Ask Freddie: “Why Does Racism Still Exist?”

“Ask Freddie” is a monthly advice column where Freddie, DoSomething’s Director of Mobile Messaging, answers anonymous questions from DoSomething members. The topics are always different -- the answers are always REAL. Are you seeking advice? Ask Freddie an anonymous question.

Happy Friday, friends!

I’m getting ready to head into a long weekend in celebration of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, this coming Monday, January 21. I just moved to Atlanta, the city Dr. King is from, so I wanted to take some time to connect myself to the history of the city and to the real reason behind the national holiday.

Dr. King is considered one of the most important (though certainly not the only) modern activist who helped lead the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 60s and paved the way for those fighting for racial equality today. Thinking about Dr. King and the holiday reminded me of a question a DoSomething member sent me a while ago: Why does racism still exist today?

This question is so important because there are many misconceptions that racism no longer exists since we’ve abolished slavery, ended laws that enforce segregation, and elected a black president. There are very real ways that racism is institutionalized today, problems that need our attention -- everything from mass incarceration to discrimination in healthcare.

To be completely honest, I haven’t answered this question yet because I wasn’t really sure how, and because I didn’t think I was the best person to answer it. As a white person, I do not experience racism, and in many ways, by shying away from taking a hard look at this question, I have contributed to upholding systems that allow racism to still exist through the implicit biases I carry (Take the implicit bias test to see how you may be unconsciously prejudiced). My whiteness allows me the privilege to not think about it. I hope you’ll allow me to be vulnerable in saying I still have a lot to learn, but it’s important as a white person (and I urge any of my white friends to join me) to do the work of educating ourselves and take direct action to see how we, as individuals and as a society, uphold the same racist systems Dr. King was fighting years ago.

Instead of having me try to answer this question, let’s leave it to the experts, specifically experts who are people of color. There is so much informative content out there. For example, I just started listening to the podcast Uncivil, which breaks down the history of the Civil War and centers around black histories, instead of white-centered narratives many of us were taught in school.

I also asked my coworkers on the DoSomething team for different resources to learn more about the history of racism in this country and why it still persists today. Here are some you should definitely check out:

• Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram Kendi
• 13th on Netflix
• “The Racial Wealth Gap” episode of Explained on Netflix
• The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander
• So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo
• “Why Racism isn’t Just A Southern Problem” on MTV’s Decoded

I highly encourage you to check out some of these this weekend -- I’ll be doing that too and would love to hear your thoughts and questions. Another thing you can do to honor Dr. King’s legacy this MLK Day: volunteer or do acts of service.

Love, Freddie