Covert Racism - History in The U.S.

History in The U.S.

With a strong prevailing history of slavery in the United States, racism has always been an issue. The enslavement of millions of Africans along with the huge influx of immigrants throughout its history has not only allowed great diversity but has created racial segregation. With the abolition of slavery different forms of segregation were implemented including Jim Crow laws and the later American political structures which invited extreme segregation within cities and the suburbanisation of the white working and middle class. As overt and obvious racial discrimination became less and less apparent and illegal the idea that the nation was homogenizing became popular. It was thought that as the U.S. accepts more immigrants from different cultures a sort of "melting pot" will occur and unify everyone under one creed. Along with this, ideologies formed that every group of immigrants goes through the same discrimination. Groups were thought to eventually assimilate, but racism remained and is still present today. Covert racism was and is still used to oppress everyone from Irish, Italian, White, Black, and Asian groups.

Another covert racial problem occurred when most of the black G.I.s returning from the war were denied money promised to them to go to school or buy a house. There were estimates that 25% of soldiers, serving in Vietnam were black, but anecdotal evidence were much higher. Black servicemen were likely to re-enlist at twice the rate of their white counterparts in the Navy, Marine Corps and Airforce and three times the rate in the Army. Not for any sense of adventure, they found the monetary rewards better compared to their home country and they were treated as equals or near equals.