Between the World and Me

Racial chasm refers to how people of different races, cultures, and ethnic backgrounds are treated differently in society due to race. “Chasm,” or divide, points to the differing allocation of resources based on a community’s racial identity.

These terms refer to the historical, cultural, economic, and legal systems in place in the United States that routinely benefit white people over people of color, amassing power and privilege for white people and leaving other racial and ethnic groups with chronically less resources.

Racial justice is a call for equity in all levels of society. In addition to antiracist behavior, this means advocating for a restructuring of the systems that hold people of color at a disadvantage in the eyes of US law and economic and educational policy. The aim of this restructuring is to support, sustain, and measure racial equity to close the racial chasm that results in adverse outcomes for people of color, such as generational poverty, mass incarceration, and environmental degradation.

Racial profiling is the practice of targeting people of color for alleged criminal activity due to their race. According to the ACLU, racial profiling is in direct violation of the US Constitution, which vows equal protection under the law.

White privilege is the inherent social, economic, and political advantages given to white people purely on the basis of race, resulting in racial injustice and inequity for other members of society.

White supremacy is the belief that white people are superior to people of nonwhite races and cultures. It is reflected in political, economic, and cultural systems controlled by white people, and it is the means by which white people retain the majority of material resources. Notions of white supremacy can be communicated consciously or unconsciously to perpetuate white dominance in several social systems and community settings.

Political consciousness refers to a commitment to understanding and striving for equal human rights and justice within social, political, and economic institutions and values.

The “one-drop rule” was a Jim Crow-era legal status that classified anyone with “one drop” of African ancestry as African American. These individuals therefore had limited legal rights.