ENGL 160
25-10-2017
Social Tensions in America
Persistent inequality in a society leads to social tension. Race, finances, gender relations, political leanings, ideologies all contribute to social tension which can tear apart the fabric of a society. In America, rising inequalities have caused serious social tensions over the years. “As of 2015, relative to the average hourly wages of white men with the same education, experience, metro status, and region of residence, black men make 22.0 percent less, and black women make 34.2 percent less. Black women earn 11.7 percent less than their white female counterparts (Wilson & Rodgers III 2016).”
“Latinas in the United States are typically paid just 54 cents for every dollar paid to white, non-Hispanic men (National Partnership, 2017).”
Reports from NAACP and the Guardian point out to the high incarceration (5 times higher) among black men compared to white and hispanic men ( NAACP 2016, Puglise 2016). Black men shot by cops were more likely to be unarmed when fatally shot compared to white men. Civilians from other minority groups were also less likely to have been attacking police officers when fatally shot (Nix et al 309, Johnston 2017)). CNN reported in August that nine major US cities were braced for protests from far right groups. These numbers reported by civil rights organizations, reporters and researchers point to a dangerous trend in the US society. It shows that the American society is unequal, discriminatory and divisive. The slew of protests by immigrants, black rights activists, white nationalists and far right activists is a result of the simmering tensions between the different racial groups as well as long held ideas of racial and sexual discrimination. It was only in the 1960’s that the civil rights movement was successful in abolishing institutional racism and segregation in the south. More than five decades later segregation has gone but racial discrimination still exists. It exists in the job markets, housing segment as well as the criminal justice system. Rescinding the protection given to illegal immigrants by the current government has put thousands of lives in limbo.
Social tensions arise when there is continued institutional discrimination, inherent racism, economic slowdown and overt or covert support for far right groups from the political establishment as well as from certain sections of the society. When the economy is in a downfall or inequalities keep getting higher, the race for the scarce resources are higher. There are fewer jobs to go around and less pay to deal with. In such conditions, it becomes easier for one group to blame another and demonize them. Although most of the immigrants who work below the minimum wage without job security or benefits pose no serious threat to the majority of the population, there has been a tendency to vilify them and accuse them of taking American jobs away. Highly qualified immigrants from Asian countries have also been targets of hate attacks in recent times. Added to thee are the attacks against muslims after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Social tensions peak when job security has become a mirage, pay has stagnated and the ‘other’ gets demonised. Economic turmoil has been an underlying cause in creating social tension in the United States.
Consistent policies of successive governments, both republican and democratic have supported free market policies as well as big businesses, resulting in massive job losses in many industries. Unions have been systemically broken across the country bringing down the wages and doing away with thousands of manufacturing jobs in many states. Government policies such as these increase the insecurity as well as paranoia among the population with anyone becoming a threat to their existence. Economic growth, a robust job market and a paycheck that keeps in time with the inflation could go along way in dealing with the social tension. But economic growth could only do so much to deal with persistent problems such as racism and gender bias. A much needed change that has to be brought about in the country is in the media and the law enforcement field. Law enforcement officers need to be trained to act calm under difficult situations and effectively assess the threat perception. Inherent racism in the departments will only serve to increase racial biases and hence work has to be done among law enforcement agencies and officers. The media also plays an important role in furthering stereotypes and preconceived notions. Mainstream media still does not have an equal representation of the various racial groups in the country. Stereotyping and cultural appropriation is still a norm in many areas. Most big budget movies still feature a white, cis gender male as the protagonist. Women, people of color and LGBTQ community are vastly underrepresented. With violence and terrorist attacks around the world being covered extensively, fear and paranoia sets in against a particular religion or group. Hyping up certain events over and over again and taking a narrow perspective in terms of reporting also furthers ideas that have already been set.
A responsible media, an overhaul of government policies, housing markets and bringing back industries are some of the immediate measures that the government can take to deal with the rising social tensions in the country. There are no immediate or magical solutions to end social tensions, but they can be worked on and dealt with in a steady manner if there is a sustained call for social change. People need to be sensitized to racial discrimination and made aware of the privileges they get because of their race and gender. Only when change comes from the individual and the community level can changes happen at the national level. Although divisive politics can bring in support and power in the short term, it is a bad policy to follow in the long term as persecution of certain segments of the population will have a ripple effect and bring down the growth and development of the country. Fallouts from social tension will also increase the burden on the state and lead to a situation where the country is in constant conflict. Responsible leadership and a overhaul of economic and social policies are some ways through which social tension can be dealt with.