what is racism

What is racism? It's a very difficult question that I have pondered for quite a while. After our class discussion, it occurred to me that racism was in fact much more complicated than just the definition of the word. After class, I had made up my own definition, or my own understanding, of the words true meaning. I feel that racism is any form of making a race inferior, whether that be by hate crimes, stereotypes, etc. Anything that singles out a race should be considered racism. But, based on this definitions, it should not necessarily be the loaded word that it is made out to be. Of course if you are a member of the KKK, you are racist and violent, and the racism you show is extreme. If you say someone is good at math because they are asian, it is minor racism, but racism none the less. But, in this case, it is not as serious as the previous example, leading me to believe that there are multiple forms of racism, multiple levels. These levels are all based upon the amount of hate a person has toward a particular racial group. A minor racist, such as in the story, believes what he or she does based upon the hatred of others and the beliefs of society. This person's beliefs come from hatred, but he or she does not actually hate the race. A person with a lot of hatred does individually hate that race, and often will act out against them and commit hate crimes. There is a reason why the word hate is used in hate crimes, which are acts of racism. The two words are connected. I believe that there is always hate in racism, whether it is subconscious or evident. The two go hand in hand, and the level of each varies based upon how evident they are in each person. Thus, racism is a radical form of hatred that has many different levels beginning with stereotyping and ending with hate crimes and radical action. Racism is very broad and should not be confined to just people like the KKK. Racism is common today with the stereotyping of African Americans and other races or minorities. Thus, racism is truly much more broad than the actual definition of the word implies.