Changes in American Policy Towards Minority Groups

While American society is far from perfect, and socioeconomic and racial injustices sadly remain a significant aspect of our culture, amazing strides have been made in the last fifty years in terms of working to ameliorate these grave issues. We recognize that from an outside perspective it may seem as though minority rights are not an important issue within our nation, but we can assure you that given the massive scope of past and present social change within our country in recent times nothing could be further from the truth. We still have a long way to go, but an examination of the progress of the last fifty years clearly illustrates our country’s deep and ongoing commitment to the improved treatment of minority groups.

Until recently minorities in much of the country were segregated from their white counterparts and unable to vote or take part in the political process, as a result of local legislation known as Jim Crow Laws. This was an abominable and shameful practice, but in recent years we have acted at the highest levels of our government to abolish these policies. As Tsahai Tafari states, “The final and decisive law that effectively ended the legal practice of Jim Crow was the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965...Jim Crow had lost the support of the federal government in its all aspects of segregation and discrimination.” As you can see, our national government has done everything in its power in recent years to eliminate the aspects of racial discrimination that plague our society. Although there is much work still to be done, we have clearly demonstrated a commitment to stamping out this scourge and will continue to do so in the future. Furthermore, we have demonstrated a desire and commitment to end racial inequality not just in legislation, but in the socio-economic conditions that allow it to take root.

In recent years we in the United States have adopted a vigorous campaign to eliminate the economic inequality that allows for unequal treatment of minority groups. As President Johnson himself stated, “The Great Society rests on abundance and liberty for all. It demands an end to poverty and racial injustice, to which we are totally committed in our time.” The fact that the leader of our nation has publicly and unequivocally called for the end of not only racial discrimination but the poverty that contributes to it demonstrates the degree of our seriousness about addressing this important issue. Furthermore, these domestic changes have brought about a great degree of change in our foreign policy as well.

The increased role of minorities in our political process in recent years has undeniably brought a more progressive outlook to our nation’s foreign policy. As Alexander DeConde states, only “with the rise of the civil rights movement did the ‘colored’ minorities become part of a broader pluralism that permitted them a voice in foreign policy issues...As these racial pluralists became involved, they more and more questioned the Euro-American dominance of the policymaking institutions.” Clearly, we are making great strides on the front of foreign policy as the inclusion of minorities helps to erode our preconceived notions about international politics. The progress we have made domestically in the area of racial injustice has undoubtedly opened us to a more enlightened view of foreign politics.

While we certainly understand your trepidation about American policies towards race and minorities, given our history, we can assure you that as much is being done on that front as possible. In recent years we have abolished discriminatory legislative practices, worked to end poverty that contributes to racial inequality and overhauled our foreign policy to become less ethnocentric. While our work is far from over, we hope you are able to recognize the progress we have made and our commitment to future change.

Bibliography

DeConde, Alexander. Ethnicity, Race, and American Foreign Policy: A History. Boston: Northeastern University Press, 1992.

Johnson, Lyndon. "The Great Society, U. Michigan, 1964." PBS. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/primary-resources/lbj-michigan/ (accessed December 5, 2013).

Tafari, Tsahai. "The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow." PBS. http://www.pbs.org/wnet/jimcrow/print/p_struggle_congress.html (accessed December 5, 2013).