical periods in western democracies, with a focus on North America: (1) the early colonial and Jim Crow eras, (2) the civil rights and “post racial” eras, and (3) the current post-post racial era.
Violence against black and brown bodies has deep and inextricable roots in the history of the United States. Frequently, it is these stories of brutal and public physical violence that capture the most media attention and therefore spark the deepest outrage among a broader population. However, it is important to note a few important points. First, the stories of Emmett Till, Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Sandra Bland, and other black people whose names make national headlines do not begin and end with their deaths, though that is often the only part of their stories told in the media. Each of these people had life stories and contexts beyond what is publicized and they should not be separated from those contexts. Second, it is important to note that there are thousands more black lives taken at the hands of racist violence than the stories that make it into the media. Third, we must recognise that violence is constantly landing on black and brown bodies, even when the cameras are not rolling and even when that harm is not immediately outwardly visible.
This is the violence that is enacted between people and within structures and institutions that result in real mental and physical effects on people of colour. Countless studies identify racial inequities between blacks and whites across a number of different health outcomes, including rates of infant mortality, life expectancy, depressive symptoms, and cancer. These inequities cannot be traced to any biological or genetic difference across races (Yudell, Roberts, DeSalle and Tishkoff 2016) but instead have been shown to be attributable, in large part, to the multiple effects of the experience of racism. Using the framework of black theological thought on the body, this paper will identify the many ways that racism falls upon the black body across multiple domains and levels throughout history, and how black theology can inform churches’ anti-racist response to this violence today.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
The concern of every nation is to improve the standard of living of the citizens and foreigners living in the country. Due to some challenges being faced by an individual in his/her country, recent research has suggested the need for change of environment either by rural – urban migration, inter-city migration or inter countries migration. There are trepidations in the achievement of an improved standard of living in other countries due to various challenges being faced by migrants by the host countries. In light of this, the study will examine the Interplay between migration, xenophobia and racism and will also shed more light on the causes of xenophobia towards migrants in host countries. There will also be verification on the implications for new socio-economic consciousness in the diaspora as a proffering and lasting solution to xenophobia and other forms of racial discrimination in African countries and beyond.
1.3 Objectives of the Study
The main objective of this study is to determine the impact of racism and discrimination on black lives in foreign countries.
Specific objectives include;
- To evaluate the impact of racism on the black lives in foreign countries
- To determine the measures which the black countries put in place for the lives of their citizens in the foreign countries
- To find out if racism is of gender base of black lives in foreign countries
- To proffer a possible solutions to the racism and discrimination on black lives in foreign countries.
1.4 Research Questions
- What is the impact of racism on the black lives in foreign countries?
- Are there measures the black countries put in place to save the lives of their citizens in the foreign countries?
- Does racism is of gender base of black lives in foreign countries?
- Can there be any possible solutions to the racism and discrimination on black lives in foreign countries?
1.5 Research Hypotheses
Hypothesis I
H0: There is no significant impact of racism on the black lives in foreign countries
Hi: There is a significant impact of racism on the black lives in foreign countries
Hypothesis II
Hi: There are measures the black countries put in place to save the lives of their citizens in the foreign countries
Hypothesis III
H0: Racism is of no gender base of black lives in foreign countries
Hi: Racism is of gender base of black lives in foreign countries
1.6 Significance of the Study
This study will be of immense benefit to other researchers who intend to know more on this study and can also be used by non-researchers to build more on their research work. This study contributes to knowledge and could serve as a guide for other study.
1.7 Scope of the Study
This study was intended to examine the impact of racism and discrimination on black lives in foreign countries using George Floyd’s Black Lives Matter as the case study. This study was guided by the following objectives; to examine the psychological distress among African Americans exposed to stressful life events and race-related stress, and to examine the implications of racism and discrimination on the living condition of black lives living in foreign countries.
1.8 Limitations of the study
The demanding schedule of respondents at work made it very difficult getting the respondents to participate in the survey. As a result, retrieving copies of questionnaire in timely fashion was very challenging. Also, the researcher is a student and therefore has limited time as well as resources in covering extensive literature available in conducting this research. Information provided by the researcher may not hold true for all organizations but is restricted to the selected organization used as a study in this research especially in the locality where this study is being conducted.
Financial constraint: Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).
Finally, the researcher is restricted only to the evidence provided by the participants in the research and therefore cannot determine the reliability and accuracy of the information provided.
1.9 Definition of Terms
Racism: a belief or doctrine that inherent differences among the various human racial groups determine cultural or individual achievement, usually involving the idea that one's own race is superior and has the right to dominate others or that a particular racial group is inferior to the others.
- a policy, system of government, etc., based upon or fostering such a doctrine; discrimination.
- hatred or intolerance of another race or other races.
Discrimination: In its most literal sense, discrimination is the act of making a distinction between one thing and other. Discrimination is the unequal or unfair treatment of a person based upon some personal characteristic. It is important to note that not all forms of discrimination are illegal.
Black Lives: a political and social movement originating among African Americans, emphasizing basic human rights and racial equality for black people and campaigning against various forms of racism.Foreign Countries: any state of which one is not a citizen; “working in a foreign country takes a bit of getting used to
