Musings on racism and #blm

“Racism can be defined as a personal or collective fear of losing identity and the power that comes with it, to a target group of persons misjudged as inferior and threatening. 

Their common physical characteristics become a mental generalization, a bias, and a tactic to identify the imaginary threat. Racism is divisive and supports the construction of systems designed to qualify people as superior, worthy, successful, and their respective opposites.

Most humans experienced feeling inferior; we identify and repudiate being judged that way; inferiority quickly becomes a belief. 

Objectifying others as different or inferior might create an illusion of separation: we versus them. That objectification is dangerous because it can be used as an argument to justify violence.

Empowerment happens when an individual or a collective decides not to feel inferior despite their identity or their current circumstances. Empowered people and empowered communities inspire confidence and resilience and are capable of creating the conditions for change and development.” — Jose Antonio Morales.

Note: Although my musings might seem like an imitation of a dictionary definition, they represent a reasoning process. I’m trying to find the root cause of the problem, not in history but the present.