What is aversive racism?

Marked racism, easy to identify, with social evolution and the enhancement of image has given rise to a new type of racism. In this article we talk about its origin and the factors that sustain it over time.

Racism, and specifically, aversive racism, is usually identified with racial discrimination, although These two concepts do not necessarily mean the same thing.

Racism is positive racial prejudice (praise, feeling of superiority) towards a specific race, usually your own. However, racial discrimination is the expression of negative prejudice (marginalization or humiliation) towards one or several different races.

Xenophobia or racism are somehow inherent attitudes in society. But why? Next, we develop the concept and social implications of racism, and specifically aversive racism, especially present in today’s society.

Why does racism exist?

One of the most common causes that explain racism can be found in the fear of what is different. Due to ignorance or lack of information in this regard, we tend to reject and underestimate what is not close to us.

On the other hand, predominates the formation of one’s own personality. Based on education received, As well as the constant influence of close opinions, it greatly affects the way we understand and perceive what is foreign.

People learn through generalization. Since we are little, we classify the world and its elements. In this way, if indicators such as nationality or religion are used to relate people, stereotypes and prejudices end up creating around specific individuals that finally generalize to their groups of belonging.

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In the end, you learn to separate people according to the group to which they belong. And the individual is given characteristics associated with his collective, almost nullifying his own personality. In this way, effects such as self-fulfilling prophecy occur, based on confirmation bias.

aversive racism

During the Second World War, the world witnessed of the racism of the so-called “Aryan race”, together with racial discrimination against other ethnic groups, with disastrous consequences. Another example is what happened during the Apartheid period. It is true that Such explicit racism has declined during the 21st century. However, this does not mean that it is not still widespread.

In 1986, sociologists Samuel Gaertner and John F. Dovidio explained the existence of a type of racism with origins in our history: aversive racism.

aversive racism externalizes two trends that are especially widespread in the white race today. The first, the survival of many prejudices against different minority ethnicities. Prejudices that would have been transmitted subtly and often unintentionally by institutions and people with the capacity to influence.

The second trend would be simultaneous belief of whites not to be racist, because “they have learned and evolved.” That is, the whites They tend to sustain prejudices unconsciously.

However, in this case they do not refer to any type of genetic predominance or explicit hatred, but rather maintain a belief of superiority in other dimensions such as cultural or ethical dimensions. In fact, the aversive racist usually fervently defends the equality of all races and justice.

How does aversive racism manifest itself in society?

The problem with this attitude is that the person who develops it, truly, He doesn’t realize he’s experiencing it. Mainly, because aversive racism only manifests itself in situations in which one interacts with members of other ethnicities or groups.

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Interracial contact generates some discomfort in these people. For example, passing a gypsy on the street at night, in a white aversive racist, would not generate the same feeling as if he crossed paths with another white person. What happens is that this discomfort is not generated only by the negative prejudices instilled, but also because of this person’s need to show himself as a “non-racist.”

So, and The treatment towards people of other races in these cases tends to be very careful, sometimes erring on the side of exaggeration in this sense. And this, in the end, is also a kind of discrimination. Race, religion or nationality once again prevails over one’s own personality.

As they say, “The blank page begins to be written very quickly”. We are not born racist, but we do learn to be racist. Children, from a very young age, already differentiate who are the people close to them and who are not. Everything else develops as a result of this first separation.

Thus, work on diversity and inclusion From the moment children begin to understand it is essential. If a person is born, grows up, and forges their personality in an environment that normalizes and embraces all types of families, races, or religions, it will be difficult for this type of racist prejudice to develop.