Wiki Page, Multicultural Diversity in the Workplace for the Tourism Professional: 5.1 Topic 1 Definition and Examples of Racial Discrimination-2

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2021-08-30T22:16:48+08:00

Definition of Racial Discrimination

Forms of Racial Discrimination

Types of Racial Discrimination

Definition of Racial Discrimination

Race can mean someone’s color, nationality or citizenship. It can also mean a person’s ethnic or national origins, which may not be the same as the person’s current nationality. It also covers ethnic and racial groups. This means a group of people who all share the same protected characteristic of ethnicity or race.

Treating someone unfavorably because he/she is of a certain race or because of personal characteristics associated with race such as hair texture, skin color, or certain facial features is racial discrimination. It occurs when an individual is treated differently base on their actual or perceived race.

Equality and Human Rights Commission (2018). What is race discrimination? | Equality law: discrimination explained

Racial discrimination also includes discrimination based upon skin color. Color discrimination involves treating someone unfavorably because of skin color complexion. It is a kind of discrimination based upon one's pigmentation, complexion, or skin shade (lightness, darkness) or tone. It can occur between persons of different races or ethnicities, or between persons of the same race or ethnicity.

Forms of Racial Discrimination

Racial discrimination can be experienced by the person in a varied form. In its most blatant way racial discrimination can take place as a result of stereotyping, prejudice and bias. However, most often than not racial discrimination occurs through subtle forms of differential treatment.

Overt prejudice, hostility or negative feelings held by someone about a racialized person or group are the common reason racial discrimination may occur. Unfortunately, people are still not treated fairly, such as by being refused a job or promotion, simply because of overt bias towards them based on race and related grounds.

Stereotyping usually involves attributing the same characteristics to all members of a group, regardless of individual differences. People may experience racial discrimination because of stereotyping usually based on misconceptions, incomplete information and/or false generalizations about a certain racial or ethnic group.

Racial profiling is a form of stereotyping that has particular implications for racialized persons. Rather than relying on reasonable facts or arguments, racial profiling is any action undertaken for reasons of safety, security or public protection that relies on stereotypes about race, color, ethnicity, ancestry, religion or place of origin to single out an individual for greater scrutiny or different treatment.

The most common ways racialized people experience unequal treatment are through subtle and subversive discrimination. Subtle forms of discrimination can often only be detected upon examining all of the circumstances. Comparing how a racialized person was treated with how others were treated in a comparable situation, or looking for patterns of behavior will help to determine whether there is subtle discrimination.

There are many examples of subtle forms of racial discrimination in employment. It can take the form of failing to hire, train, mentor or promote a racialized person. Racialized persons may find themselves subjected to excessive performance monitoring or may be more seriously blamed for a common mistake. And, normal differences of opinion or failing to get along with a co-worker may be treated as more serious when a racialized person is involved.

Types of Racial Discrimination

There are four main types of race discrimination: (1) Direct, (2) Indirect, (3) harassment and (4) victimization.

Direct discrimination happens when someone treats someone worse than another person in a similar situation just because of the person’s race. While indirect discrimination happens when an organization or company has a particular policy or way of working that puts people of a certain racial group at a disadvantage.

Sometimes indirect race discrimination can be permitted if the organization or employer is able to show to show that there is a good reason for the discrimination. This is known as objective justification.

However, harassment occurs when someone feels humiliated, offended or degraded by an action. Harassment can never be justified only if an organization or employer can show it did everything it could to prevent people who work for it from behaving like that.

Finally, victimization is when a person is treated badly because he/she have made a complaint of race related discrimination. It can also occur if a person is supporting someone who has made a complaint of race related discrimination.

Watch the video "Racial Discrimination? Know your rights" to have a broader perspective about the forms and kinds racial discrimination.