Some things to think about

Prejudice is an opinion formed before gathering information.

“Everyone is prejudiced, but not everyone is racist. To be prejudiced means to have opinions without knowing the facts . . . . to be racially prejudiced means to have distorted opinions about people of other races. Racism goes beyond prejudice. It is backed by power. Racism is the power to enforce one’s prejudices . . . . “ (Barndt, Dismantling racism: The challenge to White America, p. 28, as cited in Oglesby, 1998, p. 16)

Racism is about “actions, practices, and/or behaviors by members of socially dominant groups that have a differential and negative impact on members of socially subordinate groups” (Broman, 1997, p. 37)

Racism is a “doctrine of the congenital inferiority and worthlessness of a people” (Martin Luther King, Jr., 1968, p. 48 as cited in D’Souza, 1995, p. 27)

“Racism is demeaning to individuals and the nadir of social irresponsibility. Racism condones oppression and tramples on fundamental rights” (Marshall, 1973, pp. xi-xii).

Pierce contends that racism is lethal and a disease consisting of “an attitude, ideation, and behavior based on the assumption of the superiority of a white skin color” (as cited in Carter, 1994, p. 543)